This album was a big turning point in the career of this five-piece band. Produced by Joey Balin and recorded in Philadelphia, it was the first international production by AXXIS.
In the following years AXXIS had traveled thousands of miles. One if the most impressive destinations was Japan, where Bernhard Weiss and guitarist Walter Pietsch performed a couple of acoustic live shows due to the release of the Japanese only CD "Profile". The band became known worldwide!
The album "Matters Of Survival" was produced in Los Angeles in 1995, the city of angels which is uncritically praised as a Metal capitol by some, a city where glamor, violence and homelessness live together very closely. An impression, which was responsible for the choice of the album title.
With Keith Olsen (FLEETWOOD MAC, WHITESNAKE, FOREIGNER, SCORPIONS) the band had a producer who had already worked in the biz since 25 years. Olsen had visited the band in Germany first and both together chose the 12 best songs from the original 30 demo tracks and committed the arrangements. Afterwords they flew over to Los Angeles where Olsen is running his Goodnight L.A.-Studio.
AXXIS especially see themselves as a live band. At a perfect gig, as Bernhard Weiss once said, the own hands have to glow. "It is the best possibility to play your music", says Weiss, "already alone because of the chance of getting so close to your fans." So, the performances at "Rock am Ring" in front of 30 000 spectators were for sure important highlights of the years 1994 and 1996!
To keep on moving into new directions was a principle which this Hard Rock band from the "Ruhrgebiet" had always followed. If you have a look on “Kingdom Of The Night” (`89), “Axxis II” (`91), “The Big Thrill “(`93), “Matters Of Survival” (`95) or “Voodoo Vibes” (97), the latest album by the band, they had always avoided to repeat themselves.
AXXIS do, of course, have their basic sound, their roots are lying within the traditional Heavy Rock of the 70's and 80's, they have found their very own style which is orientated on hooks like "Living In A World". This song is still regarded as a hymn at every show and, as Walter says, the best example for a typical AXXIS song. Bernard's unique vocal style is another characteristic trademark, which makes AXXIS' sound unique. But the cover on these basics is very different anytime. The permanent move can be found within the details.
AXXIS' major ambition is, as Walter adds, "to be a pure Rock 'n' Roll band", and to wash away any doubt, “Voodoo Vibes” became the most Rockin' album since the very early days. The heavy guitars remind the listener a lot on the intensive “Punch” of the debut album.
The production this time was done by the band itself for the very first time. After those great lessons in the US by highly skilled producers, AXXIS felt strong enough to handle the complex studio technics alone and to take over the responsibility for it themselves. "The idea for this was invented by our label", says Harry. "We had already produced our demos for a long time before. And as we presented our new demo tapes to our A&R manager, he was not only convinced by the quality of our new material but of the sound of this supposedly rehearsal room recordings as well. He told us to put it on the album as it was. But the songs and especially the vocals weren't completed yet at the time and that was the reason why the idea came up to let us mix it up ourselves. Because of our demos our label gained a lot of confidence in our abilities to produce an album."
Confidence which was confirmed. “Voodoo Vibes”, produced by Bemhard, Walter and Harry with the help of co-producer and engineer Thomas Kemper at Dierks Studios in the outskirts of Cologne, offers a straight and powerful sound from the beginning to the end which couldn't had been done better by an American star producer. The fact that those complete recordings were finished after only 18 days in the studio is a proof for the band's reliability, who according to Walter, "had a little fear to do the job right in the beginning. The band had to deal with new aspects like being responsible for a recording budget and to be judged for anything that might have gone wrong. But finally everything worked perfectly" and it worked so well that AXXIS would like to repeat it again when starting to record the next album. This self-determination will not be missed in the future anymore...
