Interview Jimmy and Pete Pallis AnAkA

Lineup: Jimmy Pallis - Lead vocals Peter Pallis - Guitars/Vocals Kirill Gluharev - Guitars Karl Andreassen - Bass Tony Heredia - Drums & Percussion

10/21/05 Email Interview Interviewer: Karma E. Omowale

Thanks for doing the interview! Jimmy Pallis (Lead Vocals) & Peter Pallis (Guitars/ Vocals/ Song Writer/ Leader of AnAkA!

Q: Of course, if the audience wants to delve deeper into your bio/band history they can always read up on the band on your site. Since you guys hold down some serious jobs you being a lawyer… Would you drop it all if for AnAkA under the right circumstances?

Jimmy Pallis: We’ve all talked about it and we would surly drop it all to follow our passion, our dream and the pieces of us that keeps our hearts and minds in the right place … AnAkA.  We have always put a great deal of love and attention on every detail of AnAkA, every lyric and every note, we make sure that AnAkA continues to be what our fans expect us to be, AnAkA, that awesome hard hitting band that writes great meaningful music. We are a band that writes songs that means something, which holds a great deal of value to our audience.  We would do anything for AnAkA, even jeopardize our careers.  Life is only lived once and then your die … I say, might as well live life to the fullest and take a chase for your dreams because like I said you only get one chance at life so just enjoy the ride and kick some ass on the way!

Peter Pallis:  If you want something bad enough in life you have to be willing to risk it all to get it.  It’s about leaving you figure print of history, It’s about creating a legacy, the AnAkA legacy.  It’s about being remembered.

Q: Define AnAkA in statement and who is your target audience?

Jimmy Pallis: Well I like to define AnAkA and our music as being “Music for the outlaw mind” … yes it sounds like a cool slogan but it’s much more than that, its also what we are all about as a band.  We get people asking us what that means and if we are all about rebellion and whatever, but what it boils down to is that we aren’t afraid to look at life in a deeper more focused way, and we aren’t afraid to apply that ideology into our music. 

Peter Pallis: We classy ourselves, as outlaw thinkers, especially myself being the song writer, I tend to analyze life and try to understand it in a way that hasn’t been force fed to me over the years from family, schooling or mainstream society. I have created my own philosophies through my own life experiences.  To me being an individual, self-belief, self-awareness, and self-understanding hold great value in this world.  That is the same focus and the same openness that I put into AnAkA’s music. I try to keep the music as real and as introspective as my own personal philosophies and beliefs. 

Many of my ideas are all jotted down on our website www.AnAkA.net under our band Mission Statement link. If you want to get a better idea of what I am about as an individual, as a song writer or as a human being, you can take a look at my Bound By Thought section and see what the thinking behind AnAkA is all about.  To answer your “target audience” question, I’d say we focus on getting our music to people that aren’t afraid to read a little deeper into music and who are interested in learning more about life through the art of music.  We tend to say a lot in our songs about life and heartache, two things that go hand in hand and two things that we must all deal with.  We have AnAkA fans from all walks of life and from all over the world writing us, telling us why they love our music, from the Rock fans to Thrash Metal fans … our music is music for everyone!

Q: Does AnAkA have a specific meaning? What is the history behind the name?

Jimmy Pallis: What is the meaning and history of the name AnAkA … well first before I get into that, let me explain why we chose that name.  We always felt that AnAkA, didn’t place a pigeon hold on us creatively.  You find it all over the music industry; band names that are so very metal or so very this or that, AnAkA on the other hand allows us as musicians/artists to explore our musical interests and minds.  It doesn’t make us focus our sound on only one genre of Rock or music, but gives us a larger pallet to work off of.  The name “AnAkA” was originally the nickname of an American build steam engine, which existed some time in the early 1920’s I believe.  We felt that “AnAkA” symbolized our classic Hard Rock/Metal sound and the weight and force behind our music.  We love the name; it just fits our band and music just right!

Q: Considering the lineup has been the same for the last four years, one can assume that you have a very tight unit.

