I started RÉM maybe 3 years ago when my official band called Redneck Zömbiez finally stopped rehearsing. I was one of the founders of that band, but everyone had other musical projects and main bands. It was fun, but it couldn't work. So thought I wanted to do something else, something alien. I never used any instruments before because I was one of the vocalists of Redneck, so only 3 years ago was the first time when I even touched a guitar. One of the Redncek guitarists gave me a guitar and I started to practice with some primitive riffs. Shortly after that I bought my first guitar and started using RÉM as a name.
2.So far you have released an ep, can you tell us a little bit more about the musical style you went for on the recording?
I wanted to work with a raw and primitive style with some black n roll and punk elements. I've always believed that a well-made primitive music can be heavy and expressive. When I started to write my songs I always tried to keep that simplicity in my mind. I hope it succeeded.
3.The song themes on the ep cover 'busojaras', can you tell us a little bit more about this Hungarian tradition?
The Busójárás is an annual celebration of Mohács, which is a small town in Hungary. It’s held at the end of the carnival season (february), and ending the day before Ash Wednesday. The Busójárás lasts six days, usually during February. It has more parts, like Little Farsang, Sunday Farsang, and the Burial of the Farsang (farsang is a hungarian word for carneval). What the busós are doing during this carnival period is that they scaring the Winter away. Walking down the streets, make some loud noises, and the end of the festival, they doing a huge fire, and burning down the coffin of the Winter that they swimm it across the river. So this is some kind of spring-welcoming and winter-banshing festival in Hungary.
The other most popular legend is that when Hungary had occupied by the Turks (from 1541 to 1699), people from Mohács fled the town, and started living in the nearby swamps to avoid the Turkish troops. One night, while they were sitting around the fire, and an old man appeared from nowhere, and said to them: "Don't be afraid, your lives will turn to good and you'll return to your homes. But until that time, prepare for the big battle, make weapons and scary masks, and wait for the night when a masked knight will come to you." After that, he disappeared, but the refugees followed his orders, and later on, on a stormy night, the knight arrived. He ordered them to put on their masks on and go back to Mohács, making as much noise as possible, and they did it. The Turks were frightened as hell by the noise, and the scary masks, and the storm in the night, and that they thought demons were attacking them, and they ran away from the town before sunrise.
Whatever the interpretation is, one thing is for sure that now, the Busójárás has been inscribed on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by the UNESCO, and this is one of our most beautiful and spectacular traditions. I think everybody needs to see it once in a life!
4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'REM"?
RÉM is a Hungarian word for monster or creature. What I wanted to express with this, is that these creatures can also appear in different forms so as my music. I don’t want to pull my music into a direct category. I would like to leave the gates in front of my music open. If I want to do raw music, I will do that, but if I want to do melodic or atmospheric music i will do it too. My music may take a different form in the future, so as a monster can take different shapes.
5.Can you tell us a little bit more about the artwork that is presented on the ep cover?
What you can see on the cover of the EP that are busó masks. The busós use these masks to scare the winter, and they can chase it away with them. The busó masks are the most important and most expressive tools of the Busójárás. So it wasn’t really a question for me what i have to put the my EPs cover. If you search on the internet for Busójárás, the first thing what you will find is these masks. During the festival season there you can see a lots of busós whom belongs to different busó groups, and each has a different masks, so you wont find two of the same. What I wanted to show on the cover is the variety of the Busójárás what these can masks can represent the best!
6.With this project you record everything by yourself, do you have experience playing in bands?
As i mentioned before, no. :) I was just one of the founder vocalist of a gore n roll band called Redneck Zömbiez. So i have never played on instrument before, which is interesting, because most of my friends are musicians since i was a kid.
7.So far the ep has only been released on digital format, do you have any plans to also put out a physical format of the recording?
Yes, I do. I definitely want a physical release of my EP, because a lot of people were interested in it, but i definitely would like to use the digital distribution capabilities for my music.
8.Currently you are unsigned, are you looking for a label or have received any interest?
I have already contacted with several labels and i received a lot positive feedback, but i don’t want to run ahead. :)
9.On a worldwide level how has the reaction been to your music so far by fans of black metal?
I don’t know. :) I just started trying to send my music to other places than Hungary. But in Hungary I got lots of positive feedback, so i’m hopeful. I know that I'm at the beginning of another terribly long journey, but i know what should i have to do. The Hungarian metal underground is quite large compared to the size of the country itself, so this may make it easier for you to find your way aboard.
10.When can we expect a full length and also where do you see yourself heading into as a musician during the future?
I just started to write some new songs for the first full length RÉM album, and if everything goes well, maybe it can be out on the next spring or summer. But for this time i will not be alone. But the details remain secret. :)
11.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
In music, I’m a total open person. In my opinion, there are basically two kinds of music: good and shit. So I’m not an ordinary metal guy. Nowadays I listen a lot of retro electric new wave music like Carpenter Brut, or Perturbator, or some traditional black metal bands like Khold or Tulus. But i love, Darkthrone, Abruptum or the caothic chaos of the Australian Portal, but I love for example Nina Simone as well. I think that the origin of the musical progression is openness. If you want to improve, you have to listen a lot of music in many different styles, and it will also appear on your own music too. It just affects you. I also think that black metal is perhaps the most open and expressive style of music in the World. You can easily express yourself within its limits which are limitless.
12.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
Keep supportin’ the underground black metal! Hail!
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