tenek chat about their experiences with the well-known German band and friends De/Vision. – Written by Susanne Schaller / Stargazer
“Hey Pete and Geoff. Thank you very much for taking the time to give Stargazer the Interview with you.
Geoff: You’re very welcome. Thank you for your interest in the world of Tenek!
First of all How are you?
Geoff: Very well, thank you. I’m keeping myself busy writing music for TV/Film and some other music projects in between Christmas shopping!
Most of us should know you well since you were the Chosen band for the 25 Years Tour of De/Vision. So how did that all came that you supported De/Vision the first time?
Pete: We were asked to be special guests by De/Vision who we’d played our first overseas gig with at the PLUSWELT Festival in 2009 where they very kindly lent us a rather fab EMAX keyboard to use on stage. Very kind of them as we didn’t know them then! They were very friendly and helpful which we really appreciated!
What things did change since that first support tour?
Pete: It gave us a much bigger profile in the German electronic scene and was a springboard for further tours in the future. It also helped to gain us a much bigger fan base in Germany.
What does De/Vision’s music mean to you?
Geoff: De/Vision have always released quality music. The production and songwriting are always of a high standard. The fact they’ve been around for so long is testament to that.
What was the most funny Moment on tour with De/Vision?
Pete: Funniest moment for me was when Steffen was showing the “meet and greet’ fans around the venue in Leipzig and brought them into the backstage bathroom area whilst I was having a shower! Also having to build a new keyboard stand ‘Heath Robinson’ style on the last tour was quite amusing. The tour bus and Thomas’s anecdotes were always funny too.
I can remember on a night in Erfurt where all the Bands sang a Take That song for me in that bar 😉
Geoff: I believe that did happen! lol
Now to your actual plans in Music. I know there is an EP released called “Imitation of Life“. Tell me more. Where can we buy it? Any Tourplans?
Geoff: The ‘Imitation of Life’ EP is Tenek’s latest release which contains some great remixes by different artists of both ‘Imitation of Life’ and ‘What Kind of Friend?’. We liked them so much we wanted to make them available on a physical format as well as downloads. There is also an accompanying video to ‘Imitation of Life’ by Vincent Kavanagh (https://youtu.be/CvQZn-B-zW8)
You can purchase the EP from the shop on our website – www.tenek.co.uk, Bandcamp (http://tenek.bandcamp.com) and Poponaut.de (https://www.poponaut.de/advanced_search_result.php?keywords=tenek&&x=0&y=0). It can also be downloaded from all popular download sites – iTunes, Amazon, etc…
There are no tour plans, but 2017 will be Tenek’s 10th anniversary, so we are planning something special for that. We’re even considering a remix album at some point too.
What did you make different to earlier Releases?
Geoff: The latest EP contains ‘What Kind of Friend?’ and remixes which were previously only available to download. It’s a double whammy!
Will there be also a full long player? If so when will it be released and what is it called?
Geoff: There are no immediate plans for a fourth Tenek album as yet. Life has been very busy for us both so we haven’t been able to work on any new material.
Which Musicians inspire you in general?
Geoff: I’m finding more recent bands like, White Lies and Solomon Grey really inspiring. I still find Alan Wilder’s, ‘Recoil’ project a constant source of inspiration. I like me a bit of NIN too! I love musicians who pay attention to detail and produce music that has depth and you can hear the love that has gone into the whole process.
What is the most important thing you like about your fans?
Geoff: I love their passion about what we do, and their loyalty. Also, at this present time – their patience! lol Seriously though, when people travel from miles around to see you play live it’s very flattering and makes it all worth while.
What is the best thing about being a musician and what is the worst thing?
Geoff: I love the whole process – creating sounds – turning them into songs. I also love the production and mixing process – losing myself in all the wonderful technology we have available. It’s all very rewarding, and when other people like it too, that’s the icing on the cake 🙂
It can be hard work sometimes. Some songs know where they want to go and come together rather quickly, but some songs need more work to get them to go in a direction that we’re happy with. It can be quite frustrating. We’re very conscious of quality so nothing ever gets released that we’re not happy with, which is why ‘Smoke and Mirrors’ took a little while to finish!
What is your favourite Place to play live?
Geoff: We supported Republica at a venue called, ‘Under the Bridge’ in London. That was a great venue. The sound system was insanely loud and the toilets were insanely clean!! Also, The Columbia Halle, Berlin because of all the great memories 😉
Last but not least any words for the Fans ?
tenek: Thanks for continuing to follow and support tenek, and for being patient!“