Metal.it (IT)
http://www.metal.it

1. I would like to show you my congratulations, I think your album is one of the best power metal albums in the last times, and not only from the underground scenes!! And you did it all by yourself... how long did you spend to write and realise this album?

Christoph: Thanx a lot! We really appreciate what you say! It´s a big honour for us to hear that, especially from Italy, where so many brilliant bands come from! We founded Logar´s Diary in spring 1998 by coincidence. First came the concept, then the rest. The songwriting took about 1 year, the recordings also. We had much time and we took it. Sometimes we just met every second or third week. You know, nobody expected anything and no one was waiting for our songs to be released, so we used this advantage and tried our best; started from the songs themselves, over the sound, to the great artwork!

Felix: I hope we’ll be able to release the next CD with the help of a good record label. If we don’t get it, we’ll be forced to produce the 2nd CD by ourselves again. In both cases we want to improve especially the sound of the choirs and the drum parts should be played by a real drummer, of course.

2. Even if the album was self-produced, it seems you have done a damn good work, are you fully satisfied of this realisation? I was surprised also form the artwork, I like a lot the beautiful front cover...

Christoph: I´d say we´re pretty satisfied. Sure you can do always something better, but for the moment it was the best we could do. The artwork is very important for a CD. You drown in the huge Power Metal scene nowadays if you don´t have the right artwork to deliver… The people should discover our CD and be sure, what music we play: Fantasy Power Metal! The only thing about the CD we don´t like is the drumcomputer, but we had no other opportunity. The alternative would have been not to release the CD, and so we decided to do it this way. But we tried very hard to do it the best possible way!

Felix: Yes, generally we’re satisfied. As I said before, the choirs could sound better, but all the things we’re not satisfied with we’ll make better in Book II. The artwork was done by a very talented unknown designer from Germany. He seemed to like our music and so we hadn´t to pay very much for his work. Sound-design & mixing of Book I were very easy, because we had all the time we needed. Enough time is a very important fact, because you can discuss all ideas of every member and so everyone of us likes the final result, I think.

3. Could you explain us the feeling and the history behind the concept of "Book 1: Iostros"? What it means, how is it born, but also how it will develop in the future.

Christoph: Logar is the roleplaying game character by Steven! He played the adventures with Logar and wrote them down. One day he thought that it would be a great idea to transform the story into Power Metal, and so the concept of Logar´s Diary was born. I did the same some years ago and so we decided to remain with this concept. The story in “Book 1” is a typical fantasy story. Logar meets some friends during his travel, defeats some enemies and fights the main-fiend in the end! But the story is very detailed when you read the lyrics and the idea was to put the feelings and emotions from the lyrics into the music. So at “Demon in the Kaer” you can feel the breath of some demons in your neck, at “King´s Hall” you hear the majestic horns and at “My love still exists” you can feel the sweet sorrow when the loving ones have to divide finally… At least we tried that ;-)

Felix: We tried to make Book I like a real Book with the fitting soundtrack. The listener should be able to imagine the story very well but he should also use his own fantasy to see more detailed things like the colour of Axandria’s eyes or the length of the King’s beard. We plan to put Logar and his friends in every Logar’s Diary CD. The next one, which will be called Book II: The forgotten city, will take place in just one city.

4. OK! You like RPG, but are you lovers of Fantasy Literature? If yes... which authors you appreciate more?

Christoph: Sure we also read Fantasy literature (beneath horror). I think everyone has to love Tolkien and his Middle Earth universe, especially the Lord of the Rings itself! But also strong characters written by Michael Moorcock (see-> Domine) are also very good. There are so many great epic stories written: The wheel of time saga, the DSA-books (DSA is the biggest German role playing game), Terry Pratchet´s Discworld, Douglas Adams´ Hitchhikers Guide to Galaxy. At the moment I read all Macabros stories, if you still know them (they´re from the 70´s).

Felix: In my opinion Tolkien is the best fantasy author ever. His work is so full of fantasy and on the other hand so conceptional, I think he was a real genius. So for me it was very hard to find new books with the same standard, but I found with Rowling’s Harry Potter. These books are with Tolkien´s the best I ever read. I think you can find many answers, truth and inspiration in them.

5. Even about your tastes... which influences have you and the band in your musical background? And of the most recent bands, which you have appreciated more?

