Am 6. Mai war Gitarrist Olaf Thorsen von Vision Divine live zu Gast im Speak Of The Devil-Podcast, der regelmäßig auf Metal.it von Gianluca Grazioli, Elio Bordi und Francesco Bucci moderiert wird. Thorsen sprach über den kürzlichen Ausstieg des Keyboarders Alessio Lucatti, dessen Abgang ursprünglich in einem Facebook-Post bekannt gegeben wurde und der unter Fans sowie Branchen-Insidern für erhebliche Kontroversen sorgte.
Den Stream zur 20. Podcast-Folge von Speak Of The Devil könnt ihr euch hier ansehen:
Um die Situation zu klären, äußerte Thorsen mehrere offene Statements, die sich schnell in den sozialen Medien verbreiteten: „Dirty laundry should be dealt with privately, but I believe it’s my duty to answer the fans and media. In this case, only a madman would think I’ve coldly orchestrated everything to the detriment of others. Sometimes, dynamics evolve beyond the will of any one person.“
Ausgehend von den Herausforderungen, die die Kommunikation über soziale Medien mit sich bringt, bot das Gründungsmitglied der Band einen umfassenden Einblick in die Situation: „I posted a personal message on Facebook that, in my view, highlights all the flaws of social media. I summarized a reality that has existed since 1998. That post contains everything needed to understand the current scenario, but evidently, it wasn’t fully understood. While I bear responsibility for this band and everything passes through me, not everything starts with me. In this case, I acted to resolve a situation that has persisted for two years, long before Michele Luppi’s return.“
Sänger Michele Luppi, der kürzlich zur Band zurückgekehrt ist, wurde im Internet heftig kritisiert: „What happened is no different from what happens in dozens of other bands: a group needs to realign after a vocalist departs, and when a historic member returns, old issues resurface. I didn’t want to choose between two people with personal conflicts that had nothing to do with me or the band. However, with contracts signed and commitments to honor, I was forced to choose, either dissolve the group or move forward.“
Thorsen betonte, dass die Entscheidung nicht leichtfertig getroffen wurde: „This wasn’t something we decided overnight. We’ve been discussing it for months. Personally and professionally, I preferred to stay quiet and try to understand the situation. There’s a major misconception about Michele Luppi: he didn’t ask to return to the band or to replace anyone. We asked him to come back, and the entire band was on board.“
Zur internen Band-Dynamik fuhr Thorsen fort: „I can’t give any definitive news on the future line-up just yet, though updates will come soon, but it’s clear that the past few years have been incredibly tough for the band. I can’t tolerate a toxic environment within my group. Despite having just released a new album, I had to cancel and reschedule several confirmed shows. There’s no time to dwell in situations like this. Fabio Lione, for whom I have the utmost respect, was never going to prioritize Vision Divine again, while Michele Luppi assured us of a much deeper level of commitment.“
In einer aktuellen Stellungnahme hat Olaf Thorsen die Diskussion über die Entstehung von Stream Of Consciousness und die Gerüchte um ein Comeback der „klassischen Besetzung“ klargestellt.
Er betonte: „There’s not much to say about Stream Of Consciousness, just check the album booklets and SIAE records. It’s easy to verify who wrote what. Yes, there are demos featuring Lione’s vocal lines, just four tracks, but Luppi’s contribution to the rest of the album is just as evident. The music was written entirely by me and Oleg Smirnoff. The concept was mine. At that point, the band was basically new, after I had left Labyrinth. Claiming that Lione wrote that record is offensive to me, to Oleg, and to Luppi, who was very young at the time and took on a massive responsibility.“
Während die Spekulationen darüber zunehmen, ob Alessio Lucatti in einer kommenden Podcast-Folge eine Antwort geben wird, konzentriert sich Olaf Thorsen weiterhin auf die Zukunft von Vision Divine: „We’ve just confirmed more tour dates around the world, and you’ll be hearing brand-new material with Michele Luppi on vocals later this year, guaranteed!“
Vision Divine online:
https://linktr.ee/speakofthedevilshow