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Interview – Blaster Music Magazine

While they started off playing thrash metal, they gradually incorporated some power metal elements, as well as some darker elements which have shaped their signature sound to its current form. We are happy to introduce you to an amazing music band – “HARMONIZE


[BLASTER] HI, THANKS FOR YOUR TIME! HOW DID THE BAND COME TOGETHER?

HARMONIZE: THANK YOU FOR HAVING US. THE BAND HAS BEEN ACTIVE SINCE 2012, AND HAS BEEN PERFORMING LIVE SINCE. OUR LINE-UP USED TO LOOK COMPLETELY DIFFERENT BACK THEN, BUT IT SEEMS THAT FATE BROUGHT OUR CURRENT LINE UP TOGETHER. GEORGE CONSTANTINOU HAS KNOWN EVERYONE FOR A LONG TIME AND EACH ONE OF US HAS THEIR OWN SPECIAL STORY AS TO HOW WE THEY GOT TO JOIN THE BAND. ALTHOUGH VERY DIFFERENT PERSONALITIES, WE ARE 5 LIKE-MINDED INDIVIDUALS WITH THE SAME ARTISTIC VISION FOR THE BAND.

[BLASTER] DESCRIBE THE BAND OR THE BAND’S MUSIC IN ONE SENTENCE?

HARMONIZE: HARMONIZE ARE A CONCEPTUAL HEAVY METAL BAND WITH MAINLY EPIC POWER METAL AND THRASH METAL ELEMENTS WITH THE ADDITION OF DEATH AND DOOM TRAITS.

[BLASTER] AS A BAND, IS THERE ONE PERSON WHO IS THE LEADER (SO TO SPEAK) OR DO YOU WORK AND WRITE TOGETHER TOSSING IDEAS AROUND? HOW DO YOU STAY FOCUSED AS A BAND AND TO AVOID COMMON BAND DISAGREEMENTS IN ALL FACETS, INCLUDING WRITING, RECORDING AND MAKING THE DECISIONS?

HARMONIZE: NAVIGATING A SHIP FOR ALMOST 9 YEARS, THROUGH CHALLENGING SAILS, MEANS THAT SOMEONE MAY HAVE TO TAKE THE LEAD AT SOME POINT. GEORGE IS NOT ONLY THE RHYTHM GUITARIST; HE IS ALSO THE FOUNDER AND ONLY ORIGINAL MEMBER OF THE BAND. IT IS UNDERSTANDABLE THAT HIERARCHY ISSUES MAY GET IN THE WAY OF SOME BANDS. WE ALSO HAD ISSUES IN THE PAST, BUT THANKFULLY OUR CURRENT LINE-UP WORKS AS A TEAM AND EVERYONE KNOWS THEIR STRENGTHS AND LIMITATIONS. WE ALL OFFER OUR MERITS FOR THE SAKE OF THE BAND AND THE PROJECT. WE WORK TOGETHER AS A GROUP AND WE ALL OFFER IDEAS, BUT SOMETIMES SOZOS MICHAEL, AS OUR FRONTMAN HAS TO BE THE REPRESENTATIVE OF THE BAND AND GEORGE AS THE MANAGER OF THE BAND HAS TO APPROVE OF THE DECISIONS BEING MADE. WE RESPECT EACH OTHER NOT JUST AS MUSICIANS, BUT AS FRIENDS. WE HAVE ESTABLISHED A CLOSE FRIENDSHIP WITH EVERYBODY AND WE HAVE A COMMON GOAL AND VISION. IT IS CLEAR THAT ANY OBJECTIONS RAISED ARE NOT ILL-INTENDED. WE ARE MOSTLY LIKE A FAMILY AND EVERYONE IS ASSIGNED THEIR OWN PART, BUT NO ONE IS EVER EXCLUDED FROM THE DECISION MAKING, AS WE ARE ALL EQUALS.

[BLASTER] DO YOU COLLECTIVELY HAVE A FAVORITE ALBUM?

