Pia S. – Metal & High Heels

How we discovered Metal | Metal & High Heels Podcast 47

Pia S. — Tue, 14 May 2019 08:00:20 +0000

There are only a few people who never listened to anything else but metal. In this episode, the three of us tell the stories of how we discovered Metal and how it became our favorite music genre. Especially this time, you should listen to our very diverse Spotify playlist with all the songs that made our way into Metal. By doing so, we accidentally ran through the technical development of how we listen to music.

Please tell us, how you found your way into this music! We are thrilled to know. You can tweet at us: @MetalHighHeels or send a (voice) message via Facebook.

Metal & High Heels Podcast – Episode 47:

Recorded on May 2nd, 2019.

M&H Podcast 47 – Show Notes:

M&H Podcast episode about Nightwish
Epica cover ‘Memory’ from Cats
M&H Podcast episode about The Birthday Massacre
Tony Hawk Pro Skater 2 playlist:

Podcast Episode 47: Discovering Metal Playlist on Spotify

How did you get in touch with metal? Let us know!

Don’t forget to subscribe on your favorite podcast app to listen on the go and not miss any episodes of our podcast. Subscribe now to the Metal & High Heels Podcast on iTunes, or listen on Spotify.

Our jingle is voiced by Kassandra Novell based on the song ‘Storm’ by her band MERCY ISLE.

Interview with JUPITER

Pia S. — Sat, 20 Apr 2019 16:14:05 +0000

The Japanese band JUPITER will tour in Europe this spring! We had an interview with them in advance to get to know them.

M&H: For those who don’t know you, yet: please introduce yourselves!

Jupiter is the best beautiful and hard band in Japan.

How would you describe your own music?

Our music is based on Symphonic metal.

Congratulations on your new album “Zeus”! Please tell us what we can expect from the album! Is it a lot different from your former albums?

Qualites of all elements are improved, you will be probably moved.

Which songs will you play on tour from the new album?

We are going to play many songs from the new album, maybe almost all. Please check it elaborately!

You already played in Europe in 2014 with Jupiter. What are your best memories from that tour?

I also played in Europe with another band many times, so I am happy if I meet someone familiar.

Have you listened to the support bands of the tour?

I know SEASON OF GHOSTS, they have been active also in Japan.

Rucy left your band this year. Are you looking for a new bass player?

We are looking for a new bass player from all over the world, irrespective of sex and gender.

What are you expecting from your upcoming tour in Europe?

We hope many METAL HEADS will come to see our show, not only those who like Japanese culture.

Who made your stage clothes?

In these days, “Rion” has made clothes for HIZAKI and TERU.

Which bands or musicians influence you?

X JAPAN, DREAM THEATER Epica, etc. …..

Pia S.

Boss on high heels

pia@metal-and-highheels.com

+49 160 5315711

THE BIRTHDAY MASSACRE | Metal & High Heels Podcast 45

Pia S. — Tue, 16 Apr 2019 08:00:13 +0000

Kiki and Pia both like THE BIRTHDAY MASSACRE. While Pia plays their music at parties with non-metal fans, Kiki likes to prepare for a party with it. They talk about the album releases, the DVD and EPs and their experiences with the band members.

Metal & High Heels Podcast – Episode 45:

Recorded on Aptil 7th, 2019.

M&H Podcast 45 – Show Notes:

Podcast Episode 45 – Metal & High THE BIRTHDAY MASSACRE Playlist On Spotify:

What do you think about THE BIRTHDAY MASSACRE? Tell us in the comments – and share this article! You can also send a short voice message to our Facebook page to have your voice played on the show! Or tweet at us: @metalhighheels!

Our jingle is voiced by Kassandra Novell based on the song ‘Storm’ by her band MERCY ISLE.

ANN MY GUARD – “Moira”

Pia S. — Fri, 04 Jan 2019 15:50:30 +0000

It’s the time of the witches! While the TV series Sabrina got a makeover – a feministic one -, people start to be interested in witches and the Wicca cult in a good way. Or at least better than in the past. Being called a witch is not always a compliment, but I feel like it starts to become a mini movement. More and more women around me identify with the idea of witches being strong and independent women who fight for their rights. For them, “Moira”, the new output by ANN MY GUARD, is a good soundtrack for this way of life.

“Moira” is psychedelic and rocking at the same time, but the spirit is different compared to bands like LUCIFER, MYRKUR, DJERV, KADAVER, … ANN MY GUARD are more down to earth, bringing the spirits to us instead of creating a kind of drug frenzy with their sound. Also, the lyrics are not morbid or deathwishing, even though, at least “The day I die” deals with the topic or afterlife or rebirth. ANN MY GUARD embrace the darkness in a positive way, seeing it as a part of human beings instead of something people have to hide.

ANN MY GUARD’s music and “Moira” in particular are mind-expanding.

