ROME - Beneath the Ashes of Europe

On the scene for just a year, Luxembourg's Jerome Reuter has burned through the stages of a lightning-fast rise to the top of today's dark and martial scene. First the deal with the storied Cold Meat Industry, then two albums released in very quick succession, each of them surprising for its eclecticism, maturity and depth. And for the pure, simple beauty of the songs. ROME's musical and conceptual vision goes well beyond the appearances and aesthetic and sonic stereotypes of the dark niche in which it inevitably gets filed. A shadowy, aloof kind of music, yet one capable of opening up with real fervour in sudden bursts of emotion: exactly like Jerome himself, usually elusive and a man of few words, reluctant to let strangers into the intimate secrets of his music - and yet he was more than happy to sit down for a long, lively conversation and shed light on some of the most interesting facets of his art.

Jerome, just a year ago you debuted with the EP "Berlin", a record I listened to without knowing anything at all about you, and it was a pleasant surprise. Since then you've become a solid presence on the alternative scene, but tell me how you came to create the ROME project and debut with a work that was already so well defined?

Pure chance, really! The recording of "Berlin" began by sheer coincidence. I didn't feel at all sure about this new project I had in mind, and I wasn't even certain I really wanted to focus on a fully solo project. I mean, for 12 years I'd played in bands of every kind: but all the projects I was involved with at that time (late 2005, ed.) were, one way or another, coming to an end. I had a bit of money saved up, so I decided to use it to try things out in the studio, doing all the work myself with just an old friend of mine helping out with the sound design. As soon as I recorded the first song, "Like Lovers", I decided I would really commit to a solo project, and you could say that ROME was born in that exact moment. Things then developed very quickly, and we got a huge amount done in a really short space of time.

Intimate, nostalgic, reflective, troubled. Those are the words that come to mind most when I listen to ROME. How would you yourself describe the feelings that drive your music?

Hm, hard to say, you know? The feelings I express and pour into my music are really very personal, they depend on my experiences, my most intimate thoughts: I look around, at how things are going, and I reflect on what the right questions to ask are. It's impossible for me to describe all of this properly, because I'm too intimately caught up in it.

Listening to your work, it's easy to notice how you don't simply follow one particular musical scene, given the many influences that flow into your songs. I imagine you're a voracious listener with a very open mind. What do you usually listen to, and what ends up feeding most into ROME's music?

It's true, I can certainly describe myself as a very "open minded" listener. I listen to every genre, as much as I can. I think that in the end my biggest inspirations come from songwriters like Leonard Cohen, Nick Cave, Jacques Brel or Tom Waits. And a bit of rock 'n' roll too. I've always considered myself a fundamentally punk spirit, and I try to find interesting combinations between the most classic independent music and the darkest, most underground realities. But I'm interested in art in general. Lately I draw a lot more inspiration from books, paintings and photographs than from other music.

So do you consider it a kind of "handicap" to be pigeonholed into the so-called neofolk scene?

Look, a lot of great work has come out of that scene. ROME certainly wouldn't be what it is today without the bands that, 25 years ago, laid the foundations of that genre, let's call it that. But as for the current scene, I don't know what to tell you. I don't really follow it that closely and I don't feel that close to it. Sure, nowadays I know some of those bands personally too, and I can say I get along very well with all of them. They're very open people, and from what I've seen that goes for everyone who follows the scene too, so being part of it or not isn't something I feel weighed down by at all.

Your first album "Nera" seemed very connected to the themes of the EP "Berlin" — they strike me as two intimately linked works, whereas with "Confessions..." I'd talk about a clear step forward, a more complete and mature work. How did your musical evolution mature, and in such a short time?

Learning as I go, I suppose. "Berlin" and "Nera" can be considered more conceptual works, while "Confessions..." is more a collection of songs that are independent of one another, though linked by recurring themes. That's just how it turned out, nothing more. I really rely a lot on instinct when I work; before going into the studio and working on the tracks, I don't make any demos and don't do any rehearsals. I just arrange and assemble the material in my head. Everything gets decided in the moment I actually do it. Obviously I know exactly which direction to move in, I know what I want and I think a lot about the songs. But it's hard to say in advance how everything I have in mind will end up taking shape.

Now a question that might annoy you: from the artwork to the lyrics, "Berlin" and "Nera" seem very marked by a certain aesthetic and, let's say, ideological profile. "Confessions..." strikes me as a clear step forward in that sense too, a work that's much freer and further from the genre's outward clichés. I'd like to know how things really stand from your point of view and, if you're willing to talk about it, what you think of the eternal debate around the political aspects of neofolk.