HARMONIZE: WE ARE 5 DIFFERENT INDIVIDUALS WHO OFFER DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVES WHEN WE ARE CREATING TOGETHER, THAT IS WHAT MAKES OUR SOUND AND OUR APPROACH TO THE METAL SUB-GENRES UNIQUE. WE WOULDN’T WANT TO CHANGE THAT, SO NO WE DON’T ALL HAVE A FAVOURITE ALBUM COLLECTIVELY AND THAT IS OKAY.

[BLASTER] IS THERE ANY HIDDEN MEANING IN YOUR MUSIC?

HARMONIZE: OUR MUSIC IS CONCEPTUAL, BASED ON AN ORIGINAL FANTASY FICTION STORY WE ARE DEVELOPING WITH OUR FRIEND AND ACTOR NICOLINA PAPAS, WHO ALSO NARRATED A SPOKEN TRACK ON OUR LATEST ALBUM. I GUESS YOU COULD SAY THERE ARE A LOT OF HIDDEN MEANINGS IN OUR MUSIC, BUT WE WOULDN’T WANT TO PREDETERMINE THAT FOR THE LISTENERS OR THE READERS.

[BLASTER] FOR UPCOMING BANDS, CAN YOU TELL US WHAT THE SECRET IS OF KEEPING A BAND TOGETHER FOR SO LONG?

HARMONIZE: ESTABLISHING A HEALTHY FRIENDSHIP, BEING RESPONSIBLE, BEING RESPECTFUL AND COMMITTING. TOXIC PEOPLE DO NOT BELONG IN BANDS. FIND COMMON GROUND AND EXPRESS YOUR ANGER AND INSECURITIES THROUGH YOUR MUSIC, NOT AGAINST EACH OTHER. DO NOT BE FICKLE AND ALWAYS MAKE SURE YOU HAVE SOMETHING TO GAIN FROM AND TO GIVE TO THE PROJECT. MOST SIGNIFICANT PIECE OF ADVICE, HOWEVER, IS TO NEVER GIVE UP. GEORGE, WHO HAS BEEN THE ONLY ORIGINAL MEMBER, HAS NEVER GIVEN UP ON HIS DREAMS. HE HAS WATCHED PEOPLE WHO WERE BACK THEN TOO YOUNG TO COMMIT, DESERT HIM AND THE PROJECT. YET, STANDING HIS GROUND, HE HAS NOW BUILT AN ARMY AND A FAMILY FOR HIMSELF. WHAT STARTED OFF AS A SCHOOL BAND IS NOW RECEIVING WORLDWIDE RECOGNITION AND IS A CONTINUOUS PROJECT WITH STRONG FOUNDATIONS.

[BLASTER] WHERE DO YOU FIND YOUR ARTISTIC INSPIRATION?

HARMONIZE: WE HAVE MANY DIFFERENT SOURCES OF INSPIRATION, OUR MAIN SOURCE, HOWEVER, IS THE TALE WE ARE WRITING. EACH ALBUM WE WILL CONTINUE TO RELEASE MAY IN ONE WAY OR ANOTHER, SAY MORE ABOUT THE STORY AND ITS CHARACTERS. OUR SELF-RELEASED DEBUT ALBUM ‘WARRIOR IN THE NIGHT’ ACTS AS AN INTRODUCTION TO OUR STORY AND AS A HOMAGE TO ONE OF THE MAIN CHARACTERS. TO GET MORE IN-DEPTH ABOUT THE STORY, WE HAVE INCLUDED A SHORT NARRATION IN OUR ALBUM, TITLED ‘BEYOND DARKNESS’.

[BLASTER] ANY PLANS FOR NEW MUSIC? WHEN CAN WE EXPECT A NEW ALBUM OR EP?

HARMONIZE: WE RELEASED OUR ALBUM ‘WARRIOR IN THE NIGHT’ A FEW MONTHS AGO. WE ARE CURRENTLY WORKING ON NEW MATERIAL FOR OUR NEXT RELEASE, SO HOPEFULLY, SOMETHING IS COMING OUT SOONER OR LATER, AND WE LOOK FORWARD TO IT.

