[00:00.000]It's two o'clock in the morning.
[00:02.273]On the Friday the 19th september.
[00:06.673]Ah,2014.
[00:08.839]This is interview for the obskure magazine 23#.
[00:14.651]and the question by Mr.Tassy.
[00:22.139]Question number one:
[00:26.550]You explain on your official site that MITTERNACHT and POETICA work very well together and are "related".
[00:34.602]It reminds me of what you had said to me when POETICA was released,
[00:39.002]the fact that the album was your Poe,
[00:41.664]your connection to Poe.
[00:44.604]Is MITTERNACHT related to POETICA because it is particularly autobiographical?
[00:51.466]AVC:Yes, I think that Poetica and Mitternacht do belong together.
[01:04.290]Well, at least to a certain degree...
[01:06.783]and, yes, Mitternacht is autobiographical ...
[01:13.521]but then again,
[01:14.663]so are all my albums.
[01:15.971]I have always written only about myself,
[01:20.838]I have never done anything else.
[01:23.632]I mean, keep in mind that SOPOR is nothing but self-therapy.
[01:27.755]It has always been. Besides,
[01:33.071]what's the one thing that all aspiring writers are being told?
[01:36.618]To bloody stick to the things that you know ...
[01:39.952]and, well, in my case ...
[01:43.481]the only thing that I truly know and understand ...
[01:47.175]well, sort of, anyway ... is myself. So, yes,
[01:52.116]all my work is entirely autobiographical.
[01:55.189]Including Mitternacht.
[02:00.061]I think another reason why both albums kind of belong together ...
[02:05.571]or, well, maybe not belong together,
[02:07.436]but certainly work well together,
[02:10.466]is because one followed so closely after the other.
[02:16.717]I have said this before,
[02:17.658]but every album is not only a consequence of the one(s) that came before,
[02:26.643]but it's also a preparation of the one(s) to follow.
[02:33.741]The thing about Poetica was ...
[02:40.092]is ... that it ended on a very sad note,
[02:45.177]and I couldn't leave it like that.
[02:51.812]You know, depression may be kind of romantic at the age of 16 ,
[02:57.140]in a twisted sort of way,
[03:00.417]but, believe me,
[03:01.470]it certainly isn't anymore when you have reached my age.
[03:05.884]To tell you the truth,
[03:06.817]I was terrified. I was really afraid.
[03:09.995]I could not leave it like this,
[03:12.869]I could not let this final note linger,
[03:18.891]echo for all eternity,
[03:21.744]without dissolving, re-channling it ...
[03:29.325]because I just couldn't go on like this anymore.
[03:35.731]I could not allow this to be,
[03:39.327]because I felt ... I feared ...
[03:47.281]that it would be the end of me.
[03:49.835]I had to find a solution.
[03:51.897]Quickly.
[03:55.828]Which might also explain why I was under such an enormous pressure ... and why,
[04:05.004]consequently,
[04:07.425]this album was (and still is) so very important to me.
[04:15.458]In fact,
[04:17.659]and that's perhaps a strange thing to say ...
[04:20.526]considering the contents of my past albums ...
[04:26.104]but I can't remember ever having felt such a feeling of urgency about an album.
[04:33.139]Or maybe I have and I just forgot about it,
[04:35.027]which I tend to do. So...
[04:39.082]I know I am repeating myself,
[04:41.545]but ... in my case ...
[04:46.194]there is no separation between life and art.
[04:51.402]And I believe this is true for every artist,
[04:53.793]or every true artist,
[04:54.618]regardless of talent and/or skill ...
[04:57.320]and, really,
[04:58.162]there shouldn't be a separation.
[04:59.481]How can there be?
[05:01.383]Life and art ARE one.
[05:03.567]They are the same thing.
[05:05.928]They influence each other,
[05:07.276]as they are forever intertwined ...
[05:10.359]because they are the same thing.
[05:17.959]So, as I tried to find a solution to my ... umm,
[05:22.358]situation ...
[05:25.916]I encountered something that caused me even greater pain.
[05:30.163]I mean, it was ridiculous.
