‘Please Don’t Die’: BLEIB MODERN Talks Influences & New Album ‣ CVLTARTES

German post-punk finest Bleib Modern play one of the most impressive modern take-ups of the 80’s gloomy melodic coldwave with leading throbbing basslines, mechanical drumming, reverbed, and razor-sharp guitar riffs, emotionless and visceral vocals.

Tell us a bit about the history of when did Bleib Modern start?

Well, in 2014, Philipp started the whole thing, then Vinz joined, and now, with Leo, Peter, and Tommy, we are a quintet consisting of 3 electric guitars, a vox, an electric bass guitar, and analog drums.

How do you describe Bleib Modern´s sound? Your latest album can ‘compete’ with the others?

Not really, ’cause it’s a new type. Afraid To Leave is our first album that was recorded in a professional studio; everything that happened before was d.i.y. rehearsal room style. New era! It could have gone wrong, but it didn’t. We call it dark post-Punk.

What are the main influences for ‘Afraid to Leave’?

Our musical tastes are quite diverse, there’s no main influence. As for the songwriting: We meet in our rehearsal room and experiment and discuss. During that time, and afterward, Philipp writes the lyrics and sings them. We worked on the album for years (in contrast to the earlier releases), and that’s how it’s got its shape.

For the next albums, who would you most like to collaborate with?

We are a very particular group, a bit like a monastic order, so opening to outsiders is not a done thing for us. We do have good relationships with plenty of other folks though, so for us, ‘collaboration’ would most likely mean something like covering/interpreting each other as musicians, or mixing with artists from other fields (photography, film making, etc.). Something is cooking on that stove. Until then, taste this blast from the past:

What motivates you to continue making music during these harsh times? What do you miss most about performing?

Touring is its special microcosmos and going there is what we miss. Meeting a lot of different people from in a lot of different places is the best! Apart from that, we were able to continue to do our thing in quite a regular manner. We rehearse, we create, we record…

When was your best performance? But one downside of a tour?

Can’t tell, we don’t remember this that well. One show we like to think back to for example is this one though:

Downside: our health suffers, and we usually don’t have the time to cook.

What’s your plan for the future regarding the situation? Are you planning a tour for 2022? Is there a chance to see you in Romania?

We got a tour penciled for late 2021 actually, but of course, it is highly doubtful if that can happen at all. Sorry, Romania is not on the route, but we’d very much like to come to visit sometime in the future.

What music have you listened to lately? Any recommendations?

Cravo, Requin Chagrin, Brutalismus 3000, DJ Mantis.

Anything you would like to add?

Please don’t die!