Hello Ash Code, and welcome to Brutal Resonance! We’ll start off with the basics for anyone who might not know about the project. What kind of music does Ash Code make, who is in the band and what do they do, and what are three of your favorite albums of all time?

Ash Code: Hi everyone, we are Ash Code, our music has strong bases in the 80s darkwave, rearranged in a modern way, with different types of electronic sounds, noises and samples. The band is made up of Alessandro, the main singer, Adriano at the bass and Claudia at the keyboards. Recently she started a new all female band called Neila Invo, too. Favorite three albums of all time could be Sisters of Mercy's "First, Last and Always", David Bowie's "Space Oddity" and The Cure's "Disintegration".

Now that pleasantries are out of the way, let’s jump right into business. The global pandemic has a serious negative effect on Ash Code. The first of which being that an almost finished LP was cancelled. Why did you guys decide to can it instead of finishing it up? Do you think the album will ever resurface?

Ash Code: It wasn’t easy, the songs we had seemed to be very far from the reality we were living so we decided to make three new songs. These days we’re listening to the old material, probably something will be used in a new LP, but I mean only some basslines or drum patterns; basically we want to make new music.

You spent a summer in Naples. After that, the band found inspiration to write again. What was it about Naples that inspired you to get back to making music?

Ash Code: Naples is the city of contradictions. I'm not talking about beauty, because that is out of the question, few cities in the world can inspire an artist as much as Naples, its views and glimpses are truly unique in the world. The problem is that it’s not always easy to live here, for many reasons, which are perhaps common to all large cities. In any case, we consider ourselves lucky because we are surrounded by many friends who like us make music and with whom we have continuous stimulating exchanges.

During the pandemic, you helped organize a charity event called Gothicat Festival. Whose idea was it to get the festival going and how did it pan out?

Ash Code: We were one of the first bands who played LIVE in a livestream after a few days in the lockdown in Italy. We raised a lot money for a local hospital, so then we decided to make a charity festival calling all the bands we knew, and the first edition was very big so we decided to make others.

Speaking of “Fear”, I’d like to dedicate some time to that. The title track on the album, based on the lyrics, seems to discuss how fear can eat someone up from the inside-out. In your own words, tell us what “Fear” is about.

Ash Code: It was written during the first weeks of lockdown, people didn’t know what was going on and everyone was scared of going out and to relate to close friends too. It was psychologically devastating and we are still in it, a lot of people didn't hold up and decided to end it. As I read in the newspapers, it still happens every day.

Your music video for ‘Fear’ has an extremely interesting style. Why did you decide to go with this style? And what was it like working with director Elio Nubes De Filippo?

Ash Code: The basic idea of the video was to shoot with a green screen and project behind us some images that would lead back to the pandemic, even if in an abstract way. We used colors that could be associated with the restlessness and fear that all this has given rise to in us. The idea of pouring the green liquid on us and disappearing meant that sometimes these kinds of negative emotions can really destroy you. Elio and Jessica, the dop of the video, had the wonderful idea of turning all the colors towards a palette typical of Andy Warhol's works. We were immediately thrilled with this idea and enjoyed the work very much.

The EP also comes loaded with three remixes from Clan of Xymox, Molchat Doma, and Forever Grey. Out of all the musicians in the world, why did you choose these three for the remixes of ‘Fear’? What did they bring to the single that you could not?

Ash Code: We always liked to remix songs from artists we love and to give our music to remixers too, we decided to ask to some friends to do it, we love their musical taste and their work was very good, each version enriches the original composition by representing it from a different point of view, we are very satisfied.

And, out of the six tracks on “Fear”, which is your favorite and why?

Ash Code: It’s not easy, we love the main single but probably 'Indifference' and 'Cross the Waters' are among the best songs we wrote ever.

Aside from the release of the EP, what else do you have in store for 2021? Any other singles, EPs, albums, or further livestream events?

Ash Code: We’re working on a new LP waiting to tour again, we have some gigs from August and we hope they will take place, let’s cross our fingers...

Lastly, I would like to thank you for your time. I wish you the best and I leave the space below empty for you to mention anything that I may not have covered. Cheers!

Ash Code: Thank you to everyone who supports our music, we know it’s not easy, in the last year we have felt all your warmth and passion, this pushes us to move forward and not give up.

This interview was commissioned through our Ko-fi page.
Ash Code interview

Steven Gullotta https://www.brutalresonance.com/interview/ash-code-apr-2021/ April 3, 2021 April 3, 2021

Brutal Resonance

Ash Code

Apr 2021

Darkwave, Noise