Dear friends and fans, I would like to announce the release of my second full-length album with Fuzz Sagrado for January 16 next year! The album will be named "Luz e Sombra" (Light and Shadow), with nine new tracks in a total length of about 42 minutes. I will start as usual with digital releases on all platforms, remember: Your support via bandcamp is always most appreciated! But later, hopefully, there'll also be physical versions.
Although again I am bit in a mix of being excited and "terrified" 😉 I can say that I am quite confident that with this new album I have improved in many ways. Again I took care of songwriting, recording, mixing and mastering - all by myself. This time I am pretty sure that the sound is pretty good 😉 and most probably in one league with what I have released with former bands, if not better - or at least: I am happier with this than ever before, which may be quite a bold statement.
I can also already say that the songs in general will be a bit heavier, with more distorted guitars than on the previous album - and where I am almost certain too is that my vocals again have improved! I have put quite a big emphasis on songwriting here, and vocals are often up front. A good third of the songs will be longer, in about 6-8 minutes, the others are shorter, sort of grungy songs (verse-chorus-verse) and then there are also two instrumentals which may or may not surprise with elements from classical music!
The album in general has influences from 60s and 70s symphonic psychedelic prog in the vein of Pink Floyd or The Moody Blues, not so much classical Hard Rock as more a kind of 90s vibe, influenced from the grunge era or British bands like The Verve, with the rather obvious Stoner-touch, and like the last album also suave 80s vibes that may remind of The Sisters Of Mercy or The Comsat Angels - although no one has to be afraid, the synthesizers actually went a bit further into the background.
What you won't find though is a lot of guitar noodling, sorry but this is just not what I am up to these days. For those who are in doubt, I have to add one thing: Fuzz Sagrado is not Samsara Blues Experiment, and I am not trying to recreate anything from the past.
Here's the playlist of the album:
01. There's No Escape (6:05)
02. Wake Them Up (4:12)
03. Luz e Sombra (7:56)
04. One Endless Summer (3:19)
05. Leaving Samsara (7:10)
06. Memories Of A Future Passed (3:47)
07. Love In Progress (3:22)
08. Learning To Live, And Live Again (3:56)
09. Broken Earth (3:44)
Thank you to all my supporters, fans and friends. And to those who think all my life here is sunshine, this is just half the truth. Actually most of the material on this album could have been completed by May or June already but it took quite a while for me to get adjusted with some things, and I may have had a little problem to stay focused. Gladly things in general have come back to a bit of "normality" - for most of us (?) - and I had to tell myself that there's no rush for things, and even if some people may see it like that, there is no competition in music and art.
2022 has been quite a good year for rock music, and I have experienced quite a comeback myself, checking out lots of new and older rock releases with a lot of curiosity. So, in case you're still reading at this point, happy holidays to you and your families and yeah, talk soon ... Thank you, and muito obrigado!
Pic by my lovely Lorrayne, thank you for yesterday and every day that we are "learning to live, ... and live again" - te amo ta!
In addition to my earlier post about Metallica, who really were responsible for me starting to get more serious about guitar, I wanted to add a few more "weird" early influences, maybe just for giggles, who knows ... but sometimes people ask me and then I always think of other things, whereas lately I felt that I probably had to mention these as well.
So besides Metallica, there were four big other influences from these "dark times" of the mid-1990s. Starting with number one, BAD RELIGION, and no one would have guessed this, but for a moment in time I "religiously" played along to some of their songs. The most frequently played one was their "All Ages"-sampler, which I got shortly after "The Grey Race", their actual album at that time. 1996 was a somewhat *magical year* for me.
The next quite big influence would be THE OFFSPRING and their album "Smash" (from 1994, but still very present a few years later), which really taught me how to play power chords. I had this weird Metallica songbook before where it seemed like they just transcribed the song melodies instead of the riffs? It was kind of a weird book that didn't do anything for me. I preferred to learn stuff by listening to my favorites at the time and playing along. Luckily this was preceded by five or six years of classical guitar school.
Number three of the strange influences would be BIOHAZARD, especially their live album "No Holds Barred" from 1997. At that time I was already into classic rock (especially Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin), but mainly still into metal and heavy stuff. Biohazard had quite a lot of groove tracks, which soon led me to Stonerrock. However, I played this live album almost every day for quite a while. I wonder how my parents and siblings didn't go crazy with my loud habits back then. Some of it must have sounded awful. I really wasn't very good at a lot of things in the beginning.
Another important one of those "weird influences" was SEPULTURA, not so much because of my guitar style, but because they were the one band that really got me into metal and hardrock in the first place. Their 1996 album "Roots" was actually the first longplayer I bought with my own money, on a school trip to Braunschweig in that very year, ... even though the first metal album I had was UDO "Timebomb", sometime in the early 90s, when I was still completely clueless and more interested in US-sports or video games.
My favorite Sepultura-albums though are, and will forever be, "Beneath The Remains" and "Chaos AD". I really loved that band back then, and like I said, they were responsible for getting me interested in a lot of heavy stuff like early Machine Head, Obituary, Sodom, etc. I really was a child of the 90s, but strangely enough I also got into Hip Hop later on, which sometimes caused quite a contradiction in me. People have forgotten how narrow-minded the 90s were sometimes, when you had to decide what you wanted to be, Metalhead or Hip Hopper, and Techno wasn't even considered music by some ;)
Well, I'm still here, just been busy with other things and sometimes still a bit undecided about how to proceed with my social media appearances. But anyways, I've been doing some interviews recently and here's a very detailed one with Eclipsed magazine in Germany that I translated for you. Introduction and questions by Bernd Sievers, who followed my musical career since around 2006 when Terraplane released "Into The Unknown" on Nasoni Records. Find the original article in German here.
With Samsara Blues Experiment Chris Peters mixed up the local heavy psych and stoner rock scene. But in 2020, after the last album "End Of Forever" - the fifth studio album of the band - a closing line was drawn. Chris Peters moved to Brazil and restarted his music career there: Fuzz Sagrado is the name of his new project, which he does all by himself, and "A New Dimension" the just released debut.
Chris Peters seemed to have had enough of the music business in 2021. In his previous eclipsed interview, dissatisfaction and frustration shone through. However, the move to Brazil - for love's sake - seems to have done him good. The end of Samsara Blues Experiment, the band that the singer/guitarist/keyboarder had promoted since 2007 together with Hans Eiselt (guitar, bass), Thomas Vedder (drums) and Richard Behrens (bass, until 2014), he sees more conciliatory today - there is now a vinyl reissue of the Samsara debut "Long Distance Trip" and with "Demos & Rarities" a rarities collection - and looks to the future.
