GODYVA – Interview with Lady Godiva

I remember with fondness the times when Doom/Gothic Metal reigned in my player. It's seem this was in first half of ninetieth years of XX century. The bands like THE GATHERING or THEATRE OF TRAGEDY made me total impression. At present is not much good bands which follow similar climates. However in Italy exists the band which follow similar way what musicians of THE GATHERING with Anneke followed on the beginning.

Hello! Was the name of the band inspired by history of Lady Godiva?

Hello! Nice to meet you here! Our name is born from the legend of the beautiful Lady Godiva, modified inserting the Y to take back its original name Godgyfu that means “God's Gift”.

Do you also like naked ride by horse? 🙂 Your pseudonym – Lady Godyva – has meaning probably?

No, I don't usually ride naked, hehehe! My pseudonym makes reference to this character because I have always been spellbound from the eroticism, and Lady Godiva has been embodying by now for centuries the erotic scenery.

And seriously… Your music from “Planetarium” very associated me with THE GATHERING (from times of “Mandylion” and “The Nighttime Birds”) because I think that your sound of voice and your style of singing is similar to Anneke van Giersbergen but also and the arrangements of your music the heavy guitar's riffs, the melancholy keys, the frequent slowly paces. Is the similarity to THE GATHERING in my opinion only?

It is a great compliment for me to be compared with the voice of Anneke, she is a marvelous singer, one of the best in my opinion. We adore The Gathering of the period of Mandylion and I remember that it was really after the listening of that album that I decided to have a band. Then Im agree with you: in our sound there is a lot of The Gathering and Mandylion album.

Though “Planetarium” is not similar only to THE GATHERING but and a bit to EVANESCENCE, I think that thanks to electronics and samples in Nu Metal style…

If we consider the last album of Evanescence we can say that in The Open Door you can mostly feel electronic influences in comparison to the preceding albums of the band. But the electronic sonorities of Planetarium are very different from those of the most recent Evanescence. Surely they are both 2 albums with the electronic taste accurate and refined and easily they can be associated because of this.

And therefore what are your musical inspirations?

All is living around us and our existence inspire us. Personally I continually look for answers, I would like to die with the awareness to have understood the sense of my life. It inspires us the love and the abandonment, the attachment to the life and the fear of the death, but it countersigns us a strong dose of hope that pushes us to go on as band and as people. Every sensation that we feel in the creativeness of the man is a color, an odor, a taste, a form but first of all for us it is the melody of a song.

What did reviews receive your the newest album – “Planetarium”?

Planetarium has been reviewed positively by the most important webzines and national and international magazines, I quote Rock Hard, Metal Maniac and Metal Hammer. Planetarium has been welcomed by the press with open arms and with great enthusiasm and we are satisfied.

You earlier gave two materials – “Advent” (2002) as well as “In Good And Evil” (2006). Were they well-kept in similar climate?

They are three different works, Advent decidedly results few mature, but it has allowed us to play in Italy, guaranteeing to Godyva the first positive comparisons. In Good and Evil has opened us the doors to Europe and America, it has given us hundreds satisfactions, from the continuous growth of our fans to the very positive criticisms from the media, to the collaborations with some great bands, to the concerts and the festivals of national importance. These 3 albums let understand to the listener how the Godyva sound is grown and is personalized more and more. Planetarium possesses those characteristics typical of the maturity of a band.

On Internet we can see your video clips. Can you say something more about them?

The 2 video visible on internet are videos of In Good and Evil and of Broken Angel songs of the preceding album In Good and Evil. The first one has been realized by one of our dear friend Gianni Tritto, while the second has been edited by the Mad Video Making in Rome. Broken Angel is more dark and therefore we have chosen a typically history tied up to the lyric of the song with dark atmospheres and fantastic characters. In Good and Evil represents the modernity of our sound instead and because of this the choosing of the scenes of modern buildings, of trafficked roads, of reality.

What is your co-operation with DELIRIO CONCERTI?

Delirio deals with the promotion of our latest album Planetarium. We have incessantly worked 3 months on the promotion of the album and we will keep on doing it, because the results have been satisfactory indeed.

Is GODYVA “PlaneTour” 2008 end?

Absolutely no. We are stopped now for many reasons, but we will start again very soon in Italy and in England at the new season, where in December we will have a small tour organized by our UK booker D.O.Y.G.

Which show was the best, and which was the most bad and why?

The best show really made with heart and with a warm exhibition is the Total Metal Festival 2007. We have had the occasion to play on the same stage with Rage and Dark Funeral. It has been exciting to see Caligula on the stage during our show to taste our exhibition and the good compliments of all have made us happy. The ugliest show in absolute has been in Vercelli, Italy, where they didnt give us nothing of all that we had required for playing and also other things that I don't quote for correctness and respect of some people.

Do you have some concert plans beyond borders of Italy?

Yes, as I said before, we have some dates in England planned for next December.

In your band is the woman and for that reason I'm interested in relationships between you. Who rule in the band? 🙂 I'm asking because I know that Italians have sharp temperament.

All we have a role inside the band, that organizational and managerial it is usually my role, that of the composition of the songs is almost all of Boys. I have a sharp temperament, of course, hehehe!

How often do you argue in the band? 🙂

Very often, hehehe!

I thought that your music in some sense is calm, very melancholy and it is contradiction of stereotypical Italian people who are very energetic and loud. Where did desire of creating of such music take from?

Not everything in Planetarium is melancholy, songs like My Inner, No Fault and Innocent know well the meaning of impetuousness, strength and energy. During last two years we have experimented sad experiences that have marked us and therefore they are present in our music, but not in a diffused form.

OK. Thank you for give your time for the interview. I wish you successes and if I forgot something now this is time you would say it 🙂

Thanks for this amusing interview and for the space and the time devoted to Godyva. May the Force be with Us!