HYPOCRISY
Hypocrisy is one of the first
and most important bands that created melodic death metal and every new
release of them is very important for the fans of this branch. So, we grabbed
the chance of their latest release “The Arrival” and asked Michael many
questions. Here is everything we talked about…
1.WHAT HAPPENED TO HYPOCRISY FROM
THE RELEASE OF “CATCH 22” TILL “THE ARRIVAL”?
We went on tour with Immortal in
Europe and Soilwork in America and we did some festivals in Europe and
then we started writing songs for the new album. Then we entered the studio
in August last year and we stayed 2 months there for the recordings.
2.MOST PEOPLE THINK THAT “CATCH 22”
WAS A VERY EXPERIMENTAL ALBUM AND A BIT UNLIKE YOUR OTHER WORKS. DO YOU
AGREE WITH THIS OPINION?
I can agree with that! We tried
to do something new, but still keep it in the Hypocrisy style. We had more
guitar riffing and the sound was a bit dry on this album. I mean on the
new album there is a return to the roots, with mid tempo songs, melodies
and generally it’s more atmospheric.
- NOW THAT YOUR NEW ALBUM IS ABOUT
TO BE RELEASED, HOW DO YOU SEE “CATCH 22”?
I love that album! I think it was
very good! I can’t understand… Many fans didn’t like the album, but I love
that album!!!
3.”THE ARRIVAL” IS ABOUT TO BE RELEASED.
IF I ASKED YOU TO DESCRIBE IT AND PRESENT IT YOURSELF TO THE HYPOCRISY
FANS WHAT WOULD YOU TELL THEM?
I’d like to say, what many people
also say, that this is something like a best of, of Hypocrisy. We have
picked out the best elements from our previous albums. And also on this
album it’s more of mid tempo songs, I think this is the kind of songs we
do best with Hypocrisy, so I don’t think you’re gonna be disappointed if
you like the previous albums.
4.HYPOCRISY HAVE A NEW DRUMMER. RIGHT?
-HORGH FROM IMMORTAL. WHY DID YOUR
PREVIOUS DRUMMER LEAVE? WAS IT BECAUSE OF MUSICAL DIFFERENCES OR WAS IT
FOR ANOTHER REASON?
We’ve been pretty busy with Hypocrisy
the last 2 years recording and touring and he wasn’t tired of doing that.
And if you can’t give 100% for the band then you should do something else
I think cause it affects the rest of the band when you don’t want to go
on tour and stuff. We have huge tour plans for the future so we had to
make a decision. It’s very sad you know, but we are still friends.
5.THE NEW ALBUM DEALS WITH THE FAMILIAR
ALIEN SUBJECT RIGHT?
-SO COULD YOU TELL US IN A FEW WORDS
THE MAIN SUBJECT? IS IT TALKING ABOUT ABDUCTIONS, U.F.O.’S OR ANYTHING
ELSE?
Yeah! It’s about everything! It’s
not like a history behind it, but each song is different from each other,
it’s more like a personal thought behind it. What we think is going on
out there.
-DO YOU HAVE ANY PERSONAL EXPERIENCE
ON EXTRA TERRESTRIAL ENTITIES OR SITUATIONS?
No! I haven’t, but I’d like to
have! Being abducted one day! Hahahaha! Yeah! Why not?
6.DO YOU THINK THAT THE PROOF OF ALIEN
EXISTENCE WOULD CAUSE THE COLLAPSE OF ORGANIZED RELIGION?
I don’t know! That’s a very very
very difficult question!
7.BY THE WAY, ARE YOU AWARE OF AGENT
STEEL?
The band? Yes, but I haven’t heard
much of Agent Steel’s music.
-I AM JUST ASKING BECAUSE THEY SHARE
THE SAME INTEREST IN EXTRA TERRESTRIAL ENTITIES AND LIFE WITH YOU…
I haven’t heard that much of Agent
Steel. I know the band, but I don’t know anything more about it.
8.NOW LET’S TALK ABOUT THE ARTWORK.
I LIKE IT! A SIMPLE DRAWING BUT YET BEAUTIFUL AND I LIKE THE COLORS. WHO
IS RESPONSIBLE FOR IT? WAS THE COVER YOUR IDEA OR THE ARTISTS?
Actually, (note: I didn’t listen
to the name of the artist) did the cover for us. He has done the covers
of our 3-4 albums and the idea came up… Well, actually our record company
showed us this cover about a year ago and we said yeah let’s use that one
for the cover and I think it was perfect for us, like you said the colors
are beautiful…
-SO DID YOU HAVE THE ARTWORK BEFORE
YOU WROTE THE LYRICS?