The future for him should be Fuzz Sagrado. The debut "A New Dimension", recorded by him single-handedly, moves like Samsara Blues Experiment in the realm of heavy psych and stoner rock, but also offers new facets. Reason enough to talk to Peters about his life in Brazil, his past - including the early-2000s band Terraplane and his musical side project Surya Kris Peters, from which various albums have already appeared online - and Fuzz Sagrado.
eclipsed: Samsara Blues Experiment's first albums were released on World In Sound. After that they were released on your own Electric Magic Records label. Why the return to a real label now? Why World In Sound?
Chris Peters: First of all, I see Electric Magic as a "real" label. Besides my own releases I have also released some albums of other bands. But my label was always closely connected to World In Sound, almost a sub-label, because WIS had always done a lot of the distribution work as well. In Germany I was still able to do a lot of label work. I myself also sent records directly to fans via the webshops, etc. Now here from Brazil it's not so easy. The first edition of the Fuzz Sagrado CD or the second edition of the last Samsara album was still sent by my father, but this is no longer possible because of the much worse price conditions of the German post. We then thought back and forth, also with Wolfgang at WIS I was still in contact. Above all, a shipping solution had to be found, since DHL is unfortunately no longer viable for small companies that have their customer focus abroad (especially the USA and overseas).
I have always said with SBE that no band really needs a label, but that is not quite right. Especially in these times it is important to have distribution partners. The second plus point for an external label is the financial aspect in general. With SBE we were financially well positioned, especially when we played live. It was really easy to do LP pressings. But now that playing live in this well-known scene band is no longer possible and LP productions have also become considerably more expensive, I needed help and in the beginning I was actually a bit unsure whether my current album had to be pressed on vinyl. I am not one of those complacent musicians, I approach things rather rationally now.
However, the Kozmik Artifactz label was relatively quick to agree to an LP pressing and also released the Fuzz Sagrado album in what I think is a wonderful vinyl version. I am very grateful for this support, besides the CD reissue at World In Sound and the LP at Kozmik Artifactz, there were also tapes of the two previous EPs at the American label Echodelick Records. So there is enough interest in principle. I, on the other hand, tend to be a bit of an understatement right now, I don't know why, maybe also because in the last two years it's somehow been suggested to us that art or music have no special meaning.
eclipsed: How did it come to the re-release of your debut album "Long Distance Trip" on vinyl with the bonus CD "Demos & Rarities"?
Peters: The album is really a blockbuster. For some reason it has become a real cult album. Actually, it's been going on for about six years, that at times at least one album of it had sold every day through our online stores. And in streaming, it's still responsible for about 60% of the revenue. Now the LP, like many other SBE albums, was sold out and you could watch the prices go up on Discogs, etc. I wanted to counteract this. Where there is such a demand, you have to deliver. I was also contacted by other labels, some with somewhat cheeky offers, which I will not go into detail here. Unfortunately, there are also some "rotten eggs" in this still small psychedelic scene - where I used to think we were more or less like a family.
After the end of SBE in 2020 I had my personal problems and wanted to have nothing to do with the band for a while, but I can't do it like that. In the worst case someone would have come up with bootlegs, as they are already available on CD. I also still care about the fans. I find it morally somewhat questionable, if someone asks on Discogs up to 200 EU for a record and then, for lack of other offers, also gets it. I already wanted to offer a newly reprocessed version in 2020, on the actual anniversary of the album, and that has now finally worked, including the demo CD, on which are also some "little fan gems" from the early days of the band. I'm glad that Wolfgang from WIS has been a real fan of SBE from the beginning and has made a lot of things possible for us, and for me in particular. I don't take any of this for granted.
eclipsed: "End Of Forever" was recently released on vinyl but on Electric Magic. Are there any further vinyl reissues planned?
Peters: Well, that was also a somewhat weird thing, due to the circumstances - the album was created while SBE was breaking up - and probably also my aforementioned tendency to understatement, we initially released the album in a small edition. I myself, for example, have not been a collector of physical records for years. For me there is simply no need to accumulate things. Just to mention that in passing. I certainly assume too much about myself sometimes. The first 500 LPs of the last SBE album were gone in less than two weeks. During this time I really didn't want to hear anything more about SBE, while quite a few fans must have felt a bit fooled - many still want to hold something in their hands. When things became a bit more relaxed with the other two guys from SBE, and e.g. the contractual issues were settled, we could finally agree on a new pressing, and this one went out again like hot cakes, again about two weeks and already everyone was gone from my stock. And now a third edition was needed. In this context we also had the "Long Distance Trip" special edition and now also other albums (e.g. "Revelation & Mystery"), which were sold out, were reissued. SBE is still in demand two years after the end of the band. Fortunately, my new project is also going very well, although I'm not playing live at the moment and am just the nerdy guy with the guitar. As I said, however, this fan-musician relationship is quite dear to me, I also try to answer all messages to me and want to try to meet the demand as best as possible and not to offer rip-offs at discogs, etc. - especially since such sales also bring me personally nothing, so I do not see a cent from it.
eclipsed: Who rummaged where in which archives for "Demos & Rarities"?
Peters: I really wanted to offer something special, not just the "Long Distance Trip" album in slightly different artwork, and since I started with the archive management of SBE in 2021, so to speak, I was able to put together a nice package relatively quickly. During the active time of the band a lot of things were a bit "business as usual", also because of lack of time. The albums were always pressed as they were - for example without subsequent numbering, so that you often can't see which pressing it actually is. A bit chaotic, unfortunately. Now I just have time to reflect on some things and to work out such special releases. For the completely new layout, photo research etc. you also need time and inspiration. The "Demos & Rarities"-CD was initially only planned as part of the "Long Distance Trip"-special, but I decided quite quickly with Wolfgang that the CD should be offered separately, in order not to do such a "rip-off thing", where everyone who already has the original album would have to buy everything again, just to be able to have this new CD. There's also stuff on the CD that I didn't want to release earlier, partly out of insecurities, but that ended up being significant cornerstones before the album came out, like the first real studio stint with the "For The Lost Souls" demo or my hippiedom at its zenith with the ten-minute raga attempt "All Is One". That's kind of important in retrospect too, to see where you're coming from.
eclipsed: How does it feel to hear those old things again?
Peters: Well, when I look at my past, I often ask myself: Who was this long-haired guy anyway? Some of it sounds a bit "primitive" from today's point of view, but when I compare it with other stuff, it has its justification. It was a long way from those recordings until today. In the best case you never stop learning and that's what these recordings show. In the past, I probably also thought sometimes, otherwise what a hot shot I was, but if I'm honest now, there was a lot that was still expandable. But it also has its charm, this exuberant zeal of youth, all the knobs on twelve and just rocking out.
eclipsed: In our interview in 2021 about the last Samsara album "End Of Forever" you also commented on the relationship with the other Samsara musicians and spoke of long-standing problems. What does your relationship with them look like today - two years and a few thousand kilometers apart?
