Exclusive Interview with BENMOZES

Boston rock band Benmozes announce the release of their debut album ‘IMMIGRANT’, scheduled for release on the 10th of February — a 10-track journey built around explosive riffs, dark- melodic Rock and Roll, tinged with the highs and lows of life in our age, making it undeniably clear that this is not just another rock band. Check out the exclusive interview below:

1. Can you tell us a bit about where you come from and how it all got started?

BENMOZES (Amit Ben-Moshe): I moved to Boston from Tel-Aviv, taking a one-way flight to a place where I didn’t know anyone. The single connection I was introduced to over an international phone call was a drummer, his name was Amit as well which was a strange coincidence. I came with a lot of written materials and demos that were running in my head already. The two of us played for some time. One late night, coming back from rehearsal, I went in the building’s elevator and met Neil who is now the band’s lead guitar player. He saw me carrying the guitar and started asking questions. Neil later brought Mike over.

2. Did you have any formal training or are you self-taught?

BENMOZES (Amit Ben-Moshe): I’m self-taught, I can’t even read musical notes, but others in the band are much more musically educated. Cole, our drummer, is from Berklee. Neil is also trained, and he’s a guitar genius in general – the guy builds his own guitars.

3. Who were your first and strongest musical influences and why the name ‘BENMOZES’?

BENMOZES (Amit Ben-Moshe): The 90s Seattle scene have always been a huge influence with Nirvana, Alice in Chains, Pearl Jam and Soundgarden. That’s what was around me specifically from the cradle. In addition, a lot of UK bands from Zeppelin through The Clash, Joy Division, Stone Roses, Oasis. The name Benmozes – when I grew up, I didn’t understand the meaning of the lyrics since I didn’t know English. That made me pay more attention to the sound of words than to their meaning. Words have an energy they carry with their sound. The way that the name “Benmozes” explodes on the tongue when pronounced sounds like rock n’ roll, it’s like Beatles, Nirvana, Metallica, and Oasis were combined into one word – it means nothing, and we love it.

4. What do you feel are the key elements in your music that should resonate with listeners, and how would you personally describe your sound?

BENMOZES (Amit Ben-Moshe): We are all immigrants in one way or another. Foreigners in a place, a culture, a school, or a workplace. Whether or not someone had the actual experience of immigrating – this album and our music are about life. In terms of the sound, I hope that it’s not that easy to define the album’s sound, we didn’t try to make it sound like anyone or anything else. We wanted it to sound like rock n roll in outer space, the next step in the evolution of rock n roll. Ominous is a great example.

5. For most artists, originality is first preceded by a phase of learning and, often, emulating others. What was this like for you? How would you describe your own development as an artist and music maker, and the transition towards your own style, which is known as ROCK?

BENMOZES (Amit Ben-Moshe):

Obviously, we could have never created the music we’ve created without the influences and the huge bands that carried the torch of rock over the years, but I don’t feel like we had a phase of emulating other bands. It would be interesting to hear what others think about that.

6. What’s your view on the role and function of music as political, cultural, spiritual, and/or social vehicles – and do you try and affront any of these themes in your work, or are you purely interested in music as an expression of technical artistry, personal narrative, and entertainment?

BENMOZES (Amit Ben-Moshe): I believe that music can heal. I know that from my own experience – music helped me survive and overcome some of the most difficult years of my life. I can’t say I aim for it in the way that I write songs – it doesn’t happen that way. I try to write a song that is the truest reflection of the energy or feeling that created it. From there on, if the reflection is pure, it will find its way to resonate and heal.

7. Do you feel that your music is giving you back just as much fulfillment as the amount of work you are putting into it or are you expecting something more, or different in the future?

BENMOZES (Amit Ben-Moshe): A lot of fulfilment and satisfaction – especially the feedback from fans – that’s the pinnacle of creation, when you get that validation, that ray of light you sent hit someone the right way and it’s coming back to shine on you. In terms of something more for the future – we hope that our music will do well enough to support the band, since we are fully independent.

8. Could you describe your creative processes? How do usually start, and go about shaping ideas into a completed song? Do you usually start with a tune, a beat, or a narrative in your head? And do you collaborate with others in this process?

BENMOZES (Amit Ben-Moshe): I start from a moment of inspiration where I catch a melody or a beat or more accurately it catches me. If that happens in the right time, usually a song was already born. It could be just a few seconds but a song being born from that little kernel is just a matter of time, it’s just about bringing it back to earth. I usually create a lousy sounding home demo out of that initial muse so I can share it with the band – taking a picture of what I’m hearing in my head. There is no other way for me to communicate this to the band when we meet in the room. After we meet in the room, we bring the song home – and this part is very different between each song – there are ones we don’t touch, just leave them to be as they were, and in others we add more intricate parts like Neil’s solos in Ominous and Losing It.

9. What has been the most difficult thing you’ve had to endure in your life or music career so far?

BENMOZES (Amit Ben-Moshe): I think that the hardest thing as a musician and artist in general is when your art is ignored, not heard, not seen. It’s one thing to be heard and not appreciated, but not even being heard – this is the most difficult thing.

10. On the contrary, what would you consider a successful, proud or significant point in your life or music career so far?

BENMOZES (Amit Ben-Moshe): Listening to IMMIGRANT for the first time will forever be one our best moments in life – we are extremely proud of every aspect of this album. Zero regrets.

11. Do you think is it important for fans of your music to understand the real story and message driving each of your songs, or do you think everyone should be free to interpret your songs in their own personal way?

BENMOZES (Amit Ben-Moshe): There’s no concept “understanding” in how I perceive music. There is no right or wrong. We are just a vehicle, channeling energy that came to us from somewhere in the universe. I believe that once a fan listens to our song, the song is not ours anymore – it’s the fan who owns the song and its meaning, and this is the nice thing about art, everyone takes it to a completely different private place.