Extremum is band that’s been around for almost twenty years. Their style can probably be traced along the lines of alternative rock but it would be best to let them describe it. Two of the bands founders have been a family for 23 years now so you can imagine this creates unique dynamics and a distinctive atmosphere in the band. Extremum have been touring Western Europe and the Balkans (they’re Bulgarian) for a long time, playing at festivals, opening for other bands and helping fellow musicians with their gigs and tours. Not only are they professional musicians but they’ve seen more than most bands have so we thought it might be interesting to ask them a few questions for you guys.

Hey guys! Tell us a bit about how the band came to be and what transformations it’s gone through since it was founded.

Hi! Well, one night in March 1998, we’d gathered – a few friends who were also musicians. After some discussion we decided that we have enough people to make a band. We did 3-4 covers of BRIDE and X-Sinner and so it started. The idea was to not only play but create real, meaningful music with a cause. The first members of Extremum were Alexander Mladenov /ex-High Voltage/ – vocals; Boris Grudev – guitar; Mladenka Grudeva /Deny/ – bass; Anton Radoslavov – drums. In 1999 Alexander left and Deny became the main vocalist. In 2000 Anton left to peruse a director’s career. In his place came Yulian Nedkov /former Babyface/. With his addition to the band things started to happen a lot faster for the band – the sound got harder and we recorded our first single “Deep Satisfaction”(2001).

The year after we started getting a lot of gigs around the country and abroad. At the end of 2003 Yulian left the band and from then to 2010 our drummer was Stoyan Petrov. This period was probably the most fruitful time in our band’s history. We recorded a few singles and our first album “Not the end”. A lot of gigs, festivals, concerts, clubs. In 2010 the first child of Boris and Deny was born and the second came in 2013. These few years we had fewer gigs, as you can imagine. For a short time the drums were taken over by Lyubomir Tomov and the bass was played by Krasen Ivanov. From 2012 up until now Dimitar Dimitrov has been our drummer. We’re quickly getting back in the game with our second album coming up this year.

How would you describe your style? What influences can be found in your music?

Extremum combines a modern beat, with a powerful sound and the melody of alternative rock. Our style is a combination of different musical influences along with our own ideas. A lot of our lyrics are inspired by Biblical message, expressing our faith in Jesus Christ. We’ve benn very much influenced by modern rock bands like Anberlin, Emery, P.O.D, Blindside.

Two of you are a married couple and have two kids together. What is it like to be married to a bandmate?

Deny: “It’s amazing! We do everything together. In fact, Boris was my first guitar teacher. Later on I started playing the bass. Of course, there are some difficulties from time to time, arguments, so we’ve decided that my husband is the leader of both our family and our band and he has the final word. We believe that this principle is the right one and it works for us.”

Boris: “Yeah, I think it wonderful as well, comfortable and practical, haha. We’ve been a family since 1993 and we never thought that we would found a band together. But it happened and I quite like it!”

There’s a substantial age difference between some of the band members. What does that result in in terms of music and group dynamics?

Great question! It all depends on the people’s personal traits and qualities. Every member of the band has contributed with their musical tastes and background, even though Deny and Boris are the ones who mainly write and compose the music. Our last few drummers have all been younger than the rest of us which keeps us young as well. It’s interesting how we learn to understand their view on what we’re doing and they’re learning to understand ours. We try to complete each other. It’s good that the band has a general concept and an idea of what we’re doing. Every new member, no matter how old or young they are, when they join with an understanding of our mission, they always contribute with their talents.

Denny, you have a major in music. You’re a professionally trained vocal pedagogue and a singing teacher at RockSchool. What’s the most important thing you want your students to remember?

A few things. The most important thing is to find the will and reason to truly live, be it singing or something else.  When you do what you like most, then you’ll be happy. Remember and pursue your dreams. Keep going, even when you thing there’s no way out. There is. If singing is really your thing – sing, grow, have confidence and don’t compete with others because God created us all to be unique.

You’ve done quite a lot of touring – what advice would you give to musicians who are about to experience touring for the first time?

We can say a lot of things, depending on where the tour is taking place. But here are a few:

– Have a really good talk with the organizers about the frame and conditions of what you’re doing together.

– Have a good set ready and well rehearsed.

– When possible, bring your own instruments – you’ll feel better, more comfortable with your own sound.

– Have more cash on the side!!!

– REST. I remember a tour in Romania which was three weeks long. The first 10 days we had absolutely no rest. We walked the streets after a gig, talked to fans, always moving. The second part of the tour all we wanted to do is sleep.

Your new album’s out. What should we expect?

Yes! We just finished with everything. Expect 11 of our own songs in English. We’re now discussing the possibility of videos for 1 or 2 of them. We like our own music a lot and we believe that this spark, rhis charge will be transferred to the fans as well.

How has recording your previous album been different from the experience you’ve had with the new one?

No huge difference in terms of the gear we’re using. In both cases we were in a hurry but didn’t wrap it up until we liked what we were hearing. This time we wanted to have more sounds in the songs, so they have this rich feel to them. So apart from the heavier sound, now we’ve added more electronics.

What would you say to those of our readers who are just starting their musical journey?

This journey is a long one and you can’t become a musician in a day. If you really want it, start with courage, patience and practice.

What do you think of Drooble?A really new fresh and fun place on the web. A place where you can share your musical experience, tastes, ideas and everything related to music with no limitations. It’s a platform we believe will quickly grow to become a favorite meeting place for musicians and fans from all over the world.

Name three bands we’ve never heard before but should definitely check out.We can do more than three:

Blindside, Emery, Anberlin, Demon Hunter, Disciple, Everything In Slow Motion, Flyleaf

You can find Extremum and more awesome bands on Drooble!