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July 24, 2008 |
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Nils Eriksson
January 26, 2006
By Tony Antunovich
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Sweden's NOCTURNAL RITES are regarded as one of Metal's most aspiring melodic outfits. Their unique style has served them well for over ten years and as with any good band, they've progressed with every release. Out in Europe since the fall and just recently released in North America, their latest album, "Grand Illusion", fuses captivating melodies, blasting rhythms and soaring vocals with unmistakable authority. Not too many Power Metal bands these days could pull off this kind of technicality and musical prowess and still have the courage to do something different than everyone else. But longevity requires more than just talent; you need the right attitude. Bassist Nils Eriksson says that the band have always done what works for them, and having fun while doing it is key. He talks about the recording of "Grand Illusion", the shooting of the second video for the track "Still Alive", the band's upcoming live shows in 2006, and what sets NOCTURNAL RITES apart from other Power Metal bands.
NOCTURNAL RITES is one of those bands that just progress naturally; you just keep getting better and better all the time, and the new album definitely speaks that loudly.
I totally agree. Like you said, I think we're one of those bands who... every album doesn't really sound the same, you know. For every album there is something new and we always take a step forward and I think we did that. It keeps things fresh and it's always fun to start working on a new album. We did have a lot of time recording this album. A lot of other albums we did in the past we didn't really have the time to do them, but this time we actually started out early way before our deadline and we made sure that we could go back and we could remix. We knew we had a great album done and I think that really helped out.
Your hard work definitely shows through the music. Did you find this one more difficult to write than previous albums like let's say "New World Messiah"? Did you find it more of a challenge?
I don't know. I think it's always hard to start writing an album because like I said before, we never really save up ideas and collect songs for a long time. We start from scratch and for every album writing session we have a blank page or a blank computer screen and that's it, you know. For that reason it's always sort of hard to get going and set the pace for the album and getting the reaction for what kind of song you should write and how the album is going to sound. But I think in starting to write an album it's always been hard for us ever since day one and this was no different. As you go on and more songs get written it becomes easier, you know. The closer you get to recording the album, the more ideas you get. We're one of those bands that really need some time pressure to step up. I don't think it was really more difficult to write this album. We've always been very thorough when it comes to melodies.
Maybe we did work a bit harder on getting the vocals to blend in a bit better on these new songs than on other albums; we really spent some time with Jonny (Lindkvist) getting those perfect vocals and keys and everything. Maybe we did work a bit harder on that, but apart from that it was pretty much the same.
Jonny's vocals have improved a lot. His voice keeps sounding better and better on each album.
Yeah, it just sort of blends in better with the music and I don't know why. We did spend a lot of time recording his vocals. I don't think in the end it took longer but we recorded shorter sessions with him; maybe he came in for four hours one day and then have the day off the next; then he came back like two days after and we did a session for seven hours. We didn't do all the vocals in a row like on other albums and I think that really helped him keep his voice in shape and have that high energy level every time he came in. That's a good thing about recording at home. We did one album where we went away from home - that was doing "Shadowland" - and it was a really painful vocal session because he came down for two weekends. I think the first day he probably sang for 10 hours, the second day for 12 hours and the third day for maybe eight hours, and then he went right back home and came back the weekend after and did the same thing. But with this album, recording at home was so easy, you know.
You just get in the car and come down to the studio. If we didn't have motivation for recording guitars, we do some vocals for a few hours and then go back home again. It's just a very good creative thing for recording.
Yeah, that must make it a lot easier.
Yeah.
One of your favorite songs from the new album is "Fools Never Die". Can you tell me what you like about the song so much?
That it's straight-forward. When I hear other bands sometimes they tend to make a lot more complicated than they have to be, and this song is just a perfect example of when things don't really have to be complicated to be good, you know. Sometimes that really simple thing is actually the best thing, and this is one of those songs that really stick in your head and you can't let go of. It's just so straight-forward and so easy and it's a great live song as well. I don't know - it's just simple. It's still not cheesy, you know (laughs).
No, it's definitely not cheesy.
It's hard to write memorable songs that are easy, acceptable and still not cheesy, you know. You don't want to make songs that sound like Britney Spears or whatever. This is one of those songs that might be cheesy, but it's still very memorable and acceptable and I think it has some real mainstream quality.
I agree. Another song that really stands out for me is "Something Undefined". I like how it starts off heavy and then goes into the more melodic portion. The melodies in the chorus are outstanding. It totally blows any mainstream song like from Britney Spears way out of the water. There's just no comparison.
(laughs) That's good to hear.
Metal is quality music. There's no quality in mainstream Top 40 music anymore. Sure, Metal isn’t the only music on the planet, but it does have a lot more strength that most genres out there.
Oh yeah, I agree. It's built to last, you know.
It is, and it's real musicians playing real music. It sounds like you had fun recording this album.
