Read an interview with Gbg-based sXe hardcore act Anchor from Bulgarian zine Straight From The Inside talking about the state of hardcore, the importance of veganism/straight-edge and more: https://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendID=136069910&blogID=362887942
Tag: Interviews
MP3: At the Gates - Cold
If it wasn't for At the Gates, It's a Trap! would not exist. They were the very first band I ever heard that I associated with having a distinctive "Swedish" sound and I can still fondly remember the day I brought home "Terminal spirit disease". I must've listened to it at least three times in a row; it was an absolute revelation. When the follow-up album "Slaughter of the soul" came out, I listened to it at least once a day, every day for six months straight. So yeah, when I say that At the Gates changed my life, I'm not exaggerating in the slightest. Taking that into account, I am extremely flattered that AtG guitarist Anders Björler agreed to participate in this week's Göteborg feature.
Would you say there is a particular Gbg sound or attitude? If so, how would you describe it?
Gothenburg stood for melody, while for example the Stockholm sound was more Punk / Rock influenced. However, the Gothenburg bands didn't have that much in common. They all had unique styles.
Was there already an established metal scene in Gbg back when AtG first started? Was there ever a point when you realized that there some something special or distinctive going on or did that only happen once you started to get international attention?
There was no metal scene at all. There was only Grotesque [vocalist Tomas Lindberg's old band with scene vet Kristian Wåhlin aka Necrolord plus fellow AtG founding member Alf Svensson] in the Death Metal scene. A couple of Thrash bands like: Intoxicate, Pagandom, Dead End, Valcyrie, Megaslaughter etc...
We didn't realize how big it was going until after we split up. At the Gates were never a big band. We were basically a very small punk band that played melodic death metal.
How close-knit was the Gbg metal community back in the early 90s? Were there any rivalries?
It was very close. Especially the Billdal scene with bands like Dark Tranquillity, Desecrator (Anders Iwers, now Tiamat, and Oscar Dronjak, now Hammerfall). It was a very creative atmosphere. If there was any competition, it was a silent one. i.e - you tried to create the best music possible.
We all met at eachothers' parties, and we hung out at gigs etc. It was basically a large group of friends.
How do you think the city influenced the sound? Are there any particular artists, labels, zines, venues, etc that stand out as having helped shape the scene?
Dolores records was very important. It was also a record store. Through them I got into Carcass in 1989, the rest is history.
I also think that the Gothenburg weather served as an influence for the sound somehow. It's really melancholic sometimes. Very grey and rainy. I think it's very similar to let's say: Seattle.
Are you still based in Gbg nowadays? If so, what keeps you there? How would say things compare now to the old days?
Me and Martin live in Gothenburg. Adrian lives in London. Tomas lives on the east coast of Sweden. Jonas in the middle of Sweden.
We are all older. We experienced the At the Gates thing when we were kids basically. Everything has changed. The venues are closed down. People have moved or they have quit playing music. Basically what keeps me here is friends and family, but I can almost live anywhere in the world. I don't like to be stuck at one place too long. I have lived in other places in Sweden for a while, but always seem to come back to Gothenburg in the end.
Lastly, do you have a particular song that you think best reflects the city?
Cold :D
HUGE thanks again to Anders for contributing and be sure to check out the various At the Gates reunion gigs happening this summer. Also, keep an eye out for a new record from his current band The Haunted as well!
At the Gates - Cold
Pitchfork is not so impressed by the new El Perro Del Mar record: https://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/record_review/48761-from-the-valley-to-the-stars
Also at Pfork today, an interview with black-metal/industrial artist Henrik Nordvargr Bjorkk (MZ.412, Nordvargr) in the latest "Show No Mercy" column: https://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/feature/48894-column-show-no-mercy
Absolut Noise talks to Rasmus Kellerman of Tiger Lou about his forthcoming record "A partial print": https://absolutnoise.blogspot.com/2008/02/interview-tiger-lou.html
Check out a cranky Pitchfork interview with The Tough Alliance: https://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/feature/47678-interview-the-tough-alliance
Curious to know more about the mysterious Swedish indie label cabal The Swedish Model? I had Martin Lundmark from member label A TenderVersion Recording answer a few questions for me. Read more: [click here]
Pitchfork interviews Robyn: https://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/feature/48760-interview-robyn
MP3: Dieter Schöön - I'll go there
It's Saturday again so that means it's time once again for our weekly series on the music of Göteborg. Our guest: Dieter Schöön.
How long have you lived in Gbg? Where did you move from and why?
Since 92, moved from smaller town called Alingsås about 30 minutes away by car. I moved to join a funkband based in Gbg called The Punk Funk Union.
Do you think that there's a particular Gbg sound?
I don't think there has ever been a particular Gbg-sound, I think it's more like an attitude and vibe around the very purpose of making music that could maybe be described as a Gbg thing, rather than sound.