[05:32.157]There I was hoping to change things for the better,
[05:34.804]but it only got worse.
[05:40.089]I hadn't felt so extremely miserable in a long time.
[05:45.088]There were days when I was crying on my way home ...
[05:50.338]in broad daylight ...
[05:53.307]and those were the good days.
[05:54.853]On others I couldn't even get out of bed.
[06:02.168]But ...
[06:02.655]...it was all neccessary.
[06:04.835]Again, this may sound strange to some people,
[06:10.976]but ... I am eternally grateful for this.
[06:15.007]I learned things that I not only had never encountered before...
[06:27.872]but that I tought were impossible.
[06:31.304]Yes, it was painful ...
[06:35.450]but it was also very interesting ...
[06:39.430]and very educational.
[06:43.392]Question number two:
[06:46.467]Can you explain the fact that you needed to explore the question of loneliness and the need for companionship at this moment of your life?
[06:58.838]AVC:Umm ... no ... things just ... happened.
[07:06.706]It was meant to happen.
[07:09.696]It was simply time,
[07:11.663]I guess.
[07:14.534]A natural consequence of the things that had happened before.
[07:19.902]I don't wish to appear rude,
[07:21.328]but I really cannot be more specific.
[07:24.885]After all, the details are really nobody's business.
[07:31.241]It's just ... when I left the,
[07:35.840]umm, "other side" (to put it this way) to re-enter the ordinary world,
[07:44.968]which I had abandoned so many years ago,
[07:48.645]I was instantly reminded why I had left in the first place.
[07:53.457]I just didn't belong here,
[07:56.373]I had no part in this.
[07:58.126]No place in it.
[08:02.555]It's one thing to be alone on the other side,
[08:05.591]where there are creatures,
[08:08.138]things, you can surround yourself with ...
[08:11.240]or even create to a certain extend ...
[08:14.969]but being alone in the hostile ordinary world ...
[08:19.077]well, that is different, and I cannot recommend it.
[08:23.999]So, my first reaction was to turn around on the spot and go straight back into darkness,
[08:30.525]but ... I couldn't ... not this time ...
[08:36.403]because that wouldn't have solved anything.
[08:39.442]It would have meant stagnation,
[08:42.329]and, ultimately, death.
[08:46.198]So I kept on walking.
[08:49.570]And that was ... yes,
[08:54.121]almost two years ago now,
[08:56.123]and it's kind of ...
[08:58.853]I hate the word amazing,
[09:01.192]I really do ...
[09:03.501]but, looking at it now,
[09:07.489]that's really the best way to describe it ... umm,
[09:11.303]the things that happend in those two years,
[09:15.919]I honestly would never have guessed could happen.
[09:18.922]I really thought that they would never even be possible.
[09:27.508]number three:
[09:30.849]Where did the idea to record a cover version of ��La Prima Vez�� come from?
[09:39.897]AVC:Oh, the idea?
[09:41.938]Uff, I don't know.
[09:43.391]It just developped,
[09:45.435]as it is with art.
[09:46.938]You know, it grows.
[09:52.045]But what I can tell you where I encountered this song for the first time.
[09:58.359]I was watching Wim Wenders' dance-film PINA,
[10:04.062]and on the songtrack there is a version of that song by ... umm,
[10:07.799]gawd, what's his name ... Logan 5 ...?
[10:14.326]No, wait ... Owain Phyfe ... feifei? ...
[10:24.826]I don't know, whatever his name is pronounced.
[10:30.468]I had never heard it before,
[10:32.314]but I immediately liked it.
[10:34.936]It had a beautiful melody,
[10:36.513]and that's what drew me to it,
[10:38.008]that's what caught my attention ...
[10:40.268]and, as it is often the case with these things.
[10:44.331]Sometimes, you may not neccessarily know what it is at first,
[10:50.675]the thing that attracts your attention.
[10:54.795]Quite often it's entirely subconscious.
[10:56.730]But once you take a closer look at it,
[10:59.385]you see what connects you to it.
[11:03.062]You see the relevance it has for you.
