RSS
Interview
Deutsche VersionInterview mit Evergrey (20.04.2006)
HH: Hi Rikard. How are you?
Rikard: Pretty good, thank you. I was out on a club last night and I have a little hangover today but otherwise I'm pretty good.
HH: Was this visit a private matter or a "business trip" with Evergrey?
Rikard: It was a gig of a band called All Ends - a pretty new band. Actually the guitarist of In Flames wrote the songs for them.
HH: Ah, ok. Rikard, what is the most asked question during the last weeks or days?
Rikard: Äääähhhh... obviously about the new record someway.
HH: So I think we start with some questions about the new album. First of all, how are the reactions and the feedback to the new material? Is it what you expected, are you pleased with the feedback?
Rikard: The reactions are pretty good. At first the fans have been a bit irritated because they thought we sounded too different from what they knew. But the more they listen to the album they realize that this is still Evergrey. Most of the journalists, especially in Germany I think, are finally getting notice of the band. We had a hard time in Germany before, but with this album things are going to happen. The reviews are great and people are really interested in the band now.
HH: I have to admit that I was more than a little bit surprised when listening to Monday Morning Apocalypse for the first time. The songs are shorter and more compact than before. To what end did you write shorter songs?
Rikard: It was our goal to focus on the songs and take away parts that were not necessary for the songs in our eyes. So the songs ended up a little bit shorter but this is what we wanted to do. See, we all can play our instruments but we really were not interested in playing long instrumental parts this time. We simply wanted to keep the songs interesting all the time and not have parts that start to sound boring after a time.
HH: Ok, that is one thing. On the other hand the material has a more modern sound which has its cause in the production. What did you change there?
Rikard: We had a producer this time. Usually we produce ourselves. Of course he had some input on the sound and the arrangement of the material. And then there was another guy mixing the album who threw his ideas in. So it is different but we wanted to try something new and we are really satisfied with the result. And hopefully the people will like it, too.
HH: When listening to the record, I think that the keyboards are more in the background than before.
Rikard: Yes, that's true. That was a thing resulting from the mix. We more or less let them have free hand with the mix and this has been the mixers' choice. It could be a little bit more in the foreground but people have different tastes.
HH: The artwork of the album is also kind of different from anything you done before. In which way exists a connection between the title and the picture?
Rikard: Well, it just expresses that anything can happen to you at any time. Otherwise there is not really a deeper meaning. But it is kind of interesting because you asked me earlier what question has been asked most. Nearly everyone asked about the artwork, which has never happened before and this is quite interesting.
HH: On this album many songs have been written by Henrik while Tom wrote most of the material on the older albums. Is it kind of different when playing one of Henriks songs or do they resemble Toms material in some kind?
Rikard: The songs definitly sound different when Henrik writes them but usually Tom does all the vocal lines and lyrics, so in that way it sounds like Evergrey anyway.
HH: Although the lyrics are completly in Toms hands, do you know what inspires him?
Rikard: I think he writes about things that had happened to him or people he knows mostly. He works very hard on the lyrics as they are very important to him.
HH: Is there some lyrical concept behind the songs? Do they all tell a connected story?
Rikard: There are three songs on the album which are connected through kind of a concept: "Monday Morning Apocalypse", "Obedience" and "Still In The Water". They all are about bullying someone at school and about what affects this person when he grows older.
HH: If you would write a song, what would it be about?
Rikard: I have absolutly no idea. I think it depends on the mood I'm in when writing it.
HH: You are heading for a big festival tour throughout the summer, not playing many club gigs. Is there a reason behind this?
Rikard: In April we have some club shows here in Sweden and after that we tour the States with In Flames. Then we do some festivals in Germany and after that - hopefully in fall - we will headline a European club tour.
HH: Are there any more details right now on this?
Rikard: Ah no. I heared that we will tour several countries but I don't think anything is booked yet.
HH: Which bands would you like to invite on such a headliner tour?
Rikard: I really don't know. It depends on where you are playing. When touring Germany it is always good to have at least one german band in the package. As we headline the tour, the bands we take with us have to be smaller than Evergrey but I absolutely cannot tell you anything else on this topic.
HH: Do you more like to play on festivals or do you prefer club shows?
Rikard: The combination of both is the best, I think. It is really fun to play on festivals because you meet a lot of other bands and you can perform in front of a lot of people. On the other hand it is great to do club shows because the people there are only your fans.
HH: When you go on stage, is it kind of a routine for you or do you still get nervous before a show?
Rikard: It is a little bit different for me, because I like to get a little bit nervous before a show. This way I am not nervous at all when I go up on stage. When I'm not nervous at all, I become nervous when going up on stage. I like it more the first way.
HH: What is the most embarassing thing that ever has happened to you on stage?
Rikard: Gee. There was a thing on our first American tour - three years ago or something - on the first show. We had some major backing track problems and I played a part totally wrong. I was starting with the chorus when I was not supposed to and everyone got so confused, we had to stop and start the song again. That was quite embarassing for me.
HH: Last year you released A Night To Remember which has been shot in Gothenburg. Are these kind of DVD recordings different from other shows or don't you even realize all the cameras and recording instruments?
Rikard: This show was different because we only had one chance and had to do a really good gig. Some bands do three gigs and take the best parts of all shows. We could not afford that, so we only had one chance. In that way it was special because everyone was really really focused and we didn't want to fuck things up with such a big production. But on the same time you can't think too much about it because you have to play for the people.
HH: There is a lot of bonus material on the DVD. How long did it take you to collect all this stuff?
Rikard: It took a long time. We were watching tape after tape for hours and hours and most time it was simply boring because nothing happened. We took away a lot of material and still ended up with about six hours. So you get a impression of the amount of stuff we had to work through. But it has been really fun and it is great if people like watching the extra material but it was mostly for our own because it is a good memory for us.
HH: The DVD has been nominated for a Swedish award but did not win it. Disappointed?
Rikard: I don't really care about this. It's good enough just being nominated.
HH: Rikard, where do you think Evergrey will be in five years?
Rikard: Oh, that is really hard to say. Hopefully we will still play music. Right now we have to see what happens with this album, because right now we don't even have a record deal for another album. Maybe in five years we don't even have a record deal. So hopefully the album will fulfill our hopes and then we can find a new deal.
HH: Thank you very much for answering these questions. Any last words?
Rikard: Thank you and enjoy our show when we are playing someplace near you.
JR