Violet Blend is an Italian Alternative Rock band fronted by Giada Celeste Cheli and based in Florence. The band released their debut album in 2018 and have recently released a new single ‘Rock DJ’. We had the pleasure of chatting with Giada and asking her about her band’s music and upcoming work.
Enjoy this interview with Violet Blend’s Giada Celeste Cheli.
Hello Giada! How are you and the rest of Violet Blend doing?
Hi! I’m really fine, thank you! We are thrilled about the upcoming release of the single of the new album. We are working hard but it’s amazing to restart after this period of stop due to the pandemic.
That’s great to hear. If anyone reading this never heard your music before, how would you describe it to them?
Hard question to answer, we describe our music as a kaleidoscopic blend of different musical genres, forms and styles. We always try to paint a musical discourse of clear sonic eloquence with the right expressive power to describe and dissect feelings. We speak about fears, anxieties, broken dreams, aspirations, joys and hopes of our life. We mix metal, rock, punk, progressive and classical forms that are part of our background and of course reflect our tastes. The musical discourse is directed by the opposition of the clarity of the piano with the scratch of the guitars, by frequent dynamic and rhythmic changes, by the juxtaposition of incisions and chords in dissonance, by the constant changes of origin and direction of sculpted riffs, and by the of the voice that brings together all these opposites in crossover melodic lines with realistic lyrics. Behind all, our goal is to lead the listener along a path of feelings and confessions, to make him feel the emotion we’re describing, always orienting him towards new atmospheres and sensations of each song.
You’ve had some wonderful experiences opening and supporting some big names. What is your favourite memory from a live concert you performed at?
We were lucky enough to share stages with many incredible artists and every time was a blast. But I can definitely affirm that the most incredible was when we supported Radiohead. It was in 2017 at the I-Days Festival, one of the greatest festivals in Italy. We were at the Monza Autodrome in front of 65.000 people with our legs shaking from the adrenaline and the fear. It was awesome to see that crowd of people getting in a mosh pit to the sound of our music. Another great experience was when we supported Garbage in Rome, at the end of the concert we partied with the crew and the band until night, pretty fun.
You released your debut album White Mask in 2018. Is there any new release on the horizon that you’d like to tell us about?
Yes! We are freaking out about the new album and looking forward to the release! The new album is called Demons, it’ll be released April 1st 2022 via Eclipse Records. The album was produced by Alessandro Del Vecchio (Quiet Riot, LA Guns, Nanowar of Steel). We struggled a little to record and produce Demons due to restrictions of the pandemic, but it’s finally done and ready to thrill the world! Demons take up our debut album White Mask’s concept of mask and deepen its meanings. Each song describes a state of mind and is associated with a demon who represents its essence and inspiration, you can see all the demons on the cover art. In this new work, the mask represents all the personalities that a person can have, in the non-pathological sense of the term. Personalities – and so masks – are constantly changing in relation to the feelings, ideas, fears, joys we feel and also in relation to the situations and the people we face day after day. The first single ‘Rock DJ’ will be out worldwide on November 26th on all digital platforms, video on November 29th on YouTube. The song is represented by God Bes, the protector of music and entertainment in Ancient Egypt who symbolizes the good things in life: music, dance and pleasure.
In order to get to know you better, and to have some fun, how about we play a game? I will give you a certain scenario in an alternate universe and you will have to react. Ready?
Yes, I am, let’s go!
In a universe where you’re the ruler of a country, what would be an interesting law you’d make?
I would raise the age of compulsory education first. We are living in a world full of misinformation, unawareness and unconsciousness that is killing all the good things and feeding the hate. We must go back to thinking and teaching children how to do it. Culture and knowledge are heavy weapons against badness and injustice.
In a universe where humans are born with superpowers related to their personalities, what would your superpower be?
I think I’d have the superpower to adapt myself (so my body) to survive in every situation. I consider myself a person capable of adapting and coping with different situations, I think that’d be a good superpower.
In a universe where all the songs from your album “White Mask” came to life and became humans, which song would be your best friend?