[11:06.813]number four:
[11:10.762]I have to ask you the same question for "Bang Bang"
[11:14.402]why did you chose this song?
[11:18.892]AVC:To be perfectly honest ...
[11:22.008]I cannot remember.
[11:24.255]I really can't remember what gave the impulse ...
[11:29.869]and that is actually a good thing,
[11:31.417]because it means that the problem ...
[11:33.741]or inner conflict,
[11:35.316]if you wish ... has be solved ...
[11:38.284]- dissolved.
[11:43.041]It's a strange song to begin with.
[11:45.354]Silly even in the original.
[11:47.419]I mean, it was written by Sonny Bono ...
[11:51.149]but for whom exactly I don't even know.
[11:53.972]Either Nancy Sinatra or Cher.
[11:57.417]I don't know who came first.
[12:01.612]Iit doesn't really matter,
[12:04.150]anyway. Both versions are great.
[12:05.740]Actually, Cher has many great songs.
[12:09.677]I mean, "Gypsies, tramps & thieves" is fabulous ...
[12:16.458]but, of course, I cannot do that.
[12:17.720]I mean,
[12:18.346]for one the music sounds kind of like SOPOR anyway ...
[12:23.314]to a certain degree,
[12:25.100]so that would be pointless.
[12:26.776]And, let's face it,
[12:29.641]I wasn't born on the waggon of a travelling show.
[12:34.115]Thank goodness for that.
[12:38.483]But back to BANG BANG ...
[12:41.121]yes, it's a bit of a strange song ...
[12:42.636]and, in my case,
[12:44.307]it doesn't just refer to one particular thing or person,
[12:48.987]and even keeps changing perspective.
[12:51.971]It's more about a state of mind,
[12:57.159]if you wish.
[12:59.601]A neurotic notion ... a dependency ...
[13:03.216]the sort of thing I dealt with on the Triptychon of Ghosts.
[13:09.033]The interesting thing for me,
[13:10.719]however, was that initially I thought I would ...
[13:14.086]well, maybe not mock it,
[13:15.664]but be kind of ironic about it.
[13:19.380]Basically like I did it with Bonnie Tyler's "Holding out for a Hero".
[13:25.869]But when I was in the studio I couldn't do it like that.
[13:31.564]I had to do it seriously.
[13:33.903]It was the only way.
[13:36.366]And it makes sense, because there is no irony on the album at all.
[13:40.994]And that's actually a thing that Mitternacht has in common with Poetica.
[13:46.816]number five:
[13:49.915]Do you consider “Confessional” the heart of the album?
[13:57.962]We can understand the chorus,
[13:59.933]the mantra of the song,
[14:01.275]in a lot of different ways.
[14:03.005]Is that a form of supplication?
[14:09.319]AVC:Yes,
[14:10.067]it is the heart of the album ...
[14:11.827]and THANK YOU for recognising ...
[14:15.134]and yes,
[14:16.568]you may very well call it a prayer.
[14:20.755]number six:
[14:24.258]Is the album-title “Mitternacht” a reference to the heart of the night,
[14:29.771]the symbol of the moments when the feeling of loneliness is at its strongest?
[14:37.426]AVC:Yes.
[14:39.566]It's like a Dark Night of the Soul.
[14:45.757]number seven:
[14:47.742]When you sing ?Beautiful?,
[14:49.797]do you think about someone in particular?
[14:53.970]AVC:Sorry, but that I cannot tell you.
[15:01.033]But, it is more than meets the eye ...
[15:05.024]it's a little more complex than it might appear at first glance.
[15:11.578]It seems to be very simple ...
[15:13.464]and it is simply ...
[15:15.523]but it's not one-dimensional.
[15:23.353]number eight:
[15:26.350]You sing in a totally new way on certain songs like ?
[15:32.949]You cannot make him love you? for example.
[15:36.221]Could you tell me more about this experience of the voice recordings of MITTERNACHT?
[15:46.296]AVC:There is nothing to tell, really.
[15:49.509]Recording the vocals was the same as always.
[15:53.377]You're in the studio and then ... you do it.