Peter Pallis: Well actually we recently added a 5^th member to AnAkA.  Following the recording our latest album, AnAkA, Rust & Jade (2004), we discussed finding a second guitar player to thicken our live sound.  I gave Jimmy the green light to try new guitar players out and he did.  After a few tryouts we met Kirill Gluharev and we felt he was the right Cat for the job.  He hasn’t recorded anything with us yet but we have been writing loads of new kick ass songs and we are planning on entering the studio sometime next year. 

Kirill was added to AnAkA’s line up January 2005, months after Rust & Jade was recorded, and he has absorbed the music and has fallen into the mix quite easily with our tutelage.  It was about meeting the right person for the job more than anything.  We knew the guy could play but could he hang without becoming an annoyance was he on the same page, was he coming into the mix for his own gain or for the sack, and betterment of AnAkA?  That’s what mattered to us, and he was the right dude for the gig.  AnAkA is a machine that is built to last, it’s a family … we work hard and kick ass, that’s our reputation … and we make it look damn easy, because we love and respect what we do.  Pete, Jimmy Tony, and Karl were friends long before AnAkA came to be, the band just solidified our already strong connections.  Even with the recent addition of Kirill we are tighter then ever and the coolest thing is we just have so much music that hasn’t even been presented to the world yet … just wait and see! 

Q: What would be the determining factor for you to tour outside of your locale?

Jimmy Pallis:  For AnAkA to go on a national or international tour we first must find a major label that would sign us to a satisfactory recording contract.  Being signed to a small New York City based record label called Godsend Records, AnAkA still does a great deal of work on our own and we also pay for a great deal of our band expenses on our own. Thus, the determining factor for AnAkA touring on a larger spectrum would definitely be getting signed to a major record label.  We have been contacted by a number of major record labels such as Atlantic Records and Columbia Records but we are still looking for the right deal.  When that day comes AnAkA will take the world by storm, and we can’t wait to show them all what we are made of.

Q: What can one expect at a live AnAkA show?

Peter Pallis:  AnAkA live huh … lets see how do I explain it … that’s simple …INTENSITY.  “Blood, Sweat n’ Beerz.”  Those words are written on top of every shows set list and that’s what we are all about when it comes to AnAkA live.  We are all about intensity, energy, explosiveness, soul, and strength when it comes to our live performances.  We become more monstrous versions of ourselves, it’s awesome.  We leave it all on the stage, all 1000% of what we are and what our music stands for.  We love jamming live, the larger the audience the better, we are simply a live band, which is what we do best!  All of the members of AnAkA feed off our audience and project their energy right back at them at million miles an hour. 

As a band we believe that if we don’t walk off that stage exhausted and covered in sweat we didn’t play hard enough for our fans.  Once you loose that hunger that is when it’s not worth it any longer.  Playing hard and rocking out is the fuel to AnAkA’s creative fire, and that will never fizzle out.  AnAkA is basically a bunch of dudes that are adrenaline junkies … give us a stage and we will kick its ass! It was funny the first time we played a two-hour set with Kirill he looked like someone hit him with a bucket of water. LOL The guy was soaked in sweat, and said “Wow that was Awesome!”  I told him welcome to AnAkA brother.  It was great.

Q: How have sales been for Rust and Jade? Has it been well received?

Jimmy Pallis:  Before we get into Rust & Jade sales, I would like to say that we, the four original members of AnAkA, Pete and I, as well as Karl Andreassen (Bass) and Tony Heredia (Drums) are extremely proud of this album.  My brother Pete and I put a great deal of mind, body and soul to that album and our fans and any one else for that matter which has heard it have really fallen in love with it.  The CD has been selling great, not only here in the USA and South America but also over seas in countries such as Germany, Italy, Greece, etc.  Along with doing a great deal of work getting the CD to people all over the globe this album AnAkA, Rust & Jade has done a great job in getting our band out to the much larger audience. 