Peters: Well, some things have relaxed. I always wanted a good, balanced relationship in the band, where everyone can always say what they think and contribute. I was in many things also "the maker" and then always saw myself personally criticized if there were other opinions. In the end there were too many contrary opinions and to deal with that was really difficult. As mentioned, I tend to certain insecurities, but I also don't want to be such a band boss who somehow decides everything, who pretends a unity on stage, but otherwise always cooks his own soup in the extra hotel room. Despite everything, we were somehow also good buddies with SBE and I think you can reflect on that now. Richard's departure in 2014 was similarly complicated. Ultimately, however, I also associate this SBE feeling with my fellow musicians and therefore I would not now go off and call myself Samsara alone, as some people now think: "Why don't you continue under the name". It's just not that simple, even if that would be guaranteed much easier than to start now with 42 years quasi from scratch.
eclipsed: Let's move on to Surya Kris Peters. You have released a lot of music/albums - at least online. Tell us what's behind it.
Peters: I started this project in 2014. At that time I was a bit unsure where the further journey with SBE should go. At that time, I was already a bit fed up with the always loud, always very similar, somehow dull stoner sound - on the other hand, I had also developed quite a passion for synthesizers at that time. I had my first Moog "already" in 2009 (and software synthesizers before that), and somehow a boredom with the usual guitar sounds had set in after the years as a guitarist. I had my first band in 1999 and then I was rather guitar-fixated until 2014. Then I wanted to try something different and so I came to the Surya project, where I could fully live out my sound visions, which could only be implemented to a limited extent in the often short time in the recording studio. Surya is actually the "total headphone music".
First and foremost, all my projects should be fun, which is why it was inevitable to draw a line under them when SBE really wasn't fun anymore. I certainly don't imagine to go down in music history as an innovator, and I can't and don't want to impress anyone - I certainly lack the skills on the respective instrument. I do all this more to express myself, because that's what I am. I am not a baker or a painter, but first and foremost a musician. There is something in me that wants to come out. I'm actually kind of proud of everything, a lot of things I've done on my own. Like now, for example, making songs that sound like a band, but that's all me. Creativity in any form is actually the greatest thing you can discover for yourself in life. Even being able to bake a nice cake is something creative. I think it's extremely important in your life to be able to live out a certain kind of creativity.
eclipsed: What memories/feelings do you still have of Terraplane?
Peters: The youth, which is often seen in a nostalgic way. As I said, I'm also over 40 now, and the nostalgic moments don't necessarily diminish, even if in the end there is little to gloss over, except perhaps a certain impartiality and that "everything still seemed possible". One may not think so often about how short life actually is. I think I have a pretty cool resume behind me. If I had to present it to anyone, I think they could at least certify that I have always somehow gone my own way. Quite often I catch myself with a smile on my face, when I see all these "young folks" on Instagram or something, who are still looking for that retro sound and look, like we did with Terraplane a hundred years ago, with bell-bottoms and all that 70s stuff. It's funny.
eclipsed: You live in Brazil now, you have a Brazilian wife. How is it living in Brazil? Where do you live there exactly? Have you gotten used to life there?
Peters: We live here in the state of Minas Gerais, about 300 km south of Belo Horizonte, near the Serra da Canastra. To put it in perspective, Minas covers about the area of France, but has only 11 million inhabitants. So you have a lot of land, a lot of nature, and few people. In principle, you can live well here if you have a reasonably good income. However, the difference between rich and poor is huge. We also have favelas here on a small scale, not like in São Paulo or Rio, but also poor neighborhoods, and many "luxury goods" are really luxury. Everything in terms of technology, furniture, cars, etc. is really expensive compared to Germany. The Brazilian sees many things quite differently than the "spoiled German", to which I still count myself. For me, many things are still a kind of "getting used to", including the climate. Here, the whole year is actually summer, although with seasonal differences, for example, the "winter" here is very dry, almost without precipitation, and then in the summer from January, the rainy season starts, with sometimes torrential rains, where it comes annually to the same, sometimes very violent floods. A lot of things seem somehow a bit weird, but you slowly get used to a serenity. It is also particularly interesting to look from here at Europe and its problems, which of course appear completely different in this context. But it is difficult to convey something like that in words. That's why I always say that anyone who has the opportunity to come here from Europe for a visit should definitely do so, and they will return enriched!
eclipsed: Is it at all possible to compare life there with life in Germany? Are there things you miss from Germany?
Peters: It really is a different world here. After 40 years in Germany, I grew up very differently than my wife, who primarily knows her Brazilian reality. You can imagine the misunderstandings and problems that can arise in daily life. Here, other things count, much more important than having some "modern sh..." or any of these luxury goods, is to meet with friends or family in one of the numerous "plastic-chair-bars". The Brazilian attitude to life is rather difficult to convey in words in a short interview and certainly not every Brazilian and not every German can be categorized in the same way. But I myself am still a spoiled Western European, not seldomly crying about the fact that I can not just buy an amplifier, as in the Musicstore mail order, where it is there the next day and is taken back without being asked if you do not like it. In that sense, I do miss something, yes.
eclipsed: To what extent do you get the political situation, especially now after the presidential election?
Peters: I'm not very interested in politics, but of course I notice a lot. For example, when I read the news from Europe from time to time, there is usually reason for a bad mood. One can now suggest naivety to me, but ultimately life on our planet has so many nuances that probably few of us can even halfway understand. Everything is somehow complex and has more than one side. Here in Brazil we have now election year, which is on the one hand interesting, on the other hand almost funny when Bolsonaro addresses the not so young Lula, for example, in the middle of the TV debate on his tight legs or the Viagra consumption in the current parliament is thematized. What all this will mean in the end for us "normal mortals" here remains to be seen. However, there is one thing I would like to mention in particular, in my circle of acquaintances here in Brazil, both camps can always discuss things in a relatively relaxed manner, and even best friends can have completely opposing views. I have noticed, especially in the last two years from Germany rather something very opposite, that there even friendships can break up because of political discussions. In Brazil, despite all this, you can also laugh very easily about yourself and the world.
eclipsed: To what extent does Brazil have an influence on your music? At least on Surya Kris Peters there seems to be a certain influence.
