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Interview: Oscar Carlquist – RAM

Posted on February 26, 2012 by Daniel Aston

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Swedish extreme metal band RAM return to the spotlight with their third full length album, Death, this year and it has already been met with much critical acclaim. The band creates a high-octane blend of heavy metal whilst still being conscious of their classic roots, something vocalist Oscar Carlquist passionately believes should remain in today’s metal scene. I interview the frontman to uncover more on the background of the new record and where they aim to take their music.

Daniel Aston: Are you pleased with the reception that the new album ‘Death’ has received so far?

Oscar Carlquist: Yeah sure, you prefer good reviews over bad of course, the fans seem to like the new stuff very much as well. So it’s all good, but I try to keep my head cool, I don’t want to have a ghost in my head when it’s time to make a new album.

DA: How did the creation of this album differ from previous releases?

OC: We had more fun making it, we put ourselves in a more relaxed state, and we worked the songs out really fast so suddenly we had songs for an album without really trying to write one. We wrote a lot of the material for Death in our rehearsal space mainly we will work in a quieter environment have a cup of coffee but this one was written with the adrenaline pumping.

DA: What inspired the lyrical content of this album?

OC: Mainly the weakness of western man from a philosophical point of view, we have eradicated the threat of death in our environment and prolonged life to the extent that western man is acting as if death does not exist at all, this hypocrisy taints everything she does and through generations it has created a black hole, a philosophical void, the opens up for more lies and corruption.

DA: The artwork for the new record is very striking, what’s the story behind that?

OC: Well it is a modern take on the apocalypse, as I see it when the world does end even the laws of physics will be dissolved , this was what I was aiming to depict.

DA: For those out there who aren’t familiar with your music is there a particular track on the new release that stands out from the rest that they should check out?

OC: The album should be experienced in its full glory, it is a quite diverse and schizoid piece of work, one track is there to be in contrast to the other so I really do believe that it should be heard from first track till last.

DA: What are the plans for touring this year?

OC: They are in the planning stages, too early to say anything yet.

DA: Who would you cite as RAM’s main musical influences?

OC: Black Sabbath, Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, Mercyful Fate, Old Scorpions, MSG, Accept it goes on and but mainly stuff recorded in the 70s and 80s.

DA: How do you think the current metal scene compares with previous generations?

OC: It has its strength and weaknesses, for a band like us who are very influenced with the Old-School stuff it’s really nice to have a perspective and overall vision of what was really going on back then, we can go back and concentrate on what we feel was the strongest aspects of our influences. But a big problem with today’s scene is the aspect of decay, metal has been around for a really long time now and decay is creeping in, bands and fans have to be aware of and defend the original fundaments that metal stand upon, to curate the virus of mainstream contamination in how music is written and images are being handled. Metal has to stay subversive or it will die.

DA: What’s next for the band?

OC: Reaping the strange fruits of Death

Interview: Allen Tvedebrink – The Kandidate

Posted on January 18, 2012 by Daniel Aston

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Danish thrash-metallers The Kandidate ready the release of their highly anticipated second album Facing the Immanent Prospect of Death and it promises to be another dose of high octane heavy metal! The band have worked hard on developing their sound, incorporating a ‘more diverse and powerful’ approach from the new line up. I talked to guitarist Allen Tvedebrink about the band’s transition from their debut release, their musical influences that have helped define this album and his take on the current musical climate.

Daniel Aston: What can fans expect from your upcoming second album Facing the Imminent Prospect of Death?

Allen Tvedebrink: An energetic, sombre and intense album. Those familiar with our debut will hear that a few things have happened since then. Until We Are Outnumbered was a half hour furious kick in the balls, which really got this band fired up. On the new album you will experience a more diverse and powerful band and a dark malicious atmosphere.

DA: Did the writing process and creation of this new record differ from your debut?

AT: Yeah, but not much. KB and I still write the majority of the material. The really big difference is that NP and Jacob care more than the previous members of the bands, that they’ve replaced. They are actively involved in the arrangements and in that effort and in their playing/singing style, they have a great impact in how and what KB and I are writing.

DA: Where did you gather inspiration for the new material?

AT: Hmm… Inspiration. A hard thing to pinpoint to certain things or artists. We dig and love the same bands and of course we get a lot of inspiration from them, but I think that also everyday life and the stuff you think about and reflect on have a great impact on you as a human being and therefore also the creativity. As I kinda mentioned before, the qualities and talent of the band members has also been a major contributor as a creative unit.

DA: Is there a moment or song on the album that the band are particularly proud of?

AT: Well, that kinda changes day by day. But the overall thing that I’m most proud of on this recording is the correlation of the music, the sound and the lyrics, which for me have resulted in a very special atmosphere.

DA: Give Up All Hope from your debut record was released as the band’s first official music video, can we expect a follow up from the new album?

