Death metal was never as exciting as in the early to mid 90's, with bands like Entombed, Necrophobic, Defleshed and Unleashed delivering some of the finest offers straight from Sweden while helping to develop the style to a whole new level. As it seems, supergroup Firespawn, which is made of members from all of the above, still thinks it's the mid 90's all over again.
M.I. - Thanks for the time you took to answer this interview, Viktor. First of, tell us more about the creation of Firespawn.
We created Firespawn to enjoy a bit more of our free time. Since death metal is a big factor for us, and having in mind we can all pay attention to our other bands and not bump into the matters of Firespawn, we decided to come forth with a band that represents what old-school death metal is all about.
M.I. - The new album is a milestone when compared to the previous "Shadow Realms". However, while old-school death metal is living a second life, you add your touch to it: it's not melodic death metal, it's not plain old-school death metal, and it's not brutal death metal either, but a mix of it all. Being true to what you've always been, do you think that keeping it honest and real produces a better outcome? This is clearly something important for you.
Yes, indeed. The new album is more aggressive and less melodic, that's true, even though we have melodic parts here and there. We do feel that as long as the outcome sounds good, then it means we stuck to honesty and to do what we really love. The reactions have been great so far from the different media outlets, so we're happy that it turned out the way it did.
M.I. - Speaking of that, the guitar work is crunched up through and through, can you tell us a bit about composition? Who is the main composer of the band?
Yes, I paid serious attention to the guitars on the new album, especially because I'm the main composer of the band. I do enjoy to have the proper time to come up with my work so the rest of the band can have a say and then we take it from there. As for the muscled sound of the guitars, that's what death metal is all about: ferocity, aggressiveness and a heavy, thick sound.
M.I. - What does it feel like to be signed to Century Media? What's your overall feeling about the record label thus far?
It's just great to be able to work with a top, world class company like Century Media. We do trust their work and so far everything's going on very well. We have been getting a good distribution and the people there give us complete autonomy to do what we do best without meddling into the band's choices. I can't say we could be much better than with Century Media.
M.I. - What about touring to showcase the new album?
It will be a very intense year, and we're even scheduled to play at Hellfest, so we'll see how things will go from there.
M.I. - Overall, what do you expect from the album in terms of putting Firespawn at the forefront of extreme metal?
Well, so far the reactions from the fans to the teasers have been frankly great. However, I don't take anything for granted. Even if the feedback has been excellent, Firespawn is not a project, but a real and serious band, it's just not something we do on our past-time to have some fun. Sure, we do have fun, but we take the band seriously enough to want it to be seen not as an ephemeral project but a band that's here to stay. That means we obviously want to be respected as such, but time will tell.
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Questions by João Correia
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