Epoch
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Martial muzika nastavlja da stvara kvalitetne izvođače, koji nastoje da svojom muzikom bore se protiv politike i Novog svetskog poretka. Jedan od takvih je i Ken Holewczynski, osoba koja stoji iza imena projekta Epoch.
1. Zašto naziv Epoch? Kada je nastao taj projekat?
Ken: Ime Epoch, odražava moje mišljenje da smo trenutno, a možda stalno živi u periodu istorije velike promene i prevrata. Konstantni pritisci u nad-postizanju vlade kapitalističke manipulacije svetskim tržištima, valute i korporativnim kontrolisanim medijima dostižu tačku apsolutnog apsurda.
Odražavajući trenutne globalne ekonomske, kulturne i društvene krize, i metode kojim su isprepletene, Epoch koristi svoju muziku da razotkrije mahinacije ekstremizma svih tačaka sadašnjosti u našem trenutnom vremenu. Međutim, Epoch priznaje da uprkos napretku vremena, vreme i dalje stoji, ili možda je čak i obrnuto.
Prvi Epoch materijal, pojavio se kao jedan od prvih Arts Industria izdanja na kaseti 1993, a kasnije i preko VUZ records-a (Duizburg, Nemačka), kao split album 1995. godine. Uprkos dugom vremenu između tog izdanja i sada, uvek sam imao ovaj projekat na umu kao nešto što sam hteo da preradim i koristim kao interpretativni komentar na globalnu politiku i politiku Sjedinjenih Američkih Država.
2. Muzički pravac definišeš kao martial industrial. Šta je uticalo na to da stvaraš takvu muziku?
Ken: U stvari ima mnogo uticaja, koji su doveli martial industrial zvuk Epoch-u. Počeo sam da pišem muziku ranih osamdesetih, pod velikim uticajem industrijske muzike koju sam otkrio u Wax Trax! Records-u u Čikagu, kao što su Front 242, Frontline Assembly, SPK, Cabaret Voltaire i drugi. Konkretno za Epoch, Wax Track! takođe me je upoznao sa bendovima Laibach i Borghesia. Dok je Laibach bio dosledan umetnički uticaj, u poslednjim godinama Arditi, Atomtrakt, Von Thronsthal i Spreu & Wizen uticali su u jednom delu, pored ostalih umetnika kao što su Parzival, J Orphic, TSIDMZ, Waffenruhe i više. Dok volim čist martial industrial zvuk, kao što su Arditi, očigledno je da ću uvek ugraditi neki elektronski stil koji oslikava moju eru osamdesetih.
3. Nakon prvog odličnog albuma, usledio je drugi još bolji album. U svojim tekstovima kritikuješ Novi svetski poredak, kapitalizam, misliš li da se muzikom može boriti protiv globalizma?
Ken: Prvo, hvala ti na komplimentima, kao što znaš stvaranje muzike dovodi do zatvorenog pogleda i može se steći pogrešno mišljenje o svom radu, pa ti je potrebno inteligentno mišljenje izvan tog zatvorenog kruga da znaš da li radiš dobro.
Epoch je samo jedan glas od mnogih, za koje mislim da su postali glasniji poslednjih godina, bez obzira da li se radi o muzici, prozi, slikarstvu, protestima, civilnoj neposlušnosti i čemu god. Tako sam izabrao da izrazim moje razočarenje u demokratiju i slobodnog tržišnog sistema, koji nastavlja da koristi imaju samo bogati ili oni koji su na vlasti. Nije da je ovo nova tema i istorija uvek pokazuje da je ovo borba koja traje vekovima, ali ljudi se lako umire putem lažne sigurnosti, a patriotizam sada znači da klimate glavom u stalnom slaganju sa onim što je rečeno. Ovde u SAD-u ljudi vole da kažu da politička partija koja je na vlasti ima sve odgovore za zaštitu većeg dobra, kada su većina političara sociopate. Mnogi od uzoraka koje Epoch koristi su očigledno istorijska, ali ističu obećanja data generacijama za bolji život, kraj rata i siromaštvo, kada se u suštini ništa nije promenilo. Sve je iluzija, koju mediji nastavljaju da propagiraju.
4. Da li je kapitalizam stvarno novi fašizam?
Ken: Kapitalizan kao globalna ekonomija je pokretačka snaga regionalne i svetske politike već duže vreme, ali nedavnom ekonomskom krizom, mislim da te korporacije više nego pre kontrolišu u velikim razmerama ono što se zaista dešava. Više od svega, mi vodimo rat zarad poslovnih interesa, a ne iz humanitarnih razloga. Rečeno nam je da je to za bezbednost zaštite slobode, ali svi znamo da je to manipulacija masama da bi se zadržala kontrola.