The songs deal with topics from what we would call world of the witches: rebirth, summoning, spirits, death and spirits. Their point of view is more natural and philosophical than I know from other bands. The music itself underlines this with a unique mixture of rocky sounds, psychedelic elements, calm moments, headbangers and Anna‘s special voice and her ability to vary between many different vocal styles. Outstanding for this kind of music is that she has a very light voice, even in the deeper notes.

In times of Apple Music and Spotify, I can only recommend giving ANN MY GUARD a listen and especially this album. “Moira” is different from the previous releases, and in our interview, Anna agreed that it’s kind of the dark twin of “Ourania”. If they follow their way – which I hope – ANN MY GUARD won’t become one of the big names, but a unique band with a great fanbase that will stick with them forever.

Tracklist

The Descent
Sacred I
Mountain II
Elijah
Roseblood
Metera
Echo
The day I die
The Raven
Morpheus

Music videos

If you want to listen to my review and the interview, I got a podcast episode for you!

M&H 38 – ANN MY GUARD

Pia S. — Thu, 20 Dec 2018 18:46:40 +0000

Pia had an interview with bassist and frontwoman Anna from Hungarian band ANN MY GUARD. She also reviews their album “Moira”, which was released in October 2018.

It’s the first solo episode we ever did! So she took the chance to spread news about bands like CHILDREN OF BODOM, IN FLAMES and a band she just discovered: CURRENTS.

For this is the last episode of 2018: Merry Christmas to all of you and a happy new year!

Metal & High Heels Podcast – Episode 38: Interview with ANN MY GUARD

Show notes from Pia’s solo episode:

“Under grass and clover” video by CHILDREN OF BODOM
“Raise your banner” video by WITHIN TEMPTATION ft. Anders Friden
“Running up that hill” video by WITHIN TEMPTATION – original by KATE BUSH
Avantasia released a lyrc video for “The Raven Child”, not for “Moonglow”
Pia discovered a new band called CURRENTS, who released “Forever marked”
Episode 37 – Staff Meeting in Dortmund
Female Metal Event – festival report from 2017
“Echo” video by ANN MY GUARD
“The Day I die” video by ANN MY GUARD

Podcast Episode 38 – ANN MY GUARD Playlist On Spotify:

SEASON OF GHOSTS – “A Leap of Faith”

Pia S. — Mon, 22 Oct 2018 16:27:26 +0000

Sometimes, when you get to know the people behind your favorite music, you get disappointed – the person is just not what you imagined from the music and the message you were interpreting. Sometimes it’s just the other way around: you like the music even though it’s not your favorite band, you don’t make assumptions about the people, maybe you don’t know how they look like and then you meet them and you are mighty impressed and from then on listening to the music benefits from that because you understand it better.

I had this experience recently when I met Inger Gossamer from THE NUMBER ZERO in Tokyo and I also felt this way when I met Sophia at Metal Female Voices Fest in 2013. Back then, no music was out yet by her new band SEASON OF GHOSTS. I only knew her former Band BLOOD STAIN CHILD and found them interesting because of the mixture of metal and electronic elements. One year later, “The Human Paradox” was released and the whole package of great music, Sophia‘s personality and knowing some facts about her life and her career made it special to listen to the album – a totally different and intense experience.

Before I listened to “A Leap of Faith”, we had a chat with Sophia and her fiancé and bandmate Zombie Sam and both were super open with us. Sophia told us that on the whole album, she is talking to her (former) self most of the time. With that in mind, you of course focus on the lyrics.

SEASON OF GHOSTS’ “A Leap of Faith” is music for grown-ups.

Even though, Sophia said there is no love song on the album, ‘Asteroid’ is a very romantic song: Beginning with a short sung introduction, which BTW already is kind of romantic:

“Through the corners of the earth I have travelled just to find you.”

The vocal line is followed by the direct response from Zombie Sam on guitar, responding to both – the melody and the message – with tons of emotion in it.

Musically, “A Leap of Faith” differs a lot form its predecessor. While “The Human Paradox” was very electronic with a lot of different vocal styles and samples, “A Leap of Faith” is a real rock album. The songs are down to earth – while the former album was kind of from outer space – the sound is grounded and the vocals do not change that often between singing, speaking, whispering and growling. In fact, there are no growls at all on “A Leap of Faith”.

SEASON OF GHOSTS recorded in a studio in Turin and worked with an experienced producer. So the band sounds grown up, the music is more serious, like a person who found its focus on reality after being lost somehow. While “The Human Paradox” sounded (and was?) a solo project, the successor seems to be a co-production of all band members plus the producer.

SEASON OF GHOSTS tell personal stories to encourage the listener.

As I mentioned, Sophia is talking to herself in the songs – encouraging, but also looking back on and reappraising her past. ‘Listen’ appeals to people, who are close to you and pretend to take care of you like family or close friends but are not interested in you as a person, because you are weird to them (Sophia calls herself an alien, because she’s been alienated so often). ‘What A Time To Be Alive’ questions our lifestyle(s) and ‘Almost Human’ is a song about someone (Sophia) trying to save the world (or individuals) and realizing, she doesn’t have the power to fight all the fights.

