Interview with Grieving Age

 GRIEVING AGE – SAUDI ARABIA

Interviewed by: Corix

Asalam walaikum!

First off! I am really amazed that you guys played this kind of music, are you all Saudi nationals?

Is there any of you study and grow up to any other open country? Is there anyone still studying? Working? What you guys do for a living?

1-Ahmed-lead voclas and song writer,born and grew up in Egypt,livied for 12 years then moved back to Saudi Arabia,graduated as a Marine Geologiest but working in the music business in a music company as a label manager,handling Universal,Virgin,Warner,Roadrunner,Century Media...etc.

2-Ghassan-Guitarist,Accountant,working in a local company supplies market and pharmacies by diapers,creams..etc.Lived and grew up in Saudi Arabia.

3-Diya-Guitarist,sound engineer,lived and grew up in Saudi Arabia.

4-Ayman-Bassist,works in the airport lived and grew up in Saudi Arabia.

5-Abduallah-Keys,Andustrial Engineer,working in a motors company,grew and lived in Saudi Arabia.

6-Emad-Drummer,Studying english lit,grew and lived in Saudi Arabia.


Who influence you with metal music? And how did you come up with this kind of music? When did you discover metal, by the way?
Well,we get influenced by the great metal,Rock bands that we are listening to such as My Dying Bride,Anathema,Paradise Lost,Mourning Beloveth and Novembre. that idea came up when Ahmed and Ghassan met up and suggested the idea of making a Doom Death band. we discovered metal in the mid of 90's.

What are those zines, books and literature that you think change the way you think about life?
That's a hard question!but i guess Edgar Allan Poe played a very big roll,Oscar W and Anis Mansour.

Is there any bands inspire the existence of Grieving Age?
Yeah sure,My Dying Bride,Anathema,Paradise Lost,Noverms Doom and Novembre.

Pls. tell us what kind of music you are into nowadays? How about zines you are currently reading?
it depends on each member,but mainly Metal,Rock,Blues,Trance,Chill out and Classic.
The zines,www.sametal.org
www.mydyingbride.org
www.metal-archive.com

For all the bands in Saudi Arabia that I have heard, you guys are the most different when it comes to your music, because you have a combination of Goth, Doom and Death Metal, and sometimes I have sense some similarity from the band “Salem” from Israel, do you like that band? Who is the woman in the back up vocals in your songs “svecha” and “footsteps of doom” by the way? Is she a Saudi national also?
We are different than the others cause we are the only band that plays Doom death!but there is another band that plays Funeral Doom called Forgotten.
hmmm,we dont listen Salem,didnt hear much a bout them.
we dont have any female vocals nither any song called svecha and footsteps of Doom.??????!!!

This question doesn’t mean to criticize your religion because I know you guys are Muslims right? In Metal or in the whole underground thing, religion has no place at all! What can you say about this? Do you guys still practice your religion? Since you guys tackle an evilish lyrical approach?
Absoluty yeah!we still practicing our religion it's the main reason of our existance:)hmmm,again,we have no evilish lyrics!are u sure u did read our lyrics???!!!

Are you guys joining some battle of the bands too? Like your neighbor band called Wasted Land? How serious your band in the underground?
We are too serious in the underground,we have a big aim of maintaining the mountain of Doom.we never joined any battle of the bands before and have no interest.

For sure, you know the band S.O.D right? What can you say about their song called “Fuck The Middle East”?
it's a funny song:)i won't take it any seriously.

Mostly people here are still in the traditional way of lifestyle and culture, how did your parents reacted when they saw you wearing metal shirt instead of wearing your traditional clothes like the “tob”? Have you guys encountered any problems with your religious leaders or “Mutawa” regarding your clothes you wear? Your long hair and stuff like that?
Our parents are so cool with it and they support us with what we are doing,cause they believe we are not doing anything wrong.never faced any problems with Mutawas.

We are planning to form a band with my friends here in Riyadh but since we don’t have any equipment like the drums and amps so we look for any rehearsal studio but until now we haven’t found any, where do you guys rehearse not to disturb your neighborhood? And by the way, the sound quality of your recording is really good, where did you record your demo and any of your releases? Is there any recording studio in your place? Or it was just a home recording using some recording softwares? How about rehearsal studio?
We rehearse in a small studio we have, nobody complains about the loud music!we are waiting for them to do,lol
Most of the songs done in home,the first song ( My Hopeless River ) done by Khalid Abd el mannan and the second one ( Insolace,Enthroned By Thorns ) done by Khalid Sahsah,recently we are recording in our small studio using softwares.

How did you guys manage to organize gigs here in Saudi since gigs are prohibited I guess if you do it in a public place right? Unless you do it in basement that Mutawa couldn’t see and hear you are doing some noise right? How about the female audiences because females are not allowed to collaborate with males? How did you feel about this? That you could not express your music and anger without hiding the authority? Have you tried questioning your authority? Have you tried doing some actions like protest to this kind of system?
Yeah it's not allowed to be in public but it doesn't bother us,sooner or later they will let it all loud. we still manage it in special places and campounds,it's totally fine,females audiences are allowed there.

I have talked to a Saudi guy, and he said he don’t like the culture, lifestyle etc. because of its traditional way and lots of restrictions like you cant talk to a woman in public, mandatory for a woman to wear “abaya” (for the readers: “abaya” is a long black dress that covers the whole body of a woman from head to foot) women has no freedom and actually he said there’s no freedom at all for everybody, prohibition of alcohols and beers, some websites are blocked etc. etc. that’s why he decided to settle down in other country. For you, did you ever feel the same sentiments like him? What can you say about your country’s culture by the way?
I never felt this way before,it's my country and i respect the rules either i like it or not,i respect the cultures and everything else and have intentions to leave.

All of my packages from my contacts abroad were opened from the PO before it came to me, how you managed your incoming mails that you have traded or bought from your contacts from other countries?
PO never opened my incoming mails

I heard about a group of Saudi women doing some protest to have their freedom, have you heard about that too? Does that group of women still exist?
Well, i never heard about it!

Going to the mosque every “salah” or “prayer time” is mandatory for all the Muslims here, do you guys go to mosque and do salah everyday?
It's not mandatory,still can pray at home,office..etc,any place.

Do you think there will be a possibility that Saudi Arabia will become open like other countries do?
Yes

I have noticed that the Americans and the British are treated special here in your country, they can do whatever they want, like in their compound, they can drink their fave alcohol and beers, can eat pork meat, men and women are open to see each other that even “Mutawa” has nothing to do with them. My question is; How special they are in this country? Why they are treated special than the Arabs here? Why isn’t equal to all since Saudi Arabia has a lots of various nationality?
I never felt they are special but if they are special then becuse they are guests:),dont you agree?

By the way, about the Arab-Israeli conflict, do you think it will reach a lasting peace?
Hope so.

Alright, brother! Thanx for sharing your thoughts for my readers worldwide, this space is all yours, you can say whatever you wanna say. Maasalama!

www.myspace.com/grievingage