[BLASTER] WHERE CAN PEOPLE SEE YOU PERFORM NEXT? DO YOU HAVE A 2020 TOUR SCHEDULED YET?

HARMONIZE: DUE TO THE UNCERTAINTY THAT DOMINATES THE WORLD RIGHT NOW, IT’S HARD TO TELL FOR SURE. WHEN IT’S SAFE TO BE ON STAGE AGAIN, THIS COMING YEAR IN 2021, WE WOULD AIM TO GO ON TOUR.

[BLASTER] TELL US ABOUT YOUR LATEST SONG. WAS IT SPECIFICALLY INSPIRED BY ANYTHING OR ANYONE? WHERE WAS IT RECORDED??

HARMONIZE: OUR LATEST WORK RELEASED IS OUR ALBUM WARRIOR IN THE NIGHT. THE WHOLE ALBUM SURROUNDS THE STORYLINES OF THE WARRIOR AND THE OTHER CHARACTERS. OUR SONG ‘WARRIOR IN THE NIGHT’ IN PARTICULAR, DESCRIBES THE WARRIOR AND HIS VICIOUSNESS. IT DESCRIBES THE BRUTAL ACTS BY A BEAST SPREADING FEAR ON THE BATTLEFIELD. IN ORDER TO EMOTIONALLY CONNECT TO SUCH A CHARACTER, WE HAD TO FIND THE BEAST WITHIN US, AND CONNECT TO THAT DARKER ALTER EGO THAT POSSIBLY EVERYONE HAS. THE TRACK STARTS WITH WHAT REMINDS YOU OF AN OMINOUS TOLLING OF A BELL, IN WHAT YOU COULD SAY IS A DOOM INTRO, GRADUALLY BECOMING AN INTENSE HEAVY METAL SONG. IN OUR SONG ‘CRAWLING AMONG SHADOWS’, HOWEVER, WE GO TO EXPLORE DEEPER THE CHARACTER’S EMOTIONS AND HIS POSSIBLE VULNERABILITIES, WHICH ARE REFLECTED IN THE GROWLING VOCALS AND DEATH METAL SOUND WE CHOSE. OUR ALBUM WAS RECORDED IN CYPRUS, AT STUDIO 35 AND WAS MIXED AND MASTERED AT RHYTHM POWER STUDIO IN GREECE.

[BLASTER] WHAT IS ONE MUSICAL GOAL THAT YOU HAVE HAD FOR THIS YEAR?

HARMONIZE: THIS PAST YEAR, OUR MAIN AIM WAS TO RELEASE WARRIOR IN THE NIGHT OUR DEBUT ALBUM- AN AIM WHICH HAS BEEN ACHIEVED AND WE ARE VERY EXCITED ABOUT IT AND THE RESPONSE IT HAS RECEIVED. WE ALSO RELEASED TWO VIDEO CLIPS AND A FEW LYRIC VIDEOS. FOR THIS COMING YEAR, OUR AIM IS TO WORK ON OUR NEW MATERIAL AND PERHAPS RELEASE MORE MUSIC. THE PROSPECT OF PERFORMING LIVE THIS COMING YEAR IS ALSO VERY EXCITING.

[BLASTER] CAN YOU RECALL THE MOMENT WHEN YOU THOUGHT YOU COULD BE IN THIS GROUP?

HARMONIZE: THIS WOULD HAVE TO BE DIFFERENT FOR EACH MEMBER. EVERYONE HAS THEIR OWN INDIVIDUAL STORY AS TO HOW THEY GOT TO JOIN THE BAND. THE BAND WAS NAMED ALMOST 9 YEARS AGO, SO IT’S HARD TO RECALL EXACTLY HOW WE CAME ABOUT IT, BUT IT IS IMPORTANT TO STATE THAT, HARMONY, BALANCE AND EQUILIBRIUM ARE THEMES THAT WE AIM TO EXPLORE FURTHER IN OUR CONCEPT, AS IT HAPPENS TO TAKE A BIG PART IN THE STORY WE ARE WRITING. IT MAY SEEM UNCLEAR IN OUR MUSIC FOR NOW, BUT THIS IS ONLY THE BEGINNING.

