SOILWORK
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It’s a great
thing to have the chance to talk to a band when it’s at the peak of its
career. Soilwork surely are in a very good period right now, after the
release of a really strong and powerful album. Bjorn is responsible for
almost everything so taking this into account we had a little chat on the
phone in a very cool and friendly manner.
1. FIRST OF ALL CONGRATULATIONS ON
“FIGURE NUMBER FIVE”! IT’S A GREAT ALBUM!
2. NOW, CAN YOU POINT OUT, WHICH ACCORDING
TO YOU ARE THE MOST IMPORTANT MOMENTS OF THE BAND’S HISTORY?
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I think it was very important when
we changed to Nuclear Blast cause you know distribution got much better,
more and more people started to discover Soilwork and I guess when Rob
Halford made this statement about Soilwork. This is a very memorable moment…
-WHAT DID HE SAY?
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He said that Soilwork is the future
for the metal to come and you know he really liked the band…
-THIS WAS A BIG HONOR!
-
Yeah, it was an honor! Fantastic and
I guess the third one is when David Townsed liked to produce our album.
That was a fantastic experience.
3. TELL US A FEW THINGS ABOUT “FIGURE
NUMBER FIVE”. WHO WAS THE PRODUCER, WHERE DID YOU RECORD IT, HOW LONG DID
IT TAKE YOU, ETC. ARE YOU STILL SATISFIED BY THE FINAL RESULT OR WOULD
YOU CHANGE SOMETHING?
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We have recorded this album in 3 different
studios, we have recorded the drums in Dug out studio, cause I guess we
wanted to have a more dirty drum sound, more punchy than in Fredman cause
in Fredman is more kind of polished and then we recorded the guitars and
the keyboards in our home town Helsinberg and then we recorded the vocals
and the bass guitar in studio Fredman, where we also mixed the whole album.
So, I guess we wanted to try out something new, try 3 different studios
and we am still very happy about the result. We think that this is our
best album so far.
4. WHICH ARE THE DIFFERENCES AND WHICH
ARE THE SIMILARITIES BETWEEN “NATURAL BORN CHAOS” AND “FIGURE NUMBER FIVE”?
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I guess there is a bigger change between
“Predator’s Portrait” and “Natural Born Chaos” than between “Natural Born
Chaos” and “Figure Number Five” but in ways there is still a progression
and this progression is natural I think and both albums are very atmospheric
but I think the new album is a bit more altogether and a bit more varied,
especially with the keyboards and the clean vocals, which you can find
not only in the choruses like in “Natural Born Chaos” but you can also
find them in the verses and other parts and altogether I think it’s a more
powerful album, even though “Natural Born Chaos” was a really good album.
5. WHY HAVE YOU NAMED THE ALBUM “FIGURE
NUMBER FIVE”? WHAT DOES IT MEAN?
-
Well first of all its our fifth album
and at the same time this title refers to something like a fifth wheel,
people who are the fifth wheel in society. It’s kind of a general topic
for the whole album. The struggle of the innocent in society, the victims,
so it’s kind of a…
-…CONCEPT?
-
Yeah! Well, not exactly a concept but
the topic is…
-DO YOU HAVE A COMMON TOPIC BEHIND
EACH SONG?
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Well, not exactly but we deal with
the struggle of the innocent.
6. WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE ARTWORK?
I LIKED VERY MUCH THE COVER THOUGH I CAN’T REALLY UNDERSTAND WHAT IT REPRESENTS.
CAN YOU CLEAR THINGS OUT FOR ME?
-
Ok! First of all the artwork is done
by Karls Holeberg (note: I am not sure if I got the name right), he used
to play keyboards in Soilwork, he jumped off the band after “Predator’s
Portrait”, which he also did the cover for and the concept behind the cover
is kind of…there is a link between the cover and the title, cause the symbol,
the Soilwork symbol is kind of hidden underneath all those trash and tree
chops over it and it’s like victims of fate getting buried by the government.
7. WHAT ARE YOUR LYRICS TALKING ABOUT?
TELL US A FEW GENERAL THINGS ABOUT THEM. WHAT GIVES YOU INSPIRATION WHILST
WRITING LYRICS?
