VIOLENT STORM

Bassist Mick Cervino, formally at the side of guitar virtuosos Yngwie J. Malmsteen and Deep Purple/Rainbow guitarist, Ritchie Blackmore, in Blackmore’s Night, knows a thing or two about the business, the music, the lifestyle and about “making it” with his new band, Violent Storm.

The Storm hails from Florida as a supreme Heavy Metal act, combining great musical diversity, Hard Rock elements, catchy riffs, vocal lines and a hurricane of massive power. This is a band that all heavy music listeners and those with an open mind should take heed of. Rag recently spoke with Cervino in regards to the band; it’s shaping and what to be expected in the near future.

As a musician who toured with big names such as Ritchie Blackmore and Yngwie Malmsteen, when did it hit you that it was time to make your own band?

The idea was there all along, but naturally I wanted to see what level of participation, if any, I would have in the writing process with both Ritchie and Yngwie, which of course turned out to be zero. It became obvious to me that if I wanted to ever record my own songs I would have to start my own project, so I did.

How would you define the essence of Violent Storm, and what makes it essential from other Heavy Metal bands that influence you and whom you have performed with?

Violent Storm is a high energy Rock/Metal band that actually plays quality music, rich in melodies, heavy kick ass rhythms and great musicianship. It is the result of a mixture of musical experiences I’ve had throughout my career, which goes well beyond Blackmore and Malmsteen. And thanks to the great band mates I have, we are able to bring to our own growing legion of Violent Storm fans around the world.

What brought about the collaboration with K.K. Downing (Judas Priest) and Yngwie Malmsteen on your debut album, ‘Storm Warning’?

When the first recording sessions began, Violent Storm was still without a guitar player. There were a couple of tracks that were ideal for Yngwie to play on and another two that I could just hear KK’s unique, very distinctive soloing style, so I asked them. After thinking about it for a bit, they both agreed. I also thought that it would be a grew treat for the fans to hear such amazing talent playing as guests on the same CD with a killer new band.

You are the primary songwriter of Violent Storm; can you describe the writing process, coming from a bass player’s point of view?

I come up with a lot of ideas just by creating bass lines. However, I don’t use any formulas. Song ideas come from different places and take a life of their own without any preconceived method. Some times you just wake up with a cool riff in your head, and if it is strong enough, you’ll continue hearing it for days, and the only way to get it out of your head is by actually making a song out of it. Other times it starts with a melody that comes out of no where which some times is accompanied by a phrase. This is usually what works best as the lyrics tend to flow more naturally and they don’t have to be forced into the melody.

Last year you had some great opportunities in Europe to open for such bands as Heaven and Hell and Motley Crue, but many shows were canceled, what happened?

It was a very disappointing experience since we had spent long months preparing for that tour. The shows we did do went very well, but unfortunately some issues developed with some of the band members at that time that forced us to postpone the rest of the shows. We are presently hard at work preparing for a European tour next summer. We’ll be updating our sites as shows get confirmed.

When can we expect the follow up to your first album?

Some time in 2009.

Based on the material already being written for the second album, how would you compare and contrast it from the band’s debut?

It will be stronger, heavier, and faster, yet it will be full of actual music. You know, it’s all good to be dramatic and scary, but if you lack the essential musical elements then you’re only part of a fad that comes and goes, and before you know it, it disappears and you’re forgotten.

What can we expect from Violent Storm in the near future?

We’ll be headlining Hellstock Festival in Palmetto, Florida. We’re also planning more tours in the States, Europe and South America, and will be releasing a new CD some time in 2009. And we expect everybody to buy it. Yes, everybody!

You are a prime example of, ‘if you work hard enough you can get there’. You grew up in Argentina, lived in England, now you’re in the States, and you pretty much hunted down your idols to play with them. What advice would you give to all of the musicians out there struggling to make it?

Making it means different things to different people. I guess if you work hard at something like I did for many years, trying to play with Ritchie Blackmore, and then you get to do it, then you made it. But let’s face it. Most people don’t have ridiculous goals like I did. The idea of “making it” usually means to play with your band and get to go on tour and make lots of money. But it is a tough time as it is becoming increasingly more difficult to accomplish such goals thanks to the illegal downloading, bad economy, etc. The only sound advice I can give to any young musician, struggling to make it is to have a good Plan B. However, if you know what you want, and you know what it takes to achieve it, then go for it and don’t listen to anybody. You are the one person that knows you best, listen to your heart, but also listen to your brain.

Violent Storm will be performing at the first annual Hellstock Festival 2009 at The Hall venue in Palmetto, Florida on January 17th. For more info visit www.violentstorm.net and www.myspace.com/violentstormband

VIOLENT STORM

Violent Storm is a Heavy Metal band hailing from Florida by Bass ace, Mick Cervino who formed the band after touring the world, formerly at the side of Swedish Guitar Wizard, Yngwie Malmsteen, and Deep Purple/Rainbow guitarist, Ritchie Blackmore, in his band, Blackmore’s Night.

Violent Storm’s debut album ‘Storm Warning’ was released first in Japan, then in Europe in October of 2006 and later in the States during the summer of 2007. Both Yngwie Malmsteen, and Judas Priest’s, K.K. downing (who also executive produced the album) both contributed guitar solos as guest musicians for the Storm.

How did getting K.K. Downing and Yngwie come to be?

I was playing tennis with Yngwie, and I just thought I’d ask him since I was beginning to record part of the rhythm chops and everything else. I just asked him if he would like to be a guest musician and playing guitar solos in two of the songs, but since I was winning he didn’t say anything. I started to let him win and then he accepted. Then, I met K.K. I went to see Judas Priest a few times and he came to see me play with Yngwie a few times. I just mentioned to him that I was planning this recording and that Yngwie was going to be a guest and I thought that maybe he would like to be a guest on two of the songs. So he wanted to listen to the songs first, he liked what he heard, so he did. And that’s how it came about.

What did you gain with your years of experience performing with Malmsteen and Blackmore’s Night?

Well, with Ritchie Blackmore I learned quite a bit even before I met him, because I was really into his music, his work with Deep Purple and Rainbow. I was infatuated with his music and him as a person. But having experienced it first hand with him it was a quick learning experience. He has some aspects by the way he works that no one really knows by just being a listener. Rehearing with him I noticed how meticulous he was about things like the temple and how demanding he was of people being prepared for rehearsal and that kind of thing. It was great working with him. It was very enlightening. He requires his musicians not only to play like robots on time, but also to swing to play with feeling. I think that’s what inspires him to play his best solos, when he has a rhythm section that flows. It’s not just with a click; it’s like swinging with a click. He treats the songs, I noticed, like a third person at times. He refers to the song as, “what does the song want? What is the song asking me to do here?” rather than the other way around, like where can I solo and shine here. He works more for what the song asks for. And that’s part of what I leaned

And with Yngwie I learned that you have to play very loud [laughs]. The louder the better and you have to keep up with his extreme volume. He wasn’t as meticulous as Ritchie was in many aspects, but you did have to be prepared. But being Blackmore trained I didn’t have any issues being prepared for rehearsals and I think he was quite happy with the way I work with him because I was in his band for seven years or something like that.

Now that you have performed with two great musicians, is there anyone else you would like to perform with?

Mostly with Violent Storm. There are many good musicians out there but I’ve done it. I’ve done the playing with other people thing, and having heroes and all that stuff. It gets to the point where you just think, ‘well, what’s next?’ I don’t continuously want to be a side guy for somebody else. I have my own music that I think is quite good and I have a great group of musicians that I’m playing with so its time to do my own thing. I am always open to collaborate in other bands or other projects that other people may have, but my main focus right now is my band, Violent Storm.

When did you finally realize it was time to form your own band?

Well it’s something that I had in the back of my mind for a long time because I’ve always written music. I had to postpone this when I was wit Ritchie or with Yngwie, because you don’t have much of a chance to write when you’re with them. So I felt at some point that time had come and I had many ideas that I had put into demos in 2004. I didn’t do one of the Yngwie tours because I was already focused on recording the initial rhythm tracks for the album. It was an on going process and it took a long time to finish, but I am quite happy with the results. It was done in bits and pieces because different people who participated in the album were living in different places, and had their own schedule with their own things. So we had to time it in such a way that they were available and I was available. So it wasn’t done in the same room, at the same time, it was on separate times and a lot of it was done long distance. So it was done the best way we could do it.

What made you chose the line up you have now?

Well, I went through several musicians. The guitar player wasn’t the official guitar player, so I recorded the guitars and KK and Yngwie contributed their parts. Then Roy Z came along and he contributed 2 guitar solos also. We were auditioning people in between. So finally I ended up with the group of guys I have now. They are all very competent, very dedicated, and hopefully I won’t have to change band members for a while.