Our first CD AnAkA, Down Devil’s Road did awesome … it helped AnAkA define itself as a player and a quickly rising act in the Hard Rock/Heavy Metal scene here in the United States, but Rust & Jade has been so well received by the public that we are moving up by leaps and bounds, through instrument endorsements, name recognition, major label attention and a constantly growing fan base.  You can see our fans reviews of AnAkA, Rust & Jade by visiting us at Unofficial Website www.Myspace.com/AnAkA, you don’t need to take our word for it, ask the fans!

Q: Is there a specific meaning the title behind Rust & Jade or is it something that you’d prefer to let your fans draw their own conclusions?

Peter Pallis:  Well I would love to tell yah!  But, I would prefer our fans all over the world drawing their own conclusions as to what that title and album stands for.  That’s the greatest thing about music; you have a chance, as the listener, to relate the words of each song to your own personal existence.  What does the title and the music say to you? We all have our own eyes and ears and we all have our own lives, music is just something that you as the music fan can relate each word and each note to your own personal experiences, that is why we feel such a connection to music or any other piece of art and that is what makes us human.  As for the meaning of Rust & Jade, I won’t give that it all away, lets just say what shines today, may loose its glimmer tomorrow.

Q: Considering you have a lot MP3’s out there on your site via My Space, and available on iuma.com, has it helped the band overall?

Jimmy Pallis:  Oh definitely!  I strongly feel that the best way to reach an audience that has never heard of your music or your band is through the Internet by posting band information and MP3’s.  The Internet makes the world a very, very small place, and you in promoting your music and your band have the opportunity to reach music fans from all over the world and all walks of life.  That is an amazing thing, and it has assisted me a great deal in getting AnAkA and our music over seas and to ears that would have never been able to sample our music without it.  AnAkA receives positive feed back every day from both My Space and Iuma and I recommend that all types of artists put their work on the Internet so that you can show the world what you are all about. 

Q: You guys are really into artwork for your CD’s which is pretty awesome; it definitely gives more for the fan to look at. Is this to offset downloaders, group preference, or…

Pete Pallis:  When it comes to the artwork for our CD’s my brother Jimmy here is the one who comes up with all the graphic design work and the disc design on his own.  I don’t think it’s for offsetting downloaders, we are just extremely self-sufficient when it comes to the band and its presentation.  Jimmy and I are very creative people, we love writing, drawing, and music, in other words, we are modern day renaissance men … I guess hahaha.  Designing the art for each album is just another creative outlet for us. We put a great deal of time and effort on every aspect of our music, from recording to promoting. 

I know how important it is to give your fans only the very best.  Before I ever created AnAkA, I was a giant music fan, and still am till this day.  I was always really pumped ever time my favorite bands came out with a new album, I couldn’t wait to get it, and I always looked forward to opening up that CD just to see what special features were included on the disc, such as booklet design and what not.  AnAkA just wants the entire album to be worth the purchase for our fans. From great tracks to a great packaging, our fans deserve only the very best, and that’s what we try to give them every time.  People work hard for their money, we know that, and we reward them for supporting us enough to go by our CD.

Q: Speaking of artwork, who created the artwork for Rust & Jade?

Jimmy Pallis:  The artwork for Rust & Jade was done by yours truly! The design of the new albums cover came from my head, throw my fingers and into my computer at home.  Pretty cool huh!

Q: What do you want the buyer to walk away with after seeing the cover for Rust?

Peter Pallis:  Well we wanted the album cover to in a way portray the feel of the album.  That is in our opinion the most important part of packaging an album.  This cover symbolizes the idea of there being a dark cloud over head, which we have all experienced in life, but also that there existences a sliver lining which at times seems so distant.  It’s about looking at the outside world and seeing how menacing it can be, seeing the ugliness; through the boards of your own existence, yet also seeing it’s majesty and power.  Even in the darkest moments of our lives, there will always be that glimmer of hope that keeps us hanging in there.  I think Jimmy did an awesome job of getting that idea across with the cover art.  I want the fan to be able to see that cover and say … wow … I need to take a listen to this CD.

Q: When writing songs, to whom or what do you look towards for inspiration?