Peters: Among other things, one thing that probably influences me in Brazil is the certain isolation in which I live here. I came from the quasi-hip Berlin, where there is no lack of musicians, and also no lack of musical instruments etc. in any form, here to the Brazilian province. On the one hand, I wanted and needed to be alone for the time being, without outside influences and above all annoying discussions about principles (e.g. arguments about how often a song part is repeated). On the other hand, I am also confronted with some difficulties here, which have to lead to improvisation and creativity. For example, if it becomes difficult to buy instruments or equipment (e.g. guitar amps), well, what do you do? That's sometimes a bit of a cramp for me, e.g. to find effect pedals that I'm up for, but that are also somehow affordable. Almost all the music equipment here is two to three times as expensive as in Europe, or not available at all, and in 2020 I only came here with the bare essentials: two suitcases, one of them for the modular synthesizer, and only one guitar.
So you reflect on what you have, in the end it's enough for a while, and maybe many of these devices are not what you really need, but as in my case, you can perhaps reflect again on what makes a good guitarist or musician in general. Also I practice guitar here every day, which I lastly did in the early 2000s, while in recent years in Germany I was more busy chasing after some sounds (or sights): yesterday some vintage amps, today the Quad Cortex - in the end rather a lot of nonsense. It's also very easy to get caught up in a kind of equipment fetishism. All this analog vs. digital talk etc., better make a few songs and have fun. Well, and as I said, the fact that I'm making music on my own certainly influences me too, and eventually leads me to questions like: How much do I have to or want to say in my songs? Do there have to be umpteen parts in it, or is a simpler verse-chorus-strophe scheme sometimes enough?
With SBE I also wanted to get away from this "pseudo prog" for years, I found it really bad e.g. with "Waiting For The Flood". The "Long Distance Trip" album, on the other hand, which was largely my own brainchild, has already proven that you don't have to be so cerebral when making music. In some things I had to find my way back to myself. Living here in Brazil has also led me to a lot of self-reflection, despite the fact that I am anything but alone here, but for the first time in my life live in a really wonderful family setting with wife and stepdaughter.
eclipsed: Have you immersed yourself in the Brazilian music scene? Describe the scene a little bit.
Peters: Since my first visit in 2017, I liked especially the Brazilian 60s-80s stuff, there was for example a very unique form of progressive and psychedelic rock with bands like Secos e Molhados or artists like Tim Maia (old Brazilian funk). Especially that one I listened to a lot every day for a while. This is somehow also a kind of "good mood music" and helped me over a somewhat sad time in Berlin. Maybe I have been living in Brazil in spirit since 2017 already, with daily Caipirinhas, Tim Maias music and the online chats with my current wife. Currently there are of course numerous musicians here, but perhaps not necessarily as specialized as in Berlin or Europe in general. If I now tell someone here about modular synthesizers, questions are more likely to arise. In Germany, at least in Berlin, this is rather old news already. But what is remarkable is that here in town we have an annual drum festival, even our young mayor is a rock drummer. In general, rock and metal have a relatively large popularity here. Sepultura, for example, came from our state capital Belo Horizonte. There was also a stoner rock sampler "Weedian: Trip To Brasil" a few months ago. But unfortunately a lot of it is rather western oriented, not like in the days of Musica Popular Brasileira in the 70s. I would recommend for example the book "Lindo Sonho Delirante" and check out the bands there. In the '60s to the '80s there was really great independent music here, which probably very few people in Europe will know, because you might also have to get used to the Portuguese language first.
eclipsed: Have you been back to Germany since you moved to Brazil?
Peters: Yes, unfortunately only once briefly in two years due to difficult entry regulations, because Brazil was classified as a "high-risk area" by German authorities every now and then. So it was difficult to plan a trip. Well, difficult topic, which fortunately has also relaxed in Germany. Our visit to Germany, after two years in Brazil, was then "interesting" in many ways and also a kind of reverse culture shock for me, suddenly, for example, you could buy everything again, even the Kellogs Smacks, for which I had to search here for two years. We were temporarily in a kind of frenzy, even my wife had suddenly developed a shopping frenzy. What I really miss most in Germany is the autumn, because there is nothing like that here. Completely different vegetation, we are in the middle of the tropics here.
eclipsed: Let's move on to Fuzz Sagrado: In the 2021 interview for "End Of Forever", you said that you were bored with the lowered fuzz guitar and the even lower fuzz bass. With Fuzz Sagrado you have now returned, at least in part, to that kind of music. What changed your mind?
Peters: Yes very well noticed, to bring it to the point again: bad for me with SBE was, among other things, that the bass had almost always thundered over everything and you somehow also did not get this communicated and solved, that the bass is an important part of the music, but just not alone makes the music. You can relate this sentence from our previous interview to that. That was really extreme for me, when I stand as a guitarist with two really monstrous 100-watt tube amplifiers and large 4x12 boxes, everything always on at the same time, in the room and still sometimes only so a shred of my guitar could be perceived. If it then on my question whether one could play something more quietly, was said approximately; "Well then you must make yourself louder". So I probably just developed a different understanding of music.
I still love certain hard rock albums, my old stoner heroes from the 90s or late 60s and early 70s stuff, even the ever-present Hendrix I have to count as an influence. That was and is great music. A big push back to rock for me actually came from music youtubers, first and foremost a certain Rick Beato, who makes a really great series of videos where he takes apart well-known rock songs and explains all the parts with great passion, like "here listen to what the bass is playing in this Led Zeppelin song, and then the drums". Through these videos, I've finally been able to develop a better understanding of the work of the rhythm section as well. Playing bass, for example, is really fun for me right now!
eclipsed: On the Bandcamp site for "A New Dimension" you already explained a lot about Fuzz Sagrado. Nevertheless, please describe your motivation for Fuzz Sagrado.
Peters: In an interview with Rock Hard in 2020, their editor and SBE fan Holger Stratmann said to me: "You have to continue with this kind of music" and that was probably the first thing that stuck with me. I'm also really not ready for rockers' retirement, to put it that way. There's still too much music in me that wants to get out. One day I covered Black Sabbath's "Sweet Leaf" here just for fun, and that was a moment when the penny really dropped: I'm still into rock after all. Sure, it doesn't always have to bang like Samsara, but I also see that some people still have fun with my music. I'm happy about the feedback I'm getting now and it spurs me on to keep going. As a musician, you don't just sit alone in a small room either: Music needs to be heard.
eclipsed: Do you actually do everything on the album alone? All the instruments? Production? Sound engineering? Do you have your own home studio there? Or where did you record the album?
Peters: Yes, I do everything by myself. I have a room here in our house where I can make noise from noon to night, so to speak. My wife loves my music, too, and has quite an eclectic taste in music. Her favorites are Frank Zappa, Magma and so on. From there already quite good conditions, only the mentioned equipment procurement problem annoys me sometimes, although one really does not need so much. Rarely I also miss an exchange with (fellow) musicians, but in the end I have enough people who I can ask, whether this is good or sh... what I do. With the production technology (especially mix & mastering) I have learned a lot in the last two years. There was enough time for it and with the internet the knowledge of the world is at your feet. Many essential plugins are even available for free or are already included in the basic recording program (compressors etc.). You certainly don't need vintage equipment and rather very little analog stuff. I'm also a bit of a nerd, I love computer stuff, all the plugins that are out there, etc. That's my thing right now!
eclipsed: "A New Dimension", the title of the Fuzz Sagrado album, can also mean that you are making a new musical start. Is that so? Or at least that you want to take a new stylistic direction within psychedelic rock?
eclipsed: "A New Dimension" really explores different possibilities of psychedelic rock. The tracks have different characters. Do you have any idea where Fuzz Sagrado will take you?
