Silence of September Official Blog

Sad news...

2011-10-30T18:25:00.000+01:00

Dear friends!

It is with sadness in our hearts that we have decided to take a break from “Silence of September”.
We have for the last 2½ years shed everything we had for this band and we have now reached a point where our work with our second album has resulted in a mutual feeling for a break. We love everything about this band, but this album has taken a lot of energy for many of us. BUT we have no intentions of closing any doors. With that said we will NOT exclude any chance of finishing the album at another point. But we will not promise anything at this point.

For now Silence of September is on a break for an indeterminate amount of time with no plans for the future what so ever. We would love to thank everybody who came to our shows, shared stage with us and bought our music. We love you all, and we would also like to give a very special thank you to our friends in A Road To Damascus for putting up with us for to two tours, a lot of meetings but also for some good times that we will never forget. We would also like to give a special thanks to our families for supporting us along with our good friends at Warner Music Denmark.

We can’t thank any of you enough and we truly appreciate everything all of you have done for us.

And as a goodbye present we would like to give you a demo of a song that could have been of the new album.

Why We Ran

Love & Respect

Do you want to co-produce the new Silence of September album??

2011-10-17T16:51:00.000+02:00

As some of you may know we are in the progress of making a new album!
And we have a bunch of songs ready in this “pre-production” phase that we are in right now. So here’s what we want to do. We would love to invite some of you guys to join us for a “listening-pre-production” – party! This will go down December 8^th 2011 in Copenhagen!

PLAN:
18:00                  - Get-in and saying hi to everybody.
18:30                  - Listening to the songs we have with a piece of paper and a pencil.
21: 00                 - BREAK
21:15                  - Questions and answers
21:45                  - A small unplugged session where we play a couple of our old songs.

So YES, the plan is to hear what you guys, as fans and critics have to say about the new songs. You don’t have to have any musical/production experience to be a part of this “producer” team we putting together.
As long as you have an open heart and some constructive criticism we would love to hear from you!

We will provide some snacks and drinks for the evening. IF you should have the interest in being some of the first people in the world to hear our new material AND having an influence of it please contact us on: contact@silenceofseptember.com

The final address for this event will be provided to the ones attending when we get closer to the date ;)

                Love & Respect

Worldwide release and a new album on its way!

2011-09-19T15:25:00.001+02:00

Worldwide release!

So here’s the day we’ve been waiting for, for a long time!
Our album “Sleep of Reason” is finally released worldwide. We have had many requests from fans outside of Scandinavia, which until now, haven’t been able to buy our album. BUT not that has changed.
You can now buy it on all the big sites such as iTunes, Amazon, Napster and so on!
So PLEASE, if you haven’t bought the album yet, please do so now and help us spread the word.

As you could imagine this is a pretty big thing for us. The kind of music we play doesn’t have this biggest crowd in Scandinavia at the moment, so for us to able to get it out to the people that listen to that genre is of course huge.
We ask all of you to help us spread the word about the band and play it to your friends!

New album

As some of you know, we have a new album on its way. The songs are almost done, which let’s us slowly move in to the pre-production phase, where we go into details and prepare it for recording. We’re still pretty far away from a release date. BUT if all goes to plan it will hit the streets sometime in spring 2012.

Beside that we will within the next month or so, take some new press pictures and redesign our homepage a bit! So stay tuned!!

Love & Respect

The HojRock 2011 Show!!

2011-08-02T21:44:00.001+02:00

Last weekend we had one of the best days in the history of Silence of September! We played HojRock, in Västervik, Sweden in front of a couple of thousand happy faces!
This was one of those moments where all the hard work pays off. We came to the gates of the festival around 14.00 and from there we went straight to sound check. We were welcomed by the nice crew who helped us with everything regarding soundcheck and so on. From there we went backstage where we had about 6 hours till showtime. A lot of time to relax, but also for the nerves to build up.
Even though we’ve played big stages before, this was the biggest crowd so far.
Around 23:30 we went on stage and we welcomed by MANY happy faces and LOUD cheering! The show itself went awesome and people just kept on throwing us their energy by cheering louder and louder and singing along.