[BLASTER] DO YOU ALL HANG OUT SOCIALLY APART FROM THE MUSIC? WHEN YOU AREN’T WORKING ON MUSIC, DO YOU GUYS HANG OUT FOR FUN?

HARMONIZE: WE HAPPEN TO BE BEST OF FRIENDS, SO OF COURSE, WE LIKE TO HANG OUT TOGETHER. WE HAVE FORMED COUNTLESS WILD MEMORIES TOGETHER AND HAVE BUILT A STRONG BOND. WE ENJOY CAMPING, CASUALLY HANGING OUT TO CHILL AT EACH OTHER’S PLACES, GOING TO ROCK BARS, GIGS, FESTIVALS, OR TRAVELING TOGETHER. DUE TO THE PANDEMIC, WE LATELY HANG OUT MOSTLY FOR WORK, AS WE NEVER CEASE WORKING FOR THE BAND. HOWEVER, WHEN WE DO NOT DISCUSS BAND MATTERS, WE ARE BIG GOOFS WHO ENJOY HANGING OUT AND HAVING FUN.

[BLASTER] WHERE DO YOU THINK YOU ARE ALL HAPPIEST- IN THE STUDIO RECORDING NEW MUSIC, ON STAGE PERFORMING OR ELSEWHERE?

HARMONIZE: AGAIN, THIS MAY BE DIFFERENT FOR EVERYONE, BUT THEY ARE BOTH PARTS OF OUR JOB AND OUR CRAFT, THAT WE ARE VERY LUCKY TO HAVE, DESPITE ALL THE DIFFICULTIES AND PRESSURES WE FACE AS ARTISTS. STUDIO RECORDINGS MEAN FOCUSING, LEARNING, IMPROVING AND HELPING EACH OTHER OUT. IT MEANS CREATING AND WATCHING YOUR WORK GROW. LIVE PERFORMANCES MEAN MANIFESTING, FEELING POWERFUL, FEELING PEOPLE’S ENERGY, PERHAPS EVEN FEELING SLIGHTLY ANXIOUS WHICH MAKES THE EXPERIENCE EVEN MORE SO EXCITING. IT IS PERFORMING FOR THE PEOPLE WHO CAME TO SEE YOU, WHO HEADBANG TO YOUR MUSIC, WHO SING YOUR SONGS. THEY ARE BOTH THINGS WE ENJOY, BUT AT THE MOMENT, WE ESPECIALLY MISS THE LATTER. IT HAS BEEN AN UNREQUITED WISH FOR THE PAST TWO YEARS, AS WE SPENT THE FIRST YEAR WORKING ON OUR ALBUM AND THIS PAST YEAR, WE HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO SHOWCASE OUR WORK LIVE, DUE TO THE PANDEMIC.

[BLASTER] WHAT DO YOU HOPE IS THE MESSAGE OF YOUR MUSIC? WHAT DO YOU HOPE PEOPLE CONTINUE TO TAKE AWAY FROM YOUR SONGS??

HARMONIZE: WE WISH THAT PEOPLE FIND THEMSELVES IN THE STORIES WE TELL, IN THE EMOTIONS WE EXPRESS, IN THE MUSIC WE PLAY. WE HOPE THAT THEY ASPIRE TO OUR BATTLE CHANTS AND THAT THEY NEVER GIVE UP. TO CONTINUE FIGHTING, BECAUSE THE FIGHT IS NEVER OVER, AND MUCH LIKE OUR STORY THERE’S ALWAYS MORE TO LEARN AND MORE PAGES TO TURN. WE MOSTLY WANT PEOPLE TO ENJOY OUR MUSIC AND FIND A PIECE OF THEMSELVES IN IT.

[BLASTER] ARE THERE ANY FUNNY STORIES THAT HAPPENED TO YOU WHILE TRAVELING TOGETHER, THAT YOU WANT TO SHARE WITH OUR READERS?