Peters: I'll keep going as long as I enjoy it. At the moment I'm working on the second Fuzz Sagrado album, which is almost finished. Interestingly enough, I find a lot of parallels to the grunge of the early 90s, but also echoes of Pink Floyd, and also almost symphonic moments like with The Verve or The Moody Blues. So the more you learn, the more endless the possibilities seem, if you're creative and open enough.
eclipsed: Can you imagine making music within a band context again? What would have to fit for that?
Peters: Yes, at the moment I'm thinking about it. I sometimes miss the social component of meeting with at least like-minded people in the rehearsal room and then playing live. That can also be something nice. I already had an offer to play at a festival here in Brazil. In principle, however, the musical comrades would have to fit in with my (song and sound) guidelines, perhaps more so than with Samsara. It seems that a band can't run too loosely if it's supposed to be halfway "good". I don't want to play in a band again that I start, but where I end up feeling like I can't communicate. I was honestly also always really annoyed by these initial comparisons with Amon Düül, maybe because SBE were sometimes really a kind of Krautrock, which was never my intention. I always wanted to have more of a tight rock band that would perform the songs as well as possible in concert. I am not a stoner in that, and in the literal sense. I'm more impressed by other groups, where everything somehow harmonizes well together.
Following up on the first part of my little write up about the World In Sound-label, I would like to mention some of the outstanding new groups there. Even though I have to admit that I'm not as euphoric about all of them as I am about the older groups, there are some gems there, which for some reason are still hardly known.
Well, to lift a secret, you don't just need cool songs or maybe a reasonably appealing look (also the artworks etc matter, you know). If you want to make it as a musician, you also need a lot of dedication and longevity! It takes years to get to a point where you can say something is successful or not. And before you have that financial success, you're basically living on dry bread and spaghetti with ketchup ;) having a job you probably despise while trying "to make it" and spending all your free time touring and playing ... but anyway ... here are a few groups I'd like to recommend to you if you can find the time.
BUDDHA SENTENZA - instrumental stoner with progression
These guys are really good! They've had two albums on WIS before moving on to another label, probably hoping for something more professional :) and I hope they found it. It's tough in the music world, a lot seems to depend on luck too, or being in the right place at the right time, and I wish they make it soon. They deserve it!
KIRKBINSINEK - Turkish Prog-Psych
Well, another strange group that decided to sing in Turkish, which is great, but may not open up a bigger market for them, maybe they don't even want that. However, the album they released on WIS is very cool and I would recommend you to listen to it if you are into this kind of "experiments", but maybe you have already heard of Erkin Koray, or new groups like Altin Gun?
POSTURES - Swedish hipsters with a knack for Prog?
When the demo for their debut album arrived at WIS mailbox, I immediately told Wolf to should release it because most of it is just stunningly beautiful music and I was excited about this and told all of my three friends about it. For some reason, though, the band didn't last too long, which is a shame...
SATURNA - Retro Heavy Rock from Spain
Super professional band, as it has always seemed to me. For some reason things didn't click so well with WIS and they switched to another label after this album. I would rank them much higher than many of the more popular Retro Rock-groups out there in Europe, probably because they really are the better musicians ... I hope they find (more) success!
SUN AND THE WOLF - from New Zealand to Berlin
Another one of my personal favorites and suggestions for Wolf when he was pretty clueless about what new band deserved our attention. These guys had great songs and a lot of stage presence, but for some reason they didn't really hit the nerve of the larger Stoner/Psychedelic-crowd and therefore probably gave up, too soon ... a real pity!
IMAAD WASIF - has just all the Rock Star - material!
I'm immensely proud that WIS released one of Imaad's early albums that will forever be among my highlights of new releases from 2010 to the present. For some reason, though, it seems to remain an insider's tip, like too many others - there's just so much music out there I guess ... this skinny Indian dude's music you should have heard, though!
And then on a side note: Samsara Blues Experiment's "Revelation & Mystery" wasn't that bad of an album too ;) I always thought it has all that made other bands "big" (maybe more) but people still genuinely love the debut and then, not so much ... I can't complain though. Danke Wolf, fuer alles!
Okay, this is going to be a bit of a biased post, as I've been "more or less" lucky to work with and for the German World In Sound-label for quite some time now. And I say more or less because as with many things, there are pros and cons to being a musician myself and also working in the biz. To be clear: WIS is great! You can find a plethora of super cool, often unheard musicians and bands there, if you have patience to discover these for yourself ... which I sometimes think is becoming a lost art, to have patience.
And working with WIS, you need even more of that same, patience ;) There may be more "professional" labels who may have better distribution, big ole' ads in music papers, music videos and all that fancy stuff, but a lot of them probably don't have half the heart of the guy behind this little WIS-organization, who is a guy named Wolf with a voice like the same ;) a guy who fits in kind of nicely with all this "craziness" here.
So, all I wanted to do with this little post is introduce a few of the amazing artists that are united under the umbrella of WIS, since there are many, it may help to have a starting point. WIS is basically divided into two branches, stuff from the past (60-80s) and new groups. Pretty much all of it is worth a music lover's attention, I swear ... Some of my personal highlights from the classics would be the following:
FRED - the best band, the biggest enigma
It is quite a miracle that WIS in deep rural Germany was the first and only label to release this early US psych-prog highlight! A band from Pennsylvania that never released much during their active period in the 1970s, which is very strange since this is a really great group with similarities to King Crimson, or Frank Zappa including a wonderful wailing violin as in It's a Beautiful Day.
DARIUS a.k.a. the Psychedelic King
This guy is one of the absolute mysteries for me, with two great albums, a truckload of talent and great musicianship, yet remained a total underdog. Fans of The Doors must really love his stuff, at least I do, so give this a spin ...
FEAR ITSELF - female fronted psych was big at WIS, long before it became a trend
Among several female fronted psychedelic bands on the WIS label, this is the standout featuring the amazing Ellen McIlwaine, who (like many others) never made it past a sort of insider tip status, despite being pretty much in league with other acid rock singers of the era. Her backing band was a bit sloppy though, well, that has its own charm for me ...
GOLDENROD - forefathers of Earthless?!
