Doomed Confessionary: Hash, Larry, Hara & Adi (Vandaal)
Photos by Anna Popa
Vandaal is a stoner/grunge/alternative rock band hailing from Bucharest, Romania.
Inspired by the mind-bending sound of the 70s and the loud and angry music of the 90s, Vandaal wants to bring back the dirty sound of fuzz pedals, heavy bass lines and ear piercing drums, but with a psychedelic twist.
Following their debut EP »Fear And Loathing In The East« from 2023, the band released new single »Paranoia« on August 22nd, 2024. Recorded, mixed and mastered by Mihnea Ferezan (RoadkillSoda, King Solomon) at Roadkill Studios.
Vandaal are Alexandru Hasovschi on vocals, Laurentiu Tarus on guitar, Alexandru Haratau on drums and Ionut Nedelcu on bass.
Can you say a few words about your band?
Vandaal is a band formed in 2022 in Bucharest, Romania, from the ruins of an old alternative project.
Its a mix between stoner, grunge, sludge, core, alternative and many others. There are no genre barriers, there’s twist and twirls, ‘cuz our music has a strong personality. It’s like an only child.
We started our activity with the launch of »Fear And Loathing In The East«, our debut EP.
Until today we played around 30 concerts and festivals in Romania and we shared the stage with international bands like Lazarvs, Unida, Nightstalker and Phil Campbell.
What was the biggest challenge for the band?
Unity and communication were a challenge in the early days of the band, we had line-up changes. In the end, fortunately, everything lead to a better understanding of each other.
Another challenge was putting togheter a national tour, completely self sustained, and diy.
What can you be most proud of so far?
Beside this interview, well… it’s the community we formed with other bands from the local scene and the fabulous people who re supporting us.
What was your biggest regret?
We would’ve liked to drop more music. We have songs in our portofolio that are not launched.
What was the best concert/tour so far and why?
We can say it is our first tour – “Fear And Loathing In Romania”. 8 different cities spread across Romania. Completely DYI – no manager, no social media specialist, no booking agent, no label. Support from local underground bands. A real success for us and an experience we will remember for life.
What was the biggest surprise on the music scene for you?
In Romania the scene is pretty divided, even if everyone talks about unity. We are offering genuine connections and mutual help, let’s hope that laws of attractions can pick it up from there.
What is currently in your heavy musical rotation?
Hash: Paleface Swiss – Love Burns
Larry: Lazarvs – Methusalem
Hara: Trash Boat – Heaven Can Wait
Adi: E-an-na – Nesfarsit
What was the best advice you’ve ever been given as a musician?
Be professional, even if you are a small band, act like a big one, on a professional level.
What are your guilty pleasures?
Analog gear, shawarma, irish whiskey, english premier league and weed
Can you say something more about current music scene in Bucharest / Romania?
Right now there’s a revival of the rock music scene, because there are a lot of new bands coming out and many of them are really fucking great.
Romania has a lot of cool bands displaying all sorts of genres. Some are doing it for fun, others try to make a living out of it.
When it comes to listening habits, rock or metal is not as popular as it was 10-15 years ago. The international trends and a big footprint of Balkan tradition guided consumers to rap/trap music and manele (Romanian turbofolk).
Where can we see you live soon (concerts/tours)?
We ve just finished our first tour, most probably will go for a second one in 2025 and we’ll try to hit some of our local festivals this summer. Our priority, though, is to create and drop more music this year.
What are your plans for the future as a band?
Stay consistent, tour a lot (we aim for an EU tour or maybe US if the Visa and the people are friendly with us) and create more music. We want to evolve and chase that fucking dream.
How can people best support your band?
If our sound and message is close to their beliefs they already know what to do.
People outside Romania can support us by buying our music on Bandcamp, Apple Music or other streaming platforms. Others who are closer to or living in Romania can come to our shows, it means everything to us.
Do you have any message for your listeners?
Keep on supporting what you love and don’t be afraid to get closer.
Bojan Bidovc // music enthusiast, promoter, misanthrop and sometimes a journalist as well