By: Chris Stead

Bella Morte, formed by Andy Deane and Gopal Metro, was formed on a shoestring budget in Virginia and has grown to international proportions. From their humble beginnings, Gopal and Andy were close friends with disparate backgrounds, but a kinship in musical vision. They used winnings from a band competition to finance their first album. Their second offering was produced first independently, but later re-released on Cleopatra Records. As time moved along the band grew to include members Tony Lechmanski, Micah Consylman and Jordan Marchini creating a full band presence both live and in the studio.

The latest release from Bella Morte, “Bleed the Grey Sky Black”, is the culmination of the work that they have done so far, but as Andy and Gopal tell us, the trip is far from over. If their new album represents what we can expect from Bella Morte then we can look forward to years of great music created by a very talented group.

Gothic Angst Webzine (GAW): How has the tour been going with Hanzel und Gretyl?

Gopal: Totally awesome, though fraught with peril *grins*. With all the crazy breakdowns, and losing shows and what not, it’s been a hell of a time, heheh.

Andy: The tour was amazing! The crowds were great, and we couldn’t have picked a better band to head out on the road with. Our bus broke down a couple of times, once leaving us stranded in the Nevada desert for 36 hours, and that made us miss some shows. But the good news is that we’re going back out with HuG early in ‘07 to make up the missed gigs. I’m looking forward to the next leg of this tour!

GAW: After you finish the Oktotenfest tour, are you planning on headlining your own tour to support “Bleed the Grey Sky Black?”

Gopal: Probably not in direct support of this album, though we will definitely continue touring. If all goes well we will be back out with HuG in February, 2007 to make up for some of the shows we lost on this last outing.

Andy: That’s up in the air right now. After we do the tour I just mentioned we may head back out on our own in the spring or summer, but we’ll see what happens.

GAW: How did you come to work with Hanzel und Gretyl to do the Oktotenfest Tour?

Gopal: As I understand it, Metropolis Records suggested us to them and they got in touch. Things worked out wonderfully from there.

Andy: Loopy mentioned that while they were out on tour with Ministry a lot of people were coming to the shows wearing Bella Morte shirts, so I think our fans had a big hand in making this happen as well.

GAW: Are you planning on making another pass through Southern California either on this tour or an upcoming one for your new album?

Gopal: As above, hell yeah! If possible we will definitely be there!

Andy: I hope so! We had so much fun in LA in October that we’re certainly going to do our damnedest to get across the country for another show. We still need to get back to San Diego sometime soon as well.

GAW: I remember first hearing you guys on the Vampire The Masquerade compilation with Fall No More. Your sound has changed a lot from then. Do you feel that you have reached where you want to be sonically or is this another step along the way?

Gopal: As a band, and as people, I don’t think it is possible to stop developing, even if we wanted to. Life and experience have a way of changing you. So, to answer properly, I expect this is just another step. I have enjoyed each period of the bands carrier, some more than others, but where we are now… It’s pretty damned fun.

Andy: I think that this band is always evolving, though I do believe that our music has finally caught up to our live shows. Our next CD will very likely be similar to “Bleed…” in tone, though it may be a little harder.

GAW: Describe the sound of the new album. With the single “Another Way” you seemed to be leaning toward a rock sound where as some of your other tracks tend to be more synth driven. Does “Bleed the Grey Sky Black” reflect the more rock sound?

Gopal: I would say so. Though there is definitely a dancey-synth element in quite a few of the tracks, the rock element is far more present. It is the first time that every element of the band has had a live presence, and I definitely appreciate the energy that Micah and Jordan have created in this recording. Not to mention the fact that this is the first recording that Andy and I stepped back and let Tony just rock out *grins*. There are more guitars on this album than any previous Morte release (including the DREP and SFTD) by far and hands down.

Andy: Yeah. “Bleed…” shows a heavier, darker Bella Morte than anyone’s ever seen. As I said, we were aiming to capture the energy of our live shows on this album, and I think we did a good job of it. We’ll never lose our synthetic element, but Micah made the synths more sinister on this album, and Tony turned his guitars up a few notches. “Bleed…” allowed my metal roots to show through a lot.

GAW: What inspired the title of the new album?

Gopal: I’ll pass that one on to Andy

Andy: I noticed the color grey recurring in my lyrics, so I wanted to make it the theme of the album. I wanted a title that wasn’t completely straight forward, something each fan could interpret in their own way. For me, it’s about things going from bad to worse, and still living through it.

GAW: Is there a theme to the songs of Bleed the Grey Sky Black?

Gopal: In my opinion, the same as on all of our albums: tragedy, loss, suffering, sorrow, and the desire and ability to survive through it all. Not just survive, but thrive in the hurt and the chaos.

Andy: The lyrics cover a lot of area on this album. Loss has always been a prominent subject on our albums, and it is well represented here. There’s also a dose of hope in our songs. And of course, and band that calls itself “beautiful death” has to bring some tragedy to the table!

GAW: What can your fans expect to see from you over the next year? More
tours? New material?

Gopal: Assuredly both. Andy and Micah have already begun work on the next album, and more tours are in the works, hopefully including another full US, and maybe some dates in Europe.

Andy: We’re already working on the next album, and I’m very excited about the material! Of course, can’t get ahead of myself, because we still have a lot of touring to do to promote “Bleed…”!

GAW: Thanks for taking the time to answer our questions. Good luck with your
new album!

Gopal: Thank you and good luck in everything as well!

Andy: Thanks back at you! Hell yeah!

Find out more about Bella Morte:

Bella Morte on MySpace
Official Bella Morte Web Site

Listen to Bella Morte:

Dust
Grey Skies Black
On the Edge