U globalnoj ekonomiji, novac je jednako moć. Novač označava slobodu. Radnička klasa postoji da svoj život obogati za 1% i mnogi ljudi jednostavno provode svoje živote sa nepotrebnom potrošnjom. Mislim da ljudi počinju da shvataju to kao da će berze/zalihe tržišta i dalje drastično ići gore ili dole na osnovu optimističkih izveštaja takozvanih eksperata i stvarnih navika trošenja prosečnog čoveka.
Jedna stvar koja mi je uvek bila apsurdna je komentar Džordža W. Buša u periodu posle 9/11 u kojoj je održao govor i rekao ljudima da, naravno, nastave sa svojim životima, ali i da "nastave kupovati." "Kao da je kupovina patriotska dužnost nakon terorističkog napada."
5. Član si Evroazijske Asocijacije Umetnika. Šta to za tebe predstavlja?
Ken: Postao sam deo EAA, da malo više saznam o raznim pogledima globalizacije i šta ona znači ljudima u drugim delovima sveta. Ljudi otkrivaju da odustaju od srži svog nasleđa u homogenoj globalizaciji. Dok je Amerika izgrađena na imigraciji, evropske zemlje imaju bogatu istoriju i identifikaciju, koje neke ne zele da napuste. EAA istražuje ovo, plus voli da dovodi u pitanje autoritet navodnih supersila. Nalazim te stvari zanimljivim i važnim. Očigledno je EAA fokusiran na pitanja koja se odnose na Evropu, ali opet, interes globalista utiče na sve nas.
6. Gde se mogu kupiti tvoji albumi?
Ken:
U SAD-u:
carbon12records.bandcamp.com
U Nemačkoj:
vuzrecordsmegastore.bandcamp.com
Lichterklang.de
U Rusiji:
casusbellimusica.com/shop
ufa-muzak.narod.ru
7. Kakvi su planovi za budućnost? Možda neki koncert u Srbiji?
Ken: Trenutno imamo split album sa J Orphic i TSIDMZ, koji će nadamo se uskoro izaći za UFA Muzak iz Rusije. Naslov je Unsere Weltaschauug i ja se veoma radujem tom izdanju.
Dok nemam planove da sviram uživo, voleo bih da putujem u Evropu. Imam saradnju sa mnogim ljudima pretežno u Istočnoj Evropi u poslednjih dvadeset godina, da bih voleo da konačno upoznam i neke uživo.
8. I za kraj šta bi poručio čitaocima u Srbiji?
Ken: Iako sam Amerikanac, ja sam i poljskog porekla i razumem istoriju. Znam da su Baltičke države imale svoje pokušaje konsolidacije, invazije, nezavisnost. To je oblast sa velikom turbulencijom kroz istoriju u kojoj je važno nasleđe. Bio sam u kontaktu sa mnogima iz Češke Republike, Hrvatske, Slovačke, Nemačke i drugim istočnim zemljama godinama i drago mi je da ću biti upoznat sa tvojim čitaocima u Srbiji.
Epoch
Martial music continues to create amazing performers, who are trying to fight with music against the politics and the New World Order. One of them is Ken Holewczynski, and his musical project Epoch.
1. Why the name Epoch? When did this project begin?
Ken:
The name Epoch reflects my opinion that we
are currently, and perhaps constantly, living in a period of history of great
change and upheaval. The constant pressures of over-reaching government,
capitalistic manipulation of world markets and currencies and the corporate
controlled media are reaching a point of absolute absurdity.
Reflecting the current global economic,
cultural and social crises, and the methods by which both are intertwined,
Epoch uses its music to expose the machinations of the extremism of all points
of view present in our current time. However, Epoch recognizes that despite the
advancement of time, time has stood still, or maybe has even reversed.
The first Epoch material originally appeared
as one of the first Arts Industria releases on cassette in 1993 and later on a
VUZ records (Duisburg, Germany) split CD in 1995. Despite the lengthy time
between those release and now, I had always had this project on my mind as
something I wanted to refine and use as an interpretive commentary on both U.S.
and global politics.
2.
Your musical direction is
martial industrial. What has influenced you to create such music?