Yeah. There are always times when you have some doubts when you take so long to record albums. I don't think people that aren't in a band and that haven't really recorded an album know what it's all about, you know. It's a lot of hard work and a lot of sweat and... I wouldn't say tears (laughs). But when you look back on a recording you also appreciate it and it's always a lot of fun, especially with this album. We also worked with the Toon Track (Studios) guys that are close friends of ours. We just had a good time, you know. It's just a good vibe and I think it shows on the album that we had a lot of fun.
You had a lot of guest musicians perform on the album, like (guitarist) Stefean Elmgren from HAMMERFALL, Henrik (Danhage - guitars) from EVERGREY, and of course Jens Johansson from STRATOVARIUS. How was it working with those guys?
We had the idea from the start before we even started recording the album that we should have a lot of guests on it. We've had that thought before it's never happened because of time issues. But like I said, for this recording we made sure we started out on time; that we would have time to do things we actually hadn't planned from the start. But this was one of those times when we did have plans and it was fun because I think they added something to the songs they're on. I think it's a lot more fun for the fans to listen to the album and there are some other guys on it as well. It was great. I love it.
And you just recently finished shooting the second video from "Grand Illusion" - "Still Alive". Can you tell me a little bit more about the details?
Well actually, I haven't seen the finished version yet, but I saw the first cut of it and it's kind of weird, but it's cool. The song is little bit about energy and a bit about just being alive; I think you know what I mean. I think the whole idea behind the video is energy and keeping the energy level high - like the song - and I think it shows. I think it's probably going to look great.
Owe (Lingvall - drums) is working on MORGANA LEFAY's second video too. Is he directing it?
Yeah. He just actually started by fluke, I don't know. We did the first video off the last album for "Awakening" and he thought the whole process was very fun, just the process of making a video. So he thought, "I'm going to try and do this by myself." So we let him do it and just for fun, he made a video for "Against The World" off the last album. It actually turned out really good. Then he just kept on going and he's been doing some videos for other bands as well. He did the "Fools Never Die" video and also "Avalon" off the last album and now there's the new one.
So you guys are good pals with MORGANA LEFAY?
Yeah, we toured with them and NEVERMORE way back I think in 1999 or something. And actually they're going to be special guests on a show we're doing here in Sweden (tomorrow) January 28. It's going to be a cool show. We probably have the biggest lighting rig anyone in this city has ever seen (laughs). We have lighting and probably a bit of lightning as well... some big screens and whatnot. So we'll see what happens.
You're doing a couple of shows in February and then you're playing the Winterland Metal Fest in March.
Yeah, exactly. We have a show after the 28th and then we're doing one off-show in Tunis and then we come back and do the Winterland Metal Fest.
Aside from that, do you know if Century Media has any plans to put you on a full-fledged North American tour?
I don't know yet. I think we have to wait and see how the album does. The initial feedback has been really good in the States, but the American market is a little bit weird for Melodic Metal, you know. I think we have to wait and see how the album takes off and how the initial sales are and then we can go back and talk about it. So we'll see.
It would be good to have NOCTURNAL RITES tour North America.
We'd love it! The album actually came out in Europe in late September (2005). We've already toured Europe and Sweden since then so we've covered a lot of land here. We have a lot of open space in 2006 so hopefully we can make it over.
I've never really heard another Power Metal band, or even another Metal band for that matter, with the same sound you've developed. There are a lot of Metal bands out there today who are copying each other as I'm sure you know.
I think so too. I like a lot of other bands. We don't listen to other bands that much right now; we don't try to sound like anyone else; we just write songs that we like and that we like listening to and that we like playing. We've been doing this for so long that there is really no reason for us to try to be something that we're not, you know. We just go in and do out thing and that's it.
It's been 10 years now. Are you ready for another 10?
I think so. The motivation from day one was to have fun and as long as we have fun we're going to keep on going. You know, like a few years ago when this Euro Power Metal boom swept across most of Europe and pretty much everywhere else in the world, a lot of bands had albums out and if we look at the scene today, I can probably just name a few of them that survived. Most of them just went away and died. Today, if they are around, they sell like two albums and that's it. We're one of the few bands that actually survived and keep on growing and getting more and more fans every day. I think integrity has something to do with it and the fact, like you said, that we have our own sound and the bands that bring something to the table are the bands that are going to stick around for awhile.
How has it been working with Century Media over the years?
It's always hard because I don't think any band is actually ever happy with a record label. I mean, they have like a hundred other bands, you know. They've been good to us especially over the last few years. Our guy in Europe is amazing. He's a really, really cool guy. I think they're definitely one of the top labels in Metal, especially since they've done some amazing things with a lot of bands in the US. The album has been doing really well in Europe and in Sweden we're doing really, really well. So we just have to see how it takes off in the US.
Do you have anything that you'd like to relay to North American fans?
I just hope people pick up the album and just crank it up and have a good time. Hopefully we'll make it over in 2006 and make a dent in the US if we still have the chance to. [FIN]
» Official NOCTURNAL RITES Website
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