Interview with Virgin In Veil

I am happy to enlighten you about subculture happenings again after being asked to do an interview with Virgin In Veil.

Virgin In Veil are a new deathrock/ dark punk band based in Helsinki, featuring band members from Secular Plague and Masquerade. They are currently gaining popularity in the scene, and you should be informed!

Official Website

Official Facebook Page

Youtube Channel

VK 

N: You guys in Virgin In Veil play in other bands like Masquerade and Jacques also plays in Secular Plague, both are well known in the scene. What drove you to start another project?

Jacques: I created Virgin in Veil in January, while I wasn't yet playing in Masquerade. I've always loved deathrock and wanted to create a band of that style... I bet that's the problem of being too much eclectic with music tastes...

Suzi: I joined Virgin in Veil very recently, my first gig with them was in Moscow last month. I actually started to rehearse the synth parts only a few days before we left for Russia. It made more sense to me than staying on the sidelines until I'm a virtuoso. Before joining the band as a full-time member I did backing vocals for the songs.

2. You are currently based in Helsinki, how would you describe the scene there (and in Finland in general), in comparison to the rest of Europe?

Jacques: I haven't even been here for a full year, but I like it so far. There's many punk bands, many gigs... On that point, it's way better than where I previously lived. The problem of the Finnish scene is those fucking strict Finnish laws, venues must close at 4, no alcohol can be sold after 9 in shops, blablabla. This is complete bullshit.

Suzi: The scene almost everywhere is being infected by people who have barely nothing to do in their lives beside of gossiping. They wallow in jealousy and try to excrete their own misery on others, but fortunately that kind of people always end up making complete fools of themselves, unwanted by everyone.

3. Do you feel like the local scene is supportive of Virgin In Veil? Was it different with your other bands?

Jacques: We already have a lot of haters! Which is good, because only the unnoticed don't. Finnish audience is cold. You can play a fucking gig, move around, give everything you have... and they stay 3 meters away from the stage looking like fucking statues. But it doesn't mean they don't like it. 

It's weird from me as it is quite different in France, but yeah, I'm getting used to it!

Suzi: Rather than investing money on shows, goths seem to get stuck at their homes, saving up for a victorian dress and drooling over online videos of the Cure. There's a lot great bands playing live to discover (like us), and as time passes you will regret you didn't see them when they were having a show just around the corner.

4. You use (anti) religious imagery in your artwork and songs, what is the motive behind it and what would you like to say with it?

Jacques: I'm not anti-religious. I don't see anything wrong if somebody believe in a god or whatever. I'm not even an atheist myself, rather an agnostic... 

But yeah, I'm extremely pissed off at people using their faith in whatever cult or religion to harass those who are different or simply don’t subscribe to their so-called truth. Our song "In the Name of God" isn't anti-religious, but rather against religious violence and bullying. 

It's not against people having faith in whatever they choose, it's against people who think that their faith allow them, for example, to harass women who want to have an abortion. Those homophobic pro-lifer bigots can suck my cock, really.

In The Name Of God played at VIV´s recent gig in Helsinki

5. You are now planning a tour in the US. Do you think the support from the scene there would be different than in Europe?

Jacques: People from the US and Mexico are extremely enthusiastic about both Virgin in Veil and Masquerade and have been extremely helpful to us, finding gigs, offering to drive us from city to city, etc. We are really looking forward to it and I'm sure the support will be amazing.

6. Are there any other places/ events where you would most like to play?

Jacques: The more unusual the better. With my previous band Sleeping Children we almost played in Morocco and I'm very pissed off that it finally didn't happen. I'd love to play in Africa, fuck yeah. No bands go to Africa, while there's a real underground scene in several countries. 

Same goes for the Middle East... To make it short, we'd play anywhere.  I would play in fucking North Korea if we get the chance. 

Bands who boycott specific countries for political reasons are losers. Yeah, Russian government sucks, is that a reason to say to Russian punks and goths that they can go fuck themselves? People aren't responsible for the actions of the government of the country they live in. If someone like our music, he or she is welcome, whatever the place you live in, your gender, age, skin color etc.

7. What makes Virgin In Veil stand out from other bands of the contemporary deathrock and dark punk genre?

Jacques: Haha, it's quite hard to answer that question ourselves, you should ask our audience! But well, I think Virgin in Veil has punkier sound and attitude than many other contemporary deathrock bands, so it can be a turn on to some people. Also, unlike many deathrock bands, we don't give a shit about singing about vampires or witches, we prefer our lyrics to be either perverse poetry or politically oriented. Seriously, some actual bands have great songs, but their lyrics stink shit.

You can listen and download Virgin In Veil´s EP on their bandcamp page, or here:

So if you are thirsty for deathrock and lots of attitude, stay tuned and follow these guys for future releases and gigs!

Any more bands out there interested in making an interview? Write me an email to deusexmachina.blogspot@gmail.com.

Or if you guys know any interesting bands tell me about it in the comments.

N. Finsternis