Interview: Dyscordia - For the new album "The Road To Oblivion" // All Time Metal \\

Dyscordia is a melodic metal band from Belgium. The band consists of the long-time metal veterans, Piet Overstijns (Vocals), Stefan Segers (Vocals & Guitars), Martijn Debonnet (Guitars & Backings), Guy Commeene (Lead guitars), Wouter Nottebaert (Bass & Backings), Chevy Mahieu (Drums), who was the driving force behind bands such as Gwyllion, Double Diamond, Artrach, Anesthesy, Impedigan and Rhymes of Destruction.

Their first EP "Reveries" was released in the fall of 2010. Their first full length album "Twin Symbiosis" was released in 2013. In 2015 they recorded their second full length album "Words in Ruin". The album was released in 2016. In 2019, the production of their third album "Delete / Rewrite" was completed, which was released in 2020.

In 2023 the band completed the recording of their new material, releasing the video clip "Hell" in March 2023 and the animated music video "The Passenger" on 1 April 2024, both included on their new fourth full-length album "The Road To Oblivion" released on April 17, 2024.

On the occasion of the release of their fourth album "The Road To Oblivion" and the great reviews it received, I asked the band for an interview which was granted by the band's bass player Wouter Nottebaert.

- Hello Wouter, welcome to All Time Metal

The band counts 14 years with a rich recording material, how much has its sound changed from the first EP to the recent album?

We are very fortunate to be able to do this for 14 years now. As we have changed as a band, the music has changed also. In the last years, we’ve grown in terms of songwriting, we know very well what we like and dislike. You can hear the search for a definition of sound and song in the first albums, I believe that we found our sound and songwriting on ‘The Road to Oblivion’.

- To what extent is your verse influenced by reality and people's concerns? What touches you most as a lyrical subject?

Piet, our vocalist, writes all the lyrics. The lyrics are mostly autobiographic, and pretty dark. I always wonder where Piet gets his inspiration. As usual, the listener can easily relate with the lyrics, as they appeal to most of us and tell stories of everyday life. Piet describes his lyrics like this: “I could pretend like many lyricists that my lyrics are of profound nature. The fact is that my lyrics are 80% simple metal clichés that touch on global, social and emotional events, with some effort to mainly mold them into a beautiful rhyme form. To the fans, I would advise: read them, interpret them in your own way, and just sing along loudly. Just Stay Metal.”

- Music in general is a means of expression, do you think that the listener of metal music can express his feelings through it, or is it just a means of entertainment?

We have a lot of dedicated fans, we even call them ‘The Dyscordia Army’. Everyone of them can relate with a specific song that has a special meaning for them. Our music has been played on funerals, as well as on weddings. People use our lyrics for tattoos or poems, because they mean so much to them. I can truly say metal music is more than just entertainment, it can grab you by the balls, or it can touch you in the deepest of your heart. It can soothe you, give you comfort, or you can go berserk in a moshpit just because you need to blow off some steam. It’s a way of life really.

- You have performed at recognized and distinguished festivals, what are your plans after the release of the new album, will you perform at any festivals?

In summer, we play Belgium’s finest metal festival Alcatraz. We have a couple of other festivals planned later this year located in Belgium as well. We are a DIY band, which means that we do almost everything by ourselves, releasing the album, promo, merchandise, and also the booking part. We hope to get some more gigs in the near future, so we can present and promote our music to a bigger crowd.

- Are you planning a European or World tour with other bands in the future?

We would very much like to tour through Europe with other bands. That is one of the items on our bucket list. The truth is, we all have a busy job, some of us have a wife and kids, so it’s not easy to skip work and go on a trip for three weeks. But I truly hope we get the opportunity to do a tour once. It would be an awesome experience. For now, we focus on short trips, long weekends to do a couple of shows in a row. It’s a miniature tour experience for the moment.

- As music veterans with a wealth of experience, what do you think of the global metal scene and what advice would you give to young musicians starting out now?

The metal scene today is totally different compared to 30 years ago. I started out with a couple of friends hanging out and trying to learn an instrument. We tape-traded, exchanged cd’s and records, and listened to them in pubs and record stores. Today, the record stores are gone, there are less venues to play and almost no more metal pubs, instead you have the enormousness of the internet, of media platforms with thousands of bands trying to do their thing. To a young musician I would suggest to go out there, live the life to the fullest, do your thing without compromises, work hard to learn to play your instrument and be bold and confident about your music and product.

- What is the biggest dream you want to achieve as a band?

Every musician wants a bit of appreciation for his work, acknowledgement for what he or she does. The feeling of a roaring crowd after you played a song or a concert is what drives you. Is it in a venue for 20 people or 2000, the feeling is the same. But of course we still have dreams. Playing a truly big festival such as Wacken for example, or joining the metal cruise, or touring around the world and trying to reach out to as much people as we can. Maybe we can come to Greece one day too .

- On April 26th you are celebrating with a live show the release of the new album, giving the listeners more information about this event.

We celebrate our fourth album ‘The Road To Oblivion’ in a venue called ‘De Kreun’ in Kortrijk (Belgium), where we welcome 600 fans to enjoy our new music. We have a lot of new material on stage, we can give the crowd a warm welcome. We play old and new songs, and hope people will have a good time and enjoy our company and performance. The venue is going to be packed (sold out). De Kreun has become our homebase as it is the fourth time we play there, and it’s almost always sold out.

- Send your message to the global metal scene.

With our new album, we hope to reach out to as much metalheads as possible. Check out our tunes and stunning videos on our website www.dyscordia.com , send us your likes on our socials, and we hope to see you on the road.

- Thank you for this interesting interview, I wish you a lot of fun at the live show and a successful release of the new album.

Thank you for having us on All Time Metal, the best of luck for you and All Time Metal.