Rockezine.com interview with Vanishing Point on Oct 26, 2005

with Tommy Vucur on Oct 26, 2005


		Why did it take nearly five years to get a new Vanishing Point album in the shops? A combination of things actually happened. First we got back from Europe, basically we did a small tour 2002 in Australia and after the tour was completed we were already writing for the new album and Daniel our old keyboard player had left the band so we had to look for a new keyboard player and at the same time we wanted to take care of a few business problems that we thought about. So actually we fired our previous management company, so we’re no longer with them, so that took quite a while to find a way legally. Also we are not with LMP anymore. The same time Silvio and Chris were struck down with a couple of illnesses and it also took us a while to find a keyboard player who is not officially joining the band but who helped us out and when that finally happened when he started writing with us the writing process actually went very quickly. It took us all about five, six months to write the album from start to finish and then the next optical was actually to book some time at a recording studio. Since we did “Tangled In Dream” at the Palm Studio in Melbourne by Endel Rivers a lot of bands had decided to go there. So it was hard to get time there. We’re a band who chose to record an album and finish it within a month or a month and a half. It didn’t take us too long, we’re busy guys but at the same time we know what we want. This time we had to do it in segments, in certain stages because other bands had time booked in there too, which is good for the bands and we’re happy for the scene but for us it took a little bit longer than normal. And also, we signed a new contract with Dockyard 1. It’s an exiting new label and we’re happy to be with them.
		How important is the European market for the Australian Vanishing Point? Very Important. Europe were the first to open their arms to Vanishing point music. When we played the Wacken Open Air and that was a very cool show, we got a really great response. We were pretty much the first unsigned band who played Wacken and the response that we got was amazing. We’ve made a lot of new friends, that was really positive and then in 2001 we received an invitation for the tour with Gamma Ray and from that I can only say that it’s all positive.I don`t think we would`ve survived if the European fans would never have embraced our music .We see Europe as being a second home to Vanishing Point, Our Lable Dockyard 1 and Dragon productions (touring company) are based in Europe.
		How would you compare ‘Embrace The Silence` to the previous albums. There hasn’t been any great change in direction in terms of music as we always use a number of different styles. ‘Embrace The silence` is our heaviest album to date. I’d say our music style has broadened a little in terms of variety, which is evident in contrasting songs like, `Once A Believer` and `Breathe`. `Once` is all about thinking of revenge and the song is very heavy and fast while `Breathe` is an acoustic song about finding love. Musically the album is much stronger as we worked very hard on the recording production this time round.
		What’s your personal favorite on the new album and which track didn’t turn out quite as you’d expected it to be? `Breathe` is a personal favorite for me, It took a lot of heart and soul to write. Metal can be too negative sometimes... `Breathe` is to let you know life can be rewarding and positive. I`m very happy with all the tracks on `Embrace The silence`.
		Which track took most time writing or recording? All of them....He he. Can`t really remember to tell you the truth? From memory... `Season Of Sundays` and `Once A Believer`.
		If you’d have to advertise your band or your new album in five words, these words would be? He he... good question. "The future is so bright for `Vanishing Point` it will burn your eyes" Sorry more than 5 words there...
		If you’d compare the Australian progpower scene with the European scene, what are the main differences and what is the biggest similarity? The main difference would be the scene is 10 times bigger in Europe. The similarities are the fans, both `Aus and Europe` fans stay true and support their bands.
		You put a lot of effort in contact with the fans by your forum. You even requested help from fans wanting to help promote the band by doing street press/promoting/flyer runs for the band. How did this initiative start out and how did it work out? The forum is very important to us, especially for staying in touch with our fans. The street press has been great! The internet makes life easy and promoting world wide possible..he he We are self managed now and very busy also. Fans have there fav venues to see bands... so why not ask? The fans have been really good to us.
		You played as a support act of Nightwish on their Australian tour. If you had to chose between supporting a band in front of a crowd of 5000 or headlining a show with just 250 people? Depends on the situation, 90% of the time we would support if a great band like Nightwish comes along, exposure is very important!
		Which past gig is brought back in memory most often among the members of Vanishing Point? Our last show on the Gamma ray tour at Nosturi in Helsinki, Finland...A highlight for us all was to be invited on stage during a Gamma Ray encore to sing backing vocals to "I Want Out" which to all of us is an absolute classic song, we were jumping around and just generally having a great time while Tony (Sonata Arctica) sang the lead vocals with Kai standing back and playing guitar, it was a moment I don`t think any of us will ever forget. Many years ago we listened to Helloween and Gamma Ray, we never ever thought that we would be on a tour of this scale let alone share the same stage for a classic song.
		What’s your interest in playing all ages or underage gigs in your home country? Most venues in Australia have a liqueur license, So they keep the bar open. The law here is you have to be over 18 to drink. In saying that a lot of our fans are under the legal age of drinking, So that’s why we do all age shows... They deserve to see us live as much as any one else. I missed out seeing a lot of bands cause of that law.
		What’s the best Australian band (except for Vanishing Point of course) at this moment? Black Majesty & Voyager.
		Looking at your private cd collection, which album makes you blush in shame? Ha ha.. good ? Ah... Pandemounium `The kill`. Say no more...he he
		How important and how much fun is it to do interviews like this one? Promotion is the most important aspect of being in a band, you have to enjoy it and laugh otherwise it becomes a job he he... Thank you to everybody who is out there supporting us. Hopefully we`ll see you soon. Thank you very much for buying the album and believing in us and also having the patience with Vanishing Point. I suppose words can not express how grateful we are and we are really grateful for everybody who supports us. So I just want to say a big hello to everybody out there and a big thank you to everybody, not only from myself but also on behalf of the band, within Vanishing Point we thank you all for supporting us. Take care and stay safe..... Tommy Vucur. VP.

(Geert Oldenmenger)