German pioneers of industrial metal, Megaherz, returned with their newest full-length studio
album ”In Teufels Namen” on August 11, 2023 via Napalm Records!
Abigael Paquet recently got to have a chat with the bands lead singer, you can read below
Abby: Would you be able to introduce yourself, for those who don’t know you ?
Lex: Hello, I’m Lex, the singer of the band Megaherz.
Abby: How would you convince people to listen to your music ?
Lex: Well, if you’re interested in a good mix of rock, metal, and industrial, you can’t really overlook Megaherz. Together with Rammstein and Oomph, we are the pioneers of the musical genre called “Neue Deutsche Härte” (New German Hardness). I believe what sets us apart even more is the variety in our songs and the themes that range from social critique to very personal, emotional motives.
Abby: What can people expect from your shows ?
Lex: Our show is a blend of rock ‘n’ roll and theater. Through our masks, we also take on something like an alter ego every evening. At least I do. It helps me better embody the themes of our songs through my voice and also my actions on stage.
Abby: Your new album has just came out recently how are you feeling about it ?
Lex: Very proud and a bit excited. It’s our first album after a long creative pause, which was mainly due to Covid, of course. Coming back now feels a bit like something very familiar but also exciting and completely new. Nothing is taken for granted in our industry after Covid.
Abby: Which is your favourite song from that album ? Why ?
Lex: That’s a difficult question to answer since these are all our new babies, which we naturally love like brand-new parents. I would single out “Alles Arschlöcher” (All Assholes). For me, it just fits the current spirit of the times the best. We’re celebrating a sort of asshole culture. The loudest always seems to be right, the one with the coolest car, the most beautiful girlfriend, and the most superficial comment on the internet gets the most applause. Discussions are now only about pushing one’s own opinion instead of listening to others and maybe learning something from them. Nothing but egoists and narcissists. And the elites set the example. Truly, all assholes.
Abby: How does it compare to your previous work ?
Lex: I believe this album is much more critical, aggressive, and yet more personal than the previous ones. This is probably also due to our own experiences over the last 5 years. Covid was a particularly tough time for us artists. Making music is our dream, our calling, and then to receive a professional ban and lose sight of our goals, that affects you. Plus, there are countless crises we all have to deal with. It sharpens your perspective and also leads to a somewhat more drastic choice of words, which you can also feel in the music.
Abby: What is your favourite song to play live, and why ?
Lex: At this point, we’ve only played “Alles Arschlöcher” live at a festival. For Mera Luna and the tour, all songs will be rehearsed, and then a selection will be made of what we will play. In any case, “Alles Arschlöcher” was already greatly celebrated by the fans and it’s also fun to shout out your emotions there. But I think “Der König der Dummen” (The King of Fools) and “Kannst du den Himmel sehen” (Can You See the Sky) will be highlights for me as well. “Kannst du den Himmel sehen” is again a very emotional song and also describes a bit of my journey from darkness to light. And as a band, we’ve had some dark days to overcome in the past.
Abby: Is there a song you don’t like playing live ? If so, why ?
Lex: Not really. All of them are doable and there’s no song on the album that I don’t like. I think we’ll just play all the songs in the rehearsal room before the tour and then we decide which ones feel the best for us.
Abby: What was your worst moment on stage ?
Lex: That’s a tough question because I feel happiest on stage and generally I associate only good moments with it. But I do remember a show from a while ago where I fell from the stage into the barrier and crashed into a fan. Thanks to that fan, nothing happened to me, but I was really worried about him, and it was quite a shock for me too. Thankfully, only his glasses suffered from the impact. I paid for them, and he could enjoy the show until the end, of course. Many thanks for that !
Abby: Are there questions you wish journalists would ask you but never or rarely do ?
Lex: I think there’s almost nothing I haven’t been asked already. If there’s something I really want to say, I always manage to slip it in, even if it’s unsolicited. So, I don’t really have this problem.
Abby: What is the oldest memory you have ?
Lex: That’s quite an unusual question again. Are you asking about being a musician on stage? I can actually still remember the first performance of my first band. I was around 16, and we were all inexperienced. The classic story. Five friends from the neighborhood with dreams in our heads and not much else. We made noise and annoyed the neighborhood, and we actually had a few gigs in small clubs. But the band never became anything serious. I’m the only one of the guys who turned it into a profession.
Abby: What useless talent do you have ?
Lex: I think I have a very useful trait that can sometimes be completely impractical. I’m quite honest and I always say what comes into my mind. That means I can’t keep my mouth shut even though it would be better at times. But that’s just how I am. Otherwise, I believe there are no useless talents. There’s an old saying for that: “Better to have and not need than to need and not have.”
Find Megaherz here:
https://www.megaherz.de/
https://www.facebook.com/OfficialMegaherz