Maaan, seriously check these freaks out! A late 60's band formed by amazing studio musicians who worked with the aforementioned Darius, but also with "the King" Elvis Presley himself, The Doors, The 5th Dimension and others. Maybe that already speaks for itself, but this album is really a trip, a kind of Blue Cheer with better sound and musicianship maybe?
CLIMAX - Hooray for South America!
There were also quite a few early South American proto-prog releases on WIS. Bands like Modulo 1000, Laghonia and then Climax, which, at least for me, are the highlight of these. The opening track alone is worth getting into this rare recording. Great rhythms and relentless fuzz guitar will get you excited!
The oddballs: HAMANA, MICHAEL JAMES, MARCUS and more
This is kind of the wildest part of WIS, Loner Acid Folk in all its beautiful obscurity. If you're looking for something different from all the rest, which is still a wonderful part of an almost forgotten universe - ... and I could say that for pretty much all WIS releases, old and new - Dig in!
And there are so many more true psychedelic gems like THE ID, DRAGONWYCK, MYSTIC SIVA, THE HEADSHOP, JEFF SIMMONS etc, see also www.worldinsound.com and no, I won't get paid for this post ;) I really am quite proud of being part of this crazy trip!
I just uploaded a few videos from one of the last Samsara-concerts in Mannheim, Nov 2019. These had been slumbering on my hard drive for a while and I finally found time to edit them, not as professional as I wished but I think they are nice memories, and also a few rare tracks that we didn't play live often.
We played there in celebration of twenty years of the World In Sound-label which is now re-releasing a few SBE albums for those who still crave them ;) no need to pay horrendous discogs prices! I made sure that this madness will stop ;)
Thank you Wolfgang for making it possible and all the true SUPPORT since the first album in 2010! And thank you Bernd for capturing these concert moments! If anyone wants to buy Samsara, Fuzz Sagrado or Surya-records, follow this link: https://www.tastyodds.com
Very happy to announce that two vinyl versions of "A New Dimension" are now available from Kozmik Artifactz for mailorder worldwide, please see https://bit.ly/3wwBDjK
As recently announced via the official channels of Samsara Blues Experiment, we will re-release the debut album "Long Distance Trip" in a special version, 2LP green marbled and black, with a bonus CD "Demos & Rarities", which includes the sought-after tracks from the "USA Demo", but also pieces that have not been released before. The whole package will be packaged in a tote bag with the screenprinted album cover, plus detailed inlay booklet and stickers.
If I may add a few personal notes: I've been working on the layout for two weeks now, browsing through hundreds of photos from that time and hopefully achieving the most beautiful and complete version of this album yet. We are all very excited about it, as it was not just a special release but a very special time for all the band members. As some of you know, the album was created during the "legendary" US West Coast tour in March 2009, when we headed to California with just a selfmade demo up our sleeves.
Most of the songs were only roughly sketched at that point and the concerts were full of massive jams, which probably contributed to the early fame of our band of hairy bobbleheads. In interviews we talked enthusiastically for a long time about this tour and its great influence on our lives. Then, of course, there were other gigs in Europe at that time, when we were 100% DIY, seeking contact with like-minded bands and making friendships that last to this day.
The album was then recorded in a very loose concept over several months in our rehearsal room, which shortly after turned into Richard Behrens' Big Snuff Studio. The keyboard parts were recorded at my home with very simple tools, while at that time I had just discovered the world of synthesizers. All in all, a very naive but happy time in everyone's life. The album may not be anywhere near a perfect record for me, but while working on it I think I realized why it's still so special to a lot of people. There are just some great songs on it ... and then everything else doesn't matter so much.
The album will be released around November 2022, along with an extra release of the "Demos & Rarities" CD for those who don't want to buy the whole package, as well as reissues of the "Revelation & Mystery" LP and another run of the "End Of Forever" LP, since the last one sold out in just a few days at our label headquarters. If you are interested in rare and outstanding records, please follow the official World In Sound-webshop (link below), which is our partner and will deliver the goods, so make sure to bookmark the following links:
There are two slightly remastered versions of "The Mushroom Park" and "In Her Garden", the instrumental "Arapongas" from 2020/21, the very special track "Celestial Harbour" and a very early demo of "A New Dimension" which was still recorded in Berlin.
It's been a while since my last blog and to be honest, I ask myself how much I still want to share here. I may have that kind of "bipolar personality", where sometimes I feel like I want to embrace the whole world and share things I've learned, talk to everyone about everything, while at other times I tend to shy away from all that and just sit in my room and play guitar for myself. But anyway, it's still a pretty interesting time here in this new country, still much to learn. I'm happy that at least now I'm able to have conversations in Portuguese and for a bit may even have adapted this very different culture, more than the one of my origin in Germany.
I also wanted to mention that I really got back into listening to old Metallica albums, which is funny to me but then I can not deny the huge impact that they had on me when I was a teenager. I started to play electric guitar because of them. I mean, how much bigger an impact can this be? And despite I often thought that none of their documentaries did them any good, since they portrayed personality traits I didn't find that much appealing, ... that band released a couple of true masterpieces, really. It had actually been a long time since I really took time to listen to the whole "Master Of Puppets"-album for instance. At almost 42 years old I'm at this point of a life when at times one is looking back at the past with a bit of nostalgia. I couldn't complain though, the last years had been awesome for me, most of it. People who read this, probably know what I'm talking about.
So, the other day I even watched "Some Kind Of Monster" for the first time ever in its entirety, and although it has quite a few of these awkward scenes, it made me think a lot of how it would have been if my own band had made that step of seeking for some outside help. And that after all, one can not judge any other person for being at their own path which at times may just differ greatly from your own. You can't force your will on others. Even with the best intentions this will not work, if the other part sort of "just doesn't get it", and vice versa. It's a mystery how some bands stay together for so long, very few actually do, when you really look at it. But, anyways ... I'm happier for now. I even play a lot of these old Thrash Metal licks again, just for fun, wondering if maybe I could come up with another project in that direction of heavier guitar music. Let's see ... taking things much slower recently.
Probably the biggest influence of any new band throughout the last 15 years was this "little odd band" (should be huge IMHO) from Santa Cruz County: MAMMATUS. And even tho when I say this I mean just basically their first and second album which in some way showed me that music can be kind of weird and still rocking and exciting, and doesn't have to follow any kind of stereotypical pattern at all - even though at times with SBE I think we exaggerated when we were adding part after part after part in just one song, but yeah; big influence this.
I even tried to convince Mammatus to play a show with Samsara in SF on our first US-tour in 2009, but this didn't work out. Their rare stage appearances may be a crucial part of why they aren't more known. Nevertheless, they're a very unique band in many regards. Their drummer with his synthesizer project WAPITI later also influenced me to do my Surya-stuff. Lots of creativity here, and I'm only guessing but Mammatus seem to be influenced from Japanese 70s music like Osamu Kitajima, and Isao Tomita in particular - which are other faves of mine too.
