OKay,
Tooth&Nail fans all over the world. Here it is: the first interview ever on
this site! It’s an interview with Dirk Lemmenes, the bass player of the marvellous Rock band Stavesacre. The first band ever formed by
Tooth&Nail band members only. So all of the members (except Neil who is new in
the band) have been involved in Tooth & Nail since the very first T&N days (the
Crucified, Focused). For a change, it’s not Mark Solomon talking about
Stavesacre, but bass player Dirk. Check out the story about this great band, try
to get their long-awaited new record “Speakeasy” and stay tuned for more
interviews!!
Hey
Dirk, can you tell us a bit about how Stavesacre started and who are the present
band members?
Stavesacre
started in Spring 1995. Jeff and I had been talking about starting a band that
was different from anything either one of us had done previously. We had been
talking to Mark also and he was into it. So we started playing together and
writing music. Mark was room mates with Jeremy,so that's how he got involved.
Currently, The Line Up is: Mark Salomon vocals, Sam West drums, Ryan Dennee
guitar, Neil Samoy guitar, and Myself (Dirk) on Bass.
How
does it feel to be in a band like
Stavesacre, do you manage to make a living of it, for example?
I
love being in Stavesacre. It is extremely fulfilling to make music with a group
of guys who want to make the best, most innovative rock and roll-music they can.
Making ends meet financially can be difficult. We all work other jobs when we
aren't on the road.
How
do non-christians react on the Stavesacre
lyrics and Music ?
Non - Christians seem to react
positively. We do our best not to alienate anyone. We are bold about what we
believe but we also want everyone to be able to enjoy our music. I think Mark
writes lyrics that anyone can relate to.
Bands
like POD, No Innocent Victim and MxPx manage to get a lot of attention in the
non-christian market. How do you feel about that? Will Stavesacre ever sign on a
non-christian label?
I think it's great that those bands have been able to get their music out to a lot more people. I would love for that to happen for us. We just want to let as many people as possible hear our music.
 |
I’ve
seen Stavesacre once live at Flevo’98 in Holland. Do you still remember
that gig and did you like it there? (check out the photo-gallery for pics
of that gig!) Flevo was one of the most amazing days of my life. We had never played in front of that many people before. I was terrified, but it was awesome. (Between brackets: Stavesacre is coming to Europe in Spring 2000, so check them out when you live in Europe!) |
One
of the things I noticed when I saw you live was that the attention of the crowd
was totally focussed on Mark Solomon. Isn’t it hard sometimes for the other
members that the crowd doesn’t really mention them or don’t you see this as
a problem?
I
think it's just natural for a crowd to focus their attention on the singer of
the band. The singer is the one who interacts the most with theaudience. It is
completely understandable.
What
are your musical influences; what do you listen to when you’re at home?
I listen to a very wide variety of music. I guess some of my favorite groups are: Fireside, Far, A Tribe called Quest, Elliot Smith, Quicksand, Soundgarden, Supersuckers, sick of it all, misfits, motorhead, no knife, jimmy eat world, shudder to think, counting crows, the cure, the smiths....I could go on for days.
Okay,
about the new album, "Speakeasy",
now: how do you like the new album when you compare it with "Friction"
and "Absolutes"?
What are the differences?
I think "Speakeasy"
is by far the best record we've done. We grew as songwriters and Mark did an
amazing job on his melodies and vocals. I think it is the best representation of
what we always wanted Stavesacre to be.
The
"Speakeasy" concept came from the underground clubs that existed
during prohibition. We have always considered our music and our fans to be part
of a sort of secret society. We just thought it was a cool image. The title
actually doesn't have a whole lot to do with the lyrics. It has more to do with
the overall concept and idea of the band.
Mark
Solomon also sings in another band, called Outer Circle. Can we expect you or
one of the other members to be in another side-project?
Stavesacre is definitely our main priority, but I don't think any of us would be opposed to doing a project. You never know.
Do
you have something to say to all the people who have surfed to this site?
I
just want to thank you for this interview and thank everyone who took the time
to read it.
Okay,
thank you, goodnight!
Skarel
for
The Tooth & Nail Records FAN Homepage © 1999