SAREA INTERVIEW

1.What is the name of your band and how did you come up with it?
What is your name and what do you do for the band?

- Hello! Johan here, guitarist and founder of the band 'Sarea'.
The name of the band and the story behind it is a bit of a secret to everybody. I can give you one hint though; It's video game related...


2.Tell us where you are based and describe the scene. How do you think where you are located influences your sound.

- Sarea is based in the city Norrköping in the south-eastern part of Sweden, 2 hours drive south from Stockholm. The scene is quite alright with several great upcoming bands, but venue wise there's more to wish for, even though there are a few rock-/metal clubs out there. It's an old industrial city by the water being extremely beautiful in the spring/summer and super gray and boring in the autumn/winter so maybe that variety shows in our music, haha!? At least sometimes...

3.Who influences your sound that would surprise people?

- Pop acts like 'Kent' and 'The Midnight' but also composers like Hans Zimmer, Danny Elfman and John Williams.

4.Are you endorsed by musical companies , if so who , and if not who would you like to be endorsed by?

- None at the moment. Endorsements are great (and super important) if you get the right deal, but you don't wanna end up doing clinics at the local mall just for the sake of endorsement...

 

5.When you started what was your ultimate goal? And how close to the goal are you now?

- Sarea has always been about creating aggressive, melodic music. Music that WE would like to listen to. In that sense our goal was reached back in 2010 when we released our debut album 'Alive'. But in a bigger perspective we all want the music being our main income, and there we still have som work to do...

6.In today's digital environment it takes creative strategy to keep things moving. What creative ideas do you have to keep your band relevant over time?

- It sure does! I guess I shouldn't spoil too much of that strategy but I guess the main thing is to ALWAYS be active with photos, videos, music etc. without losing who you are (and want to be) along the way.

7.We've all seen a terrible live band that is awesome on CD. Is that cool with you or do you lose respect for bands that cannot pull it off live?

- Everyone can have a bad day, but we've toured with some bands - much bigger than us - that just don't pull it off live night after night, and that's just a shame. On the opposite we've toured with bands that I find a bit blunt on CD, that puts up a hell of a live show.

8.Tell us your “core” are you Metal , Rock , Punk , Pop etc because people just have to categorize these days you know?

- All of us are very open minded when it comes to different music and genres, but if I have to pick one I'd say our core is definitely metal/hard rock.

9.This is a tough question but a very real reality, Is your band actually talented or just popular?

 

Many bands make it with a cliche or publicity stunts etc. Would you accept fame even if it was just because of being the “ in” thing or is it actually important to you that you gain favor with talent?
- Well...this is like balancing on a razors edge. I personally respect bands who's just "in it for the money" AS LONG AS THE MUSIC IS STILL GOOD. But when you sell yourself in terms of releasing music you no longer believe in, I think it's time to step back and start doing something else. I'd say Sarea is quite talented, but none of us would make it in Dream Theater or Meshuggah, if you know what I mean...Our main focus has always been great songs rather than technical difficulties.

10.Tell us what to expect from you live. Nothing is more boring than watching bands stare at the floor and bob their heads to music nobody but the band knows. What can your band offer in a live setting that people will remember?

- Live is the real way to experience Sarea. We always give 110% banging our heads of, jumping around on stage no matter the size of the venue or the crowd. We often get positive reactions from our massive "vocal package" (4 of us got a mic on stage) and sometimes also for us using live keyboards and not (only) backing tracks.


11. What releases have you put out , When will we see something new?
- 'Alive' (2010), 'This is not Goodbye' (2014) and 'Black at Heart' (2017). Hopefully a new record will see the light of day during early 2020.

12. If you have videos where can we see them?

- They're all on YouTube. Just search for Sarea and you'll get a handful of crazy music videos, totally worth your while!


13.Everybody has Bandcamp , ReverbNation , Soundcloud , etc
Why do you think this is so important? Doesn't it seem like everyone is giving everything out for free?

- Interestingly enough we're not active on any of those platforms just mentioned. But if you're not super established as an artist/band I think it's generally a good thing your music is available for free. The industry and the crowd has changed. Not many people pay for music they've never heard these days...


14.Best moment of your career so far?

  

- Tough questing! We've had SO MUCH fun with Sarea. Sweden Rock Festival is of course one highlight in our career. Also the show at the release party for 'Black at Heart' was fantastic. Not to forget our first European tour in 2017.

15.Your message to the fans?

- Thanks for your amazing support! Keep spreading your love and see you on the roads in a galaxy not far far away...

Bonus Question who do you bring back
Dime , Cliff , Dio , Lemmy , Randy

- The rest of the band probably won't agree with me here, but personally I'd say Dio any day. And also, not mentioned, Jimi Jamison!