Of course by now, you're all probably well aware of Peter Tatgren's decision to carry on with one of Sweden's most pioneering Metal acts, Hypocrisy. Formed in '91, the band became infamous for being one of the most blasphemous Death Metal bands out of Europe. Originally a five-piece, the band released it's first devastating effort in '92 entitled, Penetralia. Combining the chaotic thrash riffs of early Slayer with the tightness and melody of its European brethren, the album was instantly a success in the underground and soon many U.S. fans were beginning to expand it's horizons far beyond the trademark Floridian Death Metal sound. What followed was a string of crushing heavy follow up releases but soon, things took a dramatic turn with the band's 3rd full length release, The 4th Dimension. Showcasing perhaps a more ambient feel than it's predecessors (think 70's Pink Floyd), the band had slowed down its tempos a few notches and instead, tried their hand at writing more epic style song structures filled with lush harmonies and keyboards. Though some cried 'sellout,' a majority of its most ardent fans welcomed this progression with open arms. Thus, began a whole new direction; a whole new age. With that, the band continues to explore uncharted territories up until this day with their newest one, simply entitled Hypocrisy being perhaps the band's most progressive effort to date. Read on and find out for yourself.
Interviewed by Envenomed.
Q: Now that the new album has been finally recorded and about to be released, what's your overall view of it in terms of clarity, performance, and professionalism?
A: I think it's close to perfect. It's like 99% perfect, I think. I'm very proud about everything songwise, productionwise...it's definitely the best album album we've ever done.
Q: Now I noticed that the new album doesn't have a title. Was there a purpose behind that?
A: Not really. The whole thing was really supposed to be called Cloned but 3 months before, we found out some other band had taken that title. So we just said, 'Whatever' and felt that either we do a self-titled record or come up with something else but then we felt that this was such a strong album that the title Hypocrisy was good enough.
Q: I understand. The reason I asked is because I had took it as symbolizing a whole new era or beginning for the band since I remember a while back, you were originally considering to call it quits with Hypocrisy and focus more on producing.
A: Yeah, you could say it's a new era because the music just keeps getting a little bit different and also I just think that for us it's a classic.
Q: Well, considering your original plans to break up the band, what was deeply frustrating you during that time and do you feel that now you've been able to overcome what was plaguing you in the past?
A: Yeah, definitely. The big reason was that I didn't feel like the support was there with the label. I didn't get any help from the other guys in the band and stuff like that. It just felt like I was pulling the wagon myself and they were just living off of it. I mean, that was the biggest reason but it all changed now for the better.
Hypocrisy circa the "Hangin' Tough" tour.Q: I see, and then you finally came to America last year to play the Milwaukee Metalfest which, from what I understand, was one of the biggest reasons why you finally decided to carry on. The crowd was totally into it. Now what was going through your mind at that point and how did this help to open up the eyes of your fellow bandmembers?
A: I think that maybe we haven't realized our status or whatever you want to call it, that we really had it in America, something I would never have dreamed of. Also, when we said that we were going to quit, in Europe it was kind of chaos. It was really weird. I mean, people were crying when we were playing. A lot of the people were sad when we told them that we going to call it quits. It was like we really had to think twice and make it work.
Q: Now when Hypocrisy originated, the band was known for playing very fast, technical Death Metal. However, over the years the music has managed to progress without compromising its fanbase. With that in mind, would you still consider Hypocrisy to be Death Metal?
A: Now I'd just call it Metal because we have so many different influences in the music today. You have Death Metal, you have Thrash Metal, you have Speed Metal, you have like Gothic elements and stuff like that. So it's kind of hard to say what it is. We just write music, ya know whatever comes out if it. It really doesn't matter as long as it's good. We don't care about labeling ourselves.
Q: Well, of course, variety is the spice of life so I can't argue there but I also know that at one point you were heavily involved with the Scandinavian Black Metal scene. In fact, at one time you were even involved in a side project called The Abyss which was more in the vein of Marduk and Dark Funeral just to name a few. Are you still involved with that and what's your whole take on that scene as you look back on it today?
A: Well, I produce a lot of bands and record so it's an everyday job for me I guess.
Q: Right, but do you think there's any chance of another Abyss album happening?
A: No, we're actually not going to do it because we felt that we couldn't do any better than Summon the Beast and therefore we really don't want to try. I mean, Summon the Beast is the best Abyss album we've ever done and you can't get much more brutal than that.
Q: Now getting back to the problems you had faced earlier on in your career, would you say that despite the frustration, something positive had come about which has made you all the more wiser?
A: Yeah, for sure and also Nuclear Blast had to prove themselves which they did now. Also, the other guys are helping out which allows me to enjoy life more rather than concentrating on Hypocrisy all the time because it's a hobby. It's supposed to be fun, not aggravating.
Q: True, but I'm deeply surprised to hear that part of your frustration had stemmed from what you claim to be a lack of support from Nuclear Blast because if memory serves me correctly, they were always pushing your albums in ads throughout almost every magazine.
A: Well, it really wasn't in America. It was in Europe that there were some differences. I thought they could push more and help out a little bit more. I mean, obviously they did with The Final Chapter because that album just went through the roof in Europe. Of course, it was also because of us doing a good album but Nuclear Blast really put their power into it. It has to go hand in hand nowadays with the label really supporting the band and they are which is really cool.
Q: Obviously, Hypocrisy is forging on with the same feel and progression as the last two albums which happens to be more simple, straightforward song structures and slower tempos. Now keeping this in mind, what is your overall opinion on the band's much earlier stuff, say around the Osculum Obscenum era?