The moment where you get off stage and take 10 minutes to chill off our just about the closest thing to heaven you can come after a show like this. Months and months of excitement and nerves building up just vanish in a second: “everything went as it should…”

After the show we went to the hotel and around 04:00 it was time to sleep! 10:00 the alarm rings and after breakfast we head back to Denmark. BUT around 15 km from home our bus breaks down. The diesel just keep pumping out of the tank and instead of being home around 18 o’clock we come home around 23:00!!

But hey, after a night like the one at HojRock 2011… who gives a shit… HAHA!

Take care,

Love & Respect

GOOD news and some small bad news!

2011-06-19T18:11:00.006+02:00

Since we last wrote a couple of things have happened. Some of them luckily better than others. So here is the bad news first:
Our pre-production work for our second album has been on hold the last couple of weeks. And still is, at least for 4-5 days more. The reason for this is that we are working on vocals, but Niko has come down with pneumonia and sinusitis at the same time. In other words; he is really sick. BUT he is getting better and is currently on penicillin.

So that was all the bad news. The good news is that we have been confirmed for Hojrock 2011 in Västervik, Sweden; the biggest motorcycle festival in Scandinavia. We will be closing the main stage on July 30^th in front of 8.000 people.
This will be the event of the year for us and we can’t tell you guys enough how exited we are to get on that stage!
We have also just ordered some t-shirts!! We don’t have that exact date for when they will be available, but they are on the way!!

Besides that we are also hopefully one step closer on worldwide release for our first album. No important details yet, but we are getting closer!

As we mentioned a couple of weeks ago we have plans to make another video for a third single from “Sleep of Reason”. We are not lying when we say that we are really busy with the second album (when Niko isn’t sick). So this means that we still have plans for the video BUT unfortunately it will take a while to find time in our schedule. Mostly because we want to make a good video, which of course takes time.

So that was all for now!
Enjoy the summer

Love & Respect

What goes on behind the scenes?

2011-05-23T21:09:00.004+02:00

Well, things have been a little hectic around here, causing the slight delay on our blog! Sorry about that.

As you guys know we had auditions for a new drummer. BUT we didn’t find what we were looking for.
SO, since we don’t have plans for playing shows during the summer. We will wait a bit with the search for a new drummer. AND, as you know, Kim, will play with us if any shows would show up.
Enough of that! :)

AND yes! As you have heard we are working on a new album! Still untitled… But we have discussed some different suggestions. The songs are turning out really good and we really can’t wait for you guys to hear it!
We are STILL working on the release of “Sleep of Reason” worldwide and we are getting closer. No date is set yet, but as you probably can figure out, YOU WILL BE THE FIRST TO KNOW!!

As many other bands out there, we are constantly working on promoting our selves.
The music industry has changed A LOT the last 10 years or so, and has more and more turned into a DIY (Do It Yourself) - thing. Which isn’t a bad thing. It gives “the band” full control over a lot of stuff.
And there sure are many things to do. Twenty years ago, a band would get signed and after huge investors (labels and so on…) did their thing, everything would be set, and “the band” could concentrate on writing music and playing shows.
Today, at least for upcoming bands, things are very different. Nothing is free and the money is hard to find.
Let’s take our band for instance. There is no doubt about what our intentions are. We want to make a living out of our music, playing shows, writing albums and so on. BUT albums cost a lot of money to make. And when the pay for a show is almost nonexistent, it gets kind of tough.
Last year we played about 15 shows, and the average pay for the shows was about 100 Euros pr. show. And when you take away transportation, getting of from work early to make the check-in deadline, something to eat and so on, not much (if anything) is left of those 100 Euros. Now besides that, a band also has to have a rehearsal space in order to make/rehears their music.
Compared to many other bands, we do things a little more different. 6 years ago Mirza and Niko, decided to invest in their own studio. This was with the intention to write music and do pre-production for future albums.
So instead of standing in a rehearsal space, writing songs while playing, we write our music directly in our studio. This gives us the opportunity to go much more into details with the things we write, before going to the final recording phase of an album. At the moment our studio is setup in Christian's apartment, while Christian has moved in with Niko (and Kim).