Violent Storm was set to tour Europe, what happened?

Well, we did some of them. We played in Switzerland opening for Motley Crue. We played in England with a well known artist there named Danny Bond. Unfortunately there was some issues going on with management and other musicians in the band, and we missed out on a great opportunity we had to open for Heaven and Hell. We were going to be opening for them in Denmark as their only opening act. We were also going to be playing with them at the Sauna festival in Finland. And then we were going to be playing Bang Your Head Festival in Germany, and we had all of these great things lined up but unfortunately we had to post pone many of those due to the issues we had going on internally. It’s a shame, but as we know, stuff happens, and we move forward. So we look forward to going to Europe next year and doing many of the festivals that we couldn’t do the last time around. We’re playing at the Hellstock Festival in Florida on January 17th. We’re also planning a tour on the East coast around that time. In the States it’s not going to be a national tour, we’re not going to every state just yet, we’re likely to do separate mini tours as we have other things going like preparing for a new studio album and such.

You are releasing an EP soon, can you give us the details on that?

Yes, we have an EP coming out first which is a live recoding of the new line up. We’re performing extended versions of some of the songs from the album. And then we’re going to be doing the studio album which is brand new fresh material, which is coming out in 2009.

The details of the EP that are different from the album are just extended versions, because the stuff that goes on during a live performance wasn’t necessary to put on the first studio album. The show will be quite active. There’s going to be lots of things going on, more than just us playing, so it will be a great surprise for the Violent Storm fans that come and see us, as well as anyone else who is around. We try to do a memorable show. We included some of those areas where those things take place, in this live EP, so that people who see us can remember what they saw during those songs at the show.

When can we be expecting a new album?

It all depends. If all goes well we’ll be starting some of the recordings in 2008. Then again, I’m not the kind of guy who goes into the studio and records everything in a week or two. I take my time, I am very meticulous. So I don’t know. It really depends when I’m done and then it will be up to the label to decide when they want to put it out. But my part is, I have to be 100% pleased or at least 95% pleased, because you’re never really 100% pleased, are you? But if I am quite happy with what we have I’ll try to get it out as soon as possible.

Any other guests contributors to look forward to?

Not at this point. I think we’ve done it already and now it’s time for Violent Storm to stand on our own two feet. I believe we are quite capable of doing that. Some times the guests becomes a little bit of a distraction for what we’re offering. We’re extremely thankful for K.K.’s and Yngwie’s participation, but for the next album, and I think that K.K., who co-produced the album would agree, we should do it ourselves. But of course if he insists on playing a song, obviously I won’t be very receptive to his suggestions.

Is Downing going to be producing the new album as well?

I don’t know at this point. I am likely to be the main producer this time around, but I always surround myself with heavy weights as you know, like K.K. and others. So I will totally be consulting with them as suggestions are required. But as I said, Violent Storm needs to stand on their feet, and we need to manage ourselves.

Seeing as though this is your baby, do you write most of the music yourself?

Yes. There is a very distinctive approach to the writing that I use that makes it really difficult to collaborate with other people. By having witnessed the way Ritchie works, and Yngwie works, I am more and more of a believer that things are done in a more focused way once one vision is followed, rather than five visions trying to find harmony with each other. Some bands do it and it works great. But if you notice many of the successful bands throughout the years were a minimal collaboration, the most, two people. Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, from the old days. I think in Deep Purple they all put their names in the writing, except I know that Ritchie wrote most of the stuff, it’s pretty obvious, and Gillan, the lyrics. So I don’t know. I am quite happy writing the stuff myself, but depending on who I’m with. For example, this line up is not an engaging collaboration yet, so let me experiment and see what happens.

What is the writing process for Violent Storm like?

I had a real definite idea of what everyone should be doing. It doesn’t mean that I tell everyone what to play note by note. But then again, its better in the creative aspect of the process. I don’t like to not be in control of what other people in the band do. I mean, I would be the one approving the guitar solos or the drums, or things of that sort. Even though people will initially have the liberty to add to it themselves, I need to be happy with them. The same thing with the singing; I am very particular in the way I want the songs to be sung. I mean, in the ideal world you want to be with a group of people who think alike, have the same approach, and musical tastes so that you don’t have to do it this way, but again, this is a fairly new line up and I give people room to be themselves. But again, I have to be the one in charge.

What are you looking forward to in the near future?

We’re looking forward to the next few months to finish up what we started, and to continue on through 2009. We have regrouped we are stronger than ever and we are likely to please most audiences who come and see us, so come and see us.

Violent Storm will be performing at The Hall in Palmetto, Florida on January 17th 2009, alongside Aghora, Suspyre, Mena Brinno, Retaliation, Jet City, Highway to Hell and many more!

OPETH

Deep Thoughts & Inner Feelings with Mikael Akerfeldt.

With a new guitar player on deck, and a cycle of extensive touring all around the world, Sweden’s Opeth are back again in the States just months after wrapping up the Prog-Nation tour that hit South Florida this past May, days before the release of their most recent album, ‘Watershed’.

RAG was able to knit pick at the core thoughts of Mikael Akerfeldt, as front man and main song writer for Opeth, as well as just ‘Mikael’, a happily married husband and father of two. He expresses his feelings regarding the departure of former guitarist Peter Lindgren and his fears concerning his family.

Your last U.S. tour ended just days before the release of ‘Watershed’, what is the reaction of the fans to the new material now that the album is out?

They were good from the beginning, actually. What I think is surprising and positive, is that our fans seem to want to hear a lot of new material and they are always yelling out new songs. We are only playing two new songs on this tour, and they are going down real well, as they did from the first time we played them. It’s well received. Everyone seems to like the album. We try to mix it up. Even though it’s a tour promoting ‘Watershed’, of course, it is also a tour promoting every album, I guess. So we play all sorts of stuff, and not too much of the new one. Maybe we should actually have another new track in there, to be honest. But we haven’t really had much time to rehearse.

With such intensive touring with the new line up, do you feel the chemistry of the band is stronger?

It was always strong and there was always good chemistry between us. Axe [Martin Axenrot, drums] has been with us for a few years now, so it feels like he has always been there, in a way. Same with Fredrik [Akesson, guitars] to be honest, he has only been with us for a year and a half and it feels like we have always been together, you know? We have a great vibe amongst ourselves, we are all good friends. We play better and we sound better than ever, I think. So it’s really good, actually. It feels even though we’ve got long tours, and sh*t loads of gigs we’re always pretty consisted. Even when we don’t do a good show, it’s still a good show. We always deliver.

You recently recorded a video for the song “Burden”; how did that go?

It’s the same director as the first video, in the same style, which I like. We didn’t really have any input on either video, to be honest. I trust him, I know him, I know his preference when it comes to films, photography and art and what he likes. The “Porcelain Heart” video was more like a negative, type of triangular drama love story. This one is almost like connecting to “My Arms, Your Hearse”, a ghost love story. That’s the way I saw it. It’s also in a castle, so we’re like the ‘castle metal band’. It was beautiful, actually. There is a lot more performing from the band in this video. I really like it!

You chose Axe’s girlfriend Nathalie Lorichs to duet on your song “Coil”, did you ever consider asking an already established female singer instead?

No, I didn’t have that idea to do the song with a female singer until I heard Nathalie singing, to be honest. Her and Axe have an acoustic band and she sings, and they played me a couple of songs and I loved her voice. Maybe it’s the way she looks when she sings. She lingers on every word and it’s very passionate sounding. I heard the song and asked her to come and try. It could have been sh*t or it could have been great and it turned out great, I think. When we demoed it, I was almost crying when she sang it. It was so good so I asked her to be on the record. I didn’t want it to become a gimmick, you know? So I wouldn’t go out asking Nightwish’s singer, or Whitney Houston, or someone famous. I didn’t want it to become like a “thing”. It was more in the best interest of the song, as far as I am concerned. And I didn’t want it to be taken out of proportion, like “Opeth has a female singer they are trying to tap in to this or that crowd”. I just thought the song would benefit from her voice, really.

Now that there has been time to let everything sink in, is there anything about ‘Watershed’ that you would change?

No, I never want to change anything about an album. Even if there are f*ck ups and flaws and stuff I don’t particularly like, it’s behind us. I listened to it a lot once it was done and I knew it was good, so no. I don’t want to change anything about any album we’ve done. It’s an imprint in time; it’s kind of hard to explain. It’s the way it’s supposed to be. I don’t like bands that re-record albums, I don’t understand it.

Clean vocals play a dominant role in this album, do you feel more comfortable singing clean or that it is better suited with Opeth’s music?

