真实与虚幻之间的迷宫- 保加利亚Groove / Thrash Metal乐队BrainMaze专访

Volcano Magazine
23 hours ago
14 min read

今天采访到的是来自保加利亚的Groove / Thrash Metal乐队BrainMaze，由Ivan Shishkov一个人在2013年组建的一个人的项目，期初Ivan Shishkov给这个项目取名为Brainmess并且很快创作了十首歌曲，2014年Ivan Shishkov将乐队正式更名为BrainMaze，但是Ivan Shishkov并没有立刻发行作品，直到2025年Ivan Shishkov才发表这支乐队的第一张正式专辑“When Your Demons Come”，一张充满活力，激情的作品让很多喜欢Groove / Thrash Metal风格的歌迷兴奋不已，今年Ivan Shishkov发行了该项目的最新单曲，在新作品发行之际杂志与Ivan Shishkov取得联系进行了一次专访！

（V: 代表笔者 I: 代表Ivan Shishkov）

Today's interview was with the Bulgarian band BrainMaze, a project formed by Ivan Shishkov in 2013. Initially, Ivan Shishkov named the project Brainmess and quickly created ten songs. In 2014, Ivan Shishkov officially renamed the band BrainMaze, but he did not release any works immediately. It was not until 2025 that Ivan Shishkov released the band's first official album "When Your Demons Come", a dynamic and passionate work that excited many fans who love the Groove/Thrash Metal style. This year, Ivan Shishkov released the band's first official album "When Your Demons Come". Kov released the latest single of the project, and on the occasion of the release of the new work, the magazine contacted Ivan Shishkov for an exclusive interview!

(V: On behalf of the author I: On behalf of Ivan Shishkov)

采访对象：Ivan Shishkov（BrainMaze乐队创始人）

采访时间：2026.06.20

V: 你好Ivan很高兴见到你，非常感谢你参加这次采访。我想这是你们乐队第一次接受中国杂志的采访。首先向所有中国歌迷问好。BrainMaze乐队成立于2013年，至今已有13年的历史。最初你将其命名为Brainmess，但直到2014年才将其重命名为现在的名称。你是怎么组建这个乐队的？Brainmaze这个名字是什么意思？你为什么改名？

Hello Ivan, it's nice to meet you and thank you very much for participating in this interview. I think this is the first time your band has been interviewed by a Chinese magazine. First of all, let's say hello to all Chinese fans. BrainMaze band was founded in 2013 and has been around for 13 years. Initially, you named it Brainmess, but it was not until 2014 that it was renamed to its current name. How did you form this band? What does the name Brainmaze mean? Why did you change your name?

I: 大家好，首先，我要感谢你对Brainmaze的兴趣。这实际上是我第一次有幸为中国杂志做采访。我很高兴能够亲自问候Brainmaze的中国粉丝，我很高兴这是通过你们的杂志发生的。Brainmess项目自2013年以来一直存在。它始于我家音乐工作室里的几个歌曲创意。最初，该项目的工作名称是Brainmess。在2-3个月内，这些想法形成了10首歌曲。就在那时，歌曲的概念诞生了——当我们独自一人时，萦绕在我们心头的恶魔。我是一名摄影师，正是在那时，我为专辑封面拍摄了这张照片。大约在那个时候（2014年），我还把这个项目的名字改成了Brainmaze——一个迷宫，而不是一团糟。徘徊在两个世界之间——真实和虚幻。寻找生存的道路和方法。每首歌都以一个特定的恶魔命名——恐惧、恶意。.. 十年的试听，歌词和声乐紧随其后。我白天工作很忙，业余时间也在做这张专辑。音乐是我生活的一部分，但作为一种爱好。2023年年中，我开始着手发行专辑“When Your Demons Come”。这通常是午夜后的工作。我和来自世界各地的音乐家一起录制了整张专辑。这是这个项目最有趣的部分——与来自不同国家的不同的人一起工作，通过他们喜欢的音乐团结起来。所有的原始录音都会出现在我面前，听完后，有些部分会被重新录制。录制过程花了将近一年的时间。录制完成后，所有材料被送往乌克兰的混音工作室，然后送往美国的母带制作工作室。最困难的部分是管理这个项目。我和两个团队一起工作。一个是录音，另一个是朋友，他们用新的耳朵和反馈帮助我。好消息是，我清楚地知道我想要实现什么以及如何实现它。