So here's how we make a record:

- We start of by writing songs. In our case it usually starts with a guitar of piano riff. From there, we build a song, piece by piece. Putting on layer after layer, ending up with a complete instrumental song. In this process we all contribute to every instrument used in the track. This is how we do it 90% of the time. Another way can be that Niko has written a song on a piano or an acoustic guitar. He brings it to the studio and we start making an arrangement for it.

- When we have the number of INSTRUMENTAL songs we want written for an album, Niko sits down with a piece of paper and his head phones and starts writing lyrics and vocal arrangements. When the vocals are written he goes into the vocal booth and starts recording the melodies. From there we start to see how the final song will sound like.

- When all this is done with every song we go into the preproduction phase of the album. This is where every song is completely pulled apart and analyzed from top to bottom. Every single riff, drum beat, vocal line is seen through to fit the overall sound. When all this is done with every song we make a track assignment for the album suggesting the order of the tracks.
In this phase we usually find an album title, and Niko starts working on the artwork of the album.

- NOW the album is ready for recording! For this we make an overview over how we want the album to sound. Which guitars, amps, drums, microphones, pre-amps and so on, we want to use. We also listen to different albums to get some inspiration. Many of the greatest albums’ specifications can be found on the internet. How did they make that guitar sound so good? How did they get so much thickness if the drums? And so on… Then we make a plan for what is recorded when, giving us the opportunity to make a plan for renting the stuff we don’t have our selves, but we really want to use! And then we start recording. Usually we start with the drums, followed by bass, guitars, keys, synths, strings and vocals. When all of this is recorded, we prepare everything for the studio/engineer that is going to mix the album.

- After finding a studio/engineer that we want we go into the mixing phase. This is where we, together with the engineer align all the levels for the different recorded instruments. The mixing process can take everything from a couple of hours to several days pr. track. We usually prefer to spend 2-3 days pr. song. When you mix a track, your ears get really “tired”. This resulting in “false sound”. Meaning that a track that sounds good after 8 hours of mixing can sound like crap the next day, listening to with “fresh ears”. So usually when we have finished mixing a song, we bring it home a listen to it on our stereo/headphones, where we know “the sound”. And when everybody says “GO” to a track, it’s a keeper.

- When it comes to producing the album we prefer to do it ourselves. At least for now, we usually take turns on letting our opinions come out. Until Niko yells loudest and keeps on being stubborn until he gets his will. Because he’s always right. ;) No, joking aside, we all try to give each other space to try things out. Niko usually keeps an eye on the overall direction of the song, while we all punch in with ideas and suggestions. Agreeing and staying on the same page has not been a problem so far.

- After a record is finished it is sent to print along with the artwork. Then all the administrative stuff gets started. Writing press materials, registration of the songs, photoshoot, preparing release and so on.

Between the time of the record being finished and the release, we rent a rehearsal space for a couple of months, spending all the time rehearsing the songs we’ve written for the album.
This is a bit different that bands usually do. A “normal” band rehearses before they go to the studio.

AT THE MOMENT, we are on the process of Niko writing vocals and lyrics for our tracks. 6 tracks are ready for pre-production, and there are 6 songs that still don’t have any vocals.

BUT HOW DO WE FINANCE ALL OF THIS?
As you can figure out, renting gear, running a studio and paying mixing technicians to mix costs money. So what do we do, since non of us are loaded with cash?
Well, we actually play covers on bars and clubs! :) This is usually a lot of fun and it also gives us some practice on our instruments. A “cover-gig” can pay anything from 400-1200 Euros for a 3 hour-show, depending if it’s with full band or just an acoustic duo. The complete cost for an album is around 20-25.000 Euros.
The first thing to remember is that the money spent is not something you should count on getting back as a upcoming band. But that’s NOT a place you want to save money by compromising. No matter how good songs you write, they’re only as good as they “sound”.

