Day Six, a new band to me and quite possible to most our readers as well - could you please introduce yourself and tell a bit about your background? Day Six - We are Day Six from The Netherlands. Having been active in our current line-up for over ten years, we've created and played our share of music that has changed from symphonic rock/metal to progressive rock/metal over the years. At the moment we are introducing our new concept album 'The Grand Design'. What kind of hopes and expectations do you have for 'The Grand Design'? Day Six - Well, 'The Grand Design' is a concept album, one that took us a long time to write and record. We started writing the story (based on the book 'Chariots of the Gods?' by Erich von Daeniken) back in 2005 and released two of the songs as a demo that year. In 2006 we did the pre-productions and began the actual recordings, while writing the lyrics (which had to fit our music as well as the story). So, with all the effort put into this product and with the worldwide release through Lion Music, we hope it reaches all the listeners who would enjoy it. We are glad to see it's already getting great reviews and a lot of attention, so we hope for the best. How does the final result compare to the idea you had going into the studio? Day Six - The tracks have grown much while in the studio, through experimenting and adding details. I think we can honestly say the result is beyond our expectations. Split Second Sound has mixed and mastered the album, and did an absolutely amazing job at that; the mix really conveys all that we've put into our music. You have produced the album together with Tiny van Stiphout, Jochem Jacobs & Bouke Visser, many minds - was it easy to make decisions and get your points through? Day Six - Yes and no. In the process of this project there was of course a long list of things to be discussed, but with the well structured and professional approach of this team points were made very quickly. Tiny van Stiphout is also listed a song writer on the album - is he a kind of 5th member of Day Six? Day Six - Tiny has been helping the band since the beginning. Tiny came with the base idea for the story and concept. He also did the artwork and photography for 'The Grand Design' and created the sound scapes you can hear on the album. During the recordings he was the producer/engineer along with Robbie. Can you give us a brief introduction on the lyrical concept behind 'The Grand Design'? Day Six - The main theme of the album that all the songs breathe is the disclosure of truth kept hidden. The story is written from the point of view of five scientists who discover an extraterrestrial spaceship under the ice of Antarctica. Inside this ship they find artefacts and proof of extraterrestrial intervention in our evolution as a species from thousands of years ago - things that would explain all of our religions as they are today, and also the means to help the human race on its further evolution. To prevent a worldwide revolution and for other reasons, the government elite debate on how to cover up this discovery. The scientists are locked up in separate psychiatric hospitals and are being told they are deluded, while agents try to erase these monumental discoveries from their minds. While alienated away in their hospital rooms, the scientists develop telepathic capabilities. They use this way of communicating to send words of hope to the others and to talk to the extraterrestrial beings who are offering help to spread out the truth. Day Six - any deeper meaning behind your name? Day Six - The name is taken from one of our older songs entitled 'Day VI'. This song is about the creation of a new earth, beyond the one we can perceive now. The story of this song finds its origins in the movie 'Close encounters of the third kind'. Day Six simply means the sixth day in the seven day cycle of creation. You are releasing this album on the Finnish Lion Music label - how did you hook up with them and do you see this as an advantage? Day Six - Roel van Helden (drummer Sun Caged) advised us to get in touch with Lion Music. Almost immediately we got a very enthusiastic reaction back. Lion Music gives us the chance to present this new album worldwide. With 'The Grand Design' we took many efforts in our own hands, but we are glad we can now let Lion take care of the release and distribution, which they are doing a great job at! What does the word progressive mean to you? Day Six - Progressive means striving for betterment in all things. It is a consciousness from which new things (that can replace old) are created. I think therefore it also explains the diversity and the level of experimentation in the realm of progressive bands. Name five progressive metal albums that have made a big impact on today's scene... -
Wish You Were Here - Pink Floyd -
Scenes From a Memory - Dream Theater -
In Absentia - Porcupine Tree -
OK Computer - Radiohead -
Dark Side of the Moon - Pink Floyd Thank you very much for answering my questions. Do you have any last rants for our readers? Day Six - Thank you very much for reading! We hope you'll enjoy 'The Grand Design' like we did creating it!
Interviewed by Kenn Jensen
| 
