The Struggle Interview with Christophe Bassist for the band interview By Sean WWTO

http://www.myspace.com/thestrugglesucks

First off i would like to thank Christophe and The Struggle for taking the time out to do this interview with Worldwidetakeoverzine

How did the band come to be named The Struggle and who thought up the name as well?

”Our singer brought up the name. We’d been discussing about the band name for quite some time, but none of the suggestions really got accepted unanimously. Until Backer (our singer) suggested The Struggle. It’s short, simple, and it can relate to a whole lot of aspects of daily life and, as it turned out to be, of this band.”

for someone who has never seen the struggle before and is planning on attending a show in Belgium what can they expect to see?

”You’ll get to see a show that’s very loud and nasty. I guess you can say we add a little trashcore-edge to our live shows. Our singer takes credit for that. He’s got some crazy onstage antics that remind you most of a 10 year old kid who didn’t get candy from mommy. He’s crazy. Other than that, we take pride in playing our shit as tight as possible.”

what is your opinion on fighting at shows?

“Idiocy. Don’t trouble the promotor or organiser with knuckleheaded actions. Seriously, if the fight gets out of hand, the promotor can close down the show – or even the venue. Settle your disputes in a place where you don’t cause problems for other people.”

who are some of the bands main musical influences?

”There’s a lot of Judge and Strife, as you can hear. Other important bands for us are Trial and Sick of It All. Relating to newer bands, I’d say we build on the same solid ground as, say, Guns Up!.”

are any members in side projects other than The Struggle?

”Yeah. Me, our bass player and our singer (who’s also a drummer) all play in Cut Here! www.myspace.com/fuckcuthere Although our singer – and drummer in Cut Here!, recently quit because he doesn’t have the time to focus on two bands. So we’re not really active in that band at the moment. But there are plans to pick up the trashpunk pace again in the future. There’s also talk of some more side projects in the not too distant future. We’ll see what happens.”

how long has the band been together?

”Officially since 2004. Played the first show early 2005.”

how many cds eps 7 inches split cds and demos has the band currently released?

”We have one demo on tape from 2005 that’s been long sold out. A new CDEP is coming out as we speak. It’s got five brand new tracks and it will contain the sold out 2005-demo.”

what is your opinion on crews in the hardcore scene and do you think that it is making a positive or negative mark in the hardcore scene today?

”It’s part of hardcore history. New York Crew, Boston Crew, DC, DMS and whatnot… Crews have been in the scene since the 80’s. It doesn’t really bother me as such. On the contrary. If hardcore kids from one certain area get together, they have more means to set up shows, it’s easier to start bands, find kindred spirits and all. Of course, some of those crews are more about fighting other crews. But I prefer looking at the positive side of a “crew”, people getting together to do something for the “hardcore scene”.
On the other hand, a small country like Belgium doesn’t need any scenes. We have a strong, fertile ground for hardcore bands – look at The Setup, Rise and Fall, or in the past Dead Stop, Justice, Congress and Liar – and we need to cherish them. Not just in our little local scene, but nationwide. Because those bands put Belgium on the map.

what do you base your lyrics on when writing new material and who writes most of the material or is it a group effort?

”The lyrics are mostly about our singer’s personal frustrations with his life, with people around him and with the world in general. You can bet your ass he has quite a lot to be angry about. If he wouldn’t be as angry with the world, he wouldn’t be our singer. Like I said earlier, he can act like an angry little kid sometimes, and he’s able to get all worked up and angry about the smallest of pet peeves. I like the way he keeps his lyrics simple and straight forward. It stays in line with our music.
Our bass player is the creative force behind the band. He got everyone together and he writes most of the music. He’s doing a good job, as far as I’m concerned.”

is there a large and thriving scene in the Antwerp area as well as throughout Belgium?

”Antwerp is doing fine. There’s quite a lot of bands, although a lot of them just copy each other. Belgium as a whole is – and has been in the past – a hardcore powerhouse in Europe. Like I said: you had bands like Liar, Kindred and Congress in the past. Now you have The Setup and Rise & Fall just to name two of the larger acts. There are shows every single week, all over the country. Hell, it’s no exception of there are 4 or 5 hardcore shows within a 30 mile radius on the same day.”

how did the band come to be No More Records and how is that going so far ?

”No More is being run by friends of The Struggle. We had recordings and didn’t really know what to do with them, but Wim and the No More people were really stoked on having us. I don’t really know why. Haha.
How it’s going? So far so good. They’re being patient with us. Which is necessary because we’re quite lazy. It took us a whole year to prepare our EP, get the demo remastered, make artwork and do the stuff you do to release a record. I’m a little embarassed about that. But anyhoo, they gave us the time and space we need as a band. We’re happy with No More. Big ups!”

is this the original lineup and if not what is the current lineup?

”Yep, although we did part ways with our drummer for a while due to personal problems. He had to sort some shit out in his life and his mind or heart wasn’t with the band for a while. I guess we just gave him the room to get himself back on the right track. But he apologized for the situation, and after a good talk with him, we were kinda happy to take him on board again. After all, he is a good drummer.”

if you could have anyone do guest vocals on your next recording who would it be and why?

”Maja Ivarsson from The Sounds would be awesome. She’s the Swedish version of Debbie Harry. I guess that’s reason enough to get her on the record.
John Brannon from Negative Approach would be cool too, just because he sounds incredible and my guess is that he’s even more angry than our singer. And an “I Against I”-era HR from the Bad Brains would be insane.”

in only one sentence describe your sound to someone who has never heard you before ?

“Hardcore with a thrash-edge.”

when the band is on tour in the van what is usually playing in the cd player?