While I am working on new tracks for a Surya Kris Peters-album, for some time later this year perhaps, I found a similarity to a band that I almost forgot: Bland Bladen. And here's a funny thing, I never really listened that much to this kind of jam music, long guitar noodling or pretty much anything that Samsara probably became sort of notorious for - LOL ... Well, I may have went through a rather short phase when I liked such stuff and maybe that was around the time this four track-album fell into our hands, and I say "our" because actually this CD mysteriously landed in the hands of former Terraplane singer/bassist Chris Oelke when we played at Stoned From The Underground-festival in 2003. And yes in a way Terraplane already played extended jams occasionally, when pretty much no one had a clue what was going on. Also the ultra-long version of Zepp'lins "Dazed And Confused" always left us with lots of oohs and aahs, but anyways that was pretty much that. Remember the very early 2000s were also a time when streaming, or even decent downloading was pretty much non-existent, so you listened to the CDs you had and for us that was a lot of Zepp'lin, Hendrix, Canned Heat's "Parthenogenesis and then this mysterious Bland Bladen-band from Sweden that went though lots of spins in our Harz mountain-homes.
Although sometimes I think things may be just too much obvious, I'd like to follow up on writing about some of my inspirations. And here's this humble British guy, not just for me a electric guitar super hero, but without any of the usual glamour (or as I'd rather call it: rockstar bs). The first time I came across Trower's music must have been sometime around 2005 I think when I found a Repertoire Label sampler in a cheapo bin in our local electronics store. Remember when such stores still sold lots of (interesting) CDs, well...
That sampler had one track from Trower's "Go My Way"-album from 2000. I felt instantly remembered of Michael Landau, another "unsung" guitar hero, whose "Roodies" from The Raging Honkies-album "Boner" is among these very anthems of my troubled youth ;) No but seriously, people like this don't seem to get the praise the deserve. It's too often always Hendrix, and these comparisons though there's so much of an individual note here too, nothing against Hendrix.
I have been fortunate to see Trower play live in around 2005 in a place called Bluesgarage Hannover. It was one of those few gigs that will always remember although I don't even remember so many details. At that moment in time I was a little heart-broken, pretty drunk, and banging my head off. As a direct result of all that I bought a "midnight wine" Stratocaster which accompanied me throughout long times in Samsara Blues Experiment. And it's no coincidence that I played this guitar at Samsara's concert at Rockpalast which was the very same place where Trower played his show. What an honour back then, although the Rockpalast experience didn't make me so happy, but that's another story. Anyways, Robin Trower, what a hero! And that Michael Landau too ;) ...
Since the day when you have come to me
I don't know what's happening, your pretty colors are all I wanna see
Radiant lights and moonbeams burst across the ceiling and I know that it's not a dream, as we enter this new dimension
I came as unprepared
but then I knew that you would lend a hand
All the things I did before don't mean so much to me
and if sometimes we'd be lost for words,
deep down I know that you will understand,
that both we hold the key to this sacred land
I've seen our love is in the gods' intention,
there's no need to question it
No time for sorrow when you do believe
that truth is all I see
by turning myself unto you
It really doesn't matter where we'll gonna be
Lunik IX
Breathe in, breathe out -
I know it's getting tough just to relax
You gotta let go of all the fuzzy things that occupy your mind
No I can't see why you still believe that this would be the only way to live,
but maybe that's just because of all these clever things you read
Say can't you see how these old ways have led you astray,
while it seems that you even have forgotten just how to live
and you're getting lost in this supposedly dark and cruel reality
You know some of these moderns facts of life
are more than a mystery to me
There's just too many things these days
that have run out of bounds
Breathe out, breathe in -
when you've lost all your fear is when your true life shall begin
Now take a good look deep down inside of you,
review on all the things that you can find, you better clear up now
You gotta lay down your wrath
Revise the morals of the past
Engage true powers of your soul
Trusting in life you'll never fall
Just dare to follow the light
Reveal the warmth of your insight,
so that we'll finally break free
And when you fall back into some of your old insecurities,
remember how you've learned to breathe
and look behind their iron wall:
There's so many things that they don't know!
Baby Bee
Baby Bee, I just wanna thank you
for everything that you've brought to my life
I don't know if you can imagine
how much you make me feel alive
We've had an ocean to separate us,
we had to wait for such a long time,
and now the dream, that once we've shared,
has become real
And may the outside world go crazy
I've got this undemanding love on my mind,
where all the years of endless yearning
come to an end
In Her Garden
All these years that I have been alone
I saw her stroll through a garden
with waving hair, and everywhere
always so fine
A colorful dream that was so, so far away
I felt misplaced till the day I heard call out
Hey Sunchylde,
what if I told you it wasn't a dream,
you just have to believe,
one day it all will come true for you,
just wait and see -
When I was down and out
I spent all my days in a dark and cold room,
while almost growing numb,
I heard her call from the moon
Babe believe me I know,
that we are descendents of a far away star
Now we're trapped in this cruel old world
with our hearts full, and a vision that goes beyond what science knows But just to see your garden bloom, made me realize,
that finally I've found a home
The Mushroom Park
I always see you when the black rain falls
You made things shine, when I wanted to cry out loud
For so long I hid myself in this room
until I heard your call from afar
Back then I thought - I must be dreaming,
when in your eyes I'd seen through the gates of dawn
While everyone else had been so misleading,
I held you very close to my heart
And now you brought this new life to me
A burst of joy for every-one else to see
Together we'll walk this rocky path
while the outside world is drifting apart
Open your mind and answer my call
With a kiss that blows up my heart
Right after floating through that mushroom park
each day I wake up in this vibrant wonderland
You've pulled me out there from my cage in the dark You made me rediscover long lost feelings
Babe I hope that every day I'll see you smile
Let us make this incarnation very worth while
and see how we're bound to stay together
while the outside world is falling apart
While everybody's in trouble to keep a clear sight,
your gentle voice cuts right through this thick air
All you got to do is to open your mind now and leave all the darkness behind
Furthur
(instrumental)
Tropical Rain
Just left this gloomy valley of tears and further down by the road
I stumbled right into your arms,
gave all myself just to you
And all the memories of where I came from
will always be there - yet they're gone
It feels as if I had been slumbering
all through this previous life,
waiting for someone to tell me where to go
Yet sure I've always known,
this current had been strong within myself
And here I watch all my worries washed off
by the tropical rain If that's the place where I always had belonged,
I hope this love will sustain
I'd love to promise that I'll never fail you
by all the things you could read from my eyes
'cause sure I've always known,
this current had been strong within myself
Need For Simplicity
(instrumental)
Crashing Cascade
And when the city has fallen asleep,
I'll watch these freeks and those creeps in their slumber
While they peacefully drift into another world
I hear them banging on the doors to my realm
Here where everyone is just the same,
there'll be no angels, no sinners and no one else to blame
for all you've done in this previous life
Oh did you drown in your wealth, or could you barely survive
Though in this place none of this doesn't matter
you may hold on to your things, but then we all have got to die
And I know how much you are afraid,
but believe me that this won't be the end
You will live on in their memories
while the clock marches on (so relentlessly)
You've left a mark within their minds
No one stays left behind
Here where everyone is just the same
there'll be no losers, no winners and no one else to play
They've build a cage to protect your life
And when you thought you're immune, I watched you slowly die
But you'll live on in their memories.
