Who are Virgins o.r Pigeons?
Pierrot- Virgins O.R Pigeons are a trio from Greece with Sitras on the raging vocals & guitars, EL on live programming and synthesizers and myself on the calmer vocal parts & guitars. Although both me and Sitras present ourselves as guitarists and singers, what actually happens is that when performing live, we always mix things up trading the role of the singer with that of the guitarist.
How did you come up with the band name?
Pierrot- We came up with the band's name in a period when we used to spend quite some time thinking and arguing about social problems, politics and how every single religion has been a source of fanaticism that causes so many horrible things in this bizarre/stupid world. So somewhere between reading and arguing we came across a quote by Aleister Crowley from the journal Equinox that stated "We place no reliance on virgins or pigeons, our method is science, our aim is religion". That's when all arguments stopped and just quietly agreed that this was the right angle that unites our beliefs and we should fuse it somehow into our music. The first song we ever wrote is "On virgins or pigeons", our first album is called "Place no reliance" and we are Virgins O.R Pigeons.
Your music has quite a contrast, how do you find the balance between keeping a track aggressive or keeping it down tempo?
Pierrot- We don't work in patterns or use some particular technique in achieving that and I don't believe in what some might say "the right formula".
I label a full length album as "well balanced" when I can keep listening without feeling the need to press "next" on my cd player. I usually start either with a catchy vocal melody or a bass line that keeps playing on my mind and take things from there. But personal taste is what takes a song to its final stage, which is something totally subjective.
EL- Well, it isn’t something that we do on purpose. I mean there isn’t a standard recipe we use to create a VOP song. Every time is different. Sometimes we come up with a song that is more aggressive and some coming up with slower and down tempo ideas. It depends on how we feel the exact moment when composing a song’s main structure.
Pierrot- Well, I thought this question can be easily answered but honestly I don't know. Once I started working as a producer, dealing with a variety of music genres and having a heavy metal background, any specific influences I might have added in Virgins O.R Pigeons so far are mixed together and is quite difficult to separate. Bands like Nitzer Ebb, Wumpscut, Garbage, Morbid Angel are some of few I kept listening to since I was a kid but as you can obviously notice each one of those are totally different from each other and have little or no influence to the music we write.
EL- Growing up in a musical environment with my father as a radio owner, I had access to many music genres and countless artists. But it is really difficult for me to locate the specific ones that influenced me… That would be impossible! Everything that I’ve listened so far has been an influence in a way or an other. Combining all those with each member’s musical tastes, you have the sound of Virgins O.R Pigeons.
Your based in Greece and you recently signed with Alfa Matrix who are based in Belgium, how did that come about?
Pierrot- You know… that's a damn good question! I think I'll have to ask them at some point. But I think the reason is "Endzeit Bunkertracks III&IV". We obviously got their attention when we submitted songs to their sequel compilation and I think afterwards it was all about timing. Our contract with our former label Darkest Labyrinth was reaching its end and that's when we got an offer from Alfa Matrix, which led to a contract.
How do people in Greece react to you compared to the rest of Europe?
Pierrot- The Greek music industry, where tradition and a certain way of life are big factors, were not making things easier for neither us nor any other daring alternative artist. But we have managed to attract more people than expected, building a steadily growing fan base which supports the band and we are very happy for that (thank you everyone!). So apart from our language, maybe lifestyle and the way media accept us there are no big differences in comparison to the rest of Europe.
EL- There are so many countries with so many different cultures which affects everything. There are places like Finland, Bulgaria, Turkey and France for example, where fans are extrovert. They get crazy during every show and always go after the band for autographs, take pictures and hang out with us. And there are other countries where people have a different point of view about partying. In Greece things are going better than expected. Although this kind of music is not yet so popular in Greece, many people come to our shows and we receive surprisingly unique reactions. I think there was a sold out show once which is rare for an industrial band in Greece and if you take into consideration that all local bands play most of their shows in front of 50 to 70 people, this is quite something. It really means a lot to us!
You experiment with digital and analogue sounds on your records, does this make recording more challenging?
Pierrot- Of course it does…challenging and costly! When we first "unofficially" formed I used to search the web, downloading every single plugin or VSTi, trying them out and keeping the best ones to add into our songs. But after realizing how troublesome and time consuming that was, I started listening the sound of various analog synths I ended up to a conclusion.
Analog sound or just the fact of having more hardware and less software (you might never use), can make a big difference in a production and expand the way an artist tries out new things while writing music.
EL-It is like women (hahaha…). Having two (or more) in your bed, makes the game more interesting! The same goes for music. If you work only with VST instruments, after some time it can get really boring. But, if you have also a couple of killer analogue synthesizers in your studio combined with quality software, the composition process can be really challenging.