I let the song decide what kind of vocals it should have. I love to scream, still. I love it. But I also love to sing. These songs come out in a way that those certain parts I just know would be better with clean vocals. And I guess there were more of those parts in this album, but that’s not a sign for our future recordings at all, I don’t think. I would guess they would be 50/50 or maybe more, it’s very hard to say. But it’s not like we’re moving away from the screams at all, really. It’s just that if I happen to write 7 or 8 really heavy songs, there is a good chance there will be more screams on the next one. But I can’t really force it, you know? It just turns out the way it does.

Many lyricists and poets with a similar writing style to yours are inspired best when they are sad, or depressed. When you write your lyrics, do you find that you write best in some kind of dark state of mind?

No, not really. I wrote all of the lyrics for the album in one night, and while I had some ideas I saved anytime I came up with a line, I changed everything. It was good for me to write them, I had a lot of inspiration, but I don’t need to be in a bad mood. I am generally like this [so-so gesture], most of the time. Maybe indifferent, but that sounds really boring. I have outbursts. I can get really angry really quick. I never hit people or anything but just outbursts, you know? I can also have dips in my mood and become really blank. Like nothing is wrong, but that won’t help me in my creativity, to be honest. And if I feel like that I can’t do anything. I can’t find peace or inspiration. When I am like that, I am a terrible person to be around. Not that I am mean, but I am completely boring; a ghost. But most of the time I’m feeling pretty good.

A few things that inspired me where a few deaths in my circle of friends, I guess you could say, and also the band situation, like Peter and Lopez leaving. It was pretty emotional. I based three songs on a person that died, which inspired me to write, “Hessian Peel”, “Hex Omega”, and “Burden” which are all somewhat connected, and to a certain extent, “Porcelain Heart”, too. It’s just things in my surrounding. And normally I come up with fictional subjects and characters. That makes it easier. It’s a necessary evil to write lyrics for me, because you have to have them. Some times I don’t want to write and I force myself to, but these I wanted to write.

Most people say having children changes their life in a positive way, how would you say it inspired you as a musician?

Not so much musically, but lyrically. I love them more than anything, of course. It’s a contradiction that they inspire me to write depressive things, but it’s because you change in that sense that you feel more worried and you’re more afraid and you think the world is horrible and that people are disgusting. Like all of a sudden I’m walking with, let’s say, Melinda [first daughter] in the town and I just want to shelter her from anything remotely bad. I also became more aware of my own mortality. While I’ve never been one of those guys like, ‘Whoa I’m going to die!” I became more concerned about myself because I want to live to see…

To see them grow up?

Yeah… I wouldn’t say it’s a rude awakening, but it’s somewhat of a wake up call when you have kids. You want to be a better person; you want the world to be better. It sounds like f*ckin’ Bono, but that’s the way it feels. While before I could be indifferent watching the news, now I can start crying. When say, I think of my wife and kids going somewhere, I’ll think like, “car accident” and can become totally obsessed with what if something happens, especially if I am away on tour. I am so afraid of everything now. I guess it’s the same for everyone who has kids. It’s horrible, in a way. I hate that I feel this way. I feel that I am overly protective about them; it can consume me if something happened to them, to the point where I wouldn’t know what to do. Most days I’m pretty cool as long as I get to talk to them everyday and see that they are ok. To be honest I want my wife to be in the house locked up with them and have the groceries delivered. But I know that’s not the way of course. But it worries me.

Would you say the relationship with your wife has a similar influence to you musically or lyrically?

“Coil” is slightly inspired by our relationship, but not really. But because of the fact that I’m going to talk about lyrics to, for example, people like you, part of me doesn’t want to write about stuff that is too personal, while another part of me wants to write about that because it makes everything so easy for me. It makes everything so easy to explain, yet I don’t want to talk about some of the lyrics I’ve done. But I wouldn’t say that she inspired me in lyrics, but maybe in writing. Like say when she was pregnant with Melinda, the mood was so calm, so easy, just relaxed. We were waiting for Melinda to come. I was writing the ‘Ghost Reveries’ album at the time and it was like our own personal utopia in the apartment that we lived in at the time. It was beautiful, very relaxing.

You were forced to cancel several shows and festivals in Europe this summer due to you getting ill. What happened?

Yes, we canceled four shows because I got the chickenpox from my kids. I didn’t think you could have it twice but you can if you don’t get it all out of your system when you are young, and apparently I didn’t. So I was on a sick leave for two weeks, but I was well after ten days. I started doing shows again when I looked somewhat presentable, because I basically looked like a zombie for a while. But for 48 hours it was unbearable, I even had chickenpox in my throat so every time I swallowed it was like ‘Ahh!’ There was really nothing to do and I was just walking in circles around my house. I had a bit of a high fever and obviously itching pox all over, which I had this cold crème for but I don’t think it works because when it dries you become like a mummy. I also had to take a lot of medication for it because you can have lots of complications when you are older and it can be dangerous. But one day I was just sitting around and every hour I realized I felt better, so my wife gave me make up and I headed out to do the next weekend of festivals, but I didn’t use it because it wasn’t that bad, although I still had scars, you should have seen me!

Very soon you will release a new live DVD called ‘The Roundhouse Tapes’, can you give us a bit more information about that?

It’s been out on audio for a while, and is massively delayed. It’s from one of the last shows we did with Peter at the Roundhouse in Camden, London. It’s a round place where trains would be brought in and turned around. It was very active in the 60’s. All the psychedelic bands like The Doors and Floyd played there, so it’s a legendary venue and it has been closed for many years. It reopened and we were one of the first bands to go in there, so we figured it would be a good place to record this DVD. It also holds like 2, 800 people or something. So the show was basically a potpourri of our discography. It’s filmed in HD if you like that kind of stuff. It’s a pretty big production, to be honest. We brought in a screen to have some images showing as we are playing, because we’re not the most animated band on stage, really, and it looks good. But to me, I’m like, ‘eh’, it’s old. I don’t even care. It’s not even Fredrik in there. But I think it’s a nice little artifact for Opeth fans. It’s a pretty good performance. I think the best thing about the DVD is some of the fan interviews that we did. Because we had a camera team outside of the building interviewing fans as they went in, and as they came out. By that time they were pissed drunk, so it’s a lot of fun stuff from the fans. There is an interview with the band, some sound check footage, which to me is totally uninteresting, but maybe some fans like it. There is some artwork in there from Travis Smith who has done our artwork for the past ten or so years. It’s a good package, but as I said, I feel that it is in the past and we’ve been waiting for it to be released for such a long time, but now it’s finally coming out and will be out by the time we come back home.

After this tour wraps up what’s on Opeth’s agenda?

We have a European tour starting in mid-November to mid-December. We are just now negotiating about another North American tour as support as well as doing another short two-week long headlining, big production tour, and bringing out a few cool bands to come with us. The support tour is a long f*cking tour but it will be good for our exposure, I guess. Nothing is confirmed yet. If we do it, I’m probably going to fly my wife and kids out mid-tour.

FABIO LIONE

You recently rejoined Vision Divine – how did that come to be and how do you feel about it?

Great! I feel great! We have many things to do. I think that it was something natural, we knew it since the beginning. A few years ago when I left the band, it was just sort of a “goodbye”, not really an “adios!!” We wanted to work together again and now it finally became possible. Vision Divine is a good band with good friends of mine.

How is your relationship with Olaf Thorsen after so many years apart?

We are still good friends. Nothing has changed and we really like to work together. We have seen and shared many things and we can say that we started together years ago. It’s good to work again in the band he and I started ten years ago with good feelings and a good atmosphere between all the members.

There are several new members in the band since your departure in 2003, how would you describe the vibe in the band now as a whole?

It’s probably the best line up we’ve had with great people, and everyone is doing and giving all the right elements for the band. This band is a real ‘friend’s band.’ We’ve had many changes during the last ten years, some of it because of personal tastes and decisions, especially band decisions, but now I see the right people around me. Everyone is motivated and give his own contribution to Vision Divine.

There have been a lot of rumors regarding conflict between you and (former Vision Divine singer) Michelle Luppi – yet you both performed together on stage during the 10th Anniversary show of the band – Is this a misconception people have, and do you care to comment about it?

To be honest, I don’t really care a lot about that. The 10th Anniversary show was really important for the band and the guys invited me to perform. I had to be on stage with Luppi and we did some songs together. I don’t like him as a person, and as a singer, I don’t really care. He has said and done many things that I didn’t like, but it’s life. He did it for his image and his career, so I can understand. I am just a totally different person and it seems that people like to work with me, so that means something. It should make him think.

Rhapsody of Fire has been a bit on hiatus recently. The band is in a legal fight against Joey De Maio/Magic Circle Music. What can you tell us about the situation?