Yeah! Yeah we had it before!
-DID THE COVER LEAD YOU TO WRITE ABOUT
EXTRA TERRESTRIALS OR WOULD YOU WRITE ABOUT THEM EITHER WAY?
No, we would write about them either
way. We are not used to talking that much about the cover. But this time
I think it fits perfectly for the music, the lyrics and everything that
stands for Hypocrisy!
9.DO YOU THINK THAT PERHAPS A TRADITIONAL
DEATH METAL RENAISSANCE IS TALKING PLACE IN SCANDINAVIA NOWADAYS?
Yeah I think so! I think it’s coming
back more and more again. Things are better than they were 3-4 years ago.
For example we played in Sweden last year with Dimmu Borgir and we had
around 3000 people. That was amazing! It was a big surprise for us!
-YEAH IT MUST HAVE BEEN BECAUSE I KNOW
THAT NOT MANY PEOPLE ATTEND TO LIVE SHOW SIN SWEDEN.
Yeah that’s right, that’s right!
I hope that’s changing now! I think so!
10.DO YOU KNOW ANY NEW BANDS PLAYING
DEATH METAL THAT YOU REALLY LIKE?
New upcoming underground bands?
-YES! NEWCOMERS…
I don’t know… Nowadays, I listen
to and I like Soilwork very much! I think they have done a very good job!
I like their new album a lot!
11.ON STAGE YOU ARE ONE OF THE MOST
ENERGETIC BANDS OF THE WORLD. WHICH IS THE SOURCE OF ALL THIS ENERGY?
I don’t know! We always say when
you go on stage you have to give 100% of your energy and be active instead
of standing still all the time. It’s very boring to watch I think. If you
are more active you have a better contact with the audience I think! It’s
very important!
-DO YOU REALLY WORK OUT TO ENDURE INTENSE
TOURS?
Yeah we used to doing it for almost
half a year and then we started recording the new album and we stopped.
It’s very nice I think when you are in a good condition when you are performing
live. It helps out a lot!
12.WILL YOU DO ANY LIVE SHOWS? DO YOU
HAVE ANY PLANS? DO YOU HAVE ANY PLANS FOR A TOUR?
Yeah! Next month we are going to
America with Cannibal Corpse to tour with them for one month and then South
America for 5 shows and then back to Europe the Show No Mercy Festival
and also Greece we are coming to!
-WILL YOU???
-I WAS ABOUT TO ASK YOU IF YOU’D COME
AFTER ALL…
-THERE WERE RUMORS THAT YOU’D COME
LATE JANUARY, BEGINNING OF FEBRUARY TO GREECE EITHER WITH NIGHTRAGE OR
WITH DESTRUCTION AND YOU DIDN’T MAKE IT AFTER ALL…
No, we couldn’t make it! We were
very busy…We had to do so many things! I think it’s also confirmed that
we’ll do 2 shows in Greece! We are looking really forward to that. It’ll
be very nice! I am very curious to see how things are in Greece!
13.HOW DO YOU FEEL WHEN YOU LISTEN
TO BANDS INFLUENCED BY HYPOCRISY SAY THAT YOU ARE ONE OF THEIR MOST BELOVED
BANDS?
That’s an honor when you hear such
things for your band! Being inspired from us! Well, that’s an honor! I
know this from myself…when we started Hypocrisy I was dying for bands like
Morbid Angel, Deicide, Slayer and those kind of bands. They meant a lot
to me and they influenced us very much!
14.DO YOU ALSO PLAY IN THE PROJECT
THE ABYSS?
-YOU DID? WHY DO YOU USE A PAST TENSE?
I did, because I don’t think we’re
gonna record a new album…
-OOH AND I WAS ABOUT TO ASK YOU THAT…
SO, WILL THE ABYSS STOP?
Yeah, I think so because there’s
not enough time to concentrate on them…
15.YEAH TIME IS ANOTHER THING I WANT
TO ASK YOU ABOUT… PETER TAGTGREN IS WORKING TOO HARD, HAVING HYPOCRISY,
PAIN, THE ABYSS AND THE ABYSS STUDIOS. HOW DOES HE FIND TIME?
I can hardly do it myself! He is
always working! I am impressed how he finds time to do it! If he does something
he gives 100%! He only gives the best of him!
