Mit Liebe Und Tod #1, Summer 1994

UNDER THE INCESSANT RAIN
INTERVIEW TO ANGELO BERGAMINI OF KIRLIAN CAMERA

"... I really believe that the world is a hell, also considering what my eyes gave to monitor, I don't have illusions maybe only in hereafter. When a person dies is always a little nicer than alive, thinking as he suffered till that moment...".
These were the words that Angelo Bergamini, clever leader of Kirlian Camera, had the bravery to diffuse through ether, during a phone interview on Padova's Radio Sherwood frequencies, one year and half ago during my program "Fuite!". Since then in me has remaing alive the interest to this personage and for his uneasily romantic music. For this and for a reason so obvious and sacrosanct that I will explain soon it was needed inaugurate this first number of our fanzine with a tribute-interviw to Kirlian: so, on April the 17th 1994 at Red'Ko of Reggio Emilia we are present for what that could be the last concert of K.C. in Italy. For the occasion I buy their last CD "Eklipse Zwei" and at the end of the concert, reached Angelo and Emilia, I claim dedication and autograph. "Mit Liebe und Tod - before to die": this is the dedication of Angelo, that two days after, on April the 19th, day of conceivement of this fanzine, I thought very suitable as name for the same. All in all just in the dualism chained by love and death I have founded since long time a good part of my artistic expressions, seeing two things as accursedly indivisible, once penetrated in the turbid folds of an ultra-sensible soul in a way to say little pulsing.... Thanks, Angelo.

Angelo, a component that I retain very important concerning the message expressed through your music is given from the images that you project during live performances, images of war in Bosnia, full of crudeness. You said to retain the world a true hell: is this the reason of this choice, that, moreover, in the first time has given to us the effect of some kind of psychological violence...?
The reason is that we wanted to make see pitilessly real images, without starved children with snot at nose, to move to pity.... Pictures of war, of deads, of killings, to give the sense of despair, not only ours. Boys, more or less young, in Germany more than here are used to see TV but not news, so they don't know anything about the world that surrounds them, they don't read newspapers. I believe to be not able to live in this way: if I continue in this way I suicide...
Something must change, somebody to do something must be found, if not stop the war in Bosnia, at least sensitize people also through OUR VOICE, we are even disposed to fail if they will close our voice...

Why should they do?
You see, they asked us to do interviews for "regime" things like Videomusic: I am ready to read war communicates as Faust'ò already did in his time! Returning however to previous speech, I remember that in the beginning of '80s when I saw and listened to Pere Ubu, I feel very bad and I hated them because they hurted me. Today I found them more interesting than past, when I lived maybe more difficult experiences and I needed of a maybe more edulcorated romanticism; I believe to feel their more romantic effect because there is something positive behind, not only paranoia, there is the light... Maybe I tend to deny this, as many make me notice today.

Would you want to say that there is no light anymore in your music, in your life? Don't you believe that generally this darkness is in some way wanted by mass-medias, by social education, that is transmit to us?
Surely it's not really amusing to live with opened channels in all this situation because you risk to end at cemetary or madhouse or jail, if you have some sensibility. Or you can escape, or find a job, but you must dedicate heart and soul to that. But when you are old you can't stop, it's a question of love in what you really believe and then do. When you discover that there is somebody that phones you, writes to you, gives you some satisfaction... Even if they are so many, you become crazy to answer to all them! But it's better in this way. Now due the success we are having in Germany, we are forced to answer to much people.

We saw you on Christmas at Dark Xmas Festival, we noticed that you are considered like various German bands. Do you believe that German audience is more able to put inside the musical message than Italian one and generally which are the differences between gothic scene in Germany and in Italy?
Musically, of bands, there are not so many differences. We don't consider ourselves rigidly a gothic band, we have a more heterogeneous audience, such as other bands. There however is different, also because gothic was born pratically in Germany. In Italy all follow more the fashion, there was some year s ago the "dark" boom, maybe today no-one likes gothic! There are many that lost theirselves in the past spiral, many clone bands of Sisters here too, many others are not even reviewied by press.

Journalists stopped to buy records, they listen to those who are sent to them, often they prefer don't talk about bands that they would talk with bad words. There is who "sells". Even if concerning Italian gothic the specialized press reviewed very well "Symphonia Sine Nomine of Ataraxia, and Energeia surely is not one of the indie-labels with much "powerness". What do you think?
"Ataraxia" is a band that is well around in the scene, also thank to the various self-produced MC since a lot of time; it seems that all the work is good. I don't want to comment all that, but I can say that Ataraxia will do what interest to them, surely they are able to do. Personally I'm in contact with Giovanni, keyboarder, and I can say to be happy because often many bands create attritions, that from my side neither I look for nor I will try to alimentate.

