Response Key: E- Edoardo, Q - Quentin
What have been your musical epiphany moments?
E - I remember one day my uncle introduced me to Led Zeppelin playing "Stairway To Heaven" and I got immediately hooked to the beauty of the song while he was telling me about Jimmy Page's double-neck guitar; I must have been 12 years old. A couple of years later I remember when I heard for the very first time something heavier and that was the first track I ever downloaded from the internet, "Rape Me" by Nirvana. From that moment it was an autonomous discovery of music.
Talk to us about the song-writing process for you. What comes first, the idea? A riff? The lyrics? How does it all fall into place?
Q - We write the songs together (Edoardo and myself), produce, edit, mix, master everything ourselves. We try to always have a great melody, punch and a catchy hook (that's what every band tries to do right hahaha). Again, as each track has different guests, the vibe and lyrics depend on the way we wrote the song. If we write something very intense and punchy we will want the lyrics to be the same so it fits well together.
Who has influenced you the most?
Q - We have different influences, of course, TesseracT, Papa Roach, Halestorm, Defecto. Sometimes more djent stuff like Monuments, Kadinja & Periphery. We listen to a lot of stuff and we are not playing one style of rock or metal, just depending on the mood. Even if it's a different genre, sometimes we borrow their rhythm's or techniques.
Where do you look for continuing inspiration? New ideas, new motivation?
Q - We look at everything. I know that's quite a broad range! I personally like more songs and lyrics that reflect on something concrete, real, that other people can feel and understand. That's not necessarily always about feelings and never in a superficial commercial way; it can include social and global topics too. The music I believe is a translation in sounds and notes of how we are feeling, the human status and mood, so you could argue that the constant inspiration is practically within us.
We're all a product of our environment. Tell us about the band's hometown and how that reflects in the music?
Q - We both come from a different place, Edoardo is coming from Italy and me Belgium. Different culture and music scene which brings great influences from both sides. However, we met, play and live in London. Which is an amazing city with different styles of music, so it's very easy to get influences from different genres. We called ourselves "hybrid rock" for this purpose. There are too many styles of rock for us just to put ourselves in one category. So we can express ourselves more widely.
Where'd the band name come from?
You have one chance, what movie are you going to write the soundtrack for?
Q - I would choose The Shawshank Redemption or Platoon. Two amazing movies with different endings and completely different contexts.
You now write for a music publication (The Ripple Effect?). You're going to write a 1,000 word essay on one song. Which would it be and why?
E - I am particularly fond of "Strength Beyond Strength" by Pantera. It's been my go-to track when I'm not feeling so great and it's the song that boosts my motivation and self-esteem. There's more about it though, it's the opening track of Far Beyond Driven which is an incredible record by one of my all-time favourite bands; also, I own a custom-made necklace with the famous 3 words of the chorus engraved: STRONGER THAN ALL. That's what I like the most about this song: it reminds me I can be stronger than all bad things happening.
Come on, share with us a couple of your great, Spinal Tap, rock and roll moments?
Q - As we are a new project, we don't have a proper rock n roll moment...YET! But I promise you, it is coming!!!
Tell us about playing live and the live experience for you and for your fans?
E - The project was born in August this year in the midst of this pandemic and we have not had the chance yet to perform live, but we are eagerly looking forward to it. Both of us are experienced live musicians so we will prepare the best way we can to create and deliver a jaw-dropping live set!
What makes a great song?
Q - Great production, great lyrics, great mixing and great mastering. If one of those is not done properly, you are F***.
More in the details, I think, is the energy as well, when you listen to a track and you can feel the energy, you win. Sometimes songs are very well played, great lyrics, but you miss this energy. Check the new Bring Me The Horizon album, my favourite 2020 album so far, those guys are amazing. Everything is there.
What one single album do you wish that you'd written or performed on, and why?
Q - Dark Side Of The Moon.. everyone knows why!! Yes, I know, it's a totally different vibe to what we are doing, but It's still a massive reference for a lot of stuff, even after all those years. I'm sure when you buy new speakers, new headphones or whatever, if you want to pass the "test" you play Dark Side Of The Moon. Such an amazing album.
What piece of your music are particularly proud of?
Q - Our debut single What Good Would That Do. We are new on the scene and in less than 1 month we will reach 10K streams on Spotify and we have a lot of support already. Which is a good start. But it's just the beginning. We are very proud of what we did on that track, especially during this lockdown, where we did a DIY kind of production, beginning to end. But, stay tuned, we are cooking some new stuff.
Who today, writes great songs? Who just kicks your ass? Why?
E - Similarly to the artists and bands who influence us, Periphery, TesseracT, Kadinja, Gojira. These are all bands that are right now creating very interesting metal music. I would also mention Jinjer and Code Orange.
Vinyl, CD, or digital? What's your format of choice?
E - I find all 3 of them have a purpose and honestly, I own a lot of CDs. In fact, I have been buying many CDs during the past 10 years or so but at the same time, I have been a premium Spotify user for a long while. I think there is a slice of the market for all the formats, even the old-school collectors of cassettes. It's simply much easier when you start off to use the digital format because it's more flexible and has virtually no costs.
Whiskey or beer? And defend your choice
E - We drink both! Let's say beer up until 10 pm and whiskey straight after!
We, at the Ripple Effect, are constantly looking for new music. What's your home town, and when we get there, what's the best record store to lose ourselves in?
E - Well, Edoardo is from Perugia, Italy, and Quentin is from Fleurus, Belgium, but band-wise our hometown is London. There are many good record stores in London, but I would recommend the ones in Soho like Sister Ray or the record store in Camden Market.
What's next for the band?
E - We are currently working on the follow up single to "What Good Would That Do" which is going to be released in early 2021. We are extremely excited about it because it will feature an amazing singer. Next year will definitely see more music being released, music videos and hopefully some live music. This project is relatively young so we are convinced that 2021 will be a great year. Bring it on!
Any final comments or thoughts you'd like to share with our readers, the waveriders?
E - Keep your eyes peeled for more All Runs Red music and content in 2021, it's gonna be a blast! In the meantime, stay safe and spiritually positive!
Here's some LINKS:
Contact: allrunsredofficial@gmail.com
Lyric Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mxB7lm_pOzM
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