My position is a bit different. I would like to see the band working and touring, but someone else thinks in a different way. In my opinion, the band can be in the middle of a legal fight, but this doesn’t mean that you have to stop activities. I think the band should wake up and see and understand the potential, the mistakes and all the good things that have been done. They should try to take someone who believes in the band very seriously and go on. I had long discussions with Joey [De Maio, Manowar], Alex [Staropoli], and Luca [Turilli], and some times you realize that you can’t enter into the head of some people and change their minds. I hope the band will be out of that problem soon, but first I think Alex and Luca need to reflect on things and understand everything. Second, I think Joey should stop thinking about our band, and live his life thinking about Manowar and their activities.

Would you say the influence of Joey and MCM had a negative affect on Rhapsody of Fire?

Of course! Magic Circle Music did some good things for the band but in general they always thought about themselves and about Manowar. We, especially, Luca, Alex and I, believed in things that never happened. And Rhapsody was not completely free to do what we wanted in the last few years. I am sorry, but I think that Rhapsody met the wrong people along the way. Rhapsody is a particular band with particular people. You can’t manage the band the same as Manowar. We are different bands, with different people, different point of views and different fans.

Would you say the future of Rhapsody of Fire is a positive one?

I can’t really answer this. I can’t see the future yet. The recent situation can be solved soon, but this doesn’t mean that everything will be ok. We have to talk and decide many things, as well as see about our plans for the future. This time we have a lot to talk! I really love this band, and I gave my all in these last years but things should go on in the direction I want, otherwise, I don’t see a future or a reason to carry on.

Honestly, what do you think of the ‘new’ name “Rhapsody …of Fire”?

I don’t like it a lot, but it’s not really important. People will always say Rhapsody, anyway, so it’s ok.

Luca Turilli has recently stated the next album has already been composed. Should we expect more of this extreme “Film Score Metal” style or would you say the band has went back to it’s original roots of speed/power metal?

As far as I know, the new compositions are heavier and much closer to our original style. I wrote a nice speed/power metal song for it; something really epic. But first the band have to solve the matters.

A few years ago you stated you would be working on a solo album – what is the update with that and why has it taken you so long to release any material?

Well, with all of the situations that occurred and problems we had with Rhapsody, it didn’t really make me feel very good. I wasn’t sure about a lot of things, including my solo work. But I compose songs and I’ll just wait for the right time to release them. I just want to be happy with the new material and when I finish the compositions, I will release it. “Il Canto Del Vento” [‘Triumph or Agony’, 2006] was a song from my solo work. As I said earlier, the new Rhapsody album will have this speed/power song and also the new Vision Divine will also have some mid-tempos taken from my solo music. I have to write more now.. grrr!

There were also rumors that one of your past bands, Athena, would reunite and write a second album, is this true?

Yes! We met and talked about it. We have six new songs, but it’s something we would like to do without any pressure. The new material is absolutely fantastic. But in this period, everyone is full of activities, so we have to be patient and see the possibilities of releasing a new CD in the future.

RELIGION AND POLITICS

How do you feel about the economic crises happening all over the world?

Well, something must change. The system is going to collapse soon and the worse is that nothing is changing at the moment. People are blinded and slaves to the system.

Do you agree with the United States’ war on “terror?”

No! I do not support the war. Give me political and military power and I’ll change things. I promise.

What do you think the world needs to change?

We have to live our life for our world and not live our lives using our world. We need to have respect for nature, people and the planet. But today most people only have respect for some pieces of paper… money.

What are your religious beliefs – if any?

You need to believe in something in life, otherwise there’s no meaning to live. Well, I believe that you will receive what you have given.

PERSONAL

Besides roaring on stage or dressing up like a prince in photo shoots, what is a normal day for Fabio?

I do things that I like. Listening to or writing music for hours, have six or seven coffees, one pack of cigarettes, get in my car and drive to different places, talk with my family and my few friends.

How do you spend your weekends?

Usually I see some of my friends. I go to some nice places, but in this period I don’t do anything because I prefer to be alone and I don’t have the right mood.

Describe the relationship between you and your parents. Are you a mama’s boy?

A little [laughs]. We have a very good relationship. We have a nice and some times funny family.

Did you give your parents a hard time growing up?

A very hard time! I was really a bad child; bad with the other boys at school. I was never really a calm boy.

Italy for people all around the world is such a touristy place. Do you ever take the time to visit all of the Historical places in your country?

It’s impossible! There are so many! I think that I have seen and visited good parts in Florence, Pisa, Siena, Rome, Venice, Trieste, Bologna, Sicily, etc. But honestly, Italy is really full of historical places and you need a lot of time and money to see it all.

Can you cook?

Hmm, not really!

How do you maintain your weight? Do you diet or excercise? 

I don’t know. I don’t do any particular diet or sports. Maybe it’s the right time to start something, though.

Where do you buy all of those poet shirts you have?

All around the world, whenever I find a good shop, really. Some times the band buys shirts for the members.

If you could choose 3 places to spend a vacation anywhere in the world, where would they be and why?

Australia, because I have never been there and because I like the country and everything that makes it unique like its places, the animals, and their vegetables. Greece because I love the country, the food and the islands. And I like almost all of the countries in South America.

Do you handle criticism well?

Maybe, maybe not. It depends. I am good man!

How did you celebrate the victory of Italy in the 2006 world cup?

I was happy, and I spent it with my friends. Although I have to say that I don’t usually follow soccer games like 90% of the people of Italy.

Do you prefer a big city or a small, quiet town?

A small, quiet village.

You might be courageous and brave on disk – but what scares you?

I don’t know. I hate syringes! And you know, most of the times, girls can change a man into a child. A strong and great man can be a little quiet, sweet sheep when the right woman is around.

Everyone admires something about themselves, what makes you proud to be you?

I like to give good emotions to people and help them. This is something that makes me proud. It means that I am able to transmit to do something helpful and nice for someone else. When you enter the heart of people you have found an important key in life.

Who is more popular in Italy and be honest – Rhapsody of Fire or Lacuna Coil?

Honestly, I think Rhapsody because the band has been active for more years. We probably sold more CDs. We did some unique and great things, connected to the cinema, created a personal sound, and with me, I was on TV a few times. So people usually talk about that. Then, we have this connection with Labyrinth, Athena and Vision Divine, because I was singing with these bands. In the end, I think in Italy we are more popular than Lacuna.

Brazil or Argentina??????? C’mon… and don’t lie!

Brazil. But I do love both countries

What have you been listening to recently?

[laughs] Whitesnake, Dokken, Cinderella, Firehouse…

You have traveled to many places in the world. List your 3 favorite places in the world:

Too many. Maybe Japan, all of South America, Greece…

FAVORITES

Video Games:

Resident Evil, Ninja Gaiden, Shenmue, Onimusha, Tekken

Bands:

Whitesnake, Queen, Crimson Glory, Queensyrche, Europe, Skid

Alcoholic Drinks:

Negroni, Beer

Food:

Pizza, Mushrooms, Fish, Pasta

Italian Dishes:

Pasta Salmone, Pesto, well, too many!

Movies:

I like the movies with Al Pacino, Toto’, Mel Gibson, Bud Spencer

Hobbies with your friends:

Some times we play Soccer table.

Car:

Sports cars. The Ferrari Modena!

All Time Favorite Song:

This is hard to answer, maybe “The Show Must Go On”.

FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH

“This is a great f**kin’ tour, an amazing tour!” says Fiver Finger Death Punch bassist, Matt Snell, about the Mayhem Rockstar Energy Festival during the after show BBQ in West Palm Beach. Death Punch is a Metal band which hails from the Los Angeles scene, combining elements of Thrash Metal and Hardcore, with fast leads, catchy riffs, pounding double bass and a blend of rough and melodic vocals. They have toured with the likes of Korn, Disturbed, and The Family Values last summer. The band has even routed throughout the country as headliners selling out venues on their own with a growing legion of fans, known as the “Knuckleheads”.

The band has just wrapped up the first annual Rockstar bill, which reunited them again with their friends in Disturbed, and many others including DragonForce, Mastadon, Machine Head, Walls of Jericho and headliners, Slipknot. Death Punch tore down the Jagermeister stage day by day, building their machine nationwide, and has been annihilating ‘Headbanger’s Ball’ on MTV2 with their video for “The Bleeding”. Despite this overload of success, the band is actually only one year old.

I spoke to Mr. Snell, and got the inside scoop behind the Fist.

How did Five Finger Death Punch come to exist?

We’re just a bunch of dudes who wanted to do our thing, finally, and for what ever reason we all found each other at the right time and made this band, and it’s working. It’s amazing. I have to chalk the whole thing up to the fact that when we set out to build it, we said it had to be real. It had to be the music that we wanted to put the CD in and listen to. We weren’t like, “We’re bros let’s make a band”, we came in as a business and now we’re building that.

Can you give us some background on the band?