Hello, first of all, I’d like to thank you for your interest in Brainmaze. This is actually the first time I’ve had the pleasure of doing an interview for a Chinese magazine. I’m happy to be able to personally greet Brainmaze’s Chinese fans, and I’m glad this is happening through your magazine. The Brainmess project has been around since 2013. It started with couple song ideas in my home music studio. Initially, the project had the working title Brainmess. Within 2–3 months, the ideas took shape into 10 songs. That’s when the concept for the songs was born — the demons that haunt us when we’re left alone with ourselves. I’m a photographer, and that’s when I took the photo for the album cover. Around that time (2014), I also changed the project’s name to Brainmaze — a labyrinth, not a mess. Wandering between two worlds — the real and the unreal. The search for a path and a way to survive. Each song is named after a specific demon — Fear, Spite... Ten years of testing sound, arrangements... lyrics and vocal lines followed. I’m a pretty busy in my daytime job and worked on the album in my spare time. Music is part of my life, but as a hobby. In mid-2023, I began working on the release of the album When your demons come. This was usually work after midnight. I recorded the entire album with session musicians from all over the world. That’s the most interesting part of this project — working with different people, from different countries united by music they like. All the raw recordings would come to me, and after listening, some parts were re-recorded. The recording process took almost a year. After recording, all the material was sent to a mixing studio in Ukraine, and then to a mastering studio in the U.S. The hardest part was managing this project. I worked with two teams. One for the sound recording, and the other — friends who helped me with a fresh ear and feedback. The good thing was that I had a clear idea of what I wanted to achieve and how to make it happen.

V: 你是乐队里唯一的一个，所以你根据自己的想法创作歌曲会更方便。你能介绍一下你的创作过程吗？

You are the only one in the band, so it will be more convenient for you to create songs according to your own ideas. Can you introduce your creative process?

I: 是的，整个创作过程都是我自己完成的。这一切都始于一段精彩的即兴重复段——令人难忘且简洁明了。说到歌曲，我不担心节奏、演奏技巧、琴键或和弦。音乐正是我脑海中所想的。我只是给了我的思想形式和声音。我甚至不担心风格。我仍然不能很好地定义我的音乐风格。一旦我准备好了歌曲的音乐部分，就到了歌词的时候了。我在闲暇时听了所有的歌曲并根据它们给我的感觉给它们起了名字。然后我开始写歌词和歌词。我希望声乐线条也能朗朗上口，与众不同。

Yes, the entire creative process was done on my own. It all started with a good riff — memorable and clean. When it came to the songs, I didn’t worry about tempo, playing technique, keys, or chords. The music is exactly what was in my head. I simply gave my thoughts form and sound. I didn’t even worry about styles. I still can’t quite define the style of my music. Once I had the musical part of the songs ready, it was time for the lyrics. I listened to all the songs at my leisure and gave them titles based on how they made me feel. Then I started writing the lyrics and vocal lines. I wanted the vocal lines to be catchy and distinctive as well.

V: 你的专辑录音效果很好。你在哪个录音室录制了这张专辑？哪位制作人为你制作了这张专辑？这张专辑的录制过程顺利吗？

Your album has excellent recording effects. Which studio did you record the album in? Which producer made the album for you? Did the recording process of this album go smoothly?

I: 录音过程进展如何？这真的很有趣。很高兴与积极的人和有才华的音乐家一起工作。现在是时候提到我的所有同事了。

RRob Davies /UK/ – vocals

Ramon Martinez /Venezuela/ – rhythm and lead guitars

German Maldonado /Argentina/ – guitars solos: Despair, Uncertainty & Envy

Fabian Carrion Troya /Ecuador/ – midi drums

David Mendez /Argentina/ – acoustic drums

我给每个音乐家发了一首我录制的参考曲目，然后他们会专业地录制。我是一名贝斯手，所以我不可能把所有的乐器都录好。每个音乐家都把他们的录音发给了我。换句话说，我们没有与特定的录音室合作；每个人都在家录制。在我们录制完整张专辑后，我将所有材料发送给Ilarion Ivanenko（乌克兰）进行编辑和混音。Ilarion和我工作了大约一个月，以获得正确的声音。我很高兴你喜欢这个声音。这很独特，不是吗？这听起来有点生涩，但对我来说，这是令人难忘的。现在，在音乐市场上，所有的金属唱片都非常精致，听起来几乎一样。在Ilarion的工作室工作之后，混音被送到Colin Davis（美国Imperial Mastering）进行母带制作。Colin对专辑进行了最后的润色。

How did the recording process go? It was really, really interesting and fun. It’s a pleasure to work with positive people and talented musicians. Now is the time to mention all my colleagues.

Rob Davies /UK/ – vocals

Ramon Martinez /Venezuela/ – rhythm and lead guitars

German Maldonado /Argentina/ – guitars solos: Despair, Uncertainty & Envy

Fabian Carrion Troya /Ecuador/ – midi drums

David Mendez /Argentina/ – acoustic drums

I sent each musician a reference track I had recorded, which they would then record professionally. I’m a bass guitarist, so there was no way I could record all the instruments well. Each musician sent their recordings back to me. In other words, we didn’t work with a specific recording studio; everyone recorded at home. After we recorded the entire album, I sent all the material to Ilarion Ivanenko (Ukraine) for editing and mixing. Ilarion and I worked for about a month to get the right sound. I’m glad you like the sound. It’s pretty unique, isn’t it? It sounds a bit raw, but to me it’s memorable. Right now, on the music market, all metal releases are very polished and sound pretty much the same. After Ilarion’s studio work, the mix was sent to Colin Davis (Imperial Mastering, USA) for mastering. Colin put the finishing touches on the album.

