Ελληνικά
Negative Self is one hell of a band worshipping’ Suicidal Tendencies legacy and taking it a step beyond. Many can’t get it and think it’s funny, so punks, You think it’s so funny…laugh at this! On Frank Guldstrand (bass) words….
Hi there from Greece and Metal Invader. As your debut album will be probably in my top 3 list for this year tell me if I’m the only one who digs it or are the critics and the reception of the record in the same vein?
Hi there from Stockholm, Sweden! Glad you like the album so much we really put a lot of work into it. The reviews have been mixed, some people love it some people hate it. It’s kind of what we expected. Either you get it or you don’t. However the support we’ve been getting by people who like it has blown us away. We get e-mails from people saying how much they like it and how much it means to them. This is something we’ve never experienced in any other band so we must be doing something right!
Give us a mini bio of Negative Self.
Tor and Andreas got together in their mutual adoration of the old school suicidal sound and the meaning it conveyed. They jammed with Tor on guitar and Andreas on drums and wrote all the songs. They struck a deal with High Roller Records to release the album. I (Frank) then got the question if I wanted to record the songs. I ended up doing the bass on the album which was recorded by us in our rehearsal space (which is the back room of an electricity firm). After a long search for members to play rhythm guitar and drums we finally found Viktor (guitar) and Oscar (drums). We have just completed our first two gigs at the Malmö Sibbarp Ultra Bowl skateboard competition and a couple more are in the works. We are also working on new material which we are really excited about.
Is Negative Self just a project and mostly studio one or will we see you performing live sometime?
We have just done our first two shows and we are aiming to do more. The next one will be at Stockholm Hardcore Fest on the 15th of August. We are definitely a “real” band but the members are busy people so we have to do some planning for things to work out.
Will you hire a drummer? Will he/she be a session one for live shows or a regular one?
We have a drummer now: Oscar Borgenstam! A great guy and a great drummer who drives a gas car and supports a horrible football team (soccer for you north americans out there).
Are there any new tracks ready or is it too soon? Can we expect something in a new musical direction?
We are already working on new material. The way people responded to this album just pushed us to do more. It’s more of the same style, but better, in our opinion. Expect thrashing riffs, melodies and gang vocals. And yes, Tor will be shredding away through most of the songs.
How soon will we see the new album on stores?
It hasn’t been recorded yet so we don’t know. The debut album took a year to record, mix and master. I hope it won’t take that long though.
Will it be via High Roller as the debut?
We don’t know any details regarding who will release it at the moment.
There are approximately one million bands playing like Slayer and one million trying to play like Motorhead. Still many call you a tribute band. Are comfortable with the haters or the ones that call you Suicidal clones?
We knew from the day we started that people were either going to hate what we are doing or understand what we are trying to create and love it. The sound that Suicidal Tendencies created is very special and hard to recreate. So naturally anyone loving that sound and wanting to play something similar to it will be brandished rip-offs or clones. But as you say there are one million bands sounding like Slayer, Anthrax, Kreator, etc. What we do is an homage to Suicidal Tendencies at their peak but we mean everything we do. The songs have true meaning and deal with issues that are real. We are just making music that we like and that helps us get by in life.
I was speaking with Suicidal’s management and mailed Mike Muir your album and asked him his opinion about you. Never got an answer to be honest, but have you ever tried to contact with him?
We haven’t tried to get in contact but it would be fun to hear what he/they thought about our stuff.
Tell us more about the lyrics. How important is for you? Or is it all about the hype and the attitude?
The lyrics deal with our lives. The constant battling with negative thoughts and how to get through it. The destructive nature of relationships and being alone. I think there’s an empowering twist though. It’s not about being helpless. Of course there’s an art in writing lyrics and how to make it sound the way we want it to but the subjects being conveyed are totally real. Bad lyrics can totally ruin a song and ironically the lyrics we like the least on our debut album are the ones that have been appreciated the most.
What was all these about nazi threats you received? You know Greece has many issues with far right nazi scums lately. What’s your opinion about all this far right movement in Europe?
We didn’t receive any threats. However a far-right record dealer want to buy some of our records to sell. We just wanted to make absolutely clear that this is not something we want to be associated with and it’s completely opposite of what we stand for. The support the far-right movement has gained throughout Europe is disheartening but I think we have to continue to fight it through reasoning and showing that we do not accept racist, fascist and nazi ideologies.
Even though our readers are mostly in to Metal still we dig a lot Hardcore and Crossover/Punk as subgenres and post a lots of albums for streaming via bandcamp, so please tell us 5 albums we should check from 2015 that probably are underrated from metal audience.
There are some great things coming out of Sweden at the moment Hardcore-wise which I think people should check out.
Obnoxious Youth, Swedish-finnish collaboration with roots in Uppsala Hardcore giving you the most disgusting and twisted take on hard rock, heavy metal and hardcore. It’s awesome and they’ll be out with a new record soon!
https://obnoxiousyouth.bandcamp.com
Svart Städhjälp, great 80’s USHC mixed with some old school scandithrash influences from Malmö. We toured with these awesome guys last summer when me and Tor played with another band and had a blast!
https://svartstadhjalp.bandcamp.com
Power Face, this is a brand new, still steaming pile of hardcore out of the back alleys of Stockholm’s suburbs. Take the most snotty hardcore you’ve ever heard and add some Judas Priest and you have Power Face!
http://powerface.bandcamp.com/releases
Livet Som Insats, not as much hardcore as the rest of the bands but this grindcore act hailing from Falun Glam City, with a constant on-going beef with Sabaton, will grind your ears off. They have a new record out called Check Your Grind and you need to check it out as well.
https://livetsominsats.bandcamp.com/album/s-t
Hårda Tider, these guys aren’t newcomers anymore but they still bring a lot of energy into hardcore and if you ever get the chance to see Hårda Tider in their hometown of Malmö you have to take it. It’s the most intense hardcore experience you can ever get in Sweden along with some really mean hardcore!
https://hardatider.bandcamp.com/album/night-fever-split-12
Bäddat För Trubbel, I’m throwing this in as a bonus. It’s not Hardcore, It’s not metal, it’s the most raw expressions of rock that I’ve ever experienced. I think it transcends the language barrier as well.
Check spotify but there are two songs here:
http://baddatfortrubbel.bandcamp.com/releases
The closing is yours…
We want to say thanks for all the support we’ve gotten. It really pushes us to keep on doing this! We look forward to creating new music because we love doing this but right now most of all we look forward to getting on the road playing live in front of our fans.