AT: We are actually working on that as we speak. We have been a bit back and forth with the guys producing it and as it seems right now, it will be something pretty special. But it’s all too early to say anything really, as we haven’t decided on the concept and that might change, and so might the song we picked…

DA: What is your opinion on today’s metal scene and how do you feel The Kandidate fits into that?

AT: I think the metal scene is strong. The diversity and availability have never been greater than now. That speaks to me as a proof of the great demand and amount of fans and followers. The industry may not be as good as it used to be in the term of profit, but to me that was never what music is all about, it’s about artists wanting to express themselves and the audience seeking that.
I love that there are so many talented bands out there. Of course there are a lot of really crappy bands if you ask me, but luckily we all have different preferences and with all the bands around it’s just exiting to go hunting for those special gems. I love that a lot of them has their own expression and that they are serious about their music and touring and playing live.
I believe that we have our own expression and sound and that we are doing our own thing adding to the diversity I’m talking about, and we have the quality to stand out as one of the stronger bands despite we are an underground act.

DA: When would you say was the ‘golden era’ of metal?

AT: I think that there are a lot of different golden eras of metal. As you can probably imagine, I’d like to believe we are in one right now. There were other eras that were golden for the record companies and the bands earning good money on what they do. The bigger bands still do that, but the golden aspect of present time is the availability of the art. Lots and lots of bands are touring and this is where the bands are earning their money nowadays, where you can just download or stream whatever you like. The golden thing about present time is that metal is more recognised be the society and that the fan base is growing and supporting the bands at concerts instead of spending their money on albums.

DA: Do you think new bands struggle in today’s music scene with the current state of the music industry?

AT: I don’t think that bands are struggling more today than earlier. It’s a different struggle but also with a lot of tools that we didn’t have 20 years ago. Modern technology and the especially the internet have made it possible for even the most crappy bands to produce and distribute their offer to the whole world. I guess you can say that bands competed and struggled to earn the favour of record companies where today we compete and struggle to earn the favour of the fans, which to me seem more right.

DA: What advice would you give to bands starting out?

AT: To believe in what you are doing and earn the respect of the fans and other musicians. Grow your network and your relations, and also – and maybe most important – be your own biggest critic! It takes effort and hard work to grow as an artist, but it also takes a great amount of self awareness to succeed. Be yourself and dare to make a difference.

DA: Who would you cite as the band’s main musical influences?

AT: We all listen to many different styles and artists, but of course we also share the same preferences in metal, which combines in our sound. For me, it’s everything from Foreigner over Dream Theater to Autopsy, but I guess that the common denominator for all of us is bands like Entombed, Disfear, Trap Them.

DA: Are there plans for a tour this year, if so where are you going to be playing?

AT: We are going to tour a bit in our home country Denmark, and we are going to China in April. We are working on summer festivals at the moment and we are hopefully going to tour Europe in the fall, and I believe it’s going to happen, but I have no clue where it will take us… Hopefully also UK! We had a blast when we went there with Rotten Sound last year.

DA: If you could only take three albums to a desert island, what would they be and why?

AT: Oh shit, that is a tough one… It would definitely be an Entombed album. If I had to choose, I guess it would be Morning Star, it’s gotta be my favourite all round album by them. I listen to Entombed every week, and I’d hate to live without them. Another classic of mine – and maybe my favourite album that I just keep coming back to – is Slaughter of the Soul by At The Gates. I’ll never get tired of hearing that. It’s got the perfect mix of melody and aggression and fucking brilliant song writing. Last one would be an old hard rock classic of AC/DC, Thin Lizzy or Black Sabbath. Hmm, today I’d probably go with Back in Black.

Interview: Richard Christy – Charred Walls of the Damned

Posted on November 15, 2011 by Daniel Aston

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American metal supergroup Charred Walls of the Damned have recently released their highly anticipated second album Cold Winds on Timeless Days receiving rave reviews across the metal community. Richard Christy (Death, Control Denied, Iced Earth), Tim ‘Ripper’ Owens (Judas Priest, Yngwie Malmsteen), Steve DiGiorgio (Death, Control Denied, Testament) and producer/guitarist Jason Suecof join forces in what is undoubtedly one of metal’s most exciting outfits today.

I caught up with drummer and songwriter Richard Christy and found out more about the band, the making of the new album and also the latest on the highly anticipated second Control Denied album.

Daniel Aston: Congratulations on the new album, how did the making of the new record compare with Charred Walls of the Damned’s debut?

Richard Christy: This record was much easier to make and went much smoother, not that we had any trouble with the first album, but with the new album, the demo tapes that I wrote and recorded for the album were much more detailed and complex so once we got into the studio we had a very good idea of how this album was going to sound, which made it much easier to record this new album.

DA: The recording process for the new album was completed very quickly with the drums only taking two days, was that a natural occurrence?