Peter Pallis:  I guess I’ll answer this one being that I’m the main song writer of the band.  Well in writing songs I tend to look towards my own personal life experiences, I guess I inspire myself. LOL  I also tend to look around at the world, events and other people a lot for inspiration as a songwriter, because ideas are all around us, stories need to be told.  Introspection is a great source of inspiration but I don’t limit myself to just things that have happened to me or to only things that I alone feel.  You can learn a lot from putting yourself in other people’s shoes so to speak.  You can learn from everyone and everything in this world, and that’s what I tend to do when it comes to writing lyrics and music for AnAkA.  I try to keep the music REAL and HONEST, and that is something that our fans love most about us … the fact that we are writing meaningful music that all can relate to.

Q: Speaking of songwriting is it more or a democracy when it comes to contribution of music or is there one, main songwriter (a dictatorship)?

Jimmy Pallis:  AnAkA is definitely a democracy; we all work together to create the songs.  If one dude has an idea they will present it to the other members and if we all dig it we will naturally just start jamming on it until we have a song which we feel is AnAkA material.  Lyrically it’s always my brother Pete writing the words but I have say sometimes in that as well. We have been doing this for a while and we are all comfortable in our roles in this band.  When it comes down to it though my brother Pete is the musical mastermind in AnAkA, everything tends to go through him ultimately.  He is one of the most talented people I have ever met, and I have never met anyone that can even match is love for the art of creating music.

Q: In your opinion, how has your song writing changed from Down Devil’s Road to Rust & Jade? The later release seems to have evolved as far as the lack of sorrow that surrounded the first release. Please expound.

Peter Pallis:  I don’t know it I would say that Rust & Jade lacked sorrow compare to Down Devils Road.  Devil's Road was a very personally work for me.  I guess Rust & Jade looked at the world a bit more that Down Devil's Road did.  I found myself looking out at the world and not liking what I saw at the time, I was writing R&J.  For example 9/11, I saw from a far, many things that day that have stayed with me, I guess I just need to write about them.  Don’t get me wrong there is a lot of personal stuff on the Rust & Jade album, I don’t think I could avoid that if I tried.  But for the first time I found myself pushing the envelope on my creativity for some of the songs, and I did so through putting myself in other people’s situations and writing about them.

Q: Your lyrics are pretty thought provoking. In your opinion, do you think it can make or break a band?

Peter Pallis:  I think it can only help and band.  AnAkA is all about the charge, the push, the grove, and the intensity, but we are also about writing meaningful music.  We all feel, we all have a soul, and I think people can really relate when another persons soul speaks out.  I have received countless emails from people saying that our music spoke to them in some way and helped them through difficult times.  It’s truly to humbling, and I feel a responsible to it.  That’s what its all about for me, making connections with people.

Q: You dedicated “All I’ve Known” to Layne Staley. His death must have really moved you as well as to countless others. Nice homage!

Jimmy Pallis:  As a vocalist, I saw Layne’s voice as something that was so amazing and so moving.  He was a great talent and one of my greatest vocal influences.  His death was more then just another rocker passing away due to personal vices; it was the death of one of the music world’s greatest talents.  That is why when we first started jamming on “All I’ve Known” I knew that I was going to perform that track using Layne’s vocal style out of respect.  It was another way of saying thank you.

Q: Speaking of a nice homage, it’s nice you dedicated “The Days Went South” to those affected and to the lost on September 11^th.

Jimmy Pallis:  Being that each member of AnAkA are New Yorkers to the bone … we were hit face first by September 11^th.  We are all from Brooklyn, just a few miles from the World Trade Center, on that day we were able to smell and see the smoke billowing over the NYC skyline first hand.  Some of our neighbors never returned home to their families on that day, and “The Days Went South” is a track that will forever be dedicated to everyone one lost on that horrible day.  AnAkA will never forget!

Peter Pallis:  I was on the Manhattan Bridge just after the second plain hit, which put me in plain sight of the towers.   I saw the holes in the building, I saw the flames, I saw the smoke, I remember thinking, “my god, people are dying in there”.  You could almost feel the sorrow forcing it’s way out of the holes in those buildings.  That song was written for the people we lost that day.