Pierrot- Passion is one of the most if not the most important factor when writing music or choosing to start a career as an artist. I strongly believe that people need to have passion in what they do in general. If I personally didn't have that in what I do, I would most probably quit the band and go work at a post office counter where everything is safe, normal and be happy having a steady paycheck every month. I don't mean to offend people who work at a post office, it's just not me. Passion, talent and hard work is what dreams need to take form...
EL- I totally agree. It’s the most important thing when you create an album. Also, without passion, you end up with a crappy soulless album. If you think about it, you will realize it's really silly. As musicians, we create music and use our passion to express our inner feelings, our anger, our thoughts and perception…
You’re currently working on your 2nd album, can you tell us how this will differ from Place No Reliance"?
Pierrot- We were... but our work was interrupted by a tragic fire that cost me a newly built house, studio and half of our album's songs. If you visit our label's website at www.alfa-matrix.com you will find all the details about it.
All I can say about the new album so far is that it sounds solid, simple, angry with a lot of variation between clean and brutal vocals, heavy rhythmic guitars and straight in your face lyrics that will definitely change one's way of thinking. And the fact that we are buying new equipment in order to finish the album, might result in some further pleasant changes in our sound… Maybe everything happens for a reason after all?
EL- Yeah… And although “Place no Reliance” was a great album, we always feel the need to create something different and fresh. We do not believe that music must follow a certain ‘recipe’. It is easy to make that mistake but if you respect yourself and your fans you always try to give the best out of you and create the best outcome possible. Every time we put our asses down to compose music we do it because we simply need to. We express our inner feelings and thoughts through music and we need to share that with the rest of the world. This time we worked with more hardware than ever before. We also experimented with different styles of vocals but the biggest difference between the upcoming album and our debut, will be the production.
Do you prefer to be in the studio or playing live?
Pierrot- These are two completely different kinds of situations…
But I know this. Whenever I spend too much time in the studio writing music or mixing, I think of how nice a tour would be. But then while we're touring and start feeling a bit exhausted, I dream of being in the studio recording or simply listening to some quality music!
I guess one cannot exist without the other...
EL- I prefer to be on the road. It is great to see the reaction of the crowd when we play our songs live. That’s why I always try to experiment with different sounds or keyboard parts when I am on stage. Spending time in the studio is also something really exciting. It is nice to experience the creating process and build a new song from zero. But after many hours, the editing and mixing can be really exhausting for me and my ears. But this is Pierrot’s “playground” anyway, since he is the producer of the band.
How do you keep your shows eye catching for the audience?
Pierrot- A big dose of eye liner, lipstick, full make up and fancy clothes..?! Seriously now, it's not that easy. First we have to pick clothes for each one of us individually in a way we see fit. Then we have to imagine our make up so it is well combined with the rest of our visual concept. After spending at least a full hour backstage preparing, we are ready to hit the stage and ruin all that make up we spent so much time applying!
EL-Every time we go onstage we are trying to give a more theatrical view to our shows. Our biggest influence visually is the Japanese scene. And as the band becomes more popular and our budget gets bigger, we are trying to spruce up our performances in various ways.
Pierrot- It is simply as important as writing music or having a nice sounding production. I always thought of a band as a long chain of elements. Having a part of the chain weaker than the rest, makes it more possible to break. I know this example is quite a cliché but it's also the most fitting one.
So we always pay attention to keeping a balance between music, sound, performance and appearance. We respect the fact that our fans and people who attend our live shows decide to pay a ticket to spend their time with us instead of drinking a couple of beers at a bar. That's reason enough to always aim for the whole package. Between us (ha…), we all enjoy dressing up and wearing full make up on stage, which when combined with screaming vocals, passionate lyrics and a full of energy stage performance, create a quite interesting result…
EL- I can’t imagine Virgins O.R Pigeons on stage without all this appearance and stage show. Our image is equal to our music of course. Don’t get me wrong, but this whole thing is our trademark. When I go to concerts, I want to see something more than just the band playing their music wearing casual clothes. That’s what we are trying to give to our fans. “Something more” that makes every concert a time to remember.
What's next in store for Virgins O.R Pigeons?
Pierrot- We currently have a new EP ready called "Born In Sin", which includes two songs from our forthcoming album "Gotta Get Mad" and various remixes by artists form the same scene. We don't have a release date yet, since the fire accident changed our timetable for both the EP and the full length album... but you will hear again from us pretty soon.
Any last words for our readers?
Pierrot- Of course!
I want you to take a good look to what's around you, separate people and things in life you appreciate from what you despise, stay active, question everyone and everything. And whenever you feel angry or happy, disappointed or excited, love or hate, music will always help you express what needs to be expressed… Thank you :)
EL- We have a lot of things going on in the background and we will be sharing our news with everyone soon enough! Until then… keep your eyes open...