Interview with Devas by Leo Henriksen for trueillusionsCD.com
June 6, 2007



I had the chance to interview a few of Devas' band members and ask them about the process of recording the cd. I wanted to know who the people are behind the illusions, the people who created them.
Gianni Chiarello (gt), Andri Leonardo (vx), Emir Isilay (kb), Luca Maurizi (gt), and Alice Ayvazian (vx) quenched my thirst for answers. Well here we go:

 

Question - How was the experience of creating True illusions?

Emir - It was really great and especially fun! We had a good time and the chemistry between us was very good. Definitely the recording was really cool. Staying and working at the studio for days and eating bad food. I also enjoyed the piano and keyboard overdub sessions, which we did at a different place with a nice grand piano.

Gianni - I have really a good memory of working on the album, as I was given a lot of freedom and trust in putting together the guitar parts. Knowing the level of the other players I knew we'd all come up with beautifully complementing parts. It was a very good working experience and a lot of fun too!

Alice - To me it was an awesome experience. I was still in college and many situations were new to me. I learned a lot, especially in the recording studio.

 

Question - What can you tell me about the musical and lyrical content?

Alice - Very emotional and real. We spent a lot of time talking about the lyrics and trying to find the perfect words to express what we wanted to say. Like in the song 'True illusions' there's this line: "...I can't fight the dark side of my soul..." and we changed "can't" to "can" and "fight" to "find" and switched them around, until we'd find the perfect fit. ...then we had to figure out what it meant! [laugh] And at times it was very emotional, in a good way!

Luca - Having been directly involved in writing some of those [songs] helped me understand how lyrics must be connected to the music and have to complement each other. You might not agree with some lyrics and find yourself in tears for some others, but regardless of the content they must work together with the music. That's what a song should be and that's what I think Devas is.

Andri - I agree with both of them! Everything has to be connected and make sense in many ways. Finding the right word is important and placing it in the right spot is crucial. And listening to the song is everything! It's the song that tells you were to go. I had to learn that!

 

Question - Do lyrics come first?

Andri - No. Yes. Listen to the song and you'll hear where to start. Sometimes it's the lyrics. But other times it might be the washing machine's rumble that inspires you to a new groove. You gotta listen in order to find out.

 

Question - How did the interruptions, due to financial reasons, affect the recording?

Gianni - It was good in the way that it gave me more time to work out my parts. But bad because too much time makes you lose perception. I don't think we did, but we had to be careful.

Alice - It was annoying for us, but I don't think that the record suffered because of it.

Emir - I think the hard part is to maintain the vibe of the record. Six months is a long time. But you have to remember what you felt when you first recorded it, so that you can make the overdubs fit into what's already on tape.

 

Question - What music style do you guys play?

Luca - Mainly just rock in its purest form. Some TOTO, some Rush, some 80's rock with a new twist, some prog-rock (rock not metal!).

Andri - Rock. I like to play rock and then mix it with other "things". But it's still rock.

Gianni - Someone once described us as prog pop?!

Luca - I think prog pop just refers to the fact that 'True illusions' isn't dominated by guitars, like one might associate with prog rock.

Emir - Sometimes it's hard to describe certain styles. But I think Devas has elements of progressive rock, pop and fusion. Harmonically and compositionally they have structures that I really like playing, because of a certain complexity and richness. But what should we call it? [he turns his head and looks at Gianni]

Gianni - Probably some kid of melodic prog rock? Prog rock for everybody?? [laughs] [...]

 

Question - What are some of the best moments?

Gianni - Turning up a few amps to eleven at Kissypig studios...my left ear still buzzes from time to time because of that session...

Emir - Gianni and I had this ongoing joke that we would record solos or certain parts in one take, and even though we did multiple takes, we
would still congratulate each other and say "Great job man, perfect on first take!!!" ... Of course we shouldn't be forgetting about our creative
band photo shoots in the studio :)

Andri - .. and the picture where Dave sleeps in a jungle of beer cans! [laughs]

Alice - One night at a gig, the doorman didn't let me in because I was still under 21! And I tried to convince him that I was part of the band, but he didn't believe me. Finally I assured him that I wouldn't drink and gave him a pinky swear and I got in :)

Luca - After a show one night a guy came up to me and said: "You sound like Dream Theater light." ...two calories only, baby! [laughs]
One of the nicest memories I have is spending the night writing and
arranging with Andri at Berklee in the Learning Center Lab (school
was closed but he had the keys!!!) and working on songs like True
Illusion, Day By Day and Alive, while these five or six small rats were
taking their night walk around us. [smiles]

Andri - I think the best part was to work with these great people and create magic! I learned a lot and had the best of times!

Gianni - Yes the vibe was great!

Emir - Definitely good chemistry!

Luca - ...and friendship!

Alice - And all of that made it a great and fun experience!

Behind The Illusions