Doomed Confessionary: Denis Radoncic (Caffeine)
Photos by Daniel Egger
Caffeine is a progressive sludge metal trio from Hanover, Germany featuring Denis Radoncic (bass, lead vocals), Andre Werk (guitars) and Enrico Winkler (drums, vocals).
Caffeine return with a whirlwind of a record that is sure to get you through your day! Their second full-length »The Threshold« takes cues from Mastodon and High On Fire, and artfully mixes them with lo-fi witch house and psychedelic rock. A true experience of metal in its finest form and a high-energy tornado that will have your pupils dilated and your head spinning!
»The Threshold« was released on September 13th, 2024 via The Lasting Dose Records and is available now in CD, vinyl and digital formats.
Can you say a few words about your band?
Our name is CAFFEINE and we’re from Hanover (Hannover) in Germany. We’re a three piece and originate from the hardcore/punk scene. We started in 2016 with the intention of making heavy music. Usually we don’t bother a lot categorising our music but we’re often described as either post-metal, sludge/progmetal, stoner metal, post-hardcore… Anyway the listener chooses. Our first album »Serac« (This Charming Man Records) came out at the end of 2017 and our second album »The Threshold« (The Lasting Dose Records) came out on Friday 13 September 2024.
What was the biggest challenge for the band?
I think our biggest challenge was when our guitar player André left the band. It was right before the start of the pandemic, at the beginning of 2020. Our drummer Rocko and me (Denis/bass & lead vocals) were clueless how to proceed at first. Then Rocko had the idea to ask Sebi who luckily stepped in, at least for a couple of years until André returned at the beginning of last year. The whole time during the pandemic was difficult because everything had changed. It took us until 2023 to play our first show. Before that we recorded a couple of songs which appeared on »The Threshold« together with the new batch of songs we recorded with André after his return. It wasn’t easy but we managed it.
What can you be most proud of so far?
I think our new album is something we’re proud of. I mean pride is an expression I rarely use but in this case there’s something to it I guess. We felt pretty relieved when we got the final mixed & mastered version and also when we fianally held the vinyl in our hands. It was really great for us to see it in it’s physical form and to enjoy the cover artwork for example.
What was your biggest regret?
So far the reviews for our new record were really positive for the most part. Except for the fact, that everybody seems to wish for our album to be longer. So in hindsight we could’ve written and recorded a few more songs. That means that if I or we regret something it would be this. But on the other hand I don’t lose much sleep over it to be honest.
What was the best concert/tour so far and why?
I think our best show was our first show we played together with André after he returned. It was in our hometown in a record store. Objectively speaking it probably wasn’t the best concert we played but I still remember the liberating feeling after such a long time. And the people who came to our show treated us kindly and reacted positively. So that was a good moment.
What was the biggest surprise on the music scene for you?
To see High On Fire return with such a great album. Also a quite sad surprise was when Geordie Walker (the guitar player from Killing Joke) died. That band is kind of a great influence for me and I felt sad although I didn’t know him personally.
What is currently in your heavy musical rotation?
My music taste is all over the place: Anciients (Beyond The Reach Of The Sun), ISON (Inner Space), Crippled Black Phoenix (the older albums until 2019), Depeche Mode (the older stuff mainly from the 80’s), Entombed (Clandestine), Black Flag (Loose Nut), also some good old Sabbath. That’s the stuff I’ve been listening to in the last couple of days.
What was the best advice you’ve ever been given as a musician?
Probably to do something which actually pays off regarding your bills and so on. We all have full-time jobs in order to be able to afford this whole “playing in a band madness”. So far I haven’t found anything similarly fullfilling so I might as well continue doing it for now. When I was younger I haven’t given much thought about learning something proper in order to make a living. I learned that lesson eventually.
Other than that maybe that I should play my instrument on an regular basis.
What are your guilty pleasures?
Eating potato crisps/chips late at night and singing Queen songs under the shower.
Can you say something more about current music scene in Germany?
It is really diverse and difficult to overview properly, at least for me. There is some great stuff, for example GRIN or GIFT with whom we just played together during the past couple of weeks. GRIN is kind of doomy atmospheric stuff (chances are that you know them already anyway) and GIFT which is more a hardcore band in the vein of BOTCH (an influential math-core classic from the 90’s). Jan from GRIN also runs the label (The Lasting Dose Records) where our album was released.
Where can we see you live this year (concerts/tours)?
We were just on the road for two weekends in September. It was not a full tour but that’s all we were able to put together right now. We did shows in Hanover, Bremen, Aurich, Berlin and Jena. We have played together with the aforementioned bands, at least partly.
What are your plans for the future as a band?
We really want to go on tour next year. Driving through parts of Europe other than Germany would be exciting. Slovenia maybe? Also if we have time we want to write new stuff. We already have a couple of ideas. I’m pretty positive that it won’t take 6 years this time. On the other hand we have to tend to our full time jobs so that’s always kind of a downer for me.
How can people best support your band?
If you can afford it, come to our shows and/or buy our merch (records, t-shirts). If not you can of course stream our music and hopefully have a pleasant experience.
Do you have any message for your listeners?
Yes, try to be nice to your fellow humans, at least the ones who treat you respectfully. Hopefully we’ll see each other at one of our shows.
Bojan Bidovc // music enthusiast, promoter, misanthrop and sometimes a journalist as well