I think it’d be Free Falling. Solitary and wild, full of aspirations but conscious of the sadness that belongs to him. Smart and yet easy to catch off guard. In the end, it was complicated as hell.
In a universe where the currency is the person’s sense of humour, how rich would you be?
I’d be pretty rich I think. Actually, this is a thing that surprises people when they meet me in person after listening to our music or seeing pics. I joke about everything and I love to laugh. I know that our songs seem to paint a dark and sad personality, but that’s just one part of my nature, not the whole. The first quality of a friend for me is to be hilarious and not touchy, we’re used to joking about everything and being self-ironic as well.
In a universe where a zombie apocalypse happened, would you most probably be hiding, fighting the zombies or already a zombie?
I love zombies and doomsday movies, I’m a huge fan of all the characters who fight hard for their lives. I’d surely fight for my life and for my friends. The first thing I’d do is to get to safety and protect my dogs. I sometimes dreamt about the zombie apocalypse and that was the first thing I did also in my dreams.
In a universe where the senses of taste and hearing are mixed up, what food would Violet Blend’s music taste like?
It’d be bitter for most of the time, sometimes bittersweet. Much of our music speaks and paints painful situations, that’s why I said bitterly. The new album Demons would taste more bittersweet because it represents a rematch, it cries “I’m still here on my feet, I’m conscious of the pain and I respect it, but I’ll make it, I will go on”.
Thank you for playing, Giada! What is one music-related memory from your childhood that means a lot to you?
I remember a trip with my father when I was about 5 or 6 years old, we were going to the sea, only me and him. He put on The Dark Side of the Moon and explained to me the meaning of each song. For all the trip we were surrounded by this awesome music and for the first time, I understood what beauty is. That was the time I really got into music.
Do you remember the first time you performed in front of a live audience? How did it feel?
I’ve always had a kind of fascination for the show and I soon started performing with the orchestras (I also play the saxophone since I was 6 y.o.) and choirs and plays, that’s why live performances have never been a problem to me. But I can tell the very first concert that Violet Blend performed, was in a cool music venue in Florence (Italy). We were in fact presenting for the first time the project and some of the new songs, we really believed in the band and a bad reception would have been a big blow for us. Luckily a lot of people came to the concert and liked our music, I can say that we entered in an exuberant way the music scene of Florence. We were at the same time scared and excited by the crowd that night, but in the end, we had a good performance. Emotions and fears before performing on stage still remain today, even after hundreds of shows, I hope to keep feeling the same things ever after.
Have you ever been treated in a sexist manner? How would you have sexism and what advice would you give to young people who deal with any kind of discrimination?
Unfortunately, yes. I think every woman has been discriminated against in her life in one way or another, many times without even realizing it. In this regard, we are preparing an awareness and information campaign on gender discrimination and violence in collaboration with AIDOS – Italian Association of Women for Development and with the collaboration and sponsorship of the Municipality of Florence (Italy). The project is non-profit and focuses on the role of women in the workplace. We reworked the famous song La Donna è Mobile taken from Giuseppe Verdi’s ‘Rigoletto’, a notoriously misogynist and discriminatory air, and then collected many testimonies from women who successfully carry out jobs usually associated with the male universe, they will appear on the video. We wanted to show the incredible female professionals that we have and also raise awareness of the gender gap and double standard situations that a woman has to face every day. The single and the campaign will be released in April 2022, this is a project that I strongly wanted because I faced many of these situations of discrimination in my career. I’d tell these young people that they will never have the esteem and approval of all the people they’ll meet. They may appear different, not enough and even wrong for someone and this will lead to discriminatory treatment. This should never prevent them from showing their authenticity or leading them to give up. If you love something, if you have passion, ability and determination, nothing and nobody can or should stop you.
Thank you for the interview, Giada. Is there anything else you’d like to add?
Thank you very much for having me! I wait for you on our social channels on 26th November for the release of ‘Rock DJ’ and on 29th on YouTube for the video premiere!