Celestial Harbour (CD-Bonus)
You had nothing to prove to me,
you were the only hero that I've ever known,
but now you're gone
Blazed out -
Guess it wasn't the wrong choice
as I still hear you moan in pain
through all the sleepless nights
Things may have never been easy for you,
but then I never even heard you complain
From the days when you were just a boy,
see how far you have come by now
With no one to guide you through this path,
suddenly you've got lost in the dark
If they deemed you wrong,
I hope one day you will return
Please just walk into the light for now
And everywhere that you will roam,
carry this torch with you, you'll be a star
Your own truth may never be wrong
One more time need to be brave and
find peace within you, right where you are
You'll live on in our hearts
and in this song
While the days fly by like crazy,
somehow I hope you'll remember me
when you'll arrive up there in your celestial harbour
Where righteous men will always struggle,
while they keep pushing on,
waiting for something new to become
And everything you've given to me
will come right back to you,
but for now, just walk on
Until February 20 it will be possible to get it as a friendly offer although donations are very much appreciated. All other digital outlets follow later. If a record label is interested in collaborating on a physical release, feel free to contact me.
Fuzz Sagrado's "A New Dimension" is my first full length album including vocals, after already releasing two instrumental EPs in July and October 2021. After the break with Samsara Blues Experiment in 2020 and making a lot of synthesizer music with Surya Kris Peters, I came to realize where my other true passion lies and where I wanted to go in my life as a musician: back to that ol' Psychedelic Rock. After all also I didn't feel yet as if I should retire completely from that scene. So at this point in my life I feel just comfortable enough to self-produce my music the way I want to, without too many distractions from the outside world. I asked myself many questions throughout the last months and this album has had a few answers for me, and brought quite a big satisfaction as it showed of what I am capable and that there are still things that I yearn to master. It may be a bit of a selfish work but I am not at all here to impress (or to please) anybody, although I am happy to hear that people are influenced or moved by some of the songs I wrote in the past with my bands and I think that some of this new solo work may have that same potential. After all I hope you'll enjoy what you hear!
Just a few pics from our recent travel in our home state Minas Gerais. It's summer here which means a lot of rain and it's not really recommend to come close to the waterfalls in that period - yet there's a lot of other sights to witness. I am determined to take more pictures again this year also, I missed it.
Oh I bought some bootleg shirts too LOL - and I became sort of my own comic character ;)
So here's my personal highlight list of the last year and for those who know me a bit it's probably no surprise that most of it is actually old music LOL - So 2021 brought a kind of transition again, back from being the big synthesizer nerd to playing much more guitar again. In fact in the last year I played almost every day which is sth I couldn't say for most of the years before. But being without the (often self-induced) stress of touring or putting myself in a kind of comparison with other bands all the time, which is sth odd that I did and wanted to really get rid off ... here I am like an old teenager, sitting in my man cave, blasting some stoner songs and accompany them on my Les Paul, really like I did back in the 90s.
So for the most part of the last year I also kind of rediscovered songs from the past: Five Horse Johnson, Paul Butterfield, Robin Trower may be some eternal faves. I also rediscovered stuff that I didn't pay too much attention to in the past like Mainhorse while blues guitarists like Buddy Guy or Gary Moore may as well be among the all-time favorite. On my quest for finding the "perfect guitar tone" I also began watching a bunch of youtubers like Rick Beato who made me look back into Peter Frampton stuff, ... tbh at some point I finally realized that I am really not that great guitar player at all, I mean just playing fast really is not everything at all. There is just so much more to learn and to pay attention to!!
Again this may be sth that in a band context may be hard to realize, when everyone is just so loud that often I didn't even hear very well what I was playing. I also tried to overcome some grudges that may keep lingering somewhere on my mind for a while longer. But to stay on a positive path I have learned a lot about recording, mixing and mastering my music. I have really recorded a lot of stuff and the Fuzz Sagrado-debut album is almost finished too. It's still such a weird time, every time I step out of the house and can't believe how the world changed from halfway normal to such an odd place, but then I am full of gratitude that I had such an amazing life while touring with the band. Not sure if I'll ever do any of that again. But you can be sure that music is still an important part of my time.
So just a few more words about the other music in this list, as you can see synthesizers still play an important role. That group Magic Sword has become one of my most played bands, and there's others in that vein like Donbor and I also am still discovering the Depeche Mode-back catalogue which some few years ago would have been rather odd to admit but it's great music... for us old farts, right. I also finally listened to Kingston Wall after some people used to mention them in comments under SBE-videos. What an amazing band, Kingston Wall I mean!! No comparison I'd have to say, I mean you can't seriously compare that to some simple stonerrock that we played LOL ...
That song by ELP came as quite a surprise too, I never really listend a lot to them either. While Jorge Ben Jor belongs to the many things that I discover here in my new home country Brasil, and the song has a very special meaning for my wife too. Kula Shaker is another all time favorite, I wish I could write such cool positive songs. With Fuzz Sagrado's "Two Face" I added an own composition, because yes it was an important moment too: finding back to rock music and finding out that I can do this all by myself without having to discuss anything all the time.
The Villagers Of Ioannina City and the Elder-guitarists solo record as Delving came as big surprises. While Villagers actually remind me a lot of SBE somehow, the latter was one of the big big surprises. I am not a fan of Elder, can't get warm with the vocals and everything, it's a bit too heady, but Delving - man, nothing but respect. This is a soloproject recorded in a few days in Richard's Big Snuff Studio and probably the most interesting thing I heard coming from Berlin in a long, long time. This also made me realize that I have to put more effort in my own stuff again LOL. Then Jean-Luc Ponty is just that proggy 70s Rock stuff that no one can really reproduce nowadays, although everyone's trying oh-so-hard ;) and lastly a track by Tangerine Dream, of which I am not a big fan at all but I watched a lot of old West German TV-series (Tatort w/Schimanski) and that song really reflects that vibe very well.
