Alternative goth rockers Bella Morte sings songs of love and loss, hope and despair. By combining electronics, graveyard ballads, emotive storytelling and unique guitar riffs, Bella Morte have developed a style that is solely their own. They have released 2 EPs and 7 full-length albums, the latest (titled “Before the Flood”) released in 2011 by Metropolis Records. As the band continues to tour the world and write new material, they remain eternally thankful to have been able to make a living doing what they love: singing songs about the dead and winning over the hearts of the living along the way.
1. What type of band are you?
Andy: We’re an electronic rock band with a heavy dose of goth in our sound.
2. Tell us the brief history of your band.
Andy: I started the band with Gopal Metro in 1995. There was no goth scene to speak of anywhere near us at the time, so he and I would get together in an old warehouse space, set a loop on the drum machine and pound out hours worth of dark, melodic dirges. Eventually we expanded to three members and then four. Brought our friend Tony Lechmanski in around 2001 or 2002 on guitar and he’s been with us ever since. Gopal left the band to pursue other things around 2008, but we’re still close friends. Our sound took on some heavier influences when we hired a live drummer, but at the core of it all was the foundation of sound we’d built years before.
3. What are your songs about? (What specific themes do they cover?)
Andy: I love writing about ghosts, the end of the world, nostalgia, and despair… but almost always with a shovel full of hope in the mix. We don’t use words in our songs that would point to a specific time period either. In that way our songs can outlive us and be relevant long after we’re gone.
Andy: Absolutely! That’s the best part of being in a band in my opinion. Well, that and the live shows. Generally, me or Tony will bring the skeleton of a song to the table and let the other one of us write a part to it. Sometimes we have to tear a song down and rebuild it, but lucky for us we do this without letting our egos get involved. I usually start with a synth line and follow it with a beat. Lyrics always come last… I like to sing stream of consciousness nonsense over the song for a while before settling on words. It allows the tone of the song to dictate the mood of the lyrics… makes sure the two fit.
5. Who are your musical influences?
Andy: Some of my biggest influences come from film soundtracks. I love John Carpenter’s work on Halloween and Escape From New York. Another one is the Goblin soundtrack for Suspiria. Truly brilliant stuff. My favorite album of all time is the original Conan The Barbarian soundtrack. Too many people overlook it because they think the movie is campy or whatever. I happen to love the film, and a huge part of that is the brilliant musical accompaniment that brings the atmosphere to life.
6. Where did the band get its name and does it have a meaning behind it?
Andy: Gopal named the band. We had a long list of names we’d written down, and Bella Morte stuck. Took me a month or two to get the pronunciation right! *laughs* I remember we almost chose Stygian Shores at one point, but I know we made the right choice. Beautiful death… it says everything you need to know about our sound.
7. Tell me about this "Best Of" album you have coming out.
Andy:Yeah! I’m so proud and excited about it! To think we’ve been at this for 18 years blows my mind. And I still love it to death and have no plans on slowing down. I want to release a second best-of in 20 years. *laughs* It was hard as hell choosing songs for the album! I asked our fans on Facebook for input and took their suggestions to heart along with what me and the guys had in mind. I think the track listing is perfect, or as close to it as one could expect. We even re-recorded Evensong as a nice bonus. The updated recording sounds phenomenal!
8. How about the horror novel that you have been working on, it happens to be your fifth to date?
Andy: Yep! This will be number five! I’ve written a couple of werewolf tales, one with some truly nasty vampires, and another with a group of creatures I call The Family who may be the nastiest of them all. My new one starts as a zombie novel but gets much, much worse a little ways in. Eventually I want to get into making horror movies. In the meantime, my books are available on Amazon.
9. Where can we listen to your band and where can we buy your stuff?
Andy: There’s a player at BellaMorte.com, and we’re also easy to find on YouTube, Facebook, Spotify, Pandora, and damn near everywhere else.
10. What plans do you have for the near future as a band?
Andy: We’re wrapping up our next full length album right now and plan on releasing it in the fall. It’s got a slower, driving, gothic thing going on. Very melodic and synth driven. I’m psyched about how it’s turning out! We’ll be making an official announcement in a month or to.
11. What are your upcoming touring and show plans?
Andy: We’re going to appear on the Gothic Cruise this September and then we’re heading back to the UK for Whitby Gothic Weekend. And I’m sure we’ll be playing our way across the US sometime as well.
12. Anything else you'd like to say or add?
Andy: I personally handle our Facebook page, so if fans get in touch they can count on me responding. See you all on the road!
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