Eden´s Curse: Fresh, vibrant and exciting

The following interview with Paul Logue from Eden´s Curse I have done in september to get material for SLAM Magazine. Now you can read the full and original interview here. Have fun! :)

Otti:
Symphony of Sin is upcoming in about a month. To me it sounds very mature and round - But how would you describe your newest work in your words?

Paul:
Mature and rounded is pretty accurate! I think we have grown as a band and we are very comfortable with what we do now. We just try and create music that makes us happy first and foremost and we seem to be blessed that our fans like it too. We are not the type of guys to grab crazy notions and change our style dramatically or anything, so we always set out with a blue print to make an album that sounds like Eden´s Curse. After all, we created this band because it was the type of music we wanted to hear and play. However, at the same time we will try and add new elements here and there. I think the album sounds like classic Eden´s Curse but with a flavour that no-one has ever tasted before. It´s fresh, it´s vibrant, it´s exciting and it´s 100% us.

Otti:
This is the first album with Nikola on the vocals... How did this fusion come up and how did he adjust to the rest of the band?

Paul:
Well, initially we held some public online auditions, similar to what Dragonforce did, and even though the quality received was very high indeed, we were looking for that "je ne sais quoi". I was researching on the internet through various media streams and I happened to be browsing on the website of Lion Music who have some killer bands. I came across a Hungarian Prog band called Dreyelands and liked what I heard from their singer. I jumped to Facebook to see if he had a profile and low and behold he did. I reached out to Nikola and invited him to audition, which he did, and the rest they say is history.

In terms of adjusting, we got to know Nikola over several months. We actually gave him the job in December 2012 but AFM wanted us to keep it quiet and press ahead with recording the album and then announce his appointment. He is a lovely soul, and really one of "us". We are pretty easy going guys to get along with, and he just came in and fitted so well in terms of professionalism, attitude and personality.

Otti: What else did you make different and new compared to your former records, especially to Trinity? Paul: What we definitely tried not to do was to copy what went before. Trinity was very successful for us, but we just had to adopt the same approach that we took for each previous album. Forget Trinity, it´s gone, start with a blank canvas and write truly from the heart. We also deliberately pushed ourselves and each other harder on the songs. Thorsten, myself and Pete wouldn´t accept the first idea that came forward if any one of us thought that the idea could be bettered. We went back to the drawing board multiple times on each of these songs and it really shows, I believe. This also demonstrates how comfortable we are working with each other, because we would not let personal gain get in the way of "the song". We would only say "done" when everyone was truly happy with every part, thus enabling us to write the best batch of songs that we could. Otti: With those line up changes I think songwriting can be rather difficult, especially with such complex songs that you produce. So how did you keep on track and stay focused to get Symphony of Sin ready? Paul: Well the answer to the previous gives you some insight, but the truth is that all the guys who left our group previously were not significant songwriters for the group, and I include Michael in that. He never once contributed a single original idea since we formed the group. The main nucleus of writers has always been myself, Pete and Thorsten, with varying degrees of contribution increasing over the years. So in actual fact, nothing changed from Trinity to Symphony Of Sin in that department. If truth be told, it was actually easier. Otti: As first single you chose Evil & Divine. How did this decision come up? Paul: Nikola actually submitted his vocals for this song as part of his audition, which he wrote some parts for too. We believe that it has a very traditional Eden´s Curse vibe to it with the big guitar riff, catchy chorus and lyrical content and thought it would be everything our fans would expect to hear from Eden´s Curse. So it was an easy decision.

Otti:
Don´t be mad at me, but I am a little confused. Somehow I thought the band was named after Michael Eden, but he´s gone. Did you think about changing name or even begin something totally new?

Paul:
Absolutely not! Eden isn´t his real name anyway - it´s Michael Brobeck and he was previously known as Michael St. Allen in an old band. He created his stage name AFTER we gave the band it´s name. When he quit on his own accord the remaining members discussed it for ten seconds ... "Do we carry on"? We unanimously agreed that we had come too far and had too much left to say and achieve before throwing in the towel. We don´t give up easily :-)

Otti:
If you compare Eden´s Curse nowadays with the idea you had at the beginning of that project around seven years ago, what development is the best and what the worst you experienced?

Paul:
I think turning the band into a fully fledged live unit with the pinnacle being opening for Dream Theater in the UK was the major development highlight and a really proud moment for us all. The worst would be our former keyboard player being refused entry to play a show in the USA the what happened with the two old singers, but that´s all in the past now. I believe in looking back at the past with a smile and looking forward to continue to dream.

Otti:
Besides your music, what really makes you excited?

Paul:
I have a 6 year old daughter called Emma who keeps me busy and is great fun, so I try to spend all my downtime with her and my Wife Pamela. I am also a keen supporter of Glasgow Celtic and the Scottish National Football team, and even still play a little five-a-side footy to keep fit. I have just taken up Tennis in the last year - Andy Murray inspired me - :-) Actually, a funny story is that when Nikola was here recording vocals we went to play Tennis together. Scotland v Serbia. Logue v Mijic aka Murray v Djokovic. Murray won 6-2 ;-) A week later Andy Murray beat Djokovic to win Wimbledon. It was a good omen :-)

Otti:
And to end this interview properly: Is there anything else you would like to tell the people outside today?

Paul:
Thanks to all our fans and press people who stuck by us knowing that one day we would rise again. It has been a difficult couple of years for Eden´s Curse but I can assure you that we are back bigger and better than ever before. See you all on the road in 2014 !!!

www.edenscurse.com

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