Besides the creative song-writing-recording and financial stuff, we also constantly work on getting our name out there. Since we don’t have any booking, promotion and management deals we also do all of this ourselves.

Mirza takes care of budgets and practical planning. He also is our main preproduction mixer. Frederik helps him out with the budgets and planning and he is also our main “instrument-repair”-guy. If any instruments or amps break or cause problems, Frederik can fix it, with a little help from Christian.
Niko takes care of the creative stuff such as video editing, artwork, visual design, designing homepages, profiles and blogs. He also takes care of booking, mails and contact with the help of Christian. Christian makes sure we have “cover-gigs” to take care of our bills with the help from Niko.

As you can figure out, being in a serious and ambitious, upcoming rock band today isn’t easy. Especially when rock music is almost impossible to find on the charts. We all work full time jobs, working “nine-to-five”. And besides that we spend about 40-45 hours pr. week on our band.

AND WE ENJOY EVERY F****** SECOND OF IT!! :)

So in rough lines, that’s how “Silence of September” works.

With that said, we really wish to give our greatest respect to EVERYONE who has supported and helped the band out in ANYWAY; fellow musicians in all the bands we have shared stages with, to every single one of you guys who support band and to everyone else who has helped to spread the word about our band!
Let's put ROCK back on the charts!

So thank you for reading, and until next time,

Love & Respect

Welcome to our new blog!

2011-04-25T20:54:00.002+02:00

Hi everybody

So here it is! After several requests and a recommendation from our very good friends in A Road To Damascus, we have decided to make a blog.

By reading this blog you will be able to, first hand, follow the things that are going on in Silence of September.

So what IS going on?

Well, it would not be an understatement to say that A LOT is going on.
As some of you may know a while ago Kim decided to leave Silence of September, for personal reasons. These were of course very sad news, but as we said before; we are still very good friends with Kim and we wish him nothing but the best. He will also play our already scheduled shows.
So we’re looking for a drummer. This Sunday we have a couple of guys coming over, that we are very exited to meet. They are all potential candidates for the drummer-post, and we will let you guys know as soon as any decisions are made.

Besides that we are working on getting our first album out to the rest of the world (besides Scandinavia), and without going in to details, we can reveal that some things are cooking :)

And last, but not least, we ARE working on a follow up to “Sleep of Reason”.
We have until now 11-12 tracks in the making. This sound is still familiar to our first album, BUT that vibe is, at least until now, a bit darker than the first album. We have focused a lot more on giving the songs more depth and variation and for some reason the average song is about a minute longer that on the first album.
We have as some of you know expanded our band from 4 to 5 members, meaning that Niko will not be focusing so much on the guitar parts, but more on his vocals. Our old friend Christian, has stepped in to share the guitar-side of the band along with Mirza and this is working out VERY GOOD!! They will also be sharing the electronic/keys side of our sound, when we play live.
To play the bass, we have found a very talented and cool guy called Frederik. Frederik has definitely expanded our thoughts about how a bass can be played. :)

But all of these roles are only divided for our live-shows. In this still early progress of writing new songs, we have all decided that we do not want any boundaries between who plays what. So we all contribute to writing guitars, bass, drums, keys, synths and whatever alternative weird instrument we want to have on our second album. This is working out AWESOME and it has turned out a lot better than we even dared to hope.

When we find the missing drummer in Silence of September, we will take some new pictures to show you guys “Silence of September 2.0”

So, if you made it all the way down to the end of this blog, we would like to thank you for all the support you guys have given us until now. Our love for you guys is endless and we thank you from the bottom of our hearts!!

Thanks for clicking in and keep following us on Facebook, Myspace and all the other places we hang out on the internet!

Love & Respect
Silence of September (v.1.9)