DISMEMBER


Dismember are a decent Death metal band and the guys from Sweden recently have released a new album called “Where Ironcrosses Grow”. Matti Karki is the vocalist of the band and answers to the questions of Behind the Veil.


1.YOU HAVE RECENTLY RELEASED YOURNEW ALBUM “WHERE IRONCROSSES GROW”, CAN YOU TELL ME SOMETHING ABOUT THE“SOUND” OF THIS ALBUM? WHAT CAN EXPECT A METAL FAN FROM THIS ALBUM?
  • Its not very different from the previous one, you can say it’s a back to the old school of Death Metal/ The fans can expect rough music, some solos and great enthousiasm.
2.WHY DID YOU CHOOSE THIS  ASA TITTLE, WHERE IS IT REFERRING TO? ARE THERE POLITICAL REFERENCES TO THIS ALBUM?
  • There are not political referencies about this album. We avoid writing political songs. The Tittle refers to Battlefield, you know the crosses that rise on the cemeteries after great battles, the crosses of the people who died in this battlefield.
3.IS IT A CONCEPT ALBUM? OR THEREARE INDEPENDENT SONGS WITH COMMON REFERENCE?
  • It’s not a concept album but they are some songs with common meaning in their lyrics. Some songs talk about War, some of them are anti-religious. This time we left the Gore part behind.
WHY DID YOU DO THAT?
  • I was bored about writing these kind of songs, we wanted to do something new, to focus on the dark side of the human mind rather than the violent acts.
4.WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE SONG FROM“WHERE IRONCROSSES GROW” AND WHY?
  • I cant say why, but my favorite songs are the first song (Where Ironcrosses Grow), Tragedy and Faithful and Chasing the Serpent. I think they are the best songs from this album and I like the sound of them most.
5.YOU HAD MADE THE MIXING OF THERECORD IN SAMI STUDIOS? DID YOU USE COMPUTERS FOR THAT PURPOSE? DID YOU EXPERIENCED ANY PROBLEMS ?
  • We did both analog and digital mixing and we had problems with the storage devices.  Some of them cracked and we had to start all over again. Constantly he had to make backups for safety.
6. YOU ARE THE VOCALIST OF A DEATH METAL BAND, HOW DO YOU MANAGE TO KEEP YOUR VOICE  IN SHAPE?
  • With a lot of cigarettes and drinking whiskey (laughs). I’ve never had some vocal lessons from a professional teacher. I just scream loud and I have developed a certain technique and a  singular voice. I don’t know how, that’s what I do.
7. ARE YOU A BAND THAT CHANGE CONSTANTLY THE STYLE OF MUSIC THAT YOU ARE PERFORMING?
  • We actually don’t know. That depends from the period of time and our feelings. We have now a new guitarist (David Blomquist), who is very talented and we might play different. But sincerely I don’t know if we will change our style.
8. ARE YOU SATISFIED FROM THE CORRESPONDENCEOF THE FANS TO YOUR ALBUMS?
  • Definitely! The people like our albums and lately the press is also interested about the music of Dismember.
9.WHAT ARE YOUR FUTURE PLANS WITH THE BAND AND YOUR PERSONAL GOAL?
  • That's hard to answer..., I can say that we like to play music, make records and play lives.
10.DO YOU SEE LIFE, OPTIMISTICALLY?IF YOU HAD A CRYSTAL BALL AND YOU COULD SEE THE  FUTURE IN COLOURS,IMAGINE WHAT COLOUR YOU SEE NOW?
  • I always see future in black you know because black contains all colours. It’s a mixture of all colours
11. YOU ARE NOT A NEW BANDIN THE GENRE, WHAT’S YOUR ADVICE TO THE ROOKIES, NEW MUSICANS, WHAT DOTHEY HAVE BE AWARE OF?
  • That consists of the band members. You must be democratic with all the members and treat them equally. They are different persons, they have different cultures and maybe they like different kinds of music. Secondly they must PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE, never leave themselves without practice. They must also believe in their music and don’t be disappointed if the success don’t come fast. Dismember were formed in 1988 and we had our first record deal 2 years later. They must be confident, keep trying to develop as musicians and believe in what they do.


12. WHICH ARE YOUR HOBBIES?DO YOU HAVE ANY SPARE TIME?

  • I do have some spare time lately and I like to read books. My favorite books are novels about the World War II, Tolkien Books, Steven King’s Books and I also like to watch the documentaries on the Discovery Channel. I think that none movies channel is better than Discovery.
13. BACK TO THE MUSIC, HOW ABOUTLIVE SHOWS? WILL YOU BE PLAYING ALONG WITH OTHER BANDS OR SOLO? WILL WE SEE YOU PLAYING IN GREECE SOMEDAY?
  • We will not actually go on Tour, travel on busses or staying in hotels. We will have some gigs in Sweden, we will go for two shows in Italy and we wlll play in summer at some festivals. I think that we will come to Greece on May, it not confirmed yet, but I look forward to play in Greece. I have heard so many thinks about the the Greek metallers. You guys are maniacs!
14.WELL IT MUST BE THE MEDITERRANEANBLOOD THAT WE HAVE IN OUR VEINS….WHAT IS THE WEATHER IN YOUR COUNTRY TIGHTNOW?
  • Well, it’s fucking cold outside…let me check the thermometer…..oh it’s -1 , it’s nothing compared with other days. You know, they are four seasons on Sweden. During the winter, people go to their work and then they stay at home. When you hear about Swedish people drinking, then you must know that the weather is warm and we are having a good time.
MATTI, THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THEINTERVIEW, I REALLY ENJOYED OUR CONVERSATION ALL THE BEST TO YOU AND THEBAND, HOPE TO SEE YOU PLAYING HERE.
  • Thank you Costas for your time and the interest about our band.
Costas “C.O.B.” Meidanis 
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