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I get a lot of inspiration from watching
TV, there’s a lot of shitty TV shows, sick TV shows and I am also watching
the news, there are a lot of sick things going on in the world and I used
to get a lot of and still get a lot of inspiration from my daily job, which
I had to quit 2 weeks ago, I was working with kids with social problems
at school, so they told me some very horrible stories about what’s going
on in their homes and I got pretty inspired by those kids cause they are
some sort of victims of this society too…
8. I THINK THAT YOU HAVE CHANGED YOUR
SOUND QUITE A LOT FROM YOUR FIRST ALBUM TILL NOW. YOU HAVE ADDED SOME NEW
ELEMENTS AND “FIGURE NUMBER FIVE” SOUNDS TO ME CLOSE TO THE LATEST IN FLAMES
AND DARK TRANQUILLITY ALBUMS. IT SEEMS LIKE THERE IS A MOVEMENT TOWARDS
THIS DIRECTION. DO YOU AGREE?
-
Well I think we took that step on “Natural
Born Chaos” and I don’t think you can compare it…Ok! There are some similarities
with In Flames but In Flames have their sound and I think they have extended
it with their new album…
-NO! I AM NOT SAYING THAT YOU GOT INFLUENCED
BY THEM! I SAY THAT THERE IS A MOVEMENT UP THERE IN SWEDEN TO USE MORE
KEYBOARDS IN YOUR MUSIC…
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Ohhh! Ok, Ok! I understand! Well, I
think it gives the music a bit more variety and the sound is more dynamic
and it’s pretty cool to experiment with synthesizers and analog synthesizers
and stuff like that. I guess we have given our keyboard player free hands
to do whatever he wants to do and I really think he succeeded!
9. SO, WHAT NEW DO YOU THINK YOU CAN
OFFER TO THE SCENE? WHAT WOULD YOU SAY TO SOMEONE TO CONVINCE HIM BUY YOUR
RELEASE INSTEAD OF SOMETHING ELSE?
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That this is a very unique metal album,
it’s very powerful and intense and at the same time very melodic and …hhmmm…what
should I say? We like to write music in a very interesting way with ups
and downs just like in daily life so I think it suits some people just
perfect cause there are ups and downs in life just like in our music.
10. DO YOU HAVE ANY PLANS FOR TOURING?
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Yeah we have! We’re gonna go on tour
with Children Of Bodom in April together with Shadows Fall and that tour
will last 4 months and then we will do some Festivals. We will do Blind
Guardian Open Air, maybe the Rock Hard Festival and then we’ll do a U.S.
tour in July and then in August we’ll do Wacken Open Air and maybe in the
Fall we’ll do a small headline tour in Europe, this is pretty hectic.
-SO, IS THERE A CHANCE TO COME FROM
GREECE?
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Yeah! I really hope so! Personally
I wanted to come to Greece on the Children of Bodom tour but maybe in the
Fall, cause I know we have a lot of fans in Greece. Will be great!
-ARE YOU SATISFIED BY YOUR PERFORMANCE
HERE WHEN YOU CAME WITH ANNIHILATOR, NEVERMORE AND RAWHEAD REXX?
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Yeah! I think so! It was a really good
show and the audience was just great even though there was a lot of people
not knowing that Soilwork was supposed to play…
-WE DIDN’T KNOW IT. I LEARNED ABOUT
IT JUST A COUPLE OF DAYS BEFORE THE SHOW…
-
Ok! That’s weird! We had a very good
time! I remember it was very hot in the venue. Could barely breath, but
it was a great show!
11. DO YOU REMEMBER ANY FUNNY OR WEIRD
INCIDENTS OCCURRING WHILST YOU WERE PERFORMING LIVE?
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Hmm…Let me see here…Well, I guess…it’s
nothing peculiar, it’s not that funny but when we played in Stockholm on
the last tour with In Flames that was really remarkable because there were
3000 people in the audience and that has never happened in Sweden for like
10 years! 3 Swedish bands, Pain, In Flames and Soilwork with 3000 people…
-TOO MANY!
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Yeah! That was fantastic!
