Formula Indie Sessions _ Interview with CROMIA
What is your earliest memory connected to music?
Pask: “My childhood and a tiny toy keyboard I was given when I was nine. When you pressed a key, it played a series of little songs.”
Alessandro: “A small accordion I used to play during days spent at my grandparents’ house. I had so much fun with it.”
Alex: “I was 6 years old, and every Sunday at lunchtime there was this famous Italian TV show presenting the top 20 most listened-to songs of the moment. Unmissable!”
How did your passion for creating music begin?
Pask: “When I realized I could recreate those little songs by finding the right notes, the rhythm, the melody. It was like stepping into that world. I started playing by ear, then for a while my parents had me study solfège and piano. I quit at 14 and switched to electric bass as a self-taught player.”
Alessandro: “At the age of 12. I listened to a Blink-182 album and thought: I want to play like that drummer!”
Alex: “I had taught myself a personal style of beatboxing, mimicking the popular songs of the moment. From there, inventing my own was just a step away.”
What’s the story behind your current music project?
Pask: “The need to have a band to explore and experiment with. It wasn’t easy to find one, because many musicians focus on cover bands, which are probably easier to sell in certain environments. I looked for people interested in research, starting from different sensibilities, and fortunately, with Alessandro and Alex, it turned out to be – and still is – a fruitful journey.”
Alessandro: “Finally finding musicians with ideas and imagination, capable of telling stories from deep within, turning emotions into music that represents each of us.”
Alex: “I’ve always looked for travel companions in music who felt the same artistic urgency and wouldn’t feed paranoia. After some failures and after deciding to go solo, I met the right people.”
How would you describe your sound to someone who has never heard your music before?
Pask: “A wall of sound with glimmers of light, slaps and caresses.”
Alessandro: “Bold, roaring, reflective, at times acidic. Something that makes you vibrate inside.”
Alex: “A sound that is melancholic, energetic, and intimate at the same time.”
What is one thing you’ve learned that completely changed the way you make music?
Pask: “Seeking innovation through simplicity.”
Alessandro: “Less is more. Always. You can reach the listener without too many virtuoso moments, but with more soul and character.”
Alex: “Accepting and working on the feedback I receive, without stopping believing in myself.”
What tools, instruments, or software are essential in your creative process?
Pask: “Ableton Lite 10, jazz & precision bass, Telecaster, synthesizer/sequencer.”
Alessandro: “Drumheads, cymbals, pedals, shells, lots of drumsticks, headphones, and a metronome.”
Alex: “Acoustic guitar and voice — the vast majority of the songs I’ve written were born exactly like that.”
Which indie artist or song are you loving right now?
Pask: “None!”
Alessandro: “No new artist has really caught my attention lately. I keep listening to the masters to keep learning new things.”
Alexandro: “Fontaines D.C., Heartworms, King Hannah. Double infinity dei Big Thief”.
How have your personal experiences influenced your music and artistic vision?
Pask: “A lot. I could write a book… It’s something very intimate and personal, and I’d rather not share it.”
Alessandro: “I believe that what comes out when I play is tied to an inner discomfort that arises when you understand how things really work in this world.”
Alex: “Empathy toward people and life itself, which has always been difficult for me to express outwardly.”
What emotions or messages do you hope listeners take from your work?
Pask: “An initial alienation, followed by engagement. A critical message about the mechanisms of our modern world can be found in many of our songs.”
Alessandro: “The desire to resist, fight, rise above, get distracted, connect — with the help of your passions and ideas.”
Alex: “Emotions? All that exist! And the messages? Beyond the message itself, those emotions should spark the desire to react constructively.”
What’s the most important lesson music has taught you so far?
Pask: “Creation is an act of responsibility; it requires seriousness, time, depth, and culture. It is consciousness. Music is not about showing off…”
Alessandro: “It’s the deepest expression of oneself — as with all forms of art.”
Alex: “That interconnectedness and shared emotions can overturn anything.”
What is a dream venue or festival you would love to perform at?
Pask: “Once I would have said the May Day Concert in Rome, or the Neapolis Rock Festival… Today I’d say anywhere people aren’t looking for a ‘rock comfort zone.’”
Alessandro: “Inside the KEXP radio studio in Seattle.”
Alex: “A place? A high-altitude concert in the mountains. A festival? Primavera Sound in Barcelona.”
If you could collaborate with any artist, past or present, who would it be and why?
Pask: “Definitely Franco Battiato for the innovative vision that defined him.”
Alessandro: “Kurt Cobain, to relive the cultural, social, and artistic ferment of that historical period.”
Alex: “Someone from Radiohead or Niccolò Fabi.”
Where can our listeners follow and support your music? (Website,Spotify, IG, links)
For now, by listening to us on streaming platforms (Spotify, Apple Music, Tidal, Qobuz, YouTube Music, Amazon Music, etc.) and on social media — Instagram, Facebook, or TikTok.
Looking toward the future, what’s your dream for the next chapter of your musical journey?
“To find a record label willing to invest in our project and help enhance it. To play live and continue composing with Cromìa.”
What do you hope listeners will discover about you along the way?
“Something they recognize in themselves — something that has always connected and accompanied us all. We hope our music can become the soundtrack to those days when you need an energy boost or a moment of reflection to heal from the overwhelming everyday life.”
If you want here you can add a representative Youtube video to insert below the interview 🙂
We are working on our first two music videos and will soon launch our YouTube channel.
Link
https://www.instagram.com/cromia_band
cromiamusic@gmail.com
