Interview with HEXTAR
!!!ITALIAN POWER METAL!!!
We had a conversation with HEXTAR.Enjoy!
Welcome to the FILTHY DOGS OF METAL Webzine.
1. Tell us a few things about HEXTAR (Members, Starting Year etc).
We talked about creating the band during Summer 2018, and then got together as a 3-piece the upcoming November, as guitarist bassist and drummer, Marco, Emiliano and Andrea. Things started smoothly with the composition of the first couple songs, the ideas were flowing abound and it was clear that we wanted to play some kick-ass Heavy/Power Metal, made in our way and image.In the beginning Emiliano had the idea of becoming the singer himself, and you can still briefly hear him in 'Faceless Dame', but we soon agreed to find a dedicated member.Enter Edoardo, whom joined us during March 2019. But before talking about him, a brief explanation about the name of the band. After thinking for a while we decided that the name would be a single word, but since it's the most-effective yet most used way of naming a band it's rough finding an unused one, so we went with a blend of words, which were 'Hex' and 'Star', which ultimately collided into the monicker Hextar. It was inspired by the idea that comets and passing stars could be signs of impending misfortune.Edoardo blended himself well with us, writing lyrics for the pre-existing songs, and helping us in the process of writing the last piece, 'The Stand'. Also his brother Federico helped us by adding all the orchestrations and synths you hear throughout the EP. By the beginning of Summer 2019 we had the songs ready to be recorded but, unfortunately, we lost the rehearsal room, but we soon found another one that we rebuilt together as a band, and got things together to then hit the studio in December.
2. You have recently release your EP ''Hextar''. What is the feedback from your audience as well as from the press?
We are really happy about the feedback we received and are still receiving even now, the audience quickly gathered notice of us, which is surprising since it was our first release ever, and the press is often getting in touch to propose reviews, and interviews, like the one we are answering now, thank you very much!Even more surprisingly we are gathering an outstanding amount buzz from people outside of our country, and this gives us a great sense of accomplishment, since knowing that people thousands of KMs away from us are enjoying our music is quite the feat in our opinion, and we would also like to thank everybody that gave us a chance up to now!
3. Label or DIY and why?
We would very much like to work together with a label in the future, but as of now we are going along the DIY route mainly because we are (were?) basically nobody, so it's hard to even get a deal while having no following, but of course we know this very well and are working our butts off to gather one, and we guess it's kinda working! By the way if a label wants to make us an offer come at us!
4. Do you prefer Vinyl, Tape, CD or Digital Format and why is that?
Personally we as members of the band are big fans of Vinyl, and generally older audio supports, since they retain the feel of the music period that inspires our work, and the quality of sound they provide is most suitable for our style.With that said, we understand and abide by the fact that CD and digital formats are the main ways of music consumption nowadays, so we will first be using those, and if luck helps us we might one day be able to give our fans also Vinyl and Tape releases.
5. Your music style is Heavy/Power Metal. Which are your main influences (Favourite Artists / Bands etc.)
Helloween, Helloween and Helloween! Also early Blind Guardian and Gamma Ray! Among the others we can list bands like Queensryche, Iron Maiden (duh), Racer X, Yngwie Malmsteen, Riot, Judas Priest, Rage and even Queen! Also since we try to give our music a sense of orchestration like bands used to do during the 70s among the aforementioned Queen we could also add Rainbow! Of course this doesn't detract from our main style of 80s Heavy and Power Metal, from which we take the aggressiveness.
6. Which things, do you think, a Band should sacrifice in order to succeed? Have you ever sacrificed anything in your life for a better future of your Band?
Money, lots of money, time, a couple of years off your lifespan and a gargantuan amount of lack of sleep. This is the life of those who believe in trying to make their music work and get recognized by the people. It's a hard bargain but it pays off in the end! The most important things is to don't stop believing (like Journey used to sing)!We don't think too much about what we sacrificed to do music though, since any experience in life requires a certain amount of sacrifice!
7. Describe your ideal live show as a performance Band. Have you already experienced that?
Like every pompous Heavy Metal band, we want a big stage with big speakers, functioning monitors (a hard reality to experience), lots of people throwing horns, moshing, head banging and generally having a good time down in the pit! We couldn't even start trying to get to this stage since we are in the middle of a pandemic, but maybe one day it will be a reality!
8. Which attributes, do you think, that a new Heavy Metal Band should have in order to gain identity and be unique?
For starters you need attitude, in music, in person, in your image! Be passionate about what you do, and do it as best as you can, while staying humble, but don't underplay your achievements either, be proud of what you accomplished! Of course having an unique sound, even in a genre that was explored to Hell and back, is paramount, although this might take some time to get under wraps. Don't be afraid to do things differently from others!
9. Do you believe that Bandcamp and other Digital Platforms help the new Heavy Metal Bands? Which, do you think, is the ideal way for a Band to promote its work?
Nowadays it's impossible not to use these platforms, especially Bandcamp which gave anybody an outlet to build a career out of nothing, by basically deleting the middle-man in music distribution (mostly). Other streaming services like Spotify and Youtube are surely helpful to get recognized by an even broader audience, although we have to specify that getting any money out of those is reserved to artists that clock in millions of plays, but still getting on the platform is really affordable and won't get you stranded in debt so it's still a plus.As far as promotion goes, social networks are the other inevitable key factor, unless the Internet explodes from one day to another this is the reality of today, so get those brain cells working and make interesting posts to engage with your audience! This also requires having a modicum of professionally crafted content to offer, be it graphics, photos or merch, among the music. Of course trying to get into the best deals you get offered is always a good way of promotion!
10. Tell us a few things about the New Underground Metal Scene in Italy (Bands, Fanzines, Webzines, Metal Clubs etc.)
Like in every context there is the good and there is the bad. As of now many historical bands of our underground scene are kinda disappearing, be it the lack of new audience, or lack of interest in older styles of music, but we hope there might be some kind of Renaissance with the injection of new blood both by bands and fans. Still among all these difficulties many keep the scene alive by supporting the bands that still believe in making things different and better!The worst thing about all of this is that Metal Clubs were already in bad waters, and the pandemic will only make things worse, but hopefully people might find a new sparkle of interest in the scene when things go back to normal!
11. Do you know anything about the Hellenic Metal Scene?
Not enough unfortunately, we would love to play in Greece one day, since we know that the Metal Scene is quite passionate! And where is this passion there are always many interesting bands, outlets and festivals to play!
12. What are your future plans?
Printing the CD (which will come soon), making merch and playing some live shows when it will be possible. Of course we are always writing more music, we have already ultimated a couple new songs and we want the next work to be even more ambitious and fulfilling!
13. Thank you very much for your time & Keep up the good work! The closure is yours.
Thank you for the interview and all the people that will read it and check us out!We wish to thank all those that supported and helped us until now as well as the artists that inspired us! And don't forget to PLAY IT LOUD!
Also stay healthy!
By Steve the Filthy Dog.
HEXTAR CONTACT:
https://www.facebook.com/hextarband/