INTERVIEW WITH “RIVER STOLE GODS”

1. What got you into music, and if you had not gotten into music what would you be doing today?

Adam: I've always been into music, since my parents are big concert goers and metal lovers. I got into bass playing when I saw "Jimmy Eat World" live with my aunt and was totally blown away by the bass player's appearance. After that, I got my first bass – I was 14 – and taught myself how to play. If wouldn’t have gotten into music, I would have become pretty sure an illustrator.

2. What do you like to do when you are not playing music and how does that influence your creativity?

Adam: When not playing bass, I mostly do sports, play video games, or stroll through the nature. By letting my thoughts wander around, I generate ideas for the band in general, not only for songwriting but for the whole band concept (social media, video aesthetics, …).

3. How long has your band been around?

Adam: Since 2019, when Raphael and I founded the band and actively searched for members, who would join us on the journey. Before that, Raphael and I wrote together most of the songs, you find on “Sky Architects” in 2018, when we got to know and work with each other.

4. Where are you based out of and how did that influence your music?

Adam: We are based in Düsseldorf, Germany, and especially in the neighbor cities and districts (Cologne and the Ruhr region), the music, art and underground scene is vivid. We meet a lot of creative heads here, who inspire us, to evolve our music style. In general, Germany is a great country for metal music, as we have a huge community and a lot of big festivals here.

5. How did you come up with the name of your band and what does it mean to you?

Adam: The band’s name should remain open for interpretation and therefore we do not want to dictate a definition.

6. Tell me about your most memorable shows.

Adam: I think one of the most memorable ones was our last concert in Cologne supporting Substation, where we played without a drummer (thank you, Corona). One of the greatest experiences was to tour East Europe with “Ingested”, as this was our first international tour and we had the chance to meet so many great people and make new friends!

7. What is your favorite venue to play at, and do you have any places you want to play that you have not already?

Adam: Favorite venue so far was the MTC in Cologne, as the team was super supportive and the crowd was just amazing! And for the future, we are hoping to play in more countries, like England, the U.S., maybe Australia, as a lot of bands, who inspire us, come from there and a lot of huge festivals, we’d love to play, take place there.

8. If you could play any show with any lineup, who would be on the ticket?

Adam: Tricky question, as there are so many great bands, but if I could choose, it would be:

Monuments, Spiritbox and Architects.

9. What is some advice that you would give to someone who is just getting into playing in a band and some advice that you would give to your younger self?

Adam: Take your time to explore the instrument you play, evolve with and get inspired by your band mates and never be afraid to try out new stuff.

10. If you could go back in time and give yourselves advice, what would it be?

Adam: That I should have bugged my parents more to start earlier playing an instrument or maybe multiple ones.

11. Of your songs which one means the most to you and why?

Adam: The song, which means most to me is “Collapse”, as this was one of the first songs, we have ever written, and which still is of the all-time favorites of our fans.

12. Which songs are your favorite to play, and which get requested the most?

Adam: I love to play “Naether”, because of its bouncy and atmospheric parts. Most requested is “Collapse” and our latest release “Holding On” I would say.

13. What is the creative process for the band, and what inspires you to write your music?

Adam: Most of the time, Raphael writes the songs in their basic structure and together, in our rehearsal room, we put the song to the test. From there, we develop the song further, match the instrumentals with the vocals and by that, we create a whole song pretty fast.

14. What kinds of messages do you like to get across in your music?

Adam: In our songs, we often focus on socio-critic topics, often quite dystopic and challenge the social construct and its rules, which humanity has built up.

15. Do you ever have disagreements in your band, and how do you get past them?

Adam: A good communication is key, because of course we don't always agree on certain things. We have a very open and healthy culture of discussion and value each other's opinions, so we always find a solution that everyone can identify with.

16. What are your plans for the future, and do you have anything that you want to spotlight that is coming up?

Adam: This Winter, we are going to release two more singles, so keep your eyes peeled for new material dropping very soon!