Please introduce yourself to our readers?


I'm Bjorn, and I'll be 22 in a couple of months. I work in a recordstore in
Ghent. I sing in THE DEAL, handle the emails, and answer interviews like
this one. What else can I say? I like food, BLACK SABBATH and movies.


When and why did the Deal get together?

We started playing together in the summer of 2000. Some of us had been in
bands together before, and it just so happened that Pedro, Bruno and Chris
needed a bassplayer and singer, so Vince and I stepped in. A couple of
months later we started playing shows and we took it from there. Why? I
guess we all wanted to do an honest, straight forward straight edge hardcore
band, playing the type of music we love. There was no real reason, or any
business plan or whatever... BUILDING was splitting up around the time we
started and there seemed to be no other bands in Belgium who just played raw
old style hardcore, and I guess we were kind of the right band at the right
time.


You are very young Kids. What do you guys do for a living?

I don't know if we're THAT Young... haha. Let me think... I think our ages
vary from 18 tot 22. So as I told you I work in a record store, which is
pretty cool. I can listen to good records all day and it's also very
hardcore related which is cool. Pedro works as a teacher, and also does
secretary work in a school. Vince is doing his last year at the university,
criminology. Pedro and Chris are both studying to become teachers in
physical education. They're the jocks in the band.


Describe your sound for people who never heard something about The Deal
before?

This may seem like an easy question, but it's not that easy to describe your
own band without sounding like an arrogant prick who keeps on going on about
how good his band is. I'll give it a shot anyway. We play raw and pretty
aggressive hardcore, with some melody and moshparts. Some people compare us
to classic youth crew bands like CHAIN OF STRENGTH and MOUTHPIECE, while
others think we sound more like 80's NY bands like CRO-MAGS, JUDGE and
BREAKDOWN. I think people always hear what they want to hear, but these
bands could be an indication.


You released your first 7" / Mcd on SoberMind Records, why do you decided
work something out with this label?

Well most of us have known Hans for quite some time, and as younger kid I
definitely enjoyed some of the records on his label. Anyway after we'd
played a couple of shows I got a call from Hans asking if we'd be interested
in putting something out on his label. It didn't take a lot of thinking for
us to say 'yes'. He's one of the coolest and most dedicated dudes I know,
and always sticks to his guns. At that time SoberMind wasn't really up to
much, and we were kinda planning on putting something out anyway, so it was
a good thing for both of us. It's not the biggest or "coolest" label around,
but Hans works his ass off, despite having to do a day job, and LIAR, and 24
Clothing etc... He's done a good job, and the label is on the move so I hope
the new record will another step forward, for both band and label.


How did the mini tour in England come out for you guys?

Pretty good. Considering that it was our first time over there, and also
considering that we're not a big band at all, I think we did well. We played
4 shows in 3 days, for 50 to 200 people and the reactions were positive. We
sold well, played well and had a good time. It came out like I expected
actually... It was awesome being there and playing shows in the country that
had a big influence on todays music, just think of THE SEX PISTOLS, THE
BEATLES, BLACK SABBATH, MOTORHEAD, THE CLASH, OASIS etc... Plus we had the
chance to play with two awesome bands, being CANAAN, who'll put something
out on SoberMind in the future, and SWORN IN who seriously blew me away.
Look out for their record on Bridge 9/Reflections!


Which Bands have a big influence in your music?

I don't write any of the music. I'm not what you'd call "talented", I can't
play any instruments... I just sing and write lyrics. Most of our songs are
written by Vince and/or Pedro, so I guess it depends on what influences
them, or what they listen to. Which doesn't make sense when I think of it
because all Vince listens to these days is HATEBREED.In general I think it's
fair to say that older bands like JUDGE, CHAIN, CRO-MAGS have influenced us,
and newer bands like FLOORPUNCH, RIGHT BRIGADE and COUNT ME OUT. Something
along those lines I guess.


Can you tell us something about your new songs you're currently working
on?

Sure. We've recorded 6 brandnew songs last week. They'll be out a new 7"/MCD
around april/may... I'm psyched about that because I feel like we've
progressed a lot, and the new songs sound tighter, more varied and they're
more aggressive. Their general pace is a bit faster too. We've been playing
some of them live for some time, like "No Stars In The Sky Tonight" and
"Save Forever", while others will be be completely new to most people's
ears. I think the new record will show a band that has grown into their own
thing, and gotten better at what they do. Well hopefully... I'm dying to
find out what people will think of the new shit. As I'm writing this we just
have to go back and mix the songs, the lay out is done and it looks great.
Title of the record will be "Pretty words, better days".


When is your full Length coming out? Will it be released by Sobermind
too?
I guess the next step would be a full length. I don't know where, when and
how, I don't even know if it will happen. We'll have to wait and see.


What was the last CD/LP you bought?

Actually I took a whole bunch of records home last friday, I can't remember
exactly what it all was, it had the new PENTAGRAM LP, the BLACK REBEL
MOTORCYCLE CLUB LP, a DICTATORS LP I bought second hand, the new FU MANCHU
CD, the new IMMORTAL LP.... I buy a lot of records. More than's good for me,
or my finances. But there's so much good music out there, and if you have a
broad (and good!) taste as I do, you're fucked.


Which interests do you have besides Hardcore?

My life basically revolves aropund the whole music thing in general... it's
my job, and in my spare time I read any magazine I lay my hands on, buy
loads of records and listen to them. There's not much else I do. Hanging out
with my friends, going to the movies. A lot of eating too. I used to be more
into sports, and used to play football and tennis on a regular basis, but
that thing faded throughout the years.


What do you think about the Belgian HC Scene nowadays? Do you personally
think the Hardcore scene is starting to take a downfall? If yes, dose this
reflects you in yours shows and activities?

Belgian hardcore... that's a tough issue. I like it here, and I think the
scene is doing OK, but then again lately it seems like things are going
downhill. The last 3 or so shows we've played in Belgium sucked, mainly
because of the lack of kids at shows. I don't really get it. At whatever
show with big bands like DROPKICK MURPHYS or AGNOSTIC FRONT you'll see so
many people there, but few also still support their loal scene and go out to
see local bands play. A lot of that has to do with the division of the
scene... you'll have the so-called "tuff guys", the "old school" kids (oh
god, how I hate that term), the "emorock" kids... all these stupid factions,
and everyone seems to be stuck in their own little niche. It seems like a
lot of us just go to a select amount of shows and aren't really willing to
open our eyes and respect the efforts made by other kids. I don't want to
sound like RickTaLife or something, but come on... Belgium has had better
and worse days, and I'm sure things will get better some day. These things
always go in cycles... I still go to a lot of shows, and lately it's been
pretty hectic, there's so many good shows all over, the only problem is that
there aren't that many hardcore shows anymore. It's weird. But anyhow, there
still are a bunch of really good bands around here, I'd recommend everyone
to check out bands like KINGPIN, CIRCLE, SEVERANCE, DIEMYDEMON, and well
ofcourse everybody knows LIAR....


What is your favorite cover Song?

We've played a bunch of covers since we started out, and they were all fun
and cool in their own way... but my favourite one now would have to be "One
to two"; the DAG NASTY cover we do. It's a complete change of pace and sound
compared to our own songs, it's a fun song to sing as well, and it's
something else for a change.


Thanks for the interview, any last comment?

Thanks a lot for the interview and your support... keep up the good work. If
anyone wants to contact us, they can email me at thedeal138@hotmail.com. Fairies wear boots. Good night, Bjorn.