Text and interview by Matheus Jacques
As we mentioned here, the Bahian festival Dopesmoke arrives in 2021 for its third edition, the first in digital format. Based in Feira de Santana, Bahia, the production company Dopesmoke Heavy Music Productions has been working since 2017 to promote the independent music scene.
Today, the production company is responsible for the festival and also acts as a label, gradually establishing itself in the national metal circuit and undeniably making its mark, having included bands such as Brujeria , Pesta , The Mist and Ratos de Porão in past years during the first two editions of its festival.
This year, the festival will have its first online edition from April 28th to May 2nd due to the pandemic, and I spoke a little about it with Joílson Santos , musician, cultural promoter and member of Dopesmoke. Check out the full interview below and click here to follow the event.
Wikimetal: Thank you for your time and attention. I would like you to tell us a little about your journey and participation in the Bahian underground scene, and about the areas in which you have been active throughout your career.
Joílson Santos: Hello, I would like to thank you for the opportunity. I have been working here in Feira de Santana for over 15 years producing shows and events related to independent music. I have been producing the Feira Noise Festival since 2009, and in 2017, together with some partners, we created Dopesmoke Heavy Music Productions, a collective focused on producing heavy music events but also acting as a label. In 2019, we decided to hold the first edition of the festival in February, and in the same year, we held a second edition in November with Brujeria and The Mist as headliners.
WM: Dopesmoke HMP has been establishing itself as a strong brand in the Northeast of Brazil, especially in Bahia, operating both in record releases as a label and in event organization, with the popular Dopesmoke Festival consolidating its position edition after edition. When did the concept and idea for the festival originate? Did the label segment or the event production company come first?
JS: The event production company came first. We were already producing a series of events with bands that were touring the state and bands from the region. We've produced shows for bands like Nervochaos, Torture Squad, Mystifier, Drearylands, among others, and we also held an event more focused on Doom Metal called Haze of Doom, which, in its first edition, was marked by the presence of the legendary The Cross, a fundamental Doom Metal band in Brazil that was resuming activities at the time.
The idea for the festival came later; we were having a lot of difficulties with smaller events and consistently small audiences. There's been a decline in audience numbers at shows for some time now, and the idea of creating a festival was to boost these events, expand and renew the audience, and also take advantage of Feira de Santana's characteristic as a road junction, an obligatory stop for touring bands, and also to establish the city's name on the map of national and international tours planned for the Northeast region. The festival's concept is directly linked to the concept of the label/production company, which is to promote this Brazilian and Bahian heavy music scene through shows, as well as to be a space for connecting the scenes, bringing together specialized press, bands, audiences, labels, and so on. It's a long road ahead, but with three editions we've taken good steps in that direction.
WM: As a cultural promoter and musician, how have you observed the music and events scene in your state, in terms of organization, growth, and recognition? Do you believe that Dopesmoke is properly integrated into the rest of the circuit in the region and establishing a recognized and valued path?
JS: In the Dopesmoke format, which is more focused on metal, we have several events happening, but I would mention two that take place in the interior of Bahia: Ruídos no Sertão in Poções/BA, a festival that has already had several editions and has grown a lot, in addition to being an event recognized for its organization and for offering excellent structure for the bands; the other is Jequihell Fest in Jequié. Besides these more segmented events, we have many others with more diverse programming, focused on original and independent music, encompassing various styles but also making room for rock/metal. All of them continue to consolidate despite the difficulties, such as the one I organize here, Feira Noise Festival, which has been happening for 10 years, as well as the Big Bands Festival in Salvador, Suiça Bahiana in Vitória da Conquista, and Ressonar in Lençóis. These festivals are fundamental to boosting the music scene throughout the state, and there is still a lack of care and concern from public policies to ensure that these events occur annually and continue to exist and promote this network of connections. Because a festival, in addition to promoting shows, boosts a city's economy, connects producers, artists, and audiences, generates temporary jobs and income, creates training opportunities, promotes circulation, and ensures the flow of diverse cultural products.
WM: Tell me a little about this current edition, which is the first online edition due to the pandemic. We have a strong, entirely local lineup, with seminal names like Headhunter DC and Mystifier. What were the main criteria for selecting the bands, and what are your expectations for this format, so far removed from the festival's usual reality?
JS: At the beginning of 2020, we were already planning the in-person edition, which would have been the 3rd edition, when we were surprised by all this chaos and even had to cancel 2 events planned for the first semester. When the idea of doing it online came up, we thought of this format of a show with the structure for the bands to perform live. Some festivals that took place online had this thing of presenting a music video, a few songs, so to differentiate ourselves from them we thought of this 40-minute show for each band. The idea of this edition was to celebrate heavy music made in Bahia, hence the title "Metal com Dendê" (Metal with Palm Oil). We invited bands that already had a history in the scene, some released material, and that were active. Several important names were left out for a number of reasons, almost all related to the pandemic context, but I believe we managed to put together a program that will fulfill the festival's role, which is to bring a snapshot of how the Bahian scene is currently.
WM: The festival will also feature some activities outside of music, right? Tell us a little about that part, what will be happening besides the band performances?
JS: So, as I mentioned earlier, I believe that festivals can contribute to the scene in other ways, and one of them is through training opportunities. We managed to prepare a photography workshop focused on concerts, which offers a series of tips and information for photographers with a high-level professional, Duane Carvalho. In addition to the workshop, we will have two discussion spaces: one that will discuss and point out solutions for producing music in the interior of Bahia, as well as evaluate the entire context of the pandemic and think about the future of the scene; the other space will discuss the importance of festivals for the dissemination and support of the underground scene.
WM: Thank you for your attention, and please leave your final message here, your expectations regarding our entire situation and the future of in-person events and festivals. Best of luck to the festival!
JS: I am extremely grateful for the opportunity. We continue working in the best way possible and hoping that the vaccine will soon reach the entire population. The future of an entire production chain operating in the cultural sector depends heavily on this. I believe that it's impossible to resume in-person festival activities without it being 100% safe for the staff, bands, and audience, and that's why we continue to hope for the vaccine's arrival!
