Spanish duo Pikotto vondMond (music & programming) and Damasius Venys (vocals & lyrics) are back on track, unleashing their second album five years after the successful debut opus “Empty”. The new album “Lovers, sinners & Liars” (available here as a 2CD deluxe edition set) remains faithful to the melancholic future-pop style of the debut work, but the global production becomes more mature and accomplished. It’s a danceable piece of music revealing elevating choruses while driven by the impressive vocals skills of Damasius Venys. The album has been released by the Belgian label Alfa Matrix and simply confirms the growing status of Mondträume. Here’s what they’ve to say about their masterpiece.
(Courtesy by Inferno Sound Diaries)
Q: Five years have passed since your debut album “Empty” (2014). Why did it take that long to achieve this new opus? What have been the main difficulties and challenges you encountered?
Pikotto: The truth is that I am aware that a lot of time passed by ’till the release of the new album, but unfortunately I had health problems and there was a time where I had to consult doctors, do tests etc… Fortunately everything is okay with my health. But well, I also took the positive side of this circumstance and this means that I have been able to take more care of the songs and the arrangements to have the best results.
Q: I experienced “Lovers, Sinners & Liars” as ‘melancholia to dance on’ while the choruses have something elevating, even a bit transcendental. But what kind of work did you wanted to accomplish and what are your greatest elements of satisfactions?
Pikotto: Like you could observe during our path, I always like to add this melancholic touch to the songs, and I also wanted to do that on this new album too. But I also added something more danceable, a delicate piano melody, a melodic pluck that is sad, but also happy at the same time, etc, etc… I think that it is a point that defines us and when you listen to our songs you know that it is made by us. I always said that music is life and in this life always exists the lovers, the sinners, and the liars…
Q: So that’s what the album title is reflecting? But what have been the main sources of inspiration for the lyrics?
Damasius: With the album title I wanted to reflect three kinds of personalities who are behind the lyrical theme. It reflects things that we all experienced in our lives and that we have been or we are. The fastest way to explain it could be like, to give affection while I hold a knife hidden on my back telling you that I will never fail you. About the inspiration, everything came from things that happened around me. The last five years have been a period of many changes where I saw the true faces of some people next to me. The inspiration of all the lyrics of the album are really human, in a good- or a bad way.
Q: It all seems like image and artwork is an important item for Mondträume. Tell us a bit more about both aspects and a possible link between lyrical themes and the artwork of the new album?
Damasius: Of course, it is very important to me because in this aspect we can show a more metaphoric vision of the concepts, making it more dramatic and of course, more eye-catching. With this new image and artwork we tried to reflect the birth of the hypocrisy without masks, the lovers and the sinners, the original skin of our human debilities. An important point for me too, was to work again with my friend Lydia Solans. It is always great for me to tell her all my ideas and together ramble on about colors, textures, make ups, etc. The link between the lyrics and the artwork is exactly our dark side.
Q: Another essential element for bands is playing live. How would you define a live show of Mondträume and how do you transpose the songs from the studio to the stage?
Pikotto: I think the one who has the possibility to see us live will experience all the emotions about that we were talking about. The music gets the body dreaming and this is what we try to do live, to feel this goosebumps when you hear a melody, when you hear the great voice of my mate, to feel that the things you hear make you complete. As a band we try to offer everything of us so that the audience feels satisfied and proud to see us live. About the songs, we try to put the same energy like in the studio, but with this visual extra point that fills up the stage. In this aspect I have to congratulate my friend and mate Damasius for being a great showman and for his professionalism on stage. I think that until today the audience always responded very well to our shows and we are very thankful for that. I take the opportunity to send greetings and a big hug to our audience of Poland, Spain, Germany, etc. Thanks for your support!
Q: Do you’ve some plans in mind to next year celebrate the tenth Anniversary of Mondträume? What brings the future? And what might we expect from the Mental Exile album?
Damasius: We were really not aware of how time flies, but it doesn’t go that fast; our tenth anniversary will be 2021, there is still some time left to think about that. What the future will bring is always uncertain, we have our plans and our ideas, but we will see what will come. About my Mental Exile album, I can say that the release date is around the corner, but I prefer to tell you nothing about it yet. When it will see the light, I will be glad to enter into details about it and about everything you want.
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