Interviews: Tzimani

On this new occasion, we have had the opportunity to interview the Hard Rock/Heavy Metal band Tzimani from the USA. Check out the interview and follow the band on their FACEBOOK PAGE.

1. Where did you get the idea for the band name, you planned it or came out just like that?

It was something that we had spent a lot of time thinking on something that was original but also something that was not completely out there. The main issue being is that we had a great band name with our old band, and we did not want something generic sounding or something that could get lost in the ether of the internet space. My brother (Eddie) and I were on a music hiatus in general after spending three years in our old band, and just focused on other hobbies but still went back and forth about how to approach the direction and band name. I have a document with over 150 band names that I thought about Eddie shot every single one of them down. Then one day he asked me what I thought about the band name “Tzimani” and then I asked him what it meant and what it was. Well the word, is a native Mexican word from the language of the Purepecha, a tribe that was never conquered by the Aztec historically and thus much of its culture and language still exist today. I felt it was a rather strange name, but he told me that “Tzimani” meant the number two in that language and it all made sense. It was a tribute to our father’s bloodline, and over time the name stuck and we decided to run with it.

2. Why did you want to play this genre?

It happened organically in a lot of ways. When we were growing up we went through a lot of typical 80s bands and spun the same album over and over and over. We are talking about albums like Holy Diver by Dio and Rock in Rio from Iron Maiden. So naturally, once we decided to be in bands and Eddie started songwriting, a more classic sounding aesthetic emerged. Obviously we listened to a lot of modern-sounding stuff as well, so we like to think that stuff also found itself in the songwriting process and gives an edge of creativity sprinkled in to create a genre conscious sound, but also something very original.

3. Did you know each other before the band was formed?

Eddie and I are brothers and are only one year apart from each other! 

4. Each band member favourite band?

Right now, for me (Sebastian), I would say it is a toss-up between Queensryche and King Diamond. Hard to say, but on any given day those two would be an immediate choice. For me, off the top of my head, it would be Dio.

5. Who or what inspires you to write songs?

I speak for Eddie on this, but we like to write about songs that are naturally in relation to our everyday lives and things that we think about constantly. It is rather difficult for us to sing about stories and fantasies, and give credit to bands that can do that, so we like to stick with concepts and themes that are relatable to any given person. It is a lot easier to connect with music that you can connect with on a personal level too.

6. Where was your last gig?

It has been quite a long time, but we last performed in San Diego with the Canadian epic metallers Iron Kingdom at the historic Tower Bar back in October last year.

7. Where would you like to act?

We are an international touring band now, and it is something that we have been doing for almost three years now as a band. We have yet to hit the European or Asian continent, but hopefully, our reissue with Diabolic Might Records (Germany) makes waves out there and we can tour on the record and make new fans. Europe would be amazing, but we would be really excited to tour South America as well. Some day right!

8. Whom would you like to feature with?

It would be a dream for someday to open up for a legendary act like Iron Maiden or American mainstays W.A.S.P. or Motley Crue, but even for bands that are still purveying the underground it would be killer to share the road stages with bands like Bewitcher (Portland), Haunt (Fresno), and Hell Fire (San Francisco) from the USA or bands like Traveler (Calgary), Riot City (Calgary), Gatekeeper (Vancouver), or Hrom (Calgary) from Canada. We would be so humbled if they were willing of course, but bands bigger than us would be killer too. Bands like Enforcer (Sweden), Cauldron, Night Demon, or Striker would be something else, wouldn’t it?

9. Whom not?

We have played with all kinds of bands, ranging from metalcore to death metal. We aren’t picky really.

10. Any of you has ever suffered from stage fright? Any tip for beginners on how to beat that?

Oh man, we suffer from it on just about every single show. Obviously the more times you perform, the easier it is to feel comfortable, and that is my take. Comfort comes from being prepared and having a great live performance and feeling ready for it eases the mind on stage fright. The bigger the crowd, and the higher profile the show is the deeper the feeling of stage fright and anxiousness. But once we hit the first 10 seconds of the first song it all goes away and it's basically muscle memory from there.

11. What bands have inspired you the most?

It has changed from time to time, but the classics are definitely up there. Bands like Maiden, Dio, Leppard, and Crue are hardline favorites for sure. But as we work on our songwriting process for the next release, bands like Armored Saint, Queensryche, and W.A.S.P. have been more frequent in our playlist rotations and it is certainly finding expression in our songwriting as well. We also draw inspiration from bands that aren’t necessarily metal as well. Eddie and I really dig rock and funk bands like Journey and Earth Wind and Fire, as well as other class rock stuff.

12. What's the weirdest thing a fan has ever asked you for?

We are pretty down to earth people, so we haven’t come across with a lot of out there requests, but a gang member of the Hell’s Angels once did ask us if he could gift us a knife that he had claimed that he had “used for business” before.

13. What do you think of your fans?

We love our fans. Lots of our fans are working-class people looking to enjoy a good heavy metal or hard rock show once in awhile. Lots of them we have made personal connections with as well, and a lot of them allow us to spend the night at their homes whenever we are out on the road. Our fans are like-minded people and they come from all walks of life. Parents, students, hard-working folks, and roughnecks all like our music too. Our fan base is a lot older than what you prototypically would consider an ideal fan base, but our fans have a lot of life experience and a lot to offer to the world and come to our shows and support our music because they can relate to the lyrics that we write.

14. What do you think of our site?

I have heard about it before and I am honored you reached out for an interview. Thank you. I really like the album artwork features as well as the track by track feature, which gives the bands an opportunity to express something entirely different from the run of the mill media content you see these days.

15. Something add?

We are excited to head back out on tour! We kick off our next tour on March 26th, and will cap it off on April 27th.

The tour dates are:

26th San Diego, CA - The Merrow 

27th Albuquerque, NM - Velvet Underground

28th San Angelo, TX - The Deadhorse

29th San Antonio, TX - The Limelight

31st Wilmington, NC - Reggie’s 42nd St. Tavern

1st Lynchburg, VA - Clubhouse Sports Bar

2nd Baltimore, MD - The Depot

3rd Worcester, MA - Hotel Vernon

4th Rochester, NY - Bug Jar

5th Providence, RI - Dusk

6th Saratoga Springs, NY - Desperate Annie’s

8th Portland, ME - Geno’s 10th Toronto, ON - The Bovine

11th Columbus, OH - Tree Bar

12th Milwaukee, WI - Blades of Steel Festival

14th Winnipeg, MB - Bull Dog Pizza

15th Regina, SK - Cloud 9 Live

16th Edmonton, AB - Shaker’s Roadhouse 

17th Kelowna, BC - Munnin’s Post

18th Vancouver, BC - Hyperspace Festival

21st Tacoma, WA - The Plaid Pig

22nd Portland, OR - Twilight Cafe

23rd Grant’s Pass, OR - The Haul

24th Reno, NV - Shea’s Tavern

25th Sacramento, CA - On the Y

26th Oakland, CA - Elbo Room

27th Pasadena, CA - Old Towne Pub