Q: Your band is quite diverse as far as ethnicity is concerned (Greek, Russian, Norwegian, and Latino) how does this play apart in your music? Do you incorporate a sense of your cultural backgrounds into your music?

Peter Pallis:  I think it’s there.  I mean we don’t really say “Hey Tony can you come up with a Hispanic type of drum beat for this song?” but I think our cultures play a huge part in who we are as people and how we were brought up, how we relate to each other, and learn from one another.

Q: I see your songs filter through Greece via radio, etc. How popular is the metal/hard rock scene there asides from Nightrage?

Peter Pallis:  Greece loves AnAkA … AnAkA loves Greece. LOL.  Actually Greek Radio has been very supportive of our band.  It’s being great hitting Greek radio.  Our parents were born and raised in Greece, and we love it.  Hitting Greek radio is a milestone I wish my grandfather on my pops side would have lived to see it.

Q: What's the biggest test of character you've endured thus far with your life in AnAkA?

Jimmy Pallis:  Sticking to our guns and just being AnAkA.  People want to change a good thing to fit the flavor of the month.  We are not about turning into something we are not just for the payday. That mentality is complete BS. 

Q: Who are you listening to in the genre and out of the genre?             

Jimmy Pallis:  Well here is a list of bands I am digging right now. Mudvayne, DevilDriver, Chimaira, Motorgrater, Soil, Slipknot, Dry Kill Logic, Black Label Society, Metallica, Megadeth, Danzig, Black Sabbath, Corrosion of Conformity, Alice In Chains, Testament.

Peter Pallis: Yeah…those guys! LOL In no particular order.  We should also mention Rush for Tony, Judas Priest and Ra for Kirill, and Godsmack for Karl. 

Q: Wish list?

Peter Pallis:  As far as AnAkA is concerned, my wish would be to continue to connect with people through our music and go as far as this AnAkA thing will take us.  To make a difference in the world of music and to be remember as a great band.  To live life to the fullest…OOPS!! That’s more then one wish!!

Q: Who would you like to see your name next to on a marquee, your all time bill from hell?

Jimmy Pallis:  Being that we are New Yorkers, I would love to headline a show jamming with Metallica & Megadeth (the “Rust In Peace” line up!) at the world famous Madison Square Garden.  Playing the Garden would be the ultimate rush for me, but playing a show with those two monster bands which inspired and influenced just about everyone in our genre would be the most amazing experience ever.

Q: If you could work collaborate with anyone (producer wise), who would you chose?

Peter Pallis:  Oh, I don’t know I’m happy with who we are collaborating with right now.

Q: If you could commission a band to do your favorite song, who would do it and which song would it be?

Peter Pallis:  Umm lets see what musical monsters we can pick … ummm … Oh ok! I’d say Rust & Jade, covered by the Soggy Bottom Boys. LOL

Q: Name a couple of albums that served as major influences on your lives.

Peter Pallis:  A couple would easily be Metallica Master of Puppets, and Down Nola AWESOME albums that made a statement.  Most people who tell me they dig Down now talk about Down’s second album, I always tell them “Dude check out the first one it’s great, especially if you’re a guitarist".

Q: If you could do a split CD with any band, which would you choose.

Q: What does the future hold for AnAkA? What can your fans look forward to?

Q: If you could interview a band, name one that you would like to interview?

Jimmy Pallis:  It would have to be AnAkA because I would love to ask myself trick questions!  

Jimmy Pallis:  Have you enjoyed our interview session!?

Karma: Very much so, hope it was not only enjoyable for you, but to all!

Q: Any final words? Do you have a message you would like to share with your fans?

Peter Pallis:  Only that we appreciate there support and what they have done for us.  Every day the AnAkA Army grows and swells stronger and more powerful before, and it’s all because of you guys.  We will never stop, we will never give in, we will never let go (a little Rust & Jade for you lol).  Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

I'd like to thank Jimmy and Peter Pallis of AnAkA for taking the time out to answer the questions in this interview. Wishing you the best of fortune, go fuck some shit up!