SOURCE – Firstly, define your band for readers in one tweet…
Blake Gardner (Guitar) – Modern Metal/Dark Pop…
SOURCE – I liked your album The New Victorian a lot. How has it been received by fans and the rock press in general?
Blake Gardner (Guitar) – All though having only just released and begun to promote the album we are very happy with both the fan and press response. Actually a good portion of our Facebook fan base is from Brazil.
SOURCE – How did the band approach the writing of this album, did everyone contribute and how much work was done individually?
Blake Gardner (Guitar) – A lot of assumptions and personal opinions are generally made by journalists when reviewing an album especially where details are lacking as in our case.
Wintergarden is fundamentally a duo which uses a live band. This therefore raises the question of who exactly is involved in writing and recording the songs.
For our debut album Miriam and I chose to compose the material in a studio setting with 2 friends, (Darren Davis & Clint Lowery) via file sharing.
Then once the material was written we recorded the album with our collaborators, again via file sharing, while using useful input and feedback from our live band members.
There was probably just as much discussion and meeting of minds via the Internet as there was actual writing and recording.
So all in all it was a very unconventional collaborative effort as far as rock bands go, but we really enjoyed it for this very same reason.
SOURCE – Have you filmed any videos for this new CD?
Blake Gardner (Guitar) – We have had an acquaintance in Romania do 2 lyric videos, (breathe & take it), to get the ball rolling, however we have a company in Denmark story boarding a couple of professional music videos that begin filming in September.
SOURCE – Since the Internet makes life easier for people living far away from each other: did you guys actually rehearse the songs during the song writing process or did you send each other digital music files?
Blake Gardner (Guitar) – The Internet and file sharing has been an integral part of the Wintergarden album and concept. Without it, The New Victorian and Wintergarden itself would not exist. For us it’s this freedom of collaboration and accelerated productivity that file sharing offers, that attracted us toward setting Wintergarden up the way we have. The amount of time saved is truly incredible not to mention the endless possibilities of collaboration partners. For example, we networked online with our live band members and simply shared song files, so once we actually physically meet, the songs are already learnt and it’s just chemistry, performance and setlist that needs attention. This for us made the whole rehearsal/live preparation as well as writing and recording process quicker, easier and more fun.
SOURCE – What music do you listen to? Do you all have different tastes and is there anything in any of your record collections that fans might find surprising?
Blake Gardner (Guitar) – Of course we regularly stay in tune with the contemporary rock/metal/progressive music scene and currently enjoy various artists such as, In This Moment, Karnivool, Sevendust and Eye Empire but as with any inspiration based craft the source of creativity can come from more unlikely places.
Miriam can be found to listen to Pop, Gospel, RnB and Jazz, having a soft spot for Maxwell, Kierra Sheard and Joni Mitchell while Blake will always be found to be trawling through, eighties gothic, chillout music and his all time favorites, David Hykes and Rob Guthrie.
SOURCE – The music industry seems to be putting a lot of emphasis on a band’s Facebook status, with bands getting signed based on how many ‘friends’ they have, or how many plays they get per day. Do you see this as having a negative impact on the scene integrity, or as a way for bands to easily get attention?
Blake Gardner (Guitar) – Well, the Facebook phenomena was a good way to get noticed if you put in the hard work, however as with all corporate monopolies, form eventually overtakes substance, and now its a highly controlled and restricted environment. The biggest negative being a bands posts are restricted to only a few fans rather than reaching them ALL. That said it still has a place in the fragmented world of Internet promotion. As far as record labels using stats to sign bands, my personal opinion is that’s a dangerous short term, highly suggestive business model best left to TV talent shows.
SOURCE – Have you got any plans to tour the album outside of Europe. Will we have a chance to see Wintergarden over here in the Brazil any time soon, maybe in 2015?
Blake Gardner (Guitar) – We would certainly not hesitate in coordinating a Brazilian tour with the right booker, should that opportunity present itself in the near future. Practically speaking though, we try to the best of our economic abilities to simply follow the demand, realizing that at the moment it’s early days and the thrust of the promotion is currently aimed at Europe but that doesn’t limit the possibility of things busting wide open in other territories such as brazil by an effective review etc. In this business anything is still highly possible.
SOURCE – Would you like to say anything to your fans or potential new fans?
Blake Gardner (Guitar) – We would like to say a heart felt thank you to you at Source for your kind words and the opportunity to be heard via your publication and to all Brazilian rock/metal music lovers alike – Wintergarden is available if the demand is forth coming! Rock On Brazil!
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