Ivan Moody, our singer, was formerly of the band Motograter. Zoltan, our guitarist, formerly of UPO. Our other guitarist, Darrell formerly of W.A.S.P, and I’ve been in every band in the world. I am a bass wh*re. I’ll play with anybody, I just love music. Jeremy has recorded more records in studios in L.A. than you could ever count. So you can’t even go into his discography, it’s huge.

What are some of your influences?

Personally, I came up on Cliff and Steve. Any bass player would know that reference. Musically, it’s hard to say. I was a Jazz student for 10 years so that’s probably why I play bass. If we go modern, Disturbed has been family to us, they have helped us out so much. We owe them the world. Korn has taken us out twice, they’re family. They treat us really well; we recorded all of our singles in their studio.

Describe the overall atmosphere between the members of the band and what Five Finger Death Punch means to you.

Like I said, we actually met as business partners when we put the band together, so we actually became friends as we toured. So our first two tours were battles, they were horrible. Everybody was trying to find their ground and make sure it worked. Now we’re family and we get along, everything is good. But Five Finger Death Punch is not only my family, it’s my life. I know that sounds cliché and boring but it’s the truth. We’re looking forward to a long, long prosperous future, and trying to make it where Five Finger Death Punch is a household name, that’s the goal.

How was the writing process of your debut album, ‘The Way of the Fist?’

There were a lot of arguments that went down with that. Some of us liked this or that. We threw a lot of songs away in order to make the ten songs that hit the first record, let alone the thirteen that hit the second. Every song for us means something. It wasn’t done like ‘Here’s a recipe, here’s an ABC on how to make a hit’. It wasn’t like that. We just wrote a record, said we’re going to do what we want to do and hopefully people will like it, and they did. It’s kind of strange to walk into a place, and say “Really, we’re going to sell this? Really? A Metal band??” And it happens.

When will you be releasing the follow up to the debut album?

It’s ready, it’s just a matter of having time off long enough to sit in and record it. We’re booked all the way through the end of the year. But it will definitely be next year. Still there are lots of people who haven’t heard our record yet. We haven’t released it outside of the U.S., nor have we toured anywhere else, so we have to accommodate that first. But we’ve got buckets of material and are constantly writing. It’s about the next stage of Death Punch and what is the right thing to do. We have to sit on that for a minute.

Besides touring intensively, what else has the band been up to?

Just before we left this tour we did two videos. One for “Never Enough”, our latest single, and we did “The Way of the Fist”. That one we kind of did for ourselves, because that’s Five Finger Death Punch. So those videos are going to hit real soon. We have another single coming called, “Stranger Than Fiction”, which we will probably do a video for in the new 3 months or so. It’s a great song, and it’s on our re-release which came out about two months ago. Basically what we are trying to do is explore our every avenue we have.

How do you function differently than the average band?

We’re just trying to be Five Finger Death Punch. It’s funny cause people laugh at us because we’re this heavy band, and we come out and we’re laughing and telling jokes on stage, because we’re actually having fun. And to be this late in the cycle and still be able to have fun, that doesn’t happen anymore. Most of the bands up now are all so business oriented, they don’t get it. We did the business first and now we’re friends, so I think our way works a little bit better.

You’ve toured a lot with a handful of top notch bands, how did it go as headliners?

Very well! It’s very humbling to say, “Hey, you booked us at House of Blues New Orleans? Really?!” They tell us not to worry about it that it will be fine, and when I walk out on stage, it’s full. It’s happening. It’s happening day by day. We’re building our army, we have the knuckleheads, and they are our fans. It’s a very humbling experience to walk out and see that these people are actually connecting with our music and liking it. They are showing up, buying a ticket, coming in, and having a good time. You wish for this your whole life and when it happens you have to kind of step back and go, ‘Wow this is happening, right here right now’, and try to remember it. The only word that comes to mind every time is humbling.

You said you’re booked the rest of the year, what are the plans?

We have a headlining tour coming up in the fall. It’s a good chance for everybody to see a full Death Punch show. We are going to be doing an hour and 15 minutes every night, and we’re going to bring production, and play our whole set. And we’ll laugh, drink and have fun. That’s the point. We’re over the rockstar sh*t. We don’t care. It’s not about that. The direct support for us is In This Moment. I was actually in that band at one point. Chris [Hollwarth], the guitar player and I were in a band called Deadsett. So I’m really looking forward to this. I’ve partied with these guys for years and we always said that if it came to success we would stay together and we’re finally doing it and laughing about it.

 Any closing words for our readers out there?

Please come to the show, enjoy yourself, have fun. It’s going to be a great tour, there are going to be a lot of great bands. It’s a good bill – and I know, I was a concert going consumer for years, I get it. But this is a good bill, come check it out. Five Finger Death Punch wins!

Five Finger Death Punch will perform live with In This Moment, Bury Your Dead, and Another Black Day at Revolution in Fort Lauderdale on November 8, 2008.

OPETH

How has the tour been going so far?

Good! Nice and calm, and a good way to start a world tour. Whatever you call it. It takes you a while to get into the whole vibe, and being on a bus with ten guys, you know? The album is not even out yet but we’re now in touring mode, and it’s nice.

How are the fans responding to some of the new material?

We’re just playing one of the new songs and it’s going down really well. It’s probably the best of all the songs we play. People are really dead silent when we play that song. You can hear them like, “Shh!” if someone is yelling out something during the song.

Is it Porcelain Heart you are playing?

No, it’s the song “Heir Apparent,” the second song on the album.

How did the idea of Progressive Nation come to be?

Well it wasn’t my idea. We were asked to join as were Between the Buried and Me, and Three. So it’s all Port’s idea (Mike Portnoy, Dream Theater), he is the boss of this thing. I am hoping it’s going to develop into something like Gigantour. He really has got his tentacles out everywhere, just looking for new bands that he likes. We have been in the making of doing a tour together with them for a long time. We just haven’t been able to do it until now.

Prior to the tour, did you have any kind of relationship with the guys from Dream Theater?

No, I kind of e-mailed with Portnoy, but I didn’t know him. I met him a few times. I met James once when we did a project together that we were both involved in. I didn’t know them. I knew their music. I am a fan of theirs.

The new album will be released in just a few days, how would you describe the musical approach of this album and what could we expect?

Dark, evocative and a little bit tongue and cheek. When it comes to the music we’re really serious about it, and I think that’s the main perception people have about Opeth. But as people we are just bums, jokers, you know? And we let a little bit of that into the music this time around; just a little. There are a couple of things on there that are almost funny, but still good. 

Are you more satisfied with “Watershed” than any of your previous albums?

I am satisfied with all of them, but yes, I am satisfied with this one. I want it to be like that, that every new album is my favorite, and if that wasn’t the case I would be miserable and would probably end it – not like, end it [pretends he is cutting his wrist] but end the band. So yeah, this is my favorite.

You are the main songwriter of Opeth, how do you structure your work? Do lyrics play a big role in the mood of your songs or does that come later?

Lyrics come usually later. But I have an idea about what I want to write about pretty early on. And I’ve written some, without thinking if it will fit into the song or not, so I literally had to re-write all the lyrics, or re-work all the ideas that I had into the lyrics. That was done during one night in the studio. Basically I wrote all the lyrics in one night and put them to the vocal lines that I had and whatever rhythm I had. Generally, always the music comes first and the lyrics last.

What influences such angry lyrics?

It is death metal isn’t it? That’s what I like to write about. I have yet to write about a nice day at a picnic with a ham and cheese sandwich in a little basket. It’s not what I like to write about for some reason. Consistently, it has always been dark lyrics. I am not saying that I am an aggressive person, like if I don’t write lyrics I’d kill people, but I have to think that some of my inner aggression, I could get out through the music and the lyrics, because I am very mellow.

Generally, your songs are always very long, is this a natural thing and do you find it harder to try to put all of your ideas into some time limited rule?

I guess it’s natural to not have any rules about how long the song will be. But if I come up with something that seems to be not a long song, I am fine with that. I have done a few shorter songs, too. In the past I guess I didn’t think I was able to write short songs, but I can. I don’t want to limit myself; time is not an issue when it comes to music, as far as I am concerned. Some people don’t have the attention span to listen to an album with long songs, but I do.

Can you describe the writing process of this album? Was there anything you wanted to try or do different for the writing and recording?

Well, we wanted to be professional and do it scheduled and disciplined. The writing process was the same old stuff. I bought a little studio so I could record demos. I demoed all the songs and I sequenced them in the right order that I wanted them to be on the album. So I could basically listen to the album before we recorded it. But the actual recording process was very disciplined; early mornings and early evenings. It wasn’t a big issue for me anymore because I’ve got kids now, so I get up early, but usually I like to sleep for a long time. We’d get up at a quarter to eight, start at half passed and work until seven. Have dinner and then bedtime at midnight.

What are the pros and cons to having a set schedule in the studio, as opposed to doing what you want?

