DEEP RED: “…felt like I was going into a battle.”

With the singles “Battle Lines” and “The Art of Lust”, Deep Reed are back twenty years after their last release. Then as now, the duo from Miami stands out with their darkwave sounds and haunting synth sounds. Martha and DC explain how they decided to revive the project and what the two new pieces are all about.

One album, one word:

One album, one word:
“The Awakening” (1996)
M:Trailblazing
DC: Breakthrough

“Dark Waters” (1998)
M: Uncertainty
DC: Reinvention

“Chimera” (2002)
M:Evolution
DC: Sadness

Orkus: How did the “reactivation” of Deep Red come about? Was there a particular trigger?
Martha: Actually, the trigger was my husband Hoffa. For years he had the idea that Deep Red should start again, but the timing was just not right. He kept chipping away at the idea and through a dinner invitation at DC’s house initiated by Hoffa we met and discussed old times and eventually after a very nice and nostalgic evening the question came up if I wanted to do the band again and of course I said YES!
DC: Yes, Hoffa deserves a lot of credit for this. He would message me every once in a while about a Deep Red reunion, but nothing solid came out of it until late last year, when I invited him to do some vocals on a new Element 104 track. Then one thing led to another.

Into the past and back
O: Wait a minute. “Battle Lines” was in collaboration with Element 104. How is that to be understood, because that was also your former band? Right?
M: Element 104 has a long history. This is a band that DC had back in the 80’s even before Deep Red existed.. When DC and I first met, he was doing Element 104 and I joined as the fourth member of the band at the time. However, soon after it was just DC and I and as a result, the music started to go in a very different direction and we felt it only made sense to start a new band as the music we were creating was not Element 104 anymore. This is when and how Deep Red came to be. Fast forward to 2019 and DC resurrected Element 104 with a new line-up.
DC: Element 104 was an old project that was out of circulation for many years. Some of the very early tracks were released by a German label: Kernkrach Records a few years ago and that’s what motivated me to bring it back in 2019, and we started releasing new music and playing live shows again.

Painful battle?
O: How did the song “Battle Lines” come about?
M: “Battle Lines” is a song on our third album Chimera, and it is over 20 years old. However, it was DC that came up with the idea to redo the song as our first single release and I completely agreed. The source of inspiration for the title and the lyrics came from a difficult and sometimes painful relationship, where at times it felt like I was going into battle.
DC:I always thought “Battle Lines” was a very strong track that never got the credit it deserved when it was first released. We updated the musical arrangement, but not that much of a drastic change.

Slump in Miami?
O: You live in Miami. How can we imagine the gothic or alternative scene there?
M: I would say that the gothic scene used to be more prominent in Miami many years ago. I feel there are other cities in Florida, Tampa in particular that have a very strong scene. I suppose it’s unfortunate that Miami’s scene has died down over the years. However, it doesn’t really matter where you live nowadays. If you want to do this type of music, you can really live anywhere. My other band Distorted Reality for example, with the exception of the couple years I lived in Berlin, we have always lived in different cities, and we’ve been able to make it work. Technology has made it so.
DC: Not much going on down here as far as that’s concerned. There’s a long- running Gothic night: The Kitchen Club that deserves credit for its longevity, but the rest are just Court Jesters pretending to be club promoters!

The Art of Lust
O: Your brand new single is called “The Art of Lust”. An extremely driving song that is immediately catchy and gets people dancing. How did this song come about?
DC: This song was partly inspired by the movie “Eyes Wide Shut” by Stanley Kubrick. The movie has a lot of recurring themes that inspired my musical direction. Mystery, secret societies and of course … lust.
M: We take a lot of inspiration from all kinds of movies, and when we started working on this song, it immediately gave us the feeling of an erotic thriller, so we recorded it.

O: The sensual vocal passages are also particularly strong. Martha, how did that make you feel?
M: I like to explore different ways of singing and express myself through vocals, depending on the feeling and mood of the song. I really wanted the vocals and lyrics to convey a sensual feeling, but also to be a little mysterious.

O: Is lust an art?
DC: Art is definitely pleasurable.
M: As we’ve already mentioned, the inspiration for the theme of this track is loosely based on the Stanley Kubrick film “Eyes Wide Shut”. That gave me the idea for the song title “The Art of Lust”, because lust can be an art form in a way. It doesn’t have to be so simple and straightforward, it can and often is very complex and mysterious, so I wanted to pick up on this complexity in the theme and lyrics of this song.

O: The Love=Death remix is even harder. How did this come about?
DC: Love=Death is an obscure artist who recently approached us about a collaboration. I’m glad we took this chance, because the remix takes the song in a completely different direction. We will definitely be working together again.

Even more future
O: What does the future hold for Deep Red? Do you also have a new album in planning?
M: The future of Deep Red will include many new releases which will be singles, EPs and eventually an album. Additionally, we are working on future live shows which will hopefully start at the end of this year. In 2024, we hope to have the opportunity to play at some festivals both in the U.S. and in Europe. We are really looking forward to that!
DC: We are working on several new tracks as we speak, and working on a live show which will include not only the newer material, but also older songs. Including some that have never been performed live before!

Claudia Zinn-Zinnenburg

Enjoy “The Art of Lust” on Spotify: