Rock Monsters Romania

What band would be perfect on a Friday night at a festival, after a long week? Probably byron, alongside Classix Quartet, and Rocanotherworld is the place to see them live this week, on the 20th of June!

byron is a rock band with wide-ranging influences, formed in 2006. Since then, they’ve released eight studio albums, three filmed concerts, and three vinyl records. They’re just as comfortable delivering powerful electric sets on large festival stages as they are performing acoustically or alongside a string quartet or symphony orchestra.

Among their standout moments: a concert filmed 100 meters underground in the Turda Salt Mine, broadcast by HBO Romania; an original soundtrack composed for an HBO series; and the Electric Marching Band performance at the National Theatre in Cluj, featuring a military brass band and a student choir. This was followed by Eternal Return, recorded in high resolution at Windmill Lane Studios in Dublin and mastered at Abbey Road Studios in London.

In 2019, they released nouă, their first album entirely in Romanian, an introspective record about identity, collective memory, and the quiet tensions of everyday life. Their latest work, efemeride, launched at the end of 2023 with a national tour, is a raw and poetic collection of the conversations we avoid and the truths we find in the mirror.

We talked with Sergiu Mitrofan about their upcoming Rocanotherworld set, as well as about the band and their preferences, in an exclusive interview.

Before we get into shows, vinyl, and all the exciting stuff, how have you been lately? What’s been keeping you going or inspired these days, whether it’s music-related or just life in general?

Well, we’re entering festival season, so it’s gonna be very busy for us these months. I’m not spilling all the beans, but we’re going to be working hard to prepare some new stuff for you, especially in the autumn. Dan is hard at work on symphonic arrangements, it’s gonna be AWESOME, can’t wait!

Other than that, I’m enjoying Rick and Morty’s latest season and have just finished Clair Obscur – Expedition 33, which is a gem of a game. We’re all kids at heart, us unemployed people!

You’ve recently released Eternal Return on vinyl and I have to ask you which one do you prefer: live, streaming, CD, or vinyl. Why?

We’re divided on this one, but we can all agree that Eternal Return is not an album to be listened on shuffle. It has been carefully crafted to be a cyclic suite of songs, and it’s probably best listened on CD, but the ultimate experience is, of course, the 45rpm high-quality double LP vinyl, just cause it’s so big and nice.

Most members of the band are vinyl heads, I guess I’m the only old guy who’s gotten too tortured with crackling and popping discs all childhood to still appreciate the perfection of CDs a little more, but your mileage may vary.

Your next live show will be at Rocanotherworld this year with Classix Quartet. From a band’s point of view, is it harder to repeat with a quartet, and what differs the most from a “normal” acoustic or electric concert?

Yes and no. We’ve had the luck and privilege to play alongside a strings quartet for quite a number of shows and we enjoy it as much as the audience or maybe more. It’s a more challenging experience, of course, but it’s worth it. It adds another dimension to our music, and it somehow connects the heavy electric part with the very soft acoustic side of byron. I love the dynamics.

How does this show feel in comparison with a full orchestra? And does this help in any way to prepare your concert on the 4th of November from Sala Palatului?

It’s quite a different beast. We get to play heavier than what a symphonic concert means. However, what we are preparing in November at Sala Palatului will be very special too, with an extremely large orchestra and very complex arrangements, but a very different experience compared to what we’re gonna play at Rocanotherworld. I am happy that we get to have many different sides to our band, we never have time to get bored. We have symphonic stuff, quartet, electric, acoustic, duo gigs, we’re trying many things.

You’re one of the bands that are returning to the fest. What was the best memory from the festival, and what makes Rocanotherworld so special?

We’ve been lucky to play Rocanotherworld for many years, I remember fondly the first one on the ski slope and the crowd stretching to the horizon. Good times.

Also, sliding into the water ditch behind the stage. Funny times.

This is also the 10th anniversary edition of the festival, and you are a band that has played multiple shows at Rocanotherworld. Do you have a special message for the organizers?

This has become an important festival, it started from a dream and it grew every year. I’m happy we’ve been friends along the way. Cheers and keep on getting bigger and keeping Roca’s memory alive!

What is your message for the people who are coming to your set at Rocanotherworld and are reading this interview?

Thanks for supporting us for so many years and see you on stage! Don’t worry, we’re not going soft.

Tickets and multi-day passes are still available on the official website (www.rocanotherworld.com), so don’t miss the opportunity to see your favourite bands live!

Interview by Radu Mihai and Ionela Pleșan