We chose the schedule because we wanted to do it. There are a lot of things about being in this band that you don’t feel like doing but you have to do them, and it’s all going to come back to me in the end, so I try to behave. But we do whatever we want to do, to be honest. The word discipline has a negative ring to it but some times you need it. And if your band has been around for a while, and there is a lot of things about this band that nobody knows that has nothing to do with discipline; on the contrary. So we were in deep need of scheduling everything and having an agenda. We couldn’t be the fucking drifters just kind of ending up by chance in the studio recording an album. [mocks] “Oh, should we record?” You know? We had to do it with the whip this time.

Will we see this day to day activity on the documentary from the album?

Well, we did start filming it, but the guy who started filming didn’t get any off time from his regular job so he only got a few shots of Axe. So what is on the DVD are instead interviews with all of us and rehearsal footage. The first rehearsal we ever had playing the new songs once the album was done. And then there is complete bum material from my home studio of me and Fredirik sitting there playing. It just looks like a bunch of freaks, to be honest, but it’s kind of fun to watch. People should have the perception of us in the band like we are humans, not rockstars. So you won’t see us hanging around in a Jacuzzi with a bunch of naked chicks drinking champagne. It’s more like anyone is in the privacy of their own home. It’s not exactly flattering footage from our part, but it is fun and it’s regular.

With the departure of Peter Lindgren, would you say this had an effect on the writing process?

Not musically. I don’t like line up changes and I never meant to have any. I don’t want to have one come in and one to leave. I fired a bass player we had in the past, on the first two albums. I’d like it to be the same guys who started the band 18 years ago, but line up changes happen, and Peter was an important part of this band, but not so much musically in the end, to be honest. But the fans loved him. And I think the music remains intact but when you’re looking at the pictures some fans look at the pictures and say this is not Opeth anymore, because Peter is not in there, and Martin Lopez is not in there, and who the hell knows is not in there anymore. And I could appreciate that and we had a great time with them, but the music is still there. And Lopez never did write, and Peter didn’t write in the last ten years, pretty much. So he’s a face. And he is a good friend of mine and that’s the thing that I lament sort of speak. He and I sort of started this in a way, and he’s not here anymore. But it doesn’t really affect the friendship; it’s more likely to make it better. So now it’s just an issue of whether or not the fans are willing to embrace this new line up or not. And if not, it’s a shame. But the way I see it is it’s their loss. The old days won’t come back. So they either have the choice of not listening to us at all, or come with us and just listen to the old albums or go to another band. To be honest, I am quite indifferent. It’s what people think. This is the reality now and they have to accept that. 

Frederik Akesson is Opeth’s newest member, what about him attracted you to choose him in completing the line up of the band?

He attracted me? Well, he is a good looking guy!

No, we’ve been friends before and I liked him. He’s from Stockholm. He has the same kind of vibe as me. He’s very laid back and calm and on top of that, he is a great guitar player. I saw him playing metal covers at a pub and was very impressed with his playing and eventually became very impressed with him as a person, once I got to know him. Now it feels like he has always been there, in some way.

The first gig we did with him was in Finland, at a festival. And we were standing on the side of the stage, the intro went on, and we always shake hands before the show and we’re looking for Peter and he’s not there. Federik was there. That was weird, but now it’s not weird. It’s like, business, as usual, for us. So he’s been integrated to the point that like I said, it feels like he has been there forever.

You have 3 bonus tracks on the limited edition version of the album, and cover songs from Robin Trower and Marie Fredriksson, do these songs have a special meaning to you and why did you choose to cover them?

Yes, especially “Den Ständiga Resan”, it’s very special, I love that song. That album was like a little break up album for me. I had a girlfriend at the time, this was in 1992, and she broke my heart. It wasn’t my first love but it was a long relationship and she fucked me over with another guy, it was a mess. And I was listening to that album a lot back then, and I’ve always loved the whole album. And this song is a very delicate song and a very sensitive album and obviously she wrote it when she was not in a good state, which I could relate to at the time.

I brought it on every tour we’ve ever done and I’ve played it to everyone in the band, and it got to the point where everyone had a personal relationship with that album and in context, with their girlfriends at the time. We could play that album and soon enough people would go wandering off calling their girlfriends, [mocks] “Oh dear, I love you!”

So it’s a very delicate, very sensitive song and a beautiful singer/songwriter song that I never had the confidence to sing until now. The other one also, is just a great blues track that Jonas, the singer from Katatonia played. He was growing up with Robin Tower and I didn’t really know who he was, until he played me an album, which I picked up and then later picked up “Bridge of Sighs” and I fell in love with it. We did that song and everybody liked it. It’s a cool version. I am singing like a rock vocalist with the raspy voice which I haven’t really done before. It puts the band outside of its own natural habitat. Which is what I think makes a cover interesting. If you’re choosing to do a cover you should do something weird, so you’re pushing yourself to meet the levels of that type of genre.

You covered an Alice in Chains song (“Would?”) why did you choose not to release it on any version of the new album?

It was our least favorite and the most anticipated. People were talking about that song. It’s a cool version but it sounds like them, but worse. It sounds like “Would?” but not as good as “Would?” so you kind of get that whole petty shrug and you’re like “Eh, sounds like ‘Wood?’” But the other ones are cooler, I think.

Has being signed to Road Runner Records had any kind of pressure or effect in the way things are handled with the band nowadays?

No. They never interfered with the music. If they did I would be very upset, unless it was a good idea. And even if it was a good idea, I’d still be like, “Fuck you.” But no, they never interfered with the creative side of the business and that’s the way we want it. Obviously they have a lot of things for us that are a drag, like we have to do lots and lots of interviews, and signing sessions.

Just before we left for this tour I got a box at my house with 800 booklets in them that we were supposed to sign. I was like, What the hell? We did it, but some of the things I don’t understand, you just do them. But I am fine. I have become a little bit informed once the album is done. I am a leader and I like to think I am strong and disciplined and stubborn with the creative side. Like if it’s something with the music or the lyrics, or the packaging or photos. But once all that is done I am more like a dog on a leash, I do what ever they tell me to do.

What about “Porcelain Heart” made you choose this song to be your first single and video?

That was the label’s choice. They asked for my opinion and I said, “Whatever, whatever you want to do.” I don’t know what works as a single, we’re not a singles band. It’s not likely that we are going to be fucking walking down the red carpet with a Grammy in America for a single. So I didn’t really care. I like all the songs, and if they think one song is better as a single than so be it. It worked fine. I hate editing songs but we did a pretty ok edit, I guess, and the video is pretty nice. It’s a bit saucy. But I like the video and I like the song, so why not?

Would you say that Opeth is a visual band? And are you satisfied with the work of Lasse Hoile?

We’re not really a visual band. We became a visual band once we had a video. And that’s why people hated the first video because it didn’t meet their expectations on what the visual side of Opeth was. To be honest, me either. Big muscular dudes, stripers…

But this one is kind of gothic looking in a castle. We did it in Sweden. The guy looks very tense, I think he is a good looking guy, it really fits the song and the two girls are beautiful. They’re sexy but not in a cheap way, they look good. And it looks like they belong together, the three of them, like they have a story together. And we’re just playing. So I like that the focus was not on the band, it was on the story. But we’re not a visual band at all. It’s one of the things that I really don’t know where to take it, to be honest. 

Who created the concept of the video?

Lasse. I didn’t even bother reading the treatment because I knew him and his references when it comes to films. And he said something about the film Sweeny Todd – so, sure. And sure enough I think it’s really good.

There was a rumor that after ‘Damnation’ was released you would play for the Jordanian King? Is this true?

No, it’s not totally true. But we did have a gig in Amman, Jordan. We were set to play there. We weren’t supposed to play in front of the king. But I think the Queen has Swedish blood, or has something to do with Sweden. We were I invited for a tea party with the Swedish embassy in Jordan. That was it. But we had to cancel because Lopez wasn’t feeling well. We sold 6,000 tickets and people were traveling from Iraq, Syria, from everywhere. So that was a big let down that we couldn’t do that.

I hope to reschedule but I think it all comes down to the promoters and I think that no one wants to touch us now because of the fact that we canceled. The promoter didn’t have insurance so we lost a lot of money by our constellation. I want to play in any of those areas. The closest we’ve come is Dubai and we have a gig in Israel.

Obviously there are mixed opinions about Israel, but we don’t have a political agenda, we just play for the people who are interested in music, so we’d go wherever.

Now that Progressive Nation is coming to a close here, what can we expect from Opeth from now until the end of the year?