[15:58.372]If it sounds different than how I usually sound (which I don't actually think it does) it because the song,
[16:09.414]the content, demanded it.
[16:12.898]number nine:
[16:15.965]Do you think that the "quiet" feeling of the album is due to the totally new way that you had to deal with your energy,
[16:22.623]as you explained on your homepage?
[16:26.811]AVC:No, it has nothing to do with that ...
[16:29.170]because I do not write the music in the studio.
[16:31.900]When I go the studio,
[16:33.188]as in when I rent studio time,
[16:35.798]it means that the music is already completed.
[16:38.512]Well, in theory anyway,
[16:40.812]because it obviously still needs to be recorded.
[16:42.433]But the writing is done.
[16:46.422]Though, admittedly,
[16:47.516]it's never written in stone,
[16:50.265]and there is always room for chance ...
[16:54.918]fate, you might call it.
[16:59.197]Sometimes things that suddenly fall into place.
[17:03.707]And then,
[17:07.066]yes, there are the vocals, of course.
[17:08.721]I never know in advance what is going to happen there,
[17:11.833]because ... as you know ...
[17:14.394]there are no rehearsals.
[17:17.761]Would you say...oh question number ten:
[17:23.689]Would you say that this album is "quiet",
[17:26.115]because you are in a quieter moment of your life?
[17:31.860]AVC:Perhaps, yes.
[17:34.677]number eleven:
[17:36.968]Music box and theremin have become an essential part of your music;
[17:42.097]how would you explain this?
[17:44.031]Now, I feel that those instruments are SOPOR AETERNUS��
[17:49.505]AVC:Yes, indeed they are,
[17:50.444]aren't they?!
[17:51.693]I agree.
[17:53.281]I have talked about the theremin (or theremin inspired sound) before,
[18:06.554]as in it being this beautiful bridge between the "cold" synthesizers and the warm violins.
[18:13.559]And, yes,
[18:14.897]there is something quirky and childlike thing about the music-box ...
[18:25.325]and all those percussive pling-plong instruments that keep haunting my albums,
[18:30.812]like the toy piano, for example.
[18:34.571]......
[18:53.509]When the album was recorded,
[18:56.036]it slowly dawned on me that the damn toypiano is in every bloody song.
[19:02.071]Well, at least on the first half of the album.
[19:04.665]And, admittedly,
[19:07.136]I did worry for a second,
[19:09.191]thinking "have I perhaps overused this?".
[19:13.795]But ...well ...
[19:14.959]there was nothing to be done about it.
[19:16.394]That's just how it was,
[19:20.457]and how it has to be. But then again,
[19:23.952]I always worry.
[19:25.527]I can't help that.
[19:29.190]Twelve.
[19:33.979]Is the perspective of releasing MITTERNACHT harder than it was with the previous albums?
[19:41.829]You explained on your homepage that "it has to be done",
[19:47.396]but the sharing of this work seems particularly delicate for you  - why?
[19:55.182]AVC:Because...
[19:59.351]Well, you have to understand that what you hear,
[20:05.325]when you listen to a SOPOR album,
[20:08.440]is not what I hear.
[20:11.840]Remember that the music is like a byproduct,
[20:17.144]a waste product, almost,
[20:19.176]of a psycho-spiritual process and of magical work. What you get is only the end-product.
[20:30.156]Meaning, when you listen to a SOPOR album,
[20:33.619]you only hear the "stories" ...
[20:37.520]whereas when I listen to it,
[20:39.794]I see and re-live all the events that have led to this album.
[20:47.244]So, what I am trying to say is,
[20:49.959]it may very well be that what you hear is just a nice collection of singles with lyrics that may not neccessarily make any sense ...
[21:02.875]whereas for me,
[21:04.344]who has all the keys to its (I almost said "symptoms")...
[21:09.519]to all its symbols,
[21:13.031]it's incredibly intimate and revealing.
[21:18.912]I feel naked and vulnerable.
[21:26.511]Why does it seem more delicate to me this time than with the previous albums?
[21:34.497]Well,
[21:36.103]probably because I actually was naked...
[21:39.791]and wounded.