V: 恐惧、恶意、绝望是你的音乐主题。你为什么选择这个音乐主题？你想通过这个音乐主题表达什么？你还创建了歌词部分。是什么启发了这些歌词？

Fear, Spite, Despair are your music themes. Why did you choose this music theme? What do you want to express through this music theme? You also created the lyrics section. What inspired these lyrics?

I: 正如我所说，音乐和编曲已经准备好很长时间了。歌词是最难的部分。我会说英语，但歌词仍然是一个相当复杂的“黑匣子”。“Fear”早在2013年就已经准备好作为歌词了。这首歌是概念专辑中的第一首，歌词必须向听众介绍将在其他歌曲中展开的想法。一开始，朋友和熟人轻轻推了我一下，直到缪斯女神在接下来的歌曲中打动了我。最难的歌词是“Envy”。我写“Uncertainty”的歌词写得最快。主题：困扰我们、抓住我们和/或我们设法击败的恶魔。这是最重要的事情——能够识别恶魔，反抗他们，打败他们。我的音乐是金属的，还有什么比恶魔更合适的呢？

As I said, the music and arrangements had been ready for a long time. The lyrics were the hardest part. I speak English, but lyrics are still quite a complex “black box.” “Fear” was ready as a lyric back in 2013. This song was the first on the concept album, and the lyrics had to introduce the listener to the idea that would unfold in the other songs. Friends and acquaintances gave me a nudge at the beginning until the muse struck me for the rest of the songs. The hardest lyrics were for “Envy.” I wrote the lyrics for “Uncertainty” the fastest. The theme: Demons that haunt us, take hold of us, and/or that we manage to defeat. And that’s the most important thing — being able to recognize the demons, stand up to them, and defeat them. My music is metal, and what could be more fitting than demons?

V: 你的专辑是你自己发行的数字版。你有没有考虑过发行实体专辑版本？你目前是否联系过任何厂牌讨论合作事宜？

Your album is a digital version released by yourself. Have you considered releasing a physical album version? Have you currently contacted any label to discuss cooperation?

I: 整个项目一开始只是一种爱好。我想听听我脑海里已经有一段时间了的音乐。我甚至没想到会有人对它感兴趣。我想制作50张CD送给朋友。当这张专辑完成时，听起来真的很好。我把它上传到流媒体平台，反馈和评论让我感到惊讶。它出现在世界各地的博客、杂志和广播中。也有人对厂牌交易感兴趣，但我决定只以数字形式发布并提供免费下载和提示选项。也就是说，任何喜欢它的人都可以选择支持该项目。

The whole project started out as a hobby. I wanted to hear the music that had been in my head for quite some time. I didn’t even think there would be any interest in it. I wanted to make 50 CDs to give to friends. When the album was finished, it sounded really good. I uploaded it to streaming platforms, and the feedback and reviews surprised me. It was featured in blogs, magazines, and on the radio from all over the world. There was also interest in label deals, but I decided to release it only digitally for free download with a tip option. That is, anyone who likes it has the option to support the project.

V: 首先，祝贺你今年发行了第一张官方专辑"When Your Demons Come"。你的作品充满活力，这与Groove的元素密切相关。当然，你的作品也充满了Thrash的激情、激情的Riff和朗朗上口的旋律，让粉丝们很容易记住你的作品。你对自己的作品有什么看法？

First of all, congratulations on the release of your first official album "When Your Demons Come" this year. Your work is full of vitality, which is closely related to the elements of Groove. Of course, your work is also full of Thrash passion, passionate Riff, and catchy melodies, making it easy for fans to remember your work. What is your opinion on your own work?

