We chat to Karlo from Italian rock band The BlackLava about their new music, influences and staying strongly in these troubling times.
Interview by Jane Howkins
How is 2020 treating you so far?
For now it is a very strange year. we are Italian and we are in quarantine for covid-19. Every event has been cancelled and therefore at this moment it is difficult to plan something concrete. We hold on at the moment!
Have you released any music so far this year? If so, what can you tell us about that?
Within five months we released three songs. in September Devil Inside Me, in
November Drunk Like Joe Cocker and in late January Woman. Our latest release is Woman. It has a vintage Zeppelin-like flavor. It is a song [to which] you can dance, sing and in the end you can discharge all your energy! A video will also be released soon.
Are you working on any new music at the moment? What are you working on, and when will it be released?
In the next months we will release a remix of our song Bones. We are composing in smart working, preparing for when we can meet. We have to set up the job at this particular moment.
Have you got any upcoming tours planned? If so, where are you playing and where are you looking forward to going most?
All tours and dates have been cancelled until further notice. When it is all over we will understand what to do. I hope that the Italian state will make funds available for the artistic sector.
Who/what has influenced you the most as musicians?
I started singing and took singing lessons because Chester [Bennington]’s voice had hit me inside. I still remember that when I was a teenager my friends and I went around the streets of the small town of Biella at night to scream the songs of the Linkin Park. Afterwards I loved Chris Cornell’s voice in Audioslave and I stole what I could! It is “funny” and sad to think that my greatest inspirations are gone and that they have not held the world around.
What have you been listening to recently that you can recommend to our readers?
Of course! I have a lot of time to listen to music! Architects, Palace Royale, KALEO, The Blue Stones, Bring Me The Horizon.
Why do you think people should pick up one of your records or come and see you live, and what can people expect from one of your shows?
We are genuine and everything we do we do to have fun so when someone listens to us or comes to live they feel part of something true, fun and energetic!
Any last words for the fans?
In this particular period of humanity, stay strong and dedicate this time to yourself, to your thoughts, to your hobbies. I see that a lot of people are concentrating on social networks. Instead, I would take advantage of this time to call people or make FaceTime calls. It was possible to stay close to people even while staying away but to be seen on social networks without having anything to say I find it degrading. Stay strong and positive!