"Todesengel", your old CD, is dedicated to all that (including you) suffered in the psychiatric clinics or under the cruelty of "psychiatrist".
Today I'm not under the effect of psychotrope drug, so I'm more subjected to panic and dissociation attacks. They prescribe them to me till 1975, I think to be accustomed and I cannot free myself from them, risking to getting really bad. We are care about the problems of psychiatric assistence that's a real disaster here...

Do you think it is correct to ask for a stranger, surely human and professional, paying him, knowing to have a limited time, remarked by the clock, to be able to expose own problems, and that all these components together are able to help?
There are people having mental diseases and discomforts since years , that were able to do self-analysis and mental war: the psychiatrist can help them as support. Others, if already of age, having to survive cannot absolutely be left to theirselves, because you risk to see them really break down, bleed, but unfortunatly this happens too. You must be not more responsible, self-sufficient, not knowing what you do, psychotic, violent and catatonic. It's more an indictment against the civil servant health services: they told me that here in Parma at the center of Mental Office they cannot keep me because I'm still self-autosufficient. But what do you expect, that I throw myself from the balcony? It's not possible to pay exaggerate money for the cures. The most of the suffering people has the fear to be interned without say a word: I know, I survive in the '70s for a breath. Better to be crazy at home, and then it depends who you stay with! I have Emilia, I have various friends, but I know a 40 years woman that is isolated from family and it's always more crazy, and think that also she had the chance to heal, as everyone: nobody is completely lost.

I don't believe that psychiatry can really do miracles.
The psychiatrists do their best. They have 200.000 liras every meeting and finally they give the addresses of others! If they passed the pills I could go in the jail...

Angelo, what gives you the strength to live, your music, your art?
Maybe crazy artists and musicians that live of own art exist, but I don't know them! I believe in the love at the first place, love for the beloved person, love for the Child Jesus...

You said to have a "bad disease" to be a not catholic christian. Why bad disease? Are you practising christian?
I don't go to Mass why there is not Jesus Christ anymore, in the sermons the priests talk about Forza Italia, do sermons against the communism, also during the funerals. The chatolics are the monsters, the satanists!

Why did you choose to play not in Italy anymore? Do you feel not considered?
It's not for personal reasons, but for us it's not possibile to spend one million and gain the same. In the gig we play for real, we are not in playback as many electronic bands and for this we need adequate technical means. The installations are always the worst here, we feel better in East Germany!

Do you think that there is a different mentality concerning the idea of live concert, as here there is so scarce partecipation and sensibility?
Beh, here we have enough audience comparing some time ago. Here there are chaotic clubs where the people come not to hear the concert and in the end whistle the bands. It's different there, this doesn't happen, straight away the boys buy records and gadgets and especially they come to hear, then eventually the go away; in Germany in an important live night there are more money, so everything is almost always more organized and satisfing for all. Surely we are better paid there. Here not even they do the contract!

Which is the difference of planning and mentality between the musical press here and in Germany?
In Italy everyone waits for big fashion coming from the pushing of the majors, and only then they are in agreement to support. No-one magazine is well-directioned, nobody work there for passion, not even Rockerilla support Rockerilla!

Vienna, the passion for the Hapsburgness tradition, apart our success in Germany. Why in your opinion so much press distorted some your ideas and concepts, seeing you as "nazi"?
There was in past the tendency of various bands, also metal to get "swastika" as this thing was functional to their success, where for us it was never in this way; we believed in decadentism, we eat Visconti, Fassbinder, Fleischmann, not fascist people!

What does our last work "Eklipse Zwei" represents speaking in emotional words?
It's the second part of a "humanized electronic" story about the lost of the space, the annulment of the mind, the commands that don't answer anymore... Generally however I expect that people will wake up before or after!

As many know you work not only for Kirlian Camera, but also for other bands as Bel Am, T.A.C., Andromeda Complex, and all are better known in Germany. Did you ever think to move to Germany?
They asked me for working in Discordia management, probably we will put the bases to do. We are forced to do to work more and better, without neglecting the contacts here however. I'm always interested in the collaborations, in productions, I hate fundamentally the "wars" among the bands. I don't bear who believe himself at the top and seems to seek his space trying to steal yours. I believe that for original and good bands there is always the space. I hope!

The hope is also ours. In the waiting that the wished awakening would regard many persons among them could reign a sincere and brotherly communion of ideas and feelings. However always conscious of the evil around, ready to fight it in every its manifestation.

Disorder

English translation: Adalberto Orrigo - 28.11.2004