Introducing Desiderat, an international instrumental progressive metal band hailing from Berlin. With a dynamic blend of heavy riffs drawn from diverse metal genres, intertwined with melancholic melodies and atmospheric interludes, their music is a captivating journey through soundscapes both powerful and emotive. Each composition serves as a vessel for personal narrative, crafting a distinctive structural and emotional arc within every song.
Desiderat was founded in 2018. Can you share the story behind the formation of the band and how the initial idea came about?
The two guitar players met through an online ad about joining a band. In their first meeting they quickly realised that they have a similar imagination of what kind of music they wanted to create and play. In the following meetings they started experimenting with riffs and melodies. Combining them into songs felt natural and easy and went on quickly, so the decision was made to really form a new band together.
Your first EP, “Desiderat,” with three songs was released in November 2021. How would you describe the musical journey and themes explored in this debut release?
In addition to the personal stories behind them that shape the structure and emotions of the songs, they also implicate the euphoria after forming the band and being able to write songs again. It was a great time of exploring musical possibilities, experimenting how our ideas can be formed and how we can tell stories musically without words. The musical journey goes along with our personal journey as musicians and members of this colourful band.
“Lust & Death” was released on February 25th, 2023. How does this release differ from your debut, and what progression or evolution in sound can listeners expect?
The song is telling a particularly sad and true story. We tried to represent these melancholic feelings and aggressivity through an evolution of the sound. It is also more complex in its structure, themes and musical development. We believe you can see the growing experience of songwriting together as a band.
The band members come from different cultural and musical backgrounds. How do these influences manifest in your music, and how do you navigate the challenge of blending diverse elements to create a cohesive sound?
All members bring specific motives or techniques influenced by their background into the creative process. This enriches the pool of ideas and makes the resulting songs diverse, individual and characteristic. It is not a challenge but offers possibilities and space to experiment. After all this is what Prog is also about.
Each song by Desiderat tells a personal story, resulting in a unique structural and emotional development for the song. Can you give us insights into how these personal stories contribute to the overall identity of the band?
Telling stories is a common characteristic of our music. As it is instrumental, all members can project their feelings into the songs and relate to them. Besides that we are good friends and the stories are well known within the band.
Desiderat faced challenges in finding and maintaining a stable lineup, including difficulties with a drummer and bass player. How did these challenges impact the band’s creative process, and what lessons did you learn from these experiences?
Despite the setbacks we never gave up writing songs and striving to push forward with what you can do if members are missing. These advancements gave the strength to move on and to remain hopeful. But we also had the chance to meet and play with many interesting musicians. These experiences were important to get outside opinions and thus being able to improve.
It took you 16 months to find a bass player after securing a drummer in the beginning of 2019. How did this period of uncertainty affect the band’s dynamics and vision for the future?
It was the beginning of the band and we utilised the time to understand each other as musicians and experience making music together. It was a fun, creative and productive time with lots of progression. The three of us grew together and focussed on developing the sound, energy and direction of the band.
Your first gig happened in February 2023 after the band came together in May 2022. How did the live performance experience impact the band, and did it influence the way you approached your music thereafter?
Our first gig – and the ones after – were a huge reward for all the work and effort that went into building the band. It gave us a big push and motivated us to keep going this way and wanting to play more shows, even if the road to it was difficult sometimes. On the other hand we had the chance to get lots of feedback and the opportunity to think more about the audience perspective. It led to a discussion about improving the songs in a way to make them more accessible in live situations.
Losing your drummer by the end of 2020 was undoubtedly a setback. How did the band overcome this loss, and how did it shape the subsequent direction and sound of Desiderat?
It was the hardest time for the band. We lost an important member and kept having candidates in the rehearsal room for tryouts without finding a good fit. It was also the time of the pandemic and the overall mood was down. We could not look for gigs anyway so we just kept doing what we were doing, hoping for better times which eventually came. At the same time we were thinking about alternatives such as playing live with pre-recorded drum tracks.
With the addition of Daniel as the new bass player in April 2023, how has his presence influenced the band’s dynamics and musical direction? Can you share the experience of integrating a new member into the established group?
Daniel could integrate very fast, which was impressive. He was very motivated and quickly learned the bass lines. That helped a lot in the integration process. He has a vast experience in different styles, is very detailed and now has lots of creative ideas which is pushing the level of the band further. With him we had our most successful gig so far.
What are Desiderat’s next plans?
We have collected enough songs to be able to release our first album hopefully this year. Currently we are in the process of giving the songs the final touches and recording them. At the same time we are planning more shows and are teaming up with another band to get even more opportunities for future gigs.
More about Desiderat can be found on their website here.