HARMONIZE: THE MOST RECENT ONE, WAS WHEN WE WENT TO OUR FRIEND’S HOLIDAY HOUSE AND STAYED THERE FOR THREE DAYS WITH MORE OF OUR FRIENDS. THE HOUSE IS LOCATED ON A FAIRLY HIGH LATITUDE IN THE VILLAGE OF GOUDI IN PAPHOS, CYPRUS. IT WAS AS IF THE ENTIRE VILLAGE BELONGED TO US. WE MAY OR MAY NOT HAVE BEEN INTOXICATED DURING THE NIGHTS WHEN WE PLAYED GUITAR AND GAZED AT THE STARS, WITH ZERO LIGHT POLLUTION, IN THE CLEAR SKY. HOWEVER, WHEN SOZOS SHOWED UP WITH HIS VR THE CALM ATMOSPHERE CHANGED RAPIDLY. WE WERE PLAYING VR IN NATURE, AND WE MANAGED TO SOMEHOW BURN A LOT OF CALORIES-THAT THING IS EXHAUSTING. IT WAS QUITE RIDICULOUS, GETTING TO WATCH YOUR BANDMATES FIGHT INVISIBLE GIANT SPIDERS, OR FALL FROM A SUPPOSED SKYSCRAPER. IT ALL FEELS TOO REAL WHEN YOU PLAY THAT THING, BUT IT IS ABSOLUTELY HYSTERICAL WATCHING YOUR MACHO METALHEAD FRIENDS SHRILL OVER AN IMAGINABLE HIGH BUILDING, STARING INTO THE DEPTHS OF THE UNKNOWN, WHEN REALLY, THEY WERE LOOKING DOWN AT THEIR SHOES ON GROUND LEVEL. THE CHERRY ON TOP, WAS WHEN WE LOST JESSIE, OUR BASSIST’S (PANAYIOTIS TAKKIDES) POMERANIAN SON, AND SPENT AN HOUR LOOKING FOR HIM IN THE ENTIRE VILLAGE. HE FINALLY SHOWED UP, WHEN HE HEARD PANAYIOTIS’ CAR ENGINE. IT WAS AN EVENTFUL STAY IN NATURE.

[BLASTER] WOULD YOU LIKE TO GIVE ANY MESSAGE TO YOUR FANS?

HARMONIZE: WE WOULD LIKE TO THANK EVERYONE WHO IS SUPPORTING OUR JOURNEY AS WE ARE VERY GRATEFUL TO BE DOING WHAT WE ARE DOING. WE KEEP UPDATES ON ALL OUR SOCIAL MEDIA FOR UPCOMING ANNOUNCEMENTS.

[BLASTER] TELL US WHERE FANS CAN FOLLOW YOUR WORK AND ACCESS YOUR MUSIC.

HARMONIZE: WE SELL OUR MUSIC WORLDWIDE. YOU CAN FIND MORE ABOUT OUR STORY, OUR JOURNEY OUR STORE AND EVERYTHING WE PUT OUT AS WELL AS OUR SHOP AT HTTPS://WWW.HARMONIZEOFFICIAL.COM/
OUR MUSIC IS ALSO AVAILABLE ON ALL DIGITAL PLATFORMS:
APPLE MUSIC: HTTPS://MUSIC.APPLE.COM/US/ARTIST/HARMONIZE/1527185218?AT=1L3VWYF
AMAZON: HTTPS://WWW.AMAZON.COM/WARRIOR-NIGHT-HARMONIZE/DP/B08FM1B5TC/REF=SR_1_8?DCHILD=1&KEYWORDS=HARMONIZE+WARRIOR&QID=1600846014&SR=8-8
WEBSITE: HTTPS://WWW.HARMONIZEOFFICIAL.COM/
FACEBOOK: HTTPS://WWW.FACEBOOK.COM/HARMONIZEOFFICIALPAGE
INSTAGRAM: HTTPS://WWW.INSTAGRAM.COM/HARMONIZE_BAND/
TWITTER: HTTPS://TWITTER.COM/HARMONIZEBAND

(blaster-magazine.com)

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