Well, I'd really like to avoid these kinds of interpretations, for the simple reason that they're terribly limiting. The themes of my records revolve around two realities: war and resignation, and clearly the period of the Second World War has something to do with that too. I don't want to explain my work in that sense, everyone is free to interpret it however they see fit. But, I mean, the repercussions of European and world wars are still present in our everyday lives, and that's why those themes are also part of my work. To speak plainly, ROME is not a "politically aligned" or "right-wing" band, I have nothing to do with any of that, it doesn't interest me in the slightest. What interests me instead is individual fate, I like comparing stories of people facing certain moments and difficult choices. What interests me most of all is the so-called human condition. ROME focuses on the beauty and sadness that are part of life, and it really bothers me when all of that gets interpreted in political terms. As for the rest, I'm not in a position to say anything about political controversies within certain music scenes; I gave up on that kind of subject a long time ago, there's no point talking, explaining, everyone will always think what they want anyway. Anyone who knows how to listen can tell that ROME doesn't promote any kind of ideology, and that's what matters to me.

Clear enough; going back to "Confessions...", as I've already told you, I find it a truly important work, one that goes beyond genre definitions and contains songs of great beauty. What did you want to achieve with this record while you were writing it, and now that it's finished and released, are you fully satisfied with it? I'm also asking about the responses you've gotten from audiences and critics...

I don't stop to look back. In fact, I'll tell you I'm already working on the third album. I can look back when I'm older, and stop when I'm dead! I'm glad you consider "Confessions..." an important work — you know, I've read plenty of reviews saying exactly the opposite, so I really couldn't say. I like it. What you want to achieve when you work on an album is always the same thing: to put your whole heart into it and make sure the best possible work comes out of it: what matters in the end is that your work represents something sincere for people, and even more so for yourself. Sure, there's always some small thing you wish you'd done differently, if you sit down and think about it, but that's what art is like, it never stops, it's never completely finished. There's no finish line. That's why I don't look back and dwell on what I've already done. I move forward and try to do something even better next time.

As for the responses, what can I tell you... I've only read a few reviews online. Some positive, some not. I don't

even know if the record is selling well, it's still too early to tell. I think you probably know more about that than I do! Joking aside, I don't think about those things much, I'm too busy with my work.

From the very start I was really struck by your lyrics, they're truly evocative. What inspires you? What message do you want to communicate through your songs?

I read a lot, and I draw a lot of inspiration from books. But I don't want to impose messages, I'm no messiah. There are certainly things in my songs that I want to express, but the form of communication I prefer is addressing individual people, not making general statements. Music is my way of communicating with people. I'm not someone who talks much, I prefer to sing. My music is something very intimate: then again, I deal with subjects that concern everyone, I imagine.

And yet I think of one of the most beautiful choruses on "Nera", the one in "Das Unbedingte" that goes "This is not the time for silence", and of how in "Confessions..." you repeatedly talk about indifference as the real enemy to be faced. Is there a connection? Could these perhaps be reflections on the current international situation?

Yes, there's definitely a connection. It's probably down to the fact that it doesn't matter how much someone tries

of remaining indifferent to things, a total form of indifference is impossible; it would lead to being fundamentally inhuman. In fact, indifference doesn't just mean "not giving a damn" or otherwise not taking a stance: to me, indifference rhymes with pure selfishness and laziness. Taking a position on things, even in the smallest way, is necessary if we're to aspire to the purity and dignity that make us human. ROME's work unfolds precisely around the act of making a choice and facing its consequences. It doesn't matter which choice or what the consequences are, what matters is doing it.

Now, what's happening in the world in these years is certainly important to me, no matter how far removed and detached from it all I might delude myself into believing I am. The general sense of resignation found in ROME's music and lyrics is rooted in my own personal way of feeling about everything that interests me, but of course the circumstances and the situation we're all living through have a big influence on that too. It's impossible to leave the reality of the world out of it: even when in my songs I refer to times and worlds of the past, I want to stress how those times and worlds still exist today, often in very similar forms. Our past is reflected in us, and in turn we will be reflected in the future.

You landed straight away on the legendary Cold Meat Industry, at a time of deep generational turnover for the historic Swedish label. Personally I haven't been that keen on many of CMI's recent releases (I'm thinking especially of the latest ORE albums, and among the new blood, bands like Stormfagel); right now ROME strikes me as being on a whole different level. What do you think? And what's your relationship like with CMI and its charismatic leader Roger Karmanik? Do you feel like you're the new "star" of this legendary label?

Come on, it's always difficult, and even unfair, to make comparisons between different bands. It's purely a matter of personal taste. As for me, with ROME I try to establish my own "brand" of quality, and every time I just hope it works. As for Roger? We get along brilliantly! He's a great guy, and I'm really proud to have become part of the CMI family. They're all wonderful people. I recently toured Germany and Spain together with some of them and I felt right at home. CMI really is a family, there's no rivalry between the bands, everyone helps each other out.

Speaking of touring... You played some shows this year, do you have a band for when you perform live?

Not exactly a band, just some friends who give me a hand. For now there are three of us on stage, me, a bassist and a drummer.

That's all from us, Jerome, thank you so much. If you want to leave a final word for Italian readers, go ahead.

First of all, thanks for your interest in ROME. We'll most likely be playing in Italy toward the end of the year, so I hope to see you and as many people as possible there. Thanks for the support!

(11/07/2007)

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