All the lyrics on “A Leap of Faith” are serious and honest, and so the title track is perfectly placed in the middle of the album. This song is the most encouraging one on the album and sums up the other songs as if it would say:

“No matter what happens to you, don’t give up. It’s worth the fight.”

It tells you that you might feel and even are alone, but it is important that you follow your dreams and plans, because you are only responsible for yourself in the end. You might find the right people, you will of course get in touch with people that stand in your way and it is totally ok to not be everybody’s friend, because at the end of the day, you’ll have to look in your own eyes in the mirror and be ok with yourself.

“A Leap of Faith” tells the story of a person who finally found themself, which doesn’t mean, you have no worries at all. Life goes on, no matter what happens, and even though you’ve made mistakes (like everybody else), you can find a way to move on if you just try to make the best out of your situation. For me, the call to action on the album is: take a leap of faith to stand up and care for yourself. And that’s one of the most difficult things one can do in life. Many people fail, but with SEASON OF GHOSTS‘ new album to encourage you, you can do it.

If you want to know more about Sophia and Zombie Sam and the circumstances for recording “A Leap of Faith”, listen to our podcast episode with them both as guests. Very personal topics, but of course also music!

SEASON OF GHOSTS – “A Leap of Faith” Tracklist:

The Road so far
A Place to call Home
Asteroid
Listen
A Leap of Faith
How the Story ends
Almost human
What a Time to be alive
You are not your Pain

Are you a SEASON OF GHOSTS-fan? Are you looking forward to the album? Tell us in the comments and share this review!

THE NUMBER ZERO: Interview with Inger Gossamer

Pia S. — Wed, 05 Sep 2018 19:07:16 +0000

When Pia was in Tokyo, she met Inger Gossamer who just started her new band project THE NUMBER ZERO. Inger is a Norwegian and lives in Tokyo for roundabout nine years now. Her band has a single and video out, which you can watch below. We talked about her new band, but also about the reasons for her split with Salty Dog and the metal/music scene in Japan.

Interview with Inger from Japanese band THE NUMBER ZERO:

THE NUMBER ZERO released the song ‘Web of Truth’ in June. The band is working on an album, which might be released in October 2018. If you want to know more about the band and stay updated, follow them on Twitter!

Our upcoming podcast episode will feature parts of the interview which Pia and Kiki talk about and Pia recaps her trip to Tokyo in August.

Interview with Heta Hyttinen at Tuska Festival 2018

Pia S. — Fri, 03 Aug 2018 17:00:15 +0000

We are always interested in people behind the scenes and when they are female and have been around in business for so many years like Heta Hyttinen, it’s even more interesting to listen to their point of view of how music business has evolved, how women are involved in business more and more and what it means to work in such a business and make a living from it.

Heta organizes a lot of stuff around Tuska Festival, she also promotes bands and was the editor-in-chief of a magazine once. She’s done so many things, I can’t mention them all! So let her tell you herself in our interview.

Her thoughts on Spotify, YouTube and so on are also very interesting and by the end of the chat, she has some advice for people – especially young women – who want to work in the metal business.

Photo: Jesse Kämäräinen for Tuska

Interview with MANTAR at Tuska Festival 2018

Pia S. — Wed, 01 Aug 2018 16:55:44 +0000

If you listened to our podcast about Tuska, you heard a quote from MANTAR‘s Hanno Klänhardt, in which he says that he doesn’t like our critical approach. The whole chat with them was an interesting discussion about several things, e.g. band life when there are only two members, women in the metal business and, of course, the upcoming album “The Modern Art Of Setting Ablaze“. My favorite quote of the talk:

“Bands are like skateboards – everybody has one.”

Have fun with our interview and tell us which one is your favorite quote!

If you want to know how Kiki and I feel about Tuska 2018, read our report.

Photo by Jesse Kämäräinen for Tuska.

THE CHARM THE FURY: Interview with Mathijs Tieken at Tuska festival 2018

Pia S. — Tue, 31 Jul 2018 17:16:22 +0000

After the release of “The Sick, Dumb & Happy”, the latest studio album by THE CHARM THE FURY, we talked about it with vocalist Caroline Westendorp. One and a half years later, we recently had the band’s drummer Mathijs Tieken for an interview. We talked about random topics: from music – the band already started to write new material for an upcoming album, to politics – still no master plan to save the world, to women in metal and hair/beard care.

THE CHARM THE FURY’s Mathijs Tieken: “we always [write music] at home… it’s hard on the tour bus”.

Have fun with our chat and also keep an eye out for other interviews and listen to our podcast about TUSKA festival 2018, where this interview with THE CHARM THE FURY took place. You can also read our festival report about the festival, where we discuss the band’s gig.

I especially love the idea of creating a unique sound but also albums of different styles. Because of Caroline‘s unique voice, we will always be able to recognize THE CHARM THE FURY and so there is a chance, the band can make their plan happen. I’m really looking forward to new songs and if you ever have the chance to see the band live, do it – they are a blast on stage!

Photo by Jesse Kämäräinen for Tuska Festival.