Banner

Resist Logo

Hey guys thanks for taking to the time to speak to Cyber Angel's. How's things?

Mark-Things are good thanks ,we've had a pretty intense year so far, probably our busiest yet, and things don't look like they are gonna get any quieter anytime soon ,so yeah, all good!

Misha - Its been an insane year so far! After all the promotion of our debut album 'The Ride' on Remote/Sony in Germany we are now just settling down to write our follow up album before we hopefully tour Germany in November.

Lex – Doing good, its nice to have a break from doing so many gigs to sit down and write some new material, before some very important gigs later in the year and also next year.


For our readers who are unfamiliar with you, could you explain a bit about yourselves and what your all about?

Mark-We are a 5 piece electro Goth/rock band from Manchester, UK.
And we kick ass!

Lex – were all about having a good time and making some noise the more fucked up the better.

Misha - We've been together about 5 years now playing all over the U.K. Our sound is quite European. The U.K. is full of indie guitar jingle jangle nonsense and street poetry rap music. We wanted to present something a little darker, a little more intense that was also fun for us to perform.  Our live set-up is female vocals, 4 synths, heavy guitars bass and drums. I guess we are contemporary Goth but we never set out to fit into any particular genre it just sort of evolved that way.

Phil – We are Resist we play loud kick ass music that is like no other band in the UK. Our sound comes from many, many influences across the musical spectrum, and that is why we are so original. If our sound was put into a genre, and I don’t think it can be; it would be an Industrial, rock, gothic  electro sort of band. But there are also elements of dance music, metal music and some 80’s pop dare I say. Funny old world isn’t it ?

Resist

Your music has different elements to it, from industrial to metal. What influences you musically?

Mark-We all have quite varied tastes ,for me, growing up i loved the late 80s and 90s metal bands, ac/dc, def leppard, motley crue, you know the kind of thing...I suppose my taste has changed over the years ,or maybe its just expanded somewhat..We all share common ground in NINE INCH NAILS, musically and visually that is the pinnacle of all i would strive to achieve.

Lex – Every one of us has different musical inspirations, and I can never name a band that I particularly try to emulate, I just try to take the best from all genres and bands the dirty bass of grime and dub step the simple fast paced melodies or rock and roll and the distorted sounds of heavy metal and industrial music.

Misha - Yeah we are all NIN fans but we don't try to sound like them. I think we have our own style. We are very independently minded and we like to do our own thing.

Mark - Actually we got to meet NIN in Amsterdam in 2007,they played 2 nights at Paradiso and we did about 10 dates following them round Europe..
We came to Amsterdam and met Keith York, Ladytrons then drummer who were supporting NIN, outside a Journey gig the night before NIN were playing there.
I asked him what he was upto and he said he was meeting the guys from NIN to watch the journey show.It was sold out so i just asked him if we could tag along and to our amazement he said yes!So,we watched Journey in the VIP area with nineinchnails,watching them sing along to every word!Thats got to be a world exclusive - NIN dig Journey!

Phil – I get called a bit of an old hippy by some people but musical tastes vary from 70’s punk and rock music to blues, jazz, reggae and classic 60’s and 70’s soul music but my love is the darker side of music,  Punk bands like Dead Kennedys and Black Flag. (I  think Henry Rollins is an amazing poet)
NIN just hit every button in sick and emotive atmospheric music, that also swings into the realms of darkness plus the drums are so fucking cool it just does me on the spot. A mention of the godfather of the industrial electro scene and a huge influence on us all Gary Numan go see him you will see where our feel comes from.


You have a lot of lyrics for an industrial metal act, do you feel lyrics are just as important as the music?

Misha - TOTALLY! Lyrics have to mean something personally. I give a lot of myself to my lyrics. They are all true expressions of actual events in my life. Music is like therapy to me. I have to get it out or I'd self implode.

Phil – Lyrics have the power to induce fear, hate, love, passion, regret, desperation, joy and happiness, but more often they hit a personal memory or event that can affect us in the most extreme ways. Never underestimate the power of words to strike you where it counts. Misha can do that to you with her lyrics

Lex – Lyrics are what defines a song, with music and melodies on its own it can be interpreted depending on how you associate sounds to emotions but with lyrics your meaning is clear and you can induce any emotion in 1000 people at the same time making the experience that much more real.


Do you feel your personal lives influence the music and lyrics you write and vice versa?

Misha - Of course. A lot of the songs on 'The Ride' are about my battle with my addictive personality. I get very intense and obsessive about things, whether that is a positive emotion or something more destructive. I flip up and down extremes like a yo-yo. Its really hard work being me. Music helps me process it and bring it all together. 

Lex – only in a live setting if ive had a shitty day you’ll know about it because the faces of the people at the front will melt in a wave of uber loud bass.

Resist

How do you go about writing material? Do you have an idea and evolve it or does it just happen?

