Photo Credit: Kathi Sterl
German alternative metalcore quartet Breathe Atlantis bare all on their new album Overdrive, described by vocalist Nico Schiesewitz as the band’s “most honest and emotional album” to date. We caught up with Nico to discuss everything Breathe Atlantis, including their formation, influences, ambitions and more.
Firstly, tell us a bit about yourself and your band. What do you aim to achieve as a band?
Hey there! I’m Nico, singer of Breathe Atlantis. We are a German alternative metalcore band delivering rawness and aggressiveness combined with deep, desperate lyrics. Our main goal is to express our feelings through music and deliver the most honest and meaningful art. Sharing these emotions and stories with the world, especially during this global crisis, is very important for us. Mental health is such an important topic, and we really hope people can connect and relate to what we do and maybe can overcome hardships, or the fear of not speaking about their own issues to someone.
How did the band form and how long have you been together?
Jan and I joined the band in late 2013. We released the first three albums of this project in another member constellation until 2020. After we were still on the road with our last release Soulmade, on various tours, a lot has happened. For our old guitarist Joschka, as well as for our ex-drummer Hara, there were various reasons why they decided to leave the project. All in all, we can say that they both needed some change and, of course, life circumstances change with time. We are very happy that we parted on good terms and are still friends today. For Jan and I it was not clear from the beginning if and how we could continue Breathe Atlantis. Losing half of our band was definitely a hard blow, but for both of us the time just hadn’t come yet to give up. So, we rolled up our sleeves and threw ourselves into work with new motivation. Luckily, we found Silas, our new man behind the drums, and Lasse on the bass. We have grown together into a real family by now and the workflow just feels familiar. Together we went through probably one of the hardest times for bands, without concerts in any form, but that’s what made us bond so much.
Can you remember the first time you realised you wanted to make music?
Well, this might be very different for every single one of us, but for me personally it was when I was a little child. My big brother started to show me a lot of rock and metal music when I was six or seven years old. One of my favourite songs back then was Twisted Transistor by Korn. To be honest, I couldn’t understand a single word, but I remember the moment when I was headbanging to the song and said: “I wanna play guitar like these guys!” From this moment it was clear that I wanted to become a musician.
Who and what are the band’s main influences?
To describe the influences of the band seems not that easy. It’s a wild mix of the musical history of each of us. Still, you can hear that there are some influences from both the classic metalcore genre and the nu-metal realm, especially on the new record, that forms the cornerstone of Breathe Atlantis. That’s where we come from, what led us to music and that’s where we ended up after a long musical journey – so you could say we are heading ‘back to the roots’. If we would need to mention a few single artists it’ll be a great mix for fans of I Prevail, Bring Me The Horizon and Architects.
For those who are yet to see you live, what can they expect from a Breathe Atlantis show?
We make music to play live. It’s about the joy of the music itself, the feeling of playing together and of course on a stage with an audience that feels it as well. So we decided to write an album that would tear down every venue at a live show! All that just spoke for aiming for a heavier sound. We have always noticed at live shows that the hard songs simply went down well and we ourselves as a band were fully absorbed in it and felt like it was our home. The more aggressive transformation has honestly always been in us, but could never really get to the outside. So, everyone should be prepared for a lot of sweat, fun and a hell of a great time!
What’s next for Breathe Atlantis?
We are busy planning new concerts, which is currently, as we all know, not that easy. Of course, we hope that a lot of live moments with new songs will take place as soon as possible.
Breathe Atlantis‘ new album Overdrive is out now via Arising Empire, available to stream or purchase HERE.