We’re going back to Europe, doing a signing a session in Amsterdam, one in Paris, and three festivals. Rock Am Ring, Rock Im Park, in Germany, and then a Swiss festival, and then we’re flying home for one day. Then, we’re going to Gothenburg for another signing session, and then one in Stockholm, and then the festivals in Europe. I don’t know if you’re aware, but they are basically every weekend. Now there’s a festival somewhere in Europe and we’re pretty much going to be playing all of them. And then we’re doing Japan, Australia, another North American tour, we’re doing Dubai, we’re doing Mumbai, India, South America, Greece, Turkey, we hope to go to Serbia and all of the countries in the area. We’re looking at Russia, China, lots of work.

When will you go to play in Serbia?

I don’t know but we’re probably coming. We play everywhere. We don’t have any limitations; I think there is a crowd everywhere. I would love to go. But I don’t know when.

And Puerto Rico? After the last few days on this tour Dream Theater and Between the Buried and Me will go play there, why isn’t Opeth on that bill?

I guess because we have a different schedule, doing other stuff. I didn’t know they were going. But we are going to try to hit Central and South America as well, you know. And it’s been a long time. We did a gig in Mexico and we were supposed to go down for two shows in Santiago, Chile but that was canceled, and we’ve never been there, but we’re looking at playing gigs in El Salvador and Colombia. But if we go there, I am sure they are going to try fixing the schedule for us so we can do as many gigs as possible there.

Can you give us more details on the next North American tour, you mentioned earlier?

Yes, it is a headlining tour. I don’t know on which coast it will start, but it’s in September somewhere. I scheduled the tour so that I could celebrate the birthdays of my daughters. We’re going right after my eldest’s, Melinda’s birthday, we’ll start the tour on the 15th of September or the 16th, and coming back just before Miriam’s birthday, so that I could celebrate both. So we finish the 26th of October, I think it is.

Are you allowed to say who the other bands on the bill are?

I’m not sure if I can say it, but I can say it to you. It’s High On Fire and two other bands. Matt Pike is like a legend for the stoner movement. He was in a band called Sleep which is legendary because they landed a major label deal and they delivered an album with only one song on it. A 43 minute long song called “Jerusalem”, and they got dropped from the label for doing that. They have achieved legendary status, and his new band is called High on Fire.

One is a Black Metal band I can’t remember their name. I don’t know who they are but someone told me they were good and they were available.

NIGHTWISH

Through The Eyes Of A Songwriter.

Tuomas, before we start I want to say “Welcome to Florida!”

Thank you very much. First time here with the band.

How has the tour been going so far?

Let’s say phenomenally well, compared to what we were expecting with the change of the singer and a new album coming out. Everything was a big mystery like ‘What’s going to happen?’ So we didn’t really expect much. We were actually prepared for a total inquisition from the fan’s side. But they have been so friendly and nice and the response has been better than ever, so it’s really really encouraging.

Have you guys had any fans directly come up to you guys with negative feedback? Screaming things, maybe booing or holding up Tarja signs?

It’s really amazing that we have not encountered anything like that. There was one girl, I think in Philadelphia doing this the whole show [raises middle finger], but we have done 22 shows now so far, something like that, and that’s the only time that I have seen a middle finger in the crowd. So the percentage is really good. It’s going good but still, the human mind is a weird thing. And Tarja was a big icon to the band and there are a lot of die hard fans out there. So there will be, I think, some conflict at some point.

Ok. So what has been the best city this tour so far?

There hasn’t been a single bad one. But the most memorable ones were San Antonio and Los Angeles for some weird reason.

How does that feel? Because in Europe you guys are playing in arenas, and when you come to America you have to play at small clubs.

We don’t have to play; we have the privilege to play. I love playing small clubs. There is nothing wrong with big arenas but the atmosphere is a bit colder. In small venues you get the sweat and the slime and the smell of beer. You know a really intimate feeling with the people. You know, you can flirt with the people in the front row and touch them. The interaction is much more present. In Europe they are far away. It’s great to hear 5,000 people singing, it has its own kind of feeling as well. But I kind of prefer it like this. It’s never about the size of the crowd, never ever – Usually the smaller the better. I don’t mean 10 people; it’s a bit too little. But if you have a small club that’s full, like 500 people, that’s good.

Out of all of the countries you have visited, what is probably one of the most memorable, most energetic countries you have played?

South America. All of the countries in South America. It’s the Latin blood. I don’t know where it comes from. But the people are so passionate and wild.

Do you speak Spanish?

“Habla Español. Como estas? Una cerveza. Puta Madre!

Any South American tour plans?

Yeah. There’s going to be another South American leg at the end of next year.

Do you ever plan on playing in Puerto Rico?

I can’t believe how many requests we get. We get lots of requests by e-mails, the forums, and people who come to our shows from Puerto Rico. I don’t know. I have to talk to the big guys about that.

You guys have two future US tours, one already has some confirmed dates. How does that feel, you’re going to be on the road for two years. Are you regretting this? Are you excited?

Yeah, the third one is going to be in September of next year. I’m really excited. I mean, I love the whole thing going in cycles. We are going to go home next Monday, so we have three more shows. And the moment of coming home is one of the best feelings in the world. But after being at home for a week like we now get to be, you really want to go on tour again. But in the name of honesty, we have been here on this tour for four and a half weeks now. And everybody is a little bit tired and really wants to go home and see their kids, and wives and stuff, so. But it’s good that it goes in cycles. I’ll never do it Metallica style, like two years in a row and never going back home. So we have scheduled the whole two years so that it’s never more than five weeks in a row and always one or two weeks in-between.

It’s really nice that you guys are giving so much thought into the American audience now. We had postponed tours, cancelled tours in which Sonata Arctica was supposed to be the supporting act a few years ago. Are you guys ever going to consider doing a tour like that?

Yeah we are. Yes! But nothing is confirmed or anything. But it’s been planned, let’s put it that way, hope it happens.

You share the same label as Within Temptation in the U.S., would you ever consider doing a tour with another female fronted band like that?

Yeah, that’s one thing that we have been talking that we wouldn’t do. Not in Europe, not in the States. We want to keep things a bit different. Within Temptation, I love the band, I really do. But I don’t think we would make a good package. It’s a bit too close in my opinion. I mean, both of us have our own styles and our own identities, but still, a Metal band with a female vocalist with the classical elements, a lot of keyboards and stuff, it’s too close. Sonata Arctica for example is perfect. There are some similarities but still different.

This is the first time that the album was released in America right after the European release, now you can see the sales here. Everyone before had to buy the imported album.

Yes! Yes, yes, that’s right.

The American release of Oceanborn had “Sleeping Sun” and I have seen some of the set lists for this tour, why aren’t you guys playing songs like “Gethsemane”? Why isn’t their much focus on that album?

It’s so hard to play that song, we suck at playing. We are getting worse and worse. And we tried it a couple of times and it just doesn’t work. [Laughs]

Well, you have to keep trying!

We have to keep trying, yeah I know. There are just so many songs on six albums. Basically we have chosen the set lists very much according to with what Anette feels good about doing. The first three albums, they were so operatic, she can do them but it doesn’t feel natural for her. She prefers the last three albums. We are still playing “Wishmaster, Come Cover Me, She Is My Sin, Sleeping Sun” stuff like that but the focus is a bit more on the latest three albums. “She is my Sin” is probably the hardest song for Anette to sing out of all of the songs that we have rehearsed so far. So she is a bit picky about that. But we have been doing it and she likes singing it, it’s just that she needs a good day to do it.

I heard you guys rehearsing inside earlier. You guys were playing “Dead to the World”, are you playing that tonight?

Yeah, we are playing “Dead to the World” for the first time. We are just going to give it a shot and see how it goes. It’s replacing “Come Cover Me”.

I like the replacement. It’s okay. I give you the permission. [Laughs]

Alright, thank you. Thank you ma’am! [Laughs]

I noticed that you’re not playing “Master Passion Greed” at all.

No, there’s a reason for that. Let us forget about the whole subject. It’s kind of weird to play some of the songs now because the songs for the new album were done in 2005 and I was totally a different person – well, not totally different but I was thinking and feeling about things in a different way. So getting in the mood for songs like “Bye Bye Beautiful” or “The Poet and the Pendulum” seems a little weird.

But you’re opening with “Bye Bye Beautiful” every show.

Yeah, we are. It’s kind of a statement that the past is the past and this is it now.

How do you feel when you hear all of your fans singing “Bye Bye Beautiful”, that must feel overwhelming.

Yeah, it does. When I’m playing that song live I’m not thinking what the song is about. I just think of it as a really simple, groovy rock tune good to open the show.

You had 10 female vocalists in the end, what about Anette really captured and attracted you about her?

