The band Hard Tension was started in 2011 by Paulo Santos, the guitar player, in Portimão (in the Algarve region of Portugal). The band has a classic heavy-metal fell combined with influences from classical music and fast riffs.
Bio: Hard Tension began when Paulo (our guitarist) started to write the songs that would later be on the Perception EP.
But he soon realised that the music was worth to be played live and he asked Migas to join him. Later they got together with Tião Costa and Carlos Luz who had similar influences and started the band Hard Tension.
Genre: We play this music genre because it´s the only one that makes sense to us. We can have elements from classical music, heavy metal riffs, fast riffs or even blues influences and it all comes together very smoothly.
The possibilities are endless really, because we feel like we have total freedom to explore different sound combinations without worrying too much about fitting in any specific music style.
Evolution of the initial musical and thematic elements: Our music involves a darker theme since the first EP. We now have influences from trash metal, classic heavy metal, and our lyrics tend to reflect what we feel about our life experiences.
[pullquote]Hard Tension has released an EP in 2012 entitled “Perception”, it was featured in the Musifaro compilation with the single “Fire (is in you)”, and has recently released a new EP entitled “Fear and Guilt”. At the moment, the band is on tour promoting their new EP.[/pullquote]Lyrics, themes and concepts: The ideas for our lyrics come from life experience. We also like to talk about issues we find important, or we like to tell a story using the instruments, the atmosphere and the lyrics together.
Ideas about the album: We are very happy with the final result. But we will try to always be better than before.
Reception: We are very happy with the response from the people. We had many positive reviews and people seem to enjoy our live shows.
Preference; live or studio: Both are equally satisfying in different ways. In the studio we can focus on what we are doing and the creative process in an intimate affair for the whole band.
Playing live is just excellent, because we feel the energy from the audience which makes it all worth it.
Next step; live or studio: We do enjoy playing live. We have some projects underway at the moment. We are now recording our first full length album!
Future plans: We don’t know what will happen in the future. We worry about the present, and in the present we are working on more great tunes.
Composers: We all have our input in the writing process. Migas is the one who writes the lyrics, and he always seems to find the perfect way to tell a story.
Inspirations: Individually we have different sources of inspiration, we like Paganini, Gamma Ray, Yngwie Malmsteen, Thin Lizzy, Megadeth and Overkill.
[pullquote]Hard Tension will play at Santa Maria Summer Fest this summer. [/pullquote]Preference; cater to the audience or music for its own sake: We appreciate our audience and we are very grateful for the people who come to see us and listen to our music. But most of all, we do what we believe to make the best music without worrying too much what people think about it.
Greatest Accomplishment: There are several things I feel proud of. Our first EP, the trips we take to play live, but I think the album we are working on now is going to be our greatest accomplishment.
Anything else? We want to thank those of you who take an interest in us.
Want more of Hard Tension? Visit their Facebook, Sound Cloud or listen to their streams here!
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