RC: I think that’s because we were all very well rehearsed. I played the 12 songs for the album every day for two months on the drums in my rehearsal room in Queens, New York so by the time I was in the studio I knew the drum parts like the back of my hand. It’s the same thing with Steve, Jason, and Tim too, I sent them the demo recordings for the new album about two months before we started recording and they were very well rehearsed by the time we got into the studio and they knew their parts very well. We were able to get a very raw, live, and tight sound on the album because everyone was so well rehearsed.

DA: You wrote the material on this record to cater to each members’ personal playing style, was that a particular challenge or did it help with the writing process?

RC: It definitely helped, when I was working on the vocal melodies for the demo tapes I would definitely think about Tim’s singing style and put plenty of screams and high parts in there because I know he would sound amazing singing in that style. Same with Steve and Jason, I can’t play guitar or bass anywhere near as good as them but when I wrote the guitar and bass parts for the demos I would tell those guys to improve the parts and make them their own and I knew that on the final album the bass, guitar, and vocal parts would sound amazing once Tim, Steve, and Jason played them.

DA: What was your inspiration behind the lyrical content on this album?

RC: It was many different things that inspired the lyrics for this album. It’s just things that I see every day and things that inspire me enough to write lyrics about them. I’m inspired by a lot of things in New York City where I live, like the song “The Beast Outside My Window” which is inspired by the Queensboro Bridge which I can see out of my bedroom window and every day I see it I’m very inspired because I love living in New York City and I’m very thankful that I live here.

DA: What creative input does the rest of the band bring to the song writing process?

RC: Once we get into the studio to record the album they have a lot of input. I originally write all of the music and lyrics and record everything on our demo tapes, but once we get into the studio I tell Jason, Tim and Steve to put in their ideas and suggest any changes or improvements, so once we get into the studio everyone works together to make the songs amazing.

DA: It is perhaps unusual for a drummer to have such a large role in the music writing within a band, how would you describe your own personal writing process?

RC: I’ve been playing guitar since 1992 so my songwriting usually starts with guitar riffs, although my writing process differs from song to song, like the song “Forever Marching On” which was written around a drum beat that I came up with at drum rehearsal one day. Usually though I start with guitar riffs and then build from there. Even though I’m mainly known as a drummer, I also play guitar, keyboards, and bass so I’m able to write songs.

DA: Is there a song or moment on the record that you’re particularly proud of?

RC: I’m very proud of the whole album but if I had to pick one song it would probably be “Forever Marching On”. I love the drum beats in that song and I’m really proud that it was all written around the drums, and I also really love the middle part where it goes from super technical to straight forward and epic in the middle, the middle part in that song gives me chills.

DA: How did the band form originally?

RC: I had been writing songs for fun from about 2004-2008 and when I realized I had enough songs for an album, I decided to call up Steve, Tim, and Jason and ask them to join a band that I was forming and they were totally into it. At first it was something we were just going to do for fun, record an album of songs that I had written and see how it turns out, but once we got a record deal it became much more serious and I knew this band would be around for a long time.

DA: You’ve worked with some iconic bands in your career, how does this supergroup compare to them? Is there ever a battle of egos within the band?

RC: There are no egos at all in this band, that’s why I chose Steve, Tim, and Jason, because they’re super cool down to earth guys and I knew that we would have a lot of fun in this band and there would be no egos. I’ve been very lucky because out of all of the bands I’ve been in, there have never been any egos in any of the bands I’ve been in.

DA: As individuals you all undoubtedly must have heavy schedules but for you and Steve there is a particular interest from the metal faithful to hear the long awaited second Control Denied album (myself included!). Will you both be going back to that project now this album has been completed and do you know when it is likely to be finished?

RC: Yes we’ve actually been working on finishing this album for a while now. The legal issues were finally cleared up a while back and now we’re working on getting everyone from Control Denied’s schedules and also Jim Morris’ schedule situated so that we can finish the album and hopefully it will be ready for release in early 2012! Chuck’s family is working with Relapse records and we’re all very excited about finally finishing this album so the fans can finally hear it!

DA: Can we expect a tour from Charred Walls of the Damned any time soon?

RC: Yes definitely! We’re speaking with some booking agents now about doing a Charred Walls tour in 2012 and also doing some festival shows. I’m so excited to get out on the road and play all of these new songs, and now that we have two albums worth of material to play so we’ll have plenty of metal to bring the fans in 2012. We should have some show announcements very soon at www.RichardChristy.com and www.MetalBlade.com/cwotd!

DA: What’s next for the band?

RC: We filmed a video for the song Zerospan which we will be releasing very soon and I’m so excited about it! It’s going to be like a 5 minute horror movie and people are going to be blown away by it! We’re also planning on touring next year so I’m really excited about that as well! Thank you so much for interviewing me and for all Charred Walls info you can go to www.RichardChristy.com and www.MetalBlade.com/cwotd! Take Care!