Christoph: The great thing at Logar is that we all have different influences but also sometimes the same taste. We listen all to very much different Metal sounds, each one for himself. We all meet at Blind Guardian for example. Steven likes more Thrash Metal, Felix appreciates Progressive stuff, Micha loves Dream Theatre, Hagen dies for Death Metal and I live for Power Metal (Melodic Speed Metal). There are so many great bands coming up during the last years… I write for the FAME OF METAL fanzine and have about 3200 CDs at my home. So I dare to say that I know many of them and I´m pretty informed about this huge scene! The last great bands to arise were Elvenking, Dragonhammer, Dragonland, Majesty, Falconer, Wyrm, Valhalla (from Spain) and Lost Horizon! There are still so many pearls undiscovered…

6. Uhm.. perhaps now it's time to tell us about the history of the band!!

Christoph: Some things I told you before. Steven and I met during our civilian service in the hospital, like Micha (but we asked him later). Steven had this idea to write the soundtrack for his adventures and I was looking for a Power Metal band. So we joined. Steven knew Felix and Hagen from Dawn (a progressive Death Metal band from Berlin) and he asked them to join also, cause they were friends and they listened also to Power Metal. So we were somehow complete. For a while we had a drummer from outside of Berlin, but he liked more Grindcore and Death Metal, so he quit, as he realised that Logar would get bigger…

One interesting thing is that Felix plays bass at Logar, although he is twice as good on guitar than Steven and I together, therefore he has to play the bass. But it´s a great help when composing songs…

7. Logar's Diary haven't a drummer in the line-up, so on the album you used a programmed drum (ehm... it's not so METAL ehehe!!!). Is it so difficult for the band to find a real drummer?

Christoph: Indeed! We are looking for someone for two years nearly - and Berlin isn´t so small - but we aren´t able to find one. We need a guy in our age, who is able to play our complicated drums and he has to love this kind of music! That seems to be very difficult! But at the moment we are testing three new drummers. Hopefully there will be one amongst them, who would dedicate his life to Logar…

Felix: The problem is, that the underground scene in Berlin consists of Death Metal bands and nothing else. And they don’t like music like Logar’s Diary at all. You can bet that every good drummer, who would be able to play our stuff, is involved in a Death Metal band here.

8. Do you think that "Book I ..." will change the status of the band? What you expect in the future for the band... are you in touch with any Label? Next steps?

Christoph: We hadn´t a status yet, so the CD can´t change anything. But we hope to find a deal with our demo, or at least a distribution. Now the times are much harder to find a label, cause every label nowadays has their own Power Metal band yet. Let´s say the better the press the better the chances, and the press is really nice to us up to this point! We have some undefinitive offers and hope to hear something more concrete by the labels in the near future…

If we won´t find a label, we will release the next CD also by ourselves. It will come next year. We play our music cause we love it and not to earn money, so a label would be nice, but is not necessary. And the experiment to pay all by ourselves with the first CD was lucky. We have all our money we spent back. So releasing another CD shouldn´t be a great risk for us (or a label?!).

Felix: Damn right!

9. I visited your fantastic homepage (http://www.logar.org/), really one of the best I've ever seen... who is the webmaster of this site?

Christoph: Thanx a lot! We think to have a great website is very important nowadays. I´m the webmaster and I keep it updated, although I´m not able to create such a homepage by myself. It´s done by a friend of the band.

10. So how you stand the Internet reality? It's changing, in better and worst, not only the music business (Napster and others..) but also people lives... what is your opinion?

Christoph: I love it! I know that people are also afraid of developing and achieving new technologies, but that´s the way it goes. We will always go further, not back! And the internet will be the media of the future, definitely. It helps so much!!! Sure mankind will also change by using these new things, but that´s okay! Mankind is smart and always survives. I count the days until we will develop the holo-stage (like in Star Trek).

But I don´t want to hide the bad sides, cause every great achievement will be misused, too… But history teaches that good sides always stay victorious and we don´t have to fear so much…

11. The last site you have surfed?

Christoph: I surf every day to many Power Metal zines to be informed about new releases, so no particular site can be told. But I can recommend you some great sites:

12. The last three CDS you have bought? And if some readers was interested to buy your CD, what have they to do?

Christoph: Excelsis “Tales of Tell”, Wizard “Head of the deceiver”, Projecto “Crown of ages”!

Felix: Annihilator “Carnival Diablos”, Morbid Angel “Gateways to Annihilation”, Symphony X “V - A new mythology suite”!

The CD can be found at Hellion Records, Sentinel Steel Records or some other mailorders…

If someone wants to order the CD from ourselves, the best way is to write me an email and get detailed information for transferring money to our bank account.

If someone is too shy to write, then he can send me 25.- DM (or 12 Euro) cash, well hidden in an envelope and he will get the CD, as soon as the money arrives here.

LOGAR`S DIARY

Christoph Uhl

Adolfstrasse 17

13347 Berlin

Germany

13. OK, a lot of epic regards to you for answering my questions! Close this interview with whatever you want...

Christoph: Thank you very much for the really nice questions!

We hope to get some fans in Italy, cause it has one of the best Metal scenes in the world with so many great bands. It would be a special honour for us!

Fans, listen to your heart and don´t let others think for you.

“It doesn´t matter what you wear, it doesn´t matter who you are, the only thing that matters is that there is Metal in your heart!” (Gladiators of Steel by Wizard)

Interview by Ermo

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