-YES AND FROM WHAT I KNOW PEOPLE IN
SWEDEN DON’T GO TO CONCERTS.
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Exactly! So that was very remarkable!
Hahaha…
12. IF YOUR MUSIC WAS AN EMOTION, WHAT
WOULD IT BE?
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Hmmm…Well…hhmmm…kind of a struggling
feeling to reach total happiness I guess!
13.IF IT WAS A PAINTING, WHAT WOULD
IT PRESENT?
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Hmm…hahahaha! That’s a funny question!
-
Ooohh…I guess a very sensitive person!
14.WHICH DO YOU THINK IS THE BEST AND
WHICH IS THE WORST PART IN YOUR MUSIC? WHERE DO YOU THINK YOU NEED FURTHER
IMPROVEMENT?
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The best and the worst? …Aahhh…I kind
of like everything we’ve done! It’s really hard to say! Hahahaha…
-SO, YOU CAN’T DECIDE?
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Hahahaha! I can’t! That’s very hard!!!
Hahaha
15.WHICH IS THE WEIRDEST QUESTION SOMEONE’S
EVER ASKED YOU?
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Aahh…The weirdest question I was asked
was “Why does your new album sound like Skid Row?”
-LIKE WHAT?!?!?!!?!?!?!
-
Skid Row!!!!! Hahahahhahahahaha
-ARE YOU KIDDING ME???????
-ARE YOU SURE? SKID ROW?
-
Hahahahaha! Skid Row!! This was actually
asked yesterday. That is kind of weird…
16.WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE TO BE ASKED
AND NO ONE EVER DID?
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Ohhh that’s a tough one!! Aaahhh…
Maybe…I’ve been asked many questions and I can’t put my finger on which
kind of question…Maybe…ooohhhh! That’s too tough!!
-OK! LET’S LEAVE THIS QUESTION ASIDE
THEN…
17.IF YOU HAD THE CHANCE TO MEET THE
CREATURE THAT CREATED THE UNIVERSE, WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE TO ASK HIM?
18.IF YOU WERE THE CREATOR OF A UNIVERSE,
HOW WOULD YOU LIKE IT TO BE?
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Probably that everybody could have
the same amount of money or maybe that money didn’t exist! Hahahaha!
19.BY THE WAY, WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT
THIS WAR?
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I don’t like it!!! There is no reason!
It’s all about the oil! There is no reason to bomb Iraq. It gets me sick!
Bush is way out of line. He is like a 21st Century Hitler and I don’t like
him!
20.IF YOU COULD TURN BACK TIME, WHICH
MISTAKE OF YOURS WOULD YOU LIKE TO CORRECT?
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Probably when I was unfaithful to my
girlfriend last tour in the U.S. and she broke up with me…That’s not too
nice! Hahahaha
21.WHO (DEAD OR ALIVE) ACCORDING TO
YOU WOULD CONSIST THE ALL STAR HEAVY METAL BAND?
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Dream team! Let me see here…Rob Halford
on vocals, maybe Roger Glover on bass and maybe Cozy Powell on drums and
…hmmm…on guitar that probably be Randy Rhoads on solo and on rhythm guitar
maybe – that’s a tough one - K.K. Downing.
22.IF TIME TRAVEL WAS POSSIBLE, WHICH
HISTORICAL PERIOD WOULD YOU LIKE TO VISIT AND WHY?
-
Hmm…I’d probably want to visit the
medieval period, to watch how things were back then. That would be something,
that would be very interesting I guess! But just maybe for a day! Hahahaha!
-I DON’T THINK WE’D BE ABLE TO SURVIVE
THERE…
-WHAT WOULD YOU MISS THE MOST FROM
OUR TIMES?
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Ok! Well, metal I guess and the food
we have and the booze, beer and maybe the girls…Dunno! There’s a lot of
stuff!
23.THANK YOU! HAVE I FORGOTTEN TO ASK
YOU ANYTHING AND YOU’D LIKE TO MENTION?
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Thank you very much! I don’t think
so! I think you covered most of the stuff! I hope to see you in Greece
this Fall maybe! Bye bye! Take care!
Christine Parastatidou