A: I just feel that we done it and for us, we think that there are other bands out there today that do it much better than we do but it's not only that. It's just like when we write songs, we just write and whatever comes out of it, comes out of it. We never really think that, 'Oh, we're going to do a fast, blasting song.' It just starts with the riff and whatever comes out of that.
Q: I understand but when you listen back to some of your earlier material nowadays, was there anything that perhaps you were dissatisfied with that had prompted you to move into the direction you're moving in now?
A: I don't know, maybe. I mean I still love the songs as much as when I wrote them but maybe it was a lack of musician skills from all of us in the band, otherwise the songs are killer.
I forgot what web page I grabbed this image from. If it was yours, many thanks, don't sue.Q: How would you describe yourelf as an individual, not just musically but personally as well? Also, how has your personality resulted in the kinds of things you love to pursuit now?
A: I think I'm a laid back person. I don't really like to speak so much vut when I'm in the mood, my mouth will just fly. Otherwise, I'm more of an observer in life. I observe and suck in all the information I can get from everywhere and everything; in music, in people, everything. I'm more of a thinker basically.
Q: Getting back to the new album, I read in a recent interview of Terrorizer magazine where you were quoted as stating that it comes across as a cross between Hypocrisy and Metallica's "Black" album. Now was that the atmosphere you were striving for upon recording it?
A: No, not really at all. It's kind of weird because first you write all the songs and then when you start recording, you just choose the songs that sound best. You know, you just try to find a good guitar sound, a good drum sound, and so on and whatever comes out of it when it's finsihed just happens. I don't know because there are so many mid-flow songs that just kind of reflected me in that way. I'm not saying that it sounds like Metallica's "Black" album because it doesn't but just the feeling of it, ya know.
Q: But considering your role as both producer and musician during this affair, how much input was shared amongst your fellow bandmembers this time around?
A: Let me see... We did 20 songs. We did like 7 or 8 songs each. Then we brought them to the studio and we were picking out the 10 best songs for it. I think on the album, I did 5 songs myself, and we did one together. Lars did two and Mikael and I did two together. There's plenty of more songs left but we thought that 10 of the songs were the best songs to have on the album. We all really agreed on it very easily.
Q: So then what had you felt about them that helped meet your criteria for the perfect Hypocrisy album? In other words, what was the one thing you were looking for in order for wach song to be perfect?
A: I think it really has to have something that you can remember or at least one or two parts in it that really get to you, either in your heart or your whole soul. It doesn't matter if it's slow or fast, just as long as it kicks your ass and wakes you up.
And suddenly the whole world blew up.Q: Do you often find it frustrating when it comes to juggling both the responsibility of producer and songwriter at the sametime?
A: Yeah, that's the worst part. When you record your own band, you kind of really get lost in space because you have no one to lean back on to see whether it's good or not, or if you become unsure on different things no one is there to tell you to do this or that. So you just have to really follow your heart on that one also. It's kind of frustrating because you want to achieve more as a musician, I mean, you're really pushing yourself and you're thinking about it 24 hours a day until the album is done.
Q: Well, then if you find it to be rather difficult in handling the responsibility, why don't you hire someone else to produce the record instead?
A: I think I'm just a stubborn motherfucker, you know
... because I have to prove to myself that i can do things. If things were easy then they wouldn't be too much of an interest for me. It always has to be a challenge in my life. It's always been like that. I'm like a person who really wants to take on a challenge. Q: So I take it that you're every bit of a perfectionist then?
A: Yeah, I am. There's not one album that I'm 100% happy with the production or something like that. Also, I think that's good because if I would ever become 100% happy with the production then maybe it's time to quit because then I don't have any goals to achieve.
Q: Now over the course of your last two releases, a majority of your your lyrical output was based on an alien theme. What was it about the subject of aliens that originally brought about your interest?
A: I don't know. I just know that I've always been into it like for over 25 years, since I was a kid. So I just thought it would be fascinating to write a few songs about it. Like on The 4th Dimension, I was starting with out-of-body experiences, stuff like that.
Q: But has your interest stemmed from any previous personal encounters?
A: No, not really. I never seen anything weird but it's just been like in the back of my head all the time, since I was a kid. It's very interesting and it's a hobby of mine to collect information about it.
Q: I understand. However, you strayed away from all of that on the new one. In fact, you seemed to get a little bit more personal with the lyrics this time around. Care to comment on what inspired your writings this time?
A: Yeah, 'Fracture of Millenium,' the first song, is about how self-destructive human beings are and whether or not we're actually going to see the millenium because we're pretty good at destroying ourselves and everything around us. Also, 'Apocalyptic Hybrid' is more or less, pure science fiction. It's like a Star Wars-meets-Independence Day type of story. But this time, there's a lot of different topics, a very wide range of topics in fact.
Q: You mentioned the millenium which I found to be interesting. Is there anything you see happening in the next millenium that will probably affect us very dramatically? Anything that you think may change how the way we see things?
A: Uh... I don't know. Then again, it's like what do you do with all the nuclear weapons that they're taking away; that they're destroying right now? Like America and Russia had some of sort of agreement where they're going to do away with a lot of that shit. But what are they are going to do with it because it's toxic and radioactive. I mean, that could be a problem in the future.
Q: Last question. Considering all the changes that have been taking place over the years with the band, both musically and personally, do you still consider the title Hypocrisy as a suitable moniker for what it now stands for? A: Yeah, for sure, definitely. I mean, for me, Hypocrisy can be so many different things. So to me, Hypocrisy is very suitable for any type of music.
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