Diese Woche wollen wir mit euch etwas über den Tellerrand blicken und stellen euch Hellscore vor, eine 37-köpfige A-Capella-Gruppe. Sie haben es sich zur Aufgabe gemacht, Metalsongs zu covern. Der neueste Coup ist ein Nightwish-Medley, das den Hörer quer durch die Bandgeschichte einlädt. Spannend finden wir – Hellscore haben sich unseren Fragen gestellt.
Who is behind Hellscore?
Michal: A long list of hellish creatures!
Noa Gruman, our founder, conductor, arranger, creative mind, inspiration, lead singer of Scardust, and a brilliant singer and musician.
Also, there are 37 singers – I mean, talented devils and demons in the choir.
Finally, there’s Louis, the true and undisputable ruler of hell – Noa’s 10-year-old cat (or more precisely, his human).
If you had to put your music in a drawer and print a label on it, what would it say?
Hilla: Metal A Cappella? It isn’t just the repertoire, we really do try to give the „Metal“ feeling in each song, or to be true to each song’s aesthetic.
Lee-Bob: It’d probably say, “Kickass A cappella Metal”.
Forget about genres for a second – Hellscore’s music sounds like …?
Hilla: I’ve seen some online comments comparing us with Glee.
Lee-Bob: To me, Hellscore’s music sounds like the infernal strength of 37 people, roaring as one heart into the dark, bringing flames of light!
Michal: I would say that we are the hellish version of a church gospel, and instead of praising the Lord, we praise Louis.
Which sort of mood produces the best songs?
Lee-Bob: I think that for us the best mood to make music in is, when we’re feeling our togetherness. In Hellscore we are all one big family from hell, the way I see it.
Michal: I very much agree! In order to sound our best, we need to be like one person – to listen to each other, to blend well with our voices, and for this to happen we need to feel united and together.
Which instrument will never be heard on a Hellscore album?
Lee-Bob: All of the instruments! No wait, none of them? We don’t need any instruments to blow minds, ears and hearts with diabolically good music!
Which record would you want to listen to when you leave the bathroom in the morning, while the beautiful girl/handsome boy from last night is still in your bed?
Lee-Bob: Well, we’re almost 40 people, so to fully answer that question would be to give you a list of about 40 records … But for me, that record would definitely be “Matriarch” by Veil of Maya.
Hilla: Hmmm. For me it’ll be “Dirt” by Alice In Chains.
Michal: And for me it should be “Act I: The War” by The Family Crest. It’s not as heavy as the other albums that were mentioned, but I think the beauty of us Hellscore devils and demons is that we like various genres of music and are not fixed on metal music alone.
The Fairy-Godmother pops up in front of you and grants you a wish. What do you wish for?
Lee-Bob: What could a brigade of musical hellish hellions ask from a Fairy Godmother? I’d say a swift end to this whole pandemic going on nowadays, so that we can perform live again!
Hilla: Ditto. It was also a lot easier to rehearse and record before coronavirus precautions. And I really miss my family from abroad.
Michal: For me it’s being able to go out for beer with everyone after rehearsals. Since we’re so many people, they can’t fit all of us (or even half of us) in one bar anymore! The best part of Hellscore is hanging out with my fellow singers, who are my best friends. I wish Covid-19 was gone for good!
No alcohol is no solution either. What booze combination will definitely dissolve all your troubles and issues?
Lee-Bob: I believe that would be about 150 ml (5 ounces) Ginger Ale, 25 ml (7/8 oz) Crème de Cassis, 50 ml (1 2/3 oz) Cachaça and a lime. Also known as the Diablo Hellfire cocktail.
What shows you that someone is a true friend?
Lee-Bob: As with most answers here, this one represents just one of the many views we have in our choir, but a true friend is someone who can really understand you – even when you are hard to understand, and someone you can trust blindly.
Hilla: I agree – understanding and loyalty. Actually, loyalty is even more important to me, because it’ll lead to the other person understanding – or trying to understand you. Of course, I do want my friends to tell me whenever they think I’m wrong about someone or something.
Michal: Nothing to add to the above!
Who was the hero of your childhood?
Lee-Bob: Once more, this is just one voice out of many in Hellscore, but I’ve always looked up to Jack Black. The way I see it? He’s basically famous for being himself and doing whatever it is that a Jack Black does! What else could you wish for, if not for the courage to live as nothing other than yourself? And I truly enjoy his music, which reflects it with his own unique touch.
Hilla: I used to think that Shirley Manson (frontwoman of Garbage) was the coolest because she was – and still is – very honest and not giving a „fudge“ about stuff. At that time, I cared way too much about other people’s views on me, so seeing her attitude was kind of inspiring. I still like her and her band.
What is the most embarrassing/surprising record in your CD-shelf?
Lee-Bob: Definitely not embarrassed by it, but the most surprising record in my (again, just one of 38-ish) CD shelf would be 1989 by Taylor Swift, looking very out of place amongst my hoard of Metal CDs.
Hilla: I’m not embarrassed by it, but it may surprise some people that I own Mariah Carey’s Daydream.
Michal: I swear I own about 3 CDs, which is not a lot, none of them is embarrassing for me. However, maybe one of them is embarrassing for Noa, our conductor, since I own her demo record with very very early songs…
What’s next? Tour? Studio? Vacation? Something completely different?
Lee-Bob: Well, due to the accursed Covid-19 going around we can’t really have any live shows, unfortunately. So, we are currently focusing on making and releasing awesome new content – just like our latest Nightwish medley video!
Hilla:Yes! Stay tuned, we’ll have more videos coming out!
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