Current Line-Up:
Bernhard Weiß – Vocal
Harry Oellers – Keys
Marco Wriedt – Guitar
Rob Schomaker – Bass
André Hilgers - Drums
Previous members:
Kosta Zafiriou – Drums (on “Time Machine“)
Richard Michalski – Drums (on “Kingdom Of The Night”, “Axxis II”, “Access All Areas”, “The Big Thrill”, “Profile-The Best of Axxis”, “Matters of Survival”, “Voodoo Vibes”, “Sarajevo Exklusiv”, “Back To The Kingdom“, “Collection Of Power” & “Eyes Of Darkness”)
Walter Pietsch – Guitars (on “Kingdom Of The Night”, “Axxis II”, “Access All Areas”, “The Big Thrill”, “Profile-The Best of Axxis”, “Matters of Survival”, “Voodoo Vibes” & “Sarajevo Exklusiv”)
Markus Gfeller – Bass (on “The Big Thrill”, “Profile-The Best of Axxis”, “Matters of Survival”, “Voodoo Vibes” & “Sarajevo Exklusiv”)
Werner Kleinhans – Bass (on “Kingdom Of The Night”, “Axxis II” & “Access All Areas”)
The official site:
http://www.axxis.de
History (english):
http://www.axxis.de/eng_history.html
Get Down
Axxis Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I'm playing a game
With what you call mankind
But now things have changed
Your good and my evil
Have covered the world each day
It was to be a never-ending fight
Forget your hostility
Join together with me
Now it's time for a fight against
The people - we see
Get down - from the throne in the light
Get down - to stay right by my side
The good old times are gone
When we used to live in their hearts
But they've forgotten their beliefs
They live in a house of cards
I've always trusted in our might
That I'm the dark and you're the light
I see their future - you see it too
Oh god, oh god, what will we do
Get down - from the throne in the light
Get down - to stay right by my side
In the song "Get Down" by Axxis, the singer is the devil, who claims to be playing a game with mankind. The song speaks about how the devil and humanity were meant to engage in a never-ending fight between good and evil. However, the devil believes that things have changed and now everyone needs to forget their hostility and fight against the people they see outside. The good old times are long gone where people used to believe in dreams, but now they've forgotten their beliefs and live in a house of cards. The chorus talks about getting down from the throne in the light and staying by the devil's side.
The lyrics of this song offer an interesting interpretation of the relationship between good and evil. While the devil is often seen as a purely evil force in mythology, this song takes on a more nuanced approach. The devil acknowledges that he has been playing a game with mankind, and seems to recognize that things have changed in some way. He claims that they should forget their hostility and together face the "people we see," suggesting that the enemy is outside of their world. This perspective challenges the traditional black-and-white morality typically associated with good and evil, and suggests that there may be shades of gray between these two opposing forces.
Line by Line Meaning
My name is the devil
I am the embodiment of evil
I'm playing a game
I am toying with humans
With what you call mankind
Humanity is what I am referring to
But now things have changed
The time has come for a new strategy
Your good and my evil
Humans represent good, while I embody evil
Have covered the world each day
Both forces exist in the world simultaneously
It was to be a never-ending fight
The battle between good and evil was supposed to go on forever
But look at the world today
The current state of the world demands a different approach
Forget your hostility
Let go of your animosity towards me
Join together with me
Unite with me to create a new vision for the world
Now it's time for a fight against
We must now fight against
The people - we see
Those who are not on our side
Get down - from the throne in the light
Step down from your position of power and join me in the darkness
Get down - to stay right by my side
Remain loyal to me in the face of opposition
The good old times are gone
The days of harmony between good and evil are over
When we used to live in their hearts
When humans had a balanced perspective of us
But they've forgotten their beliefs
Humans have lost their way
They live in a house of cards
Their lives are fragile and subject to collapse
I've always trusted in our might
I have faith in our power as forces of good and evil
That I'm the dark and you're the light
I represent darkness while you represent light
I see their future - you see it too
We both know what the future holds for humans
Oh god, oh god, what will we do
We are unsure about how to proceed
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: BERNHARD WEISS, WALTER PIETSCH
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind