For “Equilibrium”, we wanted a more “American” sound - Interview with SilentLie

SilentLie have been around since 2005, but their discography only includes two studio albums. Otherwise singles and EPs. Seven years after the debut “Layers Of Nothing“, the successor “Equilibrium” was recently released. Nevertheless, the band can point to a stable line-up. Whether the foursome have been playing together since the beginning, I don’t know. At least there have been no changes since the first album. It’s probably time to ask the band.

MHF: Hi, I’m Rainer and I write for the Metalheads Forever Magazine. Thank you for letting me do this interview with you. How are you doing?

SilentLie: Hi Rainer, thank you for having us! Everything’s fine here, we’re well pumped up and looking forward to playing live!

MHF: Although you have been around as a band for many years, you might be quite unknown outside your home country. Please introduce yourselves briefly.

SilentLie: Absolutely. We all live in Trieste, a small town on the eastern Italian border, famous for coffee, strong winds and… Rhapsody Of Fire! In SilentLie we play the following roles: Giorgia vocals, Luigi guitars, Davide bass and keyboards, Andrea drums. Davide is also bassist in the modern metal band SinHeresy.

MHF: SilentLie were founded in 2005. How did you get together back then?

SilentLie: The band was founded by Luigi and Giorgia both coming from previous experiences with other bands and eager to explore the “new” nordic Gothic Rock movement that was emerging. Davide joined shortly afterwards while Andrea joined SilentLie in 2009.

MHF: What does your band name “SilentLie” mean?

SilentLie: We wanted a name sounding like a devious and unexpected concept. The silent lie is everywhere…

MHF: In my introduction I mentioned the stability of your line-up since the 2015 debut, but what was it like in the ten years before that?

SilentLie: We have changed a few drummers. We started with Giorgio Orani, a good friend of ours, who allowed us to start the band. After he left in 2007, we got Silver Kid (drummer of Steel Crown, legendary underground Italian metal band of the 80s) with whom we recorded the first EP, “Behind My Face”. In 2009 with the entry of Andrea the line-up remained the same.

MHF: Please briefly describe the sound of your music. How has it developed since 2005?

SilentLie: In the beginning we were very instinctive and the approach in the first EP was almost aggressive. While being very melodic, the songs sounded angry and rough. The second EP, “Blood Under Snow” was a collection of five obscure and atmospheric tracks, while the full-lenght “Layers Of Nothing” featured dark/gothic influences with some old fashioned Sabbath riffing. The new material reveals a more focused sound. “Equilibrium” is deep, heavy and gritty with a dark outline.

MHF: It took you ten years from the beginning to the debut album. Then another seven until the follow-up. Are there any reasons for these long periods of time?

SilentLie: The curious thing is that the songwriting process has always been rather quick, it is our lives that are definitely complicated. We all have demanding jobs, wives, children, and to top it all off we also have other artistic activities!

MHF: Who is responsible for songwriting at SilentLie?

SilentLie: Luigi writes the music while Giorgia lyrics and vocals. Keyboards are added by Davide and then we arrange every song all together.

MHF: Where do you get the inspiration for your music? Are there bands or musicians who have particularly influenced you?

SilentLie: Inspiration is still for me (Luigi) something mysterious and unmanageable. Most of the time I have melodies that start playing in my head, so much so that I have got into the habit, when it happens, of humming them and recording them with my phone. If anyone ever hears them, I’m ruined, hahaha. Among my main influences certainly Tony Iommi and David Gilmour.

MHF: Who writes the song lyrics in your band? What topics do you take up in the process?

SilentLie: Giorgia writes all the lyrics and the topics covered are mostly personal and introspective, an analysis of interior conflicts and the dark side. Sometimes they are inspired by particular events that actually happened.

MHF: The current album was mixed in the United States. How did the contact with Dave Hagen at Dark Horse Studios come about?

SilentLie: For “Equilibrium”, we wanted a more “American” sound, in order to enhance the melodic component above all, so we chose to do the mix at Dark Horse Studios. The owner of the studio, Robin Crow, passed our old material on to Dave Hagen who liked it and was then willing to work with us.

MHF: And where did you record the songs? Do you have your own studio?

SilentLie: The recordings were made in a small but well-equipped studio in Italy, Artesonika Recording Studio, under the supervision of the highly competent sound engineer Ivan Moni Bidin.

MHF: How happy are you with “Equilibrium”? How were the responses from the press and fans?

SilentLie: We can truly say that we are absolutely satisfied with this work. We were able to express what was in our intentions and get it exactly as we wanted. The feedback we’re getting from the press and the fans is really good, and that makes all the effort we put into it worthwhile!

MHF: Will you also present the new songs live? Are there any shows planned outside Italy?

SilentLie: Of course. We will soon be playing in our city at the Equilibrium release party and in the meantime, we are making contacts for tours next year. But at the moment, out of superstition, we prefer not to anticipate anything!

MHF: What will happen next with the band? Do we have to wait many years again until the next album?

SilentLie: I tell you the truth: we will take a break until the end of the year. Then we will definitely start writing new material again and decide which way to go. It’s hard to make predictions, but we’ll try to get the next record out as soon as possible!

MHF: Thank you again for this interview. Would you like to say something to the fans at the end?

SilentLie: Thank you for giving us this opportunity. A hug to all our fans: you are the reason why we are still here after all this time! See you live!

SilentLie are:

Davide Sportiello – Bass, Keyboards
Andrea Piergianni – Drums
Luigi Pressacco – Guitars
Giorgia Sacco Taz – Vocals

Discography:

Behind My Face EP 2008
Blood Under Snow EP 2013
Layers Of Nothing Album 2015
Something To Remember Single 2022
On My Skin Single 2022
Equilibrium Album 2022