16.HE IS INVOLVED IN MANY PRODUCTIONS
OF OTHER BANDS…
-AREN’T YOU AFRAID THAT HE MIGHT UNWILLINGLY
ABSORB SOME IDEAS AND ELEMENTS FROM OTHER BANDS?
I don’t think so! I also worked
with Peter in the studio for a while and I was also influenced…you had
new ideas when you went back home from the studio but it was only positive
things…
17.SO, WHICH MUSICAL NEEDS DO HYPOCRISY
AND DID THE ABYSS FULFIL? I MEAN WHAT IS THIS YOU FOUND IN THE ABYSS THAT
YOU COULDN’T FIND IN HYPOCRISY?
Actually we had so many riffs that
couldn’t fit in Hypocrisy because they were more like black metal and that’s
why we decided to do this side project.
-YOU HAD SOME GOOD IDEAS THAT YOU WANTED
TO USE AND NOT LEAVE THEM TO GET LOST…
18.IF YOUR MUSIC WERE AN EMOTION, WHAT
WOULD IT BE?
If our music was an emotion?
-YES.
Ooohhh! Hahahaha! I don’t know!
Hahaha… An emotion? Music is everything for me! That’s what I am leaving
for…
-SO YOU CAN’T PICK ONE EMOTION ONLY…
What do you mean exactly?
-WELL IF YOUR MUSIC COULD BE INTERPRETED
AS A FEELING, WHAT WOULD YOU SAY? WHICH FEELING WOULD IT BE?
Hmm…I don’t know!!! Anger maybe!
It’s not THAT brutal but still is brutal. Do you know what I mean?
-YES OF COURSE!
19.IF IT WERE A PAINTING, WHAT WOULD
IT SHOW?
Hhmm.. Ohhh!!! That was VERY difficult!!!!
It would show… ooohhh… I don’t know! That was too difficult! I am sorry!!!
-NEVER MIND! YOU WILL ANSWER ME NEXT
TIME!
Hahahaha! Yes ok! Next time!!!!
Hahahahaha!
20.WHICH IS, ACCORDING TO YOU, THE
BEST ELEMENT IN THE HYPOCRISY MUSIC?
I think the melodies. We have pretty
good melodies in Hypocrisy overall! That’s what Hypocrisy stands for, this
is our trademark.
-AND WHICH IS THE WORST PART IN YOUR
MUSIC?
I think of course when someone
has to quit the band, like the thing that happened with our drummer. It’s
always a bad thing. We’ve been together with him for 11 years… Things like
that are hard and bad.
21.WHAT DO YOU HATE IN THE MUSIC INDUSTRY?
I don’t like it when sometimes
there’s too much bullshit talk going on… You never know whether it’s true
or not…
-WHAT DO YOU LIKE IN THE MUSIC INDUSTRY?
That we are something like a big
family. The whole music scene…you are connected to each other, even if
you are not playing and you are just listening to this music… We are like
a big family I think…
22.WHICH WORDS DO YOU THINK COULD BEST
DESCRIBE YOUR NEW ALBUM AND YOUR MUSIC IN GENERAL?
Hmm…I’d say melodic and atmospheric!
23.WHICH IS THE WEIRDEST/FUNNIEST QUESTION
SOMEONE’S EVER ASKED YOU?
Hahahhaha! Funny question??? Hmm…
let me think…I don’t think I have been asked any stupid question…
-NO, NOT STUPID…JUST FUNNY OR WEIRD…
I have been asked a weird question
yesterday… If I were a flower, which flower I would be. Hahahaha!
-SO, WHICH FLOWER WOULD YOU BE?
I don’t know! Hahahaha! I could
only come up with a rose, since this is the only flower in English that
I know! Hahahaha!
24.IS THERE A FUNNY INCIDENT OCCURRING
TO YOU WHILST PERFORMING LIVE?
Yes! We played in our underwear
in Seattle, America with Soilwork. It was the last show of the tour and
this is like a tradition to us, to do a funny thing with the other bands
on our last show. We did funny things with Soilwork in the past, so this
time we had to do something very funny and extreme! So, we said let’s play
in our underwear and they can throw whatever they want to us! Hahahahaha!
25.THANK YOU! HAVE I FORGOTTEN TO ASK
YOU ANYTHING AND YOU’D LIKE TO MENTION?
No! Like I said we are looking
forward to coming to Greece and hopefully the fans will enjoy the new album!
Bye bye!
Christine Parastatidou
Special Help: Kyriakos and George
“Volt” Tassis
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