”Anything ranging from Mastodon to Out Cold, from DRI to Integrity and from The Cure to Turbonegro. We’re all into almost anything with guitars in it. Except our drummer. He’s also into Trance and stuff.”

how were you first exposed to the scene and what made you say i want to be in an band?

”I actually got into the punk rock scene when I was 14. I only got into hardcore some years later. And actually, I still don’t see myself as part of the scene. I happen to listen to hardcore, play in a hardcore band, know some people in other bands and like to hang out with some of the hardcore people and set up shows. Does that make me part of the scene? Maybe…
I bought my first guitar when I was 14 too and started my first band a little later. It was just something I had to do. There wasn’t a real reason, but it just seemed the right thing to do. It seemed cool to be in a real punk band (which it was at the time) and drink lots of beer and hang out with friends all the time. Now I’m doing it for free booze and whatever cash I can get. Fuck friends. (just kidding) It’s a cliché, but it’s a way to let out frustrations, forget about the daily grind, and just focus on one thing: playing hard, tight and loud. Boring, isn’t it? It’s true though. And it’s a fun way to do all that.”

when driving from city to city what is some of the weirdest shit you have seen happen or pass by?

”A pretty scary car crash. There was this big Mercedes that drove into a smaller car. The Mercedes was pretty damaged, but the other car was lying on its roof, total loss, about 100 metres further. Must’ve been a big slam. And it had just happened, because there was no police or ambulance yet. We had to zig-zag through the debris.”

where do you see the band in 3 years from now?

”Hopefully still around, and hopefully with a second EP and maybe a full length ready to go on a small-scale tour with one or two other bands, preferrably friends of ours.”

who are some of the up and coming bands from the Antwerp area as well as throughout Belgium that we should be on the lookout for ?

”Nuns Go Riot is awesome, they play DC-kinda punk/hardcore à la Fugazi, Rites of Spring and Swizz, but with a cool old school vibe. They have a 7” coming out very soon. It’s gonna be brilliant! Also there’s Teenage Lust, a very new band but they just blow everybody away. They sound a bit like Count Me Out and American Nightmare. Furthermore there’s Losing X Streak, Black Haven, Shredder, Jerusalem The Black, We’rewolves, Daggers… Damn, I hope I’m not forgetting anyone. So many cool bands. Check ‘m out. They’re all in our MySpace-friends list. God, that sounds gay.”

for someone who has never visited Belgium before and is planning a visit where would you recommend for them to visit and what time of year would be the best time to visit?

”Antwerp, Ghent, Brussels and Bruges are definitely a must-see. Best time is probably somewhere in late September. College starts again around that time, and I know y’all love to see young girls enjoying the soft, early Autumn temperatures, wearing short skirts and all.
Seriously though, those four cities are probably the most interesting ones to see, due to their historic nature and some cool museums. If you’re into that shit.”

the term hardcore has become so overused that any band putting a breakdown into a song is considered hardcore but explain to the readers what hardcore means to you?

”Golly… Hardcore… Loud, hard, fast, teenage angst (although we ain’t teenagers no more), aggressive, no-holds-barred, angry, intense, socially and politically aware, open-minded, and, well, throw in a few breakdowns just for the fun of it. God knows we do.”

who brews the better beer in your opinion Germany? Belgium? England?
 
”Duh! Belgium for sure. Although I’m a big fan of the German beer Beck’s. But there’s nothing better than a good, strong, heavy Belgian beer that goes down smoother than anything you’ve had before.”

How can the readers from around the world contact you about ordering merchandise?

”Contact us through MySpace or e-mail me.”
http://www.myspace.com/thestrugglesucks

What is your most memorable show and why?

”There are a few. One of the coolest for our reputation was a show at the legendary Lintfabriek (call it the CBGB’s of Belgium, even of Europe) with Bane, Have Heart and Ceremony. The place was packed and people were diggin’ us. We’d played there before with Walls of Jericho and Paint it Black, but that show wasn’t nearly as good as this last time we played there.
In our early days we had some crazy shows with a drunk-off-his-ass singer making fun of the audience. One was at some kind of neighbourhood barbecue in a backyard. Most of the audience was over 40, with some pushing 60 I guess. We scared the shit out of ‘em when we got on stage.”

Who are some of the bands that you enjoy sharing shows with?

”Nuns Go Riot, Shredder and Black Haven are the bands we played most with so far. They’re all amazing bands and amazing dudes. Shout out!”

What advice can you give to some of the newer bands starting out that maybe having a tough time and thinking about giving up?

“Hell, don’t give up. We didn’t even though we had a really rough time, and look, we’re even doing interviews now!”

where do you think you would be right now had you not been exposed to the hxc metal scene?

“I’d be playing in a Deep Purple-coverband for sure.”

what is the most embarrassing thing that has happened to the band when playing a set?

“The usual… Strings breaking, cables busted, drunken singer.”

what is the worst injury that any of the band has had happen when playing show?

”Haha, this one time we had to play a local show, and the band before us played for over an hour or so. Please note, they played pretty crappy metal. We were getting all worked up and aggressive because we had better things to do than sit around and wait and listen to this shitty band. So when we finally got to play, we went all the way. Our singer has this bad habit of running around on stage like a madman, and barely into the second song, he slams his head on some piece of metal sticking out of the wall. He’s got blood gushing all over his face, not a pretty sight. But he pushed through and we finished the set. We had to take him to the doctor afterwards to get him all stitched up.”

Do you have any upcoming shows that you would like to tell the readers about?

”Check ‘m on our MySpace-page. All of our shows are worth talking about.” (haha)

Is there anything else that you would like to add that i may have forgotten to ask that the readers should know about?

”Don’t forget The Struggle.”