Misha - I usually just focus on an event or something that is fucking my head up and try to put into words and music. Sometimes the lyrics come first and sometimes the groove but it usually all kind of happens at the same time.

Phil – All songs are the personal experience or thoughts of Misha who writes them. It’s good to know that at least one of us is dysfunctional LMAO.

Lex – I try to take what misha tells me to play and completely change it one note or bar at a time without her noticing until its completely  different.


Your shows must be lively and full of energy, how do you prepare for live shows? Any superstitious routines?

Mark-Dont know about any superstitious routines, but it can be quite a frantic hour before we go on, usually the last thing we do is write a set list because we like to judge what to play by the venue and type of crowd we expect..
We are normally just about to go on only to find Lex missing, either at the local pizza place or in the toilet!?!

Lex – hey! Toilet before, pizza afterwards…. Not superstitious just common sense :P

Misha - :) I usually stress for the first 30 seconds of a song whilst I get used to the on-stage sound then I relax and give it all I've got. We have so much fun on stage. I used to be really nervous before a gig and on stage until one night about three months in  we got heckled. They shouted 'get your tits out' or something. I thought 'what a bunch of ignorant knob jockeys!' It made me laugh and think 'fuck you'. I wasn't scared any more of what people thought. I don't care if people love me or hate me. I feel really free on stage to do what the fuck I like. If you dig it, great, but there will always be people who don't get it, that's probably because they are wankers and they listen to complete and utter drivel. Each to their own and all that! As long as we have fun then the majority of the audience always appreciate it! We know we kick ass! If you don't get it then its your problem not ours! Anyway my preparation is usually 1 bottle of cider which is pretty lame really!

Phil – I have never worried about being on stage, preparing to be on stage or any rituals that appertain to being on stage, I know that the other members of Resist are just as solid and reliable when it comes to live shows, why the need to be nervous with people like my friends in Resist to keep the music at its usual ass kicking standard.


A lot have mixed feelings on music and the internet, what are your views on music downloads of bands and music streaming? Are you for or against it?

Lex – I think that to stem the flow of piracy on the internet is lunacy, as much as Im against it I must admit it is easier to expand your musical horizons when you don’t have to pay for it, so yeah music to enjoy on the bus or at home should be free, but you should support bands by going to see them live and buying a t-shirt.

Mark - My view is it has changed the industry and there's little or nothing i can do about it.
Giving your music away and earning by touring seems to be the way forward from what i can see..

Misha - There's not a lot of money in this game compared to how it used to be. The majors companies and corporations have a lot of control over what we are exposed to and nobody likes to think outside of the box. Well fuck them, we're not in it for the money, we're in it for the music. Independant labels really struggle financially because they can't afford expensive radio and media exposure. The internet is great for free undeground and alternative music exposure. Having said that, someone once said to me, 'oh I can't afford your album but I'm going to download it from Limewire' and I thought - what a fuckwit!

Phil – There has been so much press regarding music and the INTERNET I have a view and I think there is more, good to internet music than bad.  The availability of music is made easier by the use of downloading and online purchasing. The access to the world market for new, unsigned or not the major company choice in style bands is marvellous and I would never dream of stopping it, streaming videos and music are an easy way to get your music to the people you want to buy it.
As a marketing and promotional tool. It takes the tools of the A&R people and splays them wide open for the mere mortal normal people like us to have and use. I only have one gripe with the internet and music business and that is illegal downloading, the Artist isn’t benefitting from this activity. Fuck the cut the Majors get they should be happy to get a nominal fee. There should be more of an even cut for artists in the royalties and sales payments.

Resist

What's next in store for Resist?

Phil – Eventually we are planning world domination LMAO, but we need to wow all the European countries and impress them well, but not a problem you will all love Resist.

Mark-We are currently in talks to come over to Europe at the end of the year, and will be on the festival circuit next year, just been confirmed for Prey Silence festival 2011 in Lisbon Portugal. We also shoot our new video for Zombie Freaks this month, a charity single for Zombie aid 2010..
We have dates with The Birthday Massacre and Leather Strip coming up also.
And we are trying hard to squeeze in writing sessions for the follow up to The Ride in between..


Any last words for our readers?

Mark-If you haven’t heard of us yet, check us out, you might just like what you hear!

Lex – go to our website facebook myspace or whatever find out when our next gig is and get down there….

Misha - Hey, a lot of 'The Ride' is actually inspired by my experiences in The Netherlands. I'd really appreciate some feedback from a Dutch perspective. We hope to play their soon and also we are working on other gigs across Europe so watch out for us coming your way. Our live show especially is something not to be missed!

Phil – Well what can I say?  You need to be ready to take in the delicious spectacle that is Resist.  We will be there in Europe later this year and next year but in the meantime check us out on:

www.myspace.com/resistmusicuk

Facebook

This interview is made by Acid Angel