Ken:
I actually have many influences that have
lead up to the martial industrial sound of Epoch. I started writing music in the early 1980’s,
heavily influenced by the industrial music I discovered at Wax Trax! Records in
Chicago, such as Front 242, Frontline Assembly, SPK, Cabaret Voltaire and
others. But specifically to Epoch, Wax Trax! also introduced me to Laibach and
Borghesia. While Laibach has been a consistent artistic influence, in recent
years Arditi, Atomtrakt, Von Thronstahl and Spreu & Weizen have influenced
me in one fashion or another, in addition to other artists such as, Parzival, J
Orphic, TSIDMZ, Waffenruhe and more. While I love the pure, martial industrial
sound of such artists as Arditi, I obviously also still incorporate some
electronic style form my 1980’s era.
3. The first excellent album is followed
by a second album even better. In your music criticizing the New World Order, Capitalism, do you think music can fight against
the politics?
Ken:
First, thank you for the compliments as working in a vacuum
on music can certainly give you s distorted opinion of your own work and you
need intelligent outside opinions to know if you’ve going in the right
direction.
Epoch is just one voice of many that I think have become
louder in recent years, whether it’s music, prose, painting, protesting, civil
disobedience or what have you. This was how I chose to express my disillusion
of democracy and the free market system, which continues to benefit only those
in power or already wealthy. Not that this is a new subject and history always
shows that this is a struggle that has been fought for centuries, but people are
easily lulled into false security, and patriotism now means to nod your head in
constant agreement with what you are told. Here in the US, people love to
declare how the political party they are affiliated with holds all of the
answers to protecting the greater good, when I find most politicians to be on
some level sociopaths. Many of the samples used on the Epoch are obviously
historic, but point out the same promises made to generations of a better life,
ending war and poverty, when if fact nothing much has changed at all. It’s all
an illusion that the media continues to propagate.
4. Is capitalism really new fascism?
Ken:
Capitalism as a global economy has been a driving force
behind regional and world politics for quite some time, but in the recent
economic downturn, I think its obvious that corporations even more so, control
what really happens on a large scale.
More than anything, we wage war over business interests and not for
humanitarian reasons. We’re told it’s for security and the protection of
freedom, but we all know that’s a manipulation of the masses and to retain
control.
In the global economy, money equals power. Money equals
freedom. The working class exists to enrich the lives of the upper 1% and many
people simply fill their lives with needless consumerism. I think people are
beginning to realize this as the stock markets continue to drastically go up
and down based upon optimistic reports from so-called experts and the actual
spending habits of the average person.
One thing that has always struck me as absurd was a comment
made by George W. Bush in the aftermath of 9/11 in which he was giving a speech
and told people to, of course, continue with their daily lives but also to
“continue to shop.” As if shopping was a patriotic duty after a terrorist
attack.
5. You are a member of Eurasian Artists Association. What does it present for you?
Ken: I became part of the EAA to become a bit
more educated in various viewpoints on globalization and what it means to
people in other parts of the world. People are finding they are giving up bits
of their heritage in the homogeny of globalization. While America was built on
immigration, European countries have rich histories and identifications that
some are not wanting to let go of. The
EAA explores this, plus likes to question the authority of the supposed
superpowers. I find these things interesting and important. Obviously the EAA
is focused on issues relating to Europe, but again, the interest of the
globalists affects all of us.
6. Where can buy your albums?
Ken:
In the US:
carbon12records.bandcamp.com
In Germany:
vuzrecordsmegastore.bandcamp.com
Lichterklang.de
In Russia:
casusbellimusica.com/shop
ufa-muzak.narod.ru
7. What are your plans for the future? Maybe a concert in Serbia?
Ken: Currently I have a split album with J Orphic
and TSIDMZ that will be hopefully released soon from UFA Muzak in Russia. The
title is Unsere Weltaschauung and I’m
very much looking forward to it’s release.
While I have no plans to play live, but I
would love to travel to Europe. I have corresponded with so many people
predominantly in Eastern Europe over the last twenty years that I would love to
finally meet some of them face to face.
8.
And in the end what would
you like tell the readers in
Serbia?
Ken:
Though I’m
American, I am of Polish descent, and understanding history, I know the Baltic
States have had their share of attempted consolidation, invasions and
independence. It is a region of great struggle throughout history where
heritage is important. I’ve been in contact with many from the Czech Republic,
Croatia, Slovakia, Germany and other eastern countries for years and I’m glad
to be introduced to your readers in Serbia.
