ENMITY

PHOTOGRAPHY BY ALAN PHAIR
WEBSITE: www.myspace.com/enmity
COUNTRY: South Africa STYLE: Metal / Progressive / Hardcore

BIG NEWS FROM YOUR SIDE IS THAT YOUR FIRST FULL LENGTH ALBUM 'MURDERABILIA' IS COMING OUT END OF MAY 2009. AFTER POSTING A FEW DEMOS ONLINE AND PLAYING LIVE FOR SOME TIME WHAT WERE THE CONTRIBUTING FACTORS THAT CAUSED YOU GUYS TO TAKE SO LONG TO RELEASE A FULL LENGTH ALBUM?

Yeah, we know: we've been 'about to release' our début album for the last two years. We've been to three different studios since mid 2007 - each time with the fresh hope of starting to record our first full length album. We didn't finish or release anything because up until December last year we weren't happy with anything we'd laid down, and felt it didn't accurately represent us.

We went into studio this time with a different approach, having done no pre-production whatsoever. We now, after four months, stand with a pending release of our début album, Murderabilia – all material written in the studio (Jay's bedroom).

HOW DID 'MURDERABILIA' COME UP AS THE OFFICIAL ALBUM TITLE AND DO YOU SEE THE RELEASE OF THE ALBUM AS THE START OF A NEW “CHAPTER” FOR THE BAND?

Our concept album is based on the morbidly interesting lives of nine different serial killers. On researching this further we discovered the term Murderabilia, (which simply means 'Memorabilia relating to a murder or murderer').

We have no expectations whatsoever. It was an awesome experience recording this album. We spent a lot of time together in a confined space, and really got to know each other emotionally and physically.

YOU GUYS HAVE POSTED A FEW CLIPS ONLINE SHOWING DIFFERENT PARTS OF THE RECORDING PROCESS. WHERE HAS MOST OF THE RECORDING TAKEN PLACE AND WHO IS PRODUCING THE ALBUM?

We tracked the album at Jay's home studio, we're also producing it ourselves – however it's being mixed and mastered by Dean Bailey.

WHEN YOU WROTE THE SONGS FOR THE ALBUM WAS IT A BIT OF A PROCESS TO GET GOING OR DID THE SONGS JUST FALL INTO PLACE RIGHT FROM THE START?

We were a bit intimidated in the beginning, but once we got the first few songs down, the rest seemed to go pretty smoothly.

ANY IDEA YET WHEN YOU WILL BE LAUNCHING THE ALBUM AND IN WHAT PARTS OF THE COUNTRY YOU’LL BE PLAYING TO SUPPORT IT?

We have no dates confirmed yet, but we're planning a nationwide tour in July which will succeed our Cape Town launch.

BASED ON THE COMMENTS YOU’VE RECEIVED ABOUT YOUR LIVE SHOWS AND SONGS POSTED ONLINE WHAT ASPECTS OF YOUR MUSIC DO YOU THINK ATTRACTS THE MOST PEOPLE TO LISTEN YOUR SONGS?

We put 100% of our love and energy into our music. We don't know the exact reason or answer to this question but we hope it has something to do with that.

BIG SHOWS IN MAY FOR YOU GUYS OPENING FOR HASTE THE DAY ON THEIR SA TOUR. YOUR CONFIDENCE LEVELS MUST BE OF THE CHARTS AT THE MOMENT?

We feel really honoured to have been chosen to support Haste the Day on their SA tour. It will be the first time we playing a show since January and with our newest addition to the band, Graham. We're really amped to get back on stage with new material. It's going to be a nerve racking but an exciting one none the less.

DO YOU USE THE SAME INSTRUMENTS FOR LIVE PERFORMANCES AND RECORDING AND IF YOU WON THE LOTTO WHAT INSTRUMENT WOULD YOU BUY?

All the instruments we used on the album are the ones we use live except for a few acoustic guitar parts. We're all pretty happy with the instruments we have but if we had the cash we would all probably get:

Alain: A wireless mic, in-ear monitors and a vocal effects pedal.

Jay: The Ernie ball Music Man bass with a Laney Nexus amp.

Chloe: Juno Stage and a black grand piano.

Graham's just hoping for new socks this christmas.

Ross: A Peavey JSX amp.

ENMITY IS KNOWN LOCALLY FOR ITS LIVE SHOWS, WHAT MAKES FOR A GOOD LIVE SHOW IN YOUR OPINION AND WILL WE EVER SEE YOU GUYS ADDING A FLAMETHROWER OR TWO INTO A PERFORMANCE?

Taking it easy on the booze before a performance leaves us with a lot more energy to go a little crazy.

We're all in our own zone but always seem to meet up and share the vibe. We should really look at investing in a wireless system, that would solve our problems of falling over and unplugging each others instruments.

THINGS PROBABLY NEVER GO AS PLANNED DURING A PERFORMANCE, WHAT HAVE YOU GUYS LEARNED FROM SUCH EXPERIENCES?

If something can go wrong it will :P we've had a couple of shows where sound has cut out completely, power failures, Broken strings, stands and more. On one occasion Ross even threw his guitar into Chloe's face. No more guitar tosses for Ross! Its a battle field up there. But we all manage to survive.

DO YOU HAVE ANY PLANS FOR A MUSIC VIDEO NOW THAT YOU HAVE AN ALBUM ON THE WAY AND DO YOU THINK THAT MUSIC VIDEOS ARE STILL AS IMPORTANT AS THEY WERE BEFORE BANDS WERE ABLE TO PROMOTE THEMSELVES ONLINE?

We are currently gathering ideas and brainstorming concepts for our first video. We are excited to be working with Ryan Kruger who has directed some quality videos in the local rock scene. You can be expecting a video shortly after our album launch.

We feel music videos are still as important as they ever were. The internet allows for easier viewing globally.

HOW MUCH TIME DOES ENMITY TAKE UP OF YOUR LIVES AND IF YOU WERE NOT MAKING MUSIC WHAT DO YOU GUYS THINK YOU WOULD BE DOING?

Enmity is a constant in our lives; we are all committed and passionate about our music and our band. That said, we are all still studying, but hope that someday we could make a career out of it.

ANY LAST COMMENTS / ADVICE OR PEOPLE YOU WOULD LIKE TO THANK?

We'd like to thank you (the reader) for taking the time to read this. http://www.projectrfsezine.blogspot.com for the awesome questions.

Any other questions anyone might have, don't be shy to ask us on our facebook fanpage:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/ENMITY/7474738141