In my opinion, the main Gbg purpose of making music has always been more about making great music rather than great money or success. This might be cause of the fact that there never really was a big record company operating in Gbg at all; the big ones have always been seated up in Stockholm.
Maybe people are just more serious about music here.
What advantages does living in Gbg offer artists? Disadvantages?
I think the lack of bigger record companies is both good and bad.
If you could pick up and move anywhere else in the world, where would you go?
Köln is a great town! Big river splicing the town up in two parts with four or five big bridges along the river, the terrifying dirty drome wich is covered by creepy sculptures of demons and devils on the surface... Köln is nice I think.
How has the city inspired you? Are there any particular songs of yours that you would say are a direct reflection upon the city?
I think the harbour is a very inspiring place at night with its orange lights and stillness and yes, I think "The harbour's cold" and "I'll go there", both of them are fairly reflective of the city.
Seeing as how I've previously posted "The harbour's cold", here's "I'll go there". Enjoy!
Dieter Schöön - I'll go there
Check out an acoustic performance and interview video featuring Björn Kleinhenz (and Cedarwell): https://yoomee.tv/video/d797041b701412c35d76308bb1e9f1fa
DeadJournalist interviews The Bell: https://deadjournalist.com/interviews/20080217thebell.htm
Lords of Metal interview Swedish hardcore act Meleeh: https://www.lordsofmetal.nl/showinterview.php?id=1980&lang=en
Anoema interviews prolific Norwegian noise artist Lasse Marhaug: https://anoema.com/marhaug.html
Also: read this piece by Lasse at Volcanic Tongue where he discusses a few classic underrated Norwegian records: https://www.volcanictongue.com/?p=239
MP3: Tsukimono - Gloomy Sunday
This week's guest in our ongoing Göteborg spotlight series is Johan Gustavsson. Besides being a triumphant Guitar Hero player (seriously!), he keeps himself very, very busy performing music solo under the alias Tsukimono, as well as playing with groups such as Scraps of Tape, Viktor Sjöberg New Jazz Ensemble, Alina, the new band The VIII Arms Around You and tons more. Keeping track of 'em all is near-impossible. Anyhow, I had questions and he was happy to supply some answers:
How long have you lived in GBG?
I've basically been living here for a year now. The first 6-7 months I kept working in Skåne, the south of Sweden, where I'm from. That meant a lot of driving and more or less living in my car, traveling between 3 different cities all the time. But now I'm here and have been here full time since August 07.
Where did you move from and why?
I moved up here from Malmö for love. I met the greatest person and we decided to try and make it work out together. I was also losing my apartment in Malmö and I needed to get out of the situation I was stuck in at the time. Things have worked out for the better.
Favorite part about the city? Least favorite?
I really like Gbg in general, I like walking in the city even though I do it a lot less than I'd like. I live in Majorna and
there is just a lot of nice things to look at and to take to heart.
Least favourite? The weather... for sure. Windy and rainy... but it's ok.
Do you think that there's a particular Gbg sound? If so, how would you describe it?
Nah, I think what's so good about the music from Gbg is that it's all really diverse. You can find anything here, and most of the time it's pretty damn good too. And with people like Christian Pallin/Koloni around who organizes shows and happenings all year-round, you get pretty spoiled with opportunities to see interesting and odd bands/artists from all over the world.
How would you say the city inspired you?
I've been getting more back into punk and hardcore/metal again... which is great! There's a good scene here.
Started a few new bands, played with great people, met wonderful people with a real desire to do good and who have their
hearts 100% in what they do. It's pretty hard to not get inspired by stuff like that. I've also been getting better at saying no
and to not go everywhere and not do everything. To have the ability to not do things is very liberating.
Is there a particular piece that you've done that you feel was directly influenced by and/or provides a good reflection of the city?
Well, there's also a compilation coming out entitled "Gothenburg 08", which will be released by Fang Bomb... it'll feature me, Viktor Sjöberg, Dead Letters Spell Out Dead Words and many others... the track on there is about Gbg but since it's not released yet I'm not sure that's a good idea.
However, my new album coming out on Kalligrammofon, the "Heart attack money" cd, kinda touches on Gbg a lot too, so let's go for "Gloomy Sunday". It's being mastered this week Henrik Oja (The Spacious Mind, Säkert!) and Jonas Rosén (Female Anchor Of Sade, Asterisk*) so I'm super-psyched to hear the results soon.
Look for the album to receive a proper release soon, but in the meantime, here's the unmastered version of "Gloomy Sunday" to whet your thirst. Highly recommended!
Tsukimono - Gloomy Sunday
Swedish folk artist Jakob Olausson contributes to Dusted's weekly "Listed" feature: https://www.dustedmagazine.com/features/713