It was the voice and the personality. Those two things combined, and a lot of experience in music. But basically the voice was exactly what we, I mean, it was an instant click, that yes. It’s nothing like Tarja but it still holds the power and the emotion so she will not be a copycat. And the other thing was the personality. She’s from Scandinavia. We share the same state of mind, the same really bad sense of humor; you can talk to her about anything [laughs]. She has a good sense of humor and a really good self esteem as well. Staying in a bus for five weeks with fourteen guys, you really need have to have a good sense of humor. And in the very end, it was more like a matter of heart. What you felt right here among all the candidates. And now when I look back at the whole thing I think it was really easy to pick Anette. It was a unanimous vote for her.

There were a lot of rumors on the internet about the new singer being this girl in this band, or that girl in that band. Did you guys consider even, inviting another female vocalist that was already in the music industry?

No, all of these girls, like Simone of Epica, Liv Kristine, Vibeke of Tristania, all of these, we never ever contacted those at all. They have their own bands and we did not want to interfere in any way. There was not a single one we ever contacted. We just put our trust in all the demos that were sent to us.

How many demos did you get in the end?

A bit over 2,000.

And you went through all of them?

Yes. Well, it was in the period of about 14 months so it was alright.

In the beginning, I’ll be honest; it was weird because it was a big change. I know that ‘Once’ cut down a lot on the operatic style. But after I listened to it a couple of times, I thought it was for the best and maybe we need somebody better like this.

Yeah, that is a really healthy approach towards the whole thing. At first it was incredibly divided. You hate her or you love her. It still is but it’s coming down a lot. People are starting to accept. Seeing that this was the best choice, I mean, because the last thing we wanted to have was a copycat of Tarja, so no operatic, no classical.

Have you had any contact with the former singer?

No.

Not at all? No attempt?

A couple of SMS’, a Christmas card.

No reply?

No, I wasn’t expecting any at all. Let’s not make a big deal out of this. I said the same sentence a few months back and it ended up being the headlines in Finnish newspapers, saying that I tried to make up and she still hates me.

I won’t change anything, I promise. You have my word. [Laughs]

[Laughs] I have no bad feelings. I shouldn’t be angry or bitter for a long time. I really really wish her all the best, and maybe someday life brings us back together so that we can be friends again. But right now, I really don’t know even what to say to her or anything. Let’s just let the time fly and see what happens. No bad feelings!

I hate to bring it up, but after you released the open letter, a few months later Tarja’s husband posted something on the internet answering questions-

It’s bullshit. The whole thing, it’s incredible. It’s incredible and I do not want to talk about it anymore.

Recently I heard an online interview with Tarja where a Spanish reporter asked for her opinion about reuniting with Nightwish for a future Wacken. What do you think? Would you ever consider that or having them both, she and Anette come out and perform?

No.

Is the press in Finland really brutal with you?

It’s not that bad. You just have to be really careful what you say and what you do. Especially now, because we are like really hot stuff in Finland, followed all the time.

Really? Do you have paparazzi following? Ever have people in your bushes?

A couple of times yes, it happened to Anette as well, when we revealed her identity there was this Finnish press who went into her house and put some roses in her mailbox and stuff and just photographing her house.

Yeah and she has to deal with that now. How is she dealing with this every night?

She’s doing very very well. I think there was an initial culture shock in the beginning of this tour. I remember telling her you have no idea what you are getting yourself into and she told me, yes I do, I do, I do. And after one week on the tour here I said, I told you, you had no idea what you were getting yourself into and she said I was right.

What is the biggest pressure for her do you think?

I think it’s such a big boost to feel and confused of this kind of lifestyle, and her being sick in the beginning. All of this combined with a lot of hassle and unprepared things going on. There was a weak moment there, but now she’s doing fantastic.

Did you guys have to talk to Anette about being really warm and outgoing with the fans or is it more of a natural thing?

She does it very naturally. I mean, we all have our good and bad days. And some times if you’re really sick or if you have something really important to do, there’s only so much that you can do. But so far she has been handling things really well. Some times it takes a lot of understanding from the fans and the media if you cannot do everything.

Tomorrow you’re playing in Orlando [Florida]. The venue was changed from House of Blues, I know you’re a big Disney fan and it’s in downtown Disney, how did you feel about that?

I was a little offended by the whole thing, I took it personally [laughs], but I also think that Uncle Walt would be turning in his grave if he knew what the Disney Corporation was doing these days. It’s such a double faced thing that they are not allowing any heavy Metal Bands on their premises to play, but still they are like idolizing pirates. Like psycho paths, rapists, drunken people and Jack Sparrow is like every kids hero now. I don’t mind, I think he’s a cool character and everything. There is a lot of hypocrisy involved, just one example.

You guys have a day off on Friday, are you going to any theme parks?

Oh yeah! We are going to go to Islands of Adventure. I have been there five times already. Five times in Florida and six times in Disney land. I am a freak when it comes to this stuff.

What is your obsession with Jack Sparrow? You look a bit like him. [Laughs]

It’s not an obsession. The whole thing is that I have been looking like this for five years, and I get a lot of this “You look like Jack Sparrow” shit all of the time [Laughs], so just to emphasize the whole thing I put the doll onto my keyboard to give people more to whine about, you know, that’s the whole thing. But I think he’s a cool character. Johnny Depp is actually one of my favorite actors. I love the movies and everything, but I have no obsession with him and I am not trying to imitate him in any way. Blame my mom and dad.

How do you parents feel about this? You’re multi platinum now with the new album, what do they say?

They are so proud! My mom and dad were actually in California and in New York at our shows. So they are really really supportive. Some times my mom even sends back letters to fans. She collects everything that is ever written about us. She has this book. So they are really proud and I am pretty happy for that.

It’s great to have support from your parents playing heavy music.

Exactly. It’s not always like that. I mean, for me, it was always like that. But for many people, it’s not.

Your song “Whoever Brings the Night”, is that about groupies?

Not about groupies, no. It’s a song about the real dirty side of the human mind. Some times you get really scared about the wrong thoughts and dreams. But this is more like the sexual side and the really dark side of the human mind. That’s what the song is about.

Clearly your lyrics are poetic; would you ever consider releasing a book of Poetry some day?

I don’t know. I love writing lyrics but I don’t consider myself as a poet. I like the idea of combining lyrics with the music but I don’t even read that much poetry. I love Walt Whitman, though, and some Finnish poets. But a poet is something different. I’m a songwriter, a lyricist. A poet is something bigger.

Well, I am a poet. And you are my biggest influence. I know this is an interview, but for example on myspace it asks “Who I’d Like To Meet” and I would have always Tuomas Holopainen.

Really??

Yes, always.

Well, hello! Nice to meet you! [Shakes my hand] That’s kind of flattering, you’re blushing me. [Laughs and covers face]

How does it, you know, I am not a native English speaking person so how do the lyrics sound to your ears? There must be a lot of grammar mistakes and stuff.

I’ve never really noticed. Now this is an interview with me?

[Both Laugh] Yes, yes I am asking you!

I’ve never really noticed. You write probably better than a lot of English speaking people. You have such great grammar and the way you phrase your words are so poetically well done. It’s beautiful.

Really?? Wow.

Absolutely. So, obviously life inspires you, but what has been the most emotional song you have written for the band?

“Dead Boys Poem, The Poet and the Pendulum, Higher Than Hope.” “Dead Boys Poem” kind of like, identifies the band. We are not playing it anymore. But yeah, I like it still.

Ok, Tuomas. I want to keep asking questions but I don’t want to take up too much of your time.

No worries!

Are you sure? Cause I can keep you here for hours.

[Laughs]

What is your favorite food when you come to America?

That would be the only thing I don’t like about this country, the food. It takes a lot of effort to find something healthy, something good here. I don’t like burgers or fries at all. I never eat them. I like pizza, but everyday that’s not good for you either. I love sushi, it takes a little effort but there are some sushi places here. Usually what you get backstage is pizza, white bread, cheese and meat. Like ham or turkey. I really miss rye bread and fresh vegetables. A typical Finnish dish is rye bread, potatoes and some kind of meat, meatballs.

Can you cook?

I like cooking. I pretty much suck at it, though. But I really like cooking. I live by myself so I some times take a lot of time just to cook for myself. It’s a bit corny but it’s a lot of fun.

So, are you used to this, people coming unprepared for an interview?

It’s much much better than you reading from a note. Its best, therapeutic conversations, that’s what it should be. Like this, it’s kind of fun. It’s good to be random; you should never be too prepared, too academic. I’m so glad you didn’t open up the interview with “Why did you fire Tarja?” I still get that a lot, it’s kind of annoying.

Before I got here I was nerve wrecked.

Why?

Why? Because you are Tuomas. Not to sound like I am glorifying you but you have been a big influence to me, a big inspiration.

Well, that’s really flattering but we are all the same.

Yes, you’re right. But you’re a huge influence to me poetically.

Stop it! [Covers face and laughs]

Thank you very much for taking the time to do this interview and for coming here.

It was my pleasure!