I: 非常感谢。我很高兴你喜欢我的音乐。这对我来说意义重大。在花了这么长时间等待、激动、工作到午夜并处理了所有这些情绪之后，有人欣赏这个结果真是太棒了。你甚至无法想象我有多喜欢听这张专辑。最棒的是我喜欢我所有的歌。我没有特别喜欢的。我的目标是让每首歌都与众不同，但以一种共同的风格团结起来。事实上，所有的音乐都是用低音吉他创作的，即使没有精湛的部分，它也有自己的魅力和风格。我为这张专辑感到非常自豪，我成功地完成了这样一个困难的项目。这张专辑是10年前创作的，但在2026年4月，我发行了一首全新的单曲——梦魇与现实。听听！我想你也会喜欢的。它延续了“当你的恶魔来了”的传统。整个录音团队几乎和专辑上的一样。唯一的新音乐家是Fabio Alessandrini（意大利）。母带制作由Mika Jussila（芬兰Finnvox工作室）完成。这首歌很有趣。

Thank you. I’m glad you like my music. That really means a lot to me. After so much time spent waiting, getting excited, working past midnight, and dealing with all those emotions, it’s truly wonderful to have someone appreciate the result. You can’t even imagine how much I enjoy listening to this album. The great thing is that I like all my songs. I don’t have any specific favorites. I aimed to make each song different, yet united by a common style. The fact that all the music was composed on the bass guitar comes through, and even without virtuoso parts, it has its own charm and style. I’m very proud of the album and that I managed to pull off such a difficult project. The album was composed 10 years ago, but in April 2026 I released a brand-new single — Nightmare & Reality. Give it a listen! I think you’ll like it too. It continues the "When Your Demons Come" tradition. The entire recording team is almost the same as on the album. The only new musician is Fabio Alessandrini (Italy) on acoustic drums. The mastering was done by Mika Jussila (Finnvox Studios, Finland). The song is quite interesting.

V: 保加利亚也有许多金属乐队。我曾关注过你们国家的一些乐队，但我想通过你们更多地了解正宗的保加利亚金属氛围。你能介绍一下你们国家的气氛吗？例如音乐节？哪些乐队值得推荐给这位粉丝？

Bulgaria also has many metal bands. I have followed some bands in your country, but I would like to learn more about the authentic Bulgarian metal atmosphere through you. Can you introduce the atmosphere in your country? For example, a music festival? Which bands are worth recommending to this fan?

I: 是的，保加利亚有很多金属乐队。最近发表了一篇文章，列出了600个保加利亚金属乐队。我也不知道确切的数字。他们中的一些人用英语唱歌，而另一些人用保加利亚语唱歌。就我个人而言，我喜欢Odd Crew和I.V.R.项目。在过去的30年里，保加利亚已成为Rock和Metal之地。我们有很多节日，包括国际节日。许多世界上最大的乐队都是我们当地的一部分。Hills of Rock是最大的节日。故事发生在我的家乡普罗夫迪夫。

Yes, there are a lot of metal bands in Bulgaria. An article was recently published listing 600 Bulgarian metal bands. I didn’t know the exact number either. Some of them sing in English, while others sing in Bulgarian. Personally, I like Odd Crew and I.V.R. Project. Over the past 30 years, Bulgaria has become the land of rock and metal. We have many festivals, including international ones. Many of the world’s biggest bands are part of our local scene. Hills of Rock is the biggest festival. It takes place in my hometown of Plovdiv.

V: 哪些乐队对你有影响？你能列出一些你最喜欢的乐队吗？

What bands have influenced you? Can you list some of your favorite bands?

I: 它们有很多，但最重要的是：Deep Purple, Black Sabbat, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Saxon, Pantera, Metallica, Slayer, Megadeath。...我想你真的能感受到我专辑中所有这些伟大乐队的影响。

There are so many of them, but the most important ones are: Deep Purple, Black Sabbat, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Saxon, Pantera, Metallica, Slayer, Megadeath.... I think you can really feel the influence of all those great bands in my album.

虽然你是一支年轻的乐队，但你的作品成熟稳重。我会一直关注你的乐队，希望通过这次采访，更多的中国歌迷会关注和支持你的乐队。采访即将结束。最后你有什么要对你的粉丝和朋友说的吗？

Although you are a young band, your works are mature and steady. I will always pay attention to your band and hope that through this interview, more Chinese fans will follow and support your band. The interview is coming to an end. Do you have anything to say to your fans and friends at the end?

I: 感谢你对我作品的欣赏。我很高兴有一本中国杂志对我的作品感兴趣。欢迎你的读者下载概念专辑"When Your Demons Come"。关于Brainmaze的所有信息都可以在官方网站上找到。https://www.brainmaze.eu/ 如果他们喜欢我的音乐，你的读者可以支持这个项目和我未来的歌曲。我很高兴能成为你们杂志的一员，我希望在未来能用更好的歌曲和专辑来取悦你们。谢谢你们，我只希望你们有快乐的时刻，心中有更多的金属。

Thank you for your appreciation of my work. I’m truly delighted that a Chinese magazine has taken an interest in my work. Your readers are welcome to download the concept album "When Your Demons Come". All information about Brainmaze can be found on the official website. https://www.brainmaze.eu/ If they like my music, your readers can support the project and my future songs. I’m glad to have been a part of your magazine, and I hope to delight you with even better songs and albums in the future. Thank you, and I wish you nothing but happy moments and more metal in your hearts.