Interview with GAROTA
Welcome to the FILTHYDOGS OF METAL Webzine.
Tell us a few things about GAROT (members, start year, etc.).
Garota is a band founded in Szczecin in 2020 by two then members of Czernina (Witchfucker and Asbiel). After a few weeks of rehearsals, we found a bass player (Sid Fetishious) and started making music together. At the end of 2023, Sid Ferishious decided to leave the band and was replaced by Goatcraft, who play today.
You are going to release your new album ''Z mieczem na gwiazdy''. Tell us a few things about this project.
Tracks from "Z mieczem na gwiazdy" began to be written immediately after the release of the previous album "Czarne Wizje". However, quite a lot happened in 2023, mainly a lot of concerts, but also the above-mentioned departure of the bassist caused the recording process to drag on a bit. The drums for the album were recorded in May 2024, and the instruments and vocals during the summer of the same year. We had a lot of trouble with mixing it at first because it all sounded like shit and the release time was getting closer. Eventually, The Fall (Skrzyp ocz studio, Krak w) did the mixing. He did a great job and made this album something we can be proud of.
How did your cooperation with Godz Ov War Productions occur? What do you prefer, Label or DIY and why?
We wrote an email and Greg decided to take us. Of course we prefer the label because Godz Ov War made Garota mean something on the Polish scene, for which we will always be grateful to him. Our first EP was self-released, and to be honest, it didn't reach many people, and we didn't even play many concerts. We released our debut album under the sign of godz ov war and immediately there were reviews, interviews and concert proposals.
Is there any funny or weird story from the recordings or from your live shows that you would like to share with us?
The person who was the first to mix the upcoming material, in some places on the first version of the mix he added tambourine tracks (no, I'm not kidding), all of our friends laughed at it, but to this day I wake up at night covered in sweat with a tambourine ringing in the back of my head. There are a lot of stories from parties where we were celebrating recordings (of course, there were more than one party, we had to drink every track we recorded), but unfortunately we don't remember most of them.
Do you prefer Vinyl, Tape, CD or Digital Format and why is that?
It depends. It is known that the best medium is vinyl, with the most clear and spacious sound. But as we know, not all of us have it portable gramophone, so streaming services are the most practical ones - it has both advantages and disadvantages. Of course, we can pretend that it's 1990 and listen only to cassettes and CDs, ignoring all modern inventions, but why?
Your music style is Black/Thrash Metal. Which are your main influences (Favourite Artists / Bands etc.)
Sodom, Dissection, Sarcofago, Motorhead, Venom, Saxon, PLaga Accept, Dissection, Darkthrone, Mayhem, Black Magick SS, Craft, Watain, DsO, Leviathan.
Which things do you think a band should sacrifice in order to succeed? Have you ever sacrificed anything in your life for a better future for your band?
First of all, time, time to rehearse, time to practice, time for answers to this interview. It seems to me that no one will be able to play specific tempos and riffs without enough practice, and friends from outside the world of music often miss out. The question remains is it worth it? I don't know.
Describe your ideal live show as a performance band. Have you already experienced that?
People sing our lyrics, lots of screaming and general carnage. Some of it we experienced and some we didn't, but we'll be touring in February to promote the album and we hope it will end there.
What attributes do you think that a new Black/Thrash Metal Band should have in order to gain identity and be unique?
They shouldn't force themselves to be special. Today, everyone wants to be different, sound like no one else, or even invent a new genre. OK, but why? I think the most unique black/thrash bands are the ones that keep the spirit of the 80s and 90s and don't overcomplicate things too much, they play what they like. I'm not saying that now we should all play the same riffs and dress the same, creativity and unconventionality are advisable, but the point is that it's quite a hermetic genre and it's very easy to cross some unwritten boundaries, I also think that Garota somehow crosses these boundaries, but we try to do it within specific limits.
Do you believe that Digital Platforms help the new Black/Thrash Metal Bands? Which, do you think, is the ideal way for a band to promote its work?
Sure, without much effort, our music reaches far beyond the borders of our country, we no longer have to send cassettes by post like our predecessors did, nowadays we can easy present ourselves with our music, but it also has its disadvantages, because of such easy access, there are thousands of new bands and somewhere your release is drowning in a sea of ??new things, that's why I think that Digital Platforms will help a lot, but the promotion should not end only with them. And the best method of promotion is probably concerts, single gigs in small towns and big tours, it seems to me that this makes the band more famous.
Tell us a few things about the New Underground Metal Scene in Poland (Bands, Fanzines, Webzines, Metal Clubs etc.)
It also depends on how we define the "new underground metal scene". There is no lack of bands, there are a lot of really cool ones, but most of them are created by people who have been on this scene for some time already, there are certainly young people who are just taking their first steps, but apart from two local new bands, I haven't heard of them yet . We can mention, for example, SCRUDA or WIELKI MROK and ones that you may not call "new" but also really good: Damage Case, Actum Inferni, Deus Mortem, Anima Damnata, Owls Woods Graves, Odium Humani Generis, Tr cizna, lwstndrds. When it comes to fanzines and webzines, we don't follow the topic very much, as far as what's new, there are a few websites that we check from time to time, but they are definitely not new. We recommend R'Lyeh zine and Oldschool Metal Maniac. Few really good polish labels that are for example Godz Ov war, Old Temple, Black Flame Rebellion, Black Death Production, Malignant Voices, Pagan Records. There is also a great Polish festival, Black Silesia Open Air, but I am sure that everyone who would be interested in it already knows about it. When it comes to metal clubs, it's actually different, in our hometown they recently opened a new club, which is actually an old one after renovation, which makes us optimistic, because Szczecin finally has a place where the sound is not fucking shit. But how new clubs looks like in Poland, we'll find out in February.
Do you know anything about the Hellenic Metal Scene?
Yes, I am a big fan of the Greek scene, especially specific guitar riffs. Varathron, Rotting Christ, Necromantia are still some of my favorite bands. Yoth Iria is quite new band which i really like I hope to visit Greece someday.
In the last 4 years, worldwide in the world, we have faced many dark, strange, and new situations in our everyday lives (covid, lockdown, etc.). Did all of this affect you positively or negatively?
Well, a lot has happened, but honestly, after almost 5 years, I don't know if there are still any echoes of Covid on the music scene. There are other levels of life on which it was reflected (work, family, etc.) and it was certainly reflected in our heads in some way, but sticking to the music, everything is probably the same as before, we compose as before, we didn't change to any new ones innovative methods of composing remotely. Of course, we use the benefits of technology as much as we can, but our work is probably not much different from what it was like in 2019.
What are your future plans?
As I mentioned earlier, we have a tour planned in Poland together with our friends from SCRUDA, we don't know what after that, we will probably start writing new things.
Thank you very much for your time & keep up the good work! The closure is yours.
Thank you! Bring down upon me for last time all forest's.
By Steve the Filthy Dog.
GAROTA CONTACT:
https://www.facebook.com/garotapoland/
https://www.instagram.com/garotapoland/
https://garotapoland.bandcamp.com/
https://open.spotify.com/artist/3q0cPR1P77acxv2hCotPGx
GODZ OV WAR PRODUCTIONS:
https://godzovwar.com/shop/en/
https://www.facebook.com/godzovwarproductions
https://www.instagram.com/godz_ov_war_productions
https://godzovwarproductions.bandcamp.com/music