Bonjour, aujourd’hui Objectif Live a rencontré le groupe de métal égyptien Zaeer,nous les avons interviewés en anglais pour plus de facilité, et avons le plaisir de diffuser ici leur intreview , n’hésitez pas à les découvrir et à écouter ce groupe, que nous remercions pour son accueil et sa disponibilité.
1) Can you quickly introduce yourself to the French public (who is who in the band)
Hello, we are Zaeer and this is our current line-up:
Adham Ashraf Bass/Backing vocals
Omar Sabry Lead guitar
Adham Ayman Rhythm Guitar
Kareem Waseem Drums
Mustafa « Mike » Gharib Main Vocals
https://zaeer.bandcamp.com/album/el-taree
https://www.facebook.com/OfficialZaeer/?locale=fr_FR
2) In Arabic your name means roar, can you tell us why you chose this name for the band?
Yes, Zaeer means lion’s roar in Arabic, and it’s us trying to express ourselves and being rebellious against the downfall of our society and human nature. We want our voice to be heard. So we thought Zaeer would perfectly describe us.
3) How did you meet each other?
We first met on some music group on facebook. Starting jamming together and there was instant chemistry between us. Of course we had few band mates replaced since our beginning in 2020, but now we have a stable line-up
4) I speak your own dialect and I was very surprised when I found out that you sing in Egyptian Arabic, why did you decide not to sing in English like most metal bands
We wanted to be different and at the same time more close to the people here in Egypt. bringing people who don’t understand english that well, and not into harsh music into the Metal world. Also we wanted to debunk the myth that you can’t put arabic lyrics over Metal music, which we think turned out way better than we expected.
5) For those who don’t know the Arabic language, can you tell us what your texts are about?
Hardships in life (Gharaan-Hareb), Breakups (Ayamna), not fitting within society(Lagham), Hope (El Taree – Ayam Saaba), Drug addiction (Fel Nehaya) and our track « El Bar » is just about a night of heavy drinking in a bar, so i’d say we’ve got a wide spectrum here!
6) What are the Problems you face as musicians in Egypt?(I think especially about one of your song « أيام صعبه » Ayam Saaba »)
I think the main problem is that the Metal Genre is not really welcomed by the government here in Egypt. Still many people here connect it to devil worshipping and such nonsense. This makes it hard for us to book venues (only about 2 or 3 venues can take us)
And when they do, we’re not allowed to say it’s a Metal concert, best we can say is rock concert, although we play metal anyway.
7) How do you work? Who composes your lyrics and who writes the music in the band?
Lyrics are mainly written by the vocal, as for the music, all members take party in the creation and writing process.
8) I discovered your album by chance on Spotify because I listen to other Egyptian bands and I had a big crush on what you do, what do you think of music platforms like Spotify?
First of all we’re so happy to know you enjoyed our music!
Spotify is currently our best performing platform, even Anghami which is originally an Arabic music platform doesn’t even come close to Spotify. Also Spotify is one of the main reasons our music got heared all around the world thanks to their curator’s lists featuring our songs.
9) What is your musical news (concerts, festivals etc…)
We are currently working on our new album and the first track is in the mixing and mastering process.
As for Festivals, we’ve been invited to the MENA Metal Festival taking place in Tunisia alongside some of the greatest Metal bands in our current time including: Dark Tranquility, Leprous and Ihsahn.
We’re having a gig on the 16th of April at Room Art Space New Cairo.
10) You make quality music and your lyrics are well written, why is it so difficult for zaeer as for other Egyptian bands to make yourself known in the West? Can you explain that to the European Which ones have no idea of the difficulties you face in exporting to Europe?
I’d say mainly the financial and economic situation of our country.
It’s not easy now to get any kind of music related equipment here, mix and master a track, advertising yourself or trying to sell your merch abroad.
We seriously hope we can one day overcome these obstacles and start touring Europe, that would be a dream come true.
11) If you were to open for a famous band, what would you like it to be?
Haha, beggers don’t choose, so hard to pick one band, i think we’d be honoured to open for bands like Metallica, Megadeth, Pantera, Lamb of God and Gojira
12) Do you have anything to add to close the interview?
We really had fun with this interview and we’re so glad you had the time to interview us and get a better look at our band and the Egyptian metal scene in general. And who knows, maybe one day we’ll have a gig near you! And of course Merci,
