SOURCE – How come it took five years between Doomsday King and Death Is Not Dead?
Magnus Olsfelt (Bass) – Well time flies! At least for us, to me it doesn’t feel that long since I am an old man who doesn’t do anything in a quick and hurried way. But I guess all you youngsters already in that time period have started and quit at least 2-3 different band-projects and changed your music style and image a couple of times. He he.
We have worked quite a bit on this album but also there have been situations that have been time-consuming. I guess that the album was ready to record back in 2013, then we went to Japan and Janne moved to California. Marko took half a year to practice the drums. Then we recorded it early 2014, then it has been waiting on the shelves of the record company for half a year. But it feels good to have the album out now anyway! Worth waiting for as they say…
SOURCE – The initial response to the album has been almost universally positive. Does that change your expectations for when it is released?
Magnus Olsfelt (Bass) – Yes of course good response and reviews are very important for a band. I have high expectations on this album as I find it to be really good and I very seldom hear good albums nowadays. It’s great if people dig it if course, that cannot be denied. But saleswise I really have no idea anymore what to expect. How many people buy albums these days? But hopefully our old listeners will dig this plus that we maybe can reach out and gain some new ones. And more important to be able to give someone a great listening experience like the ones we had ourselves growing up listening to music is pretty awesome and mindblowing!
SOURCE – Did you have the album title Death Is Not Dead going in, or did you come up with it during the recording process?
Magnus Olsfelt (Bass) – I don’t really remember but it must have popped up sometime during the writing of the album. Just something that sounds and feels right. Death Is Not Dead can mean something on lots of different levels on the same time. It can refer to us as a band still making noise after 25 years. It can refer to death metal as a genre still standing strong. It can refer to death as man’s destiny, still being around no matter all the modern world to not think about it. And it can mean that death is not the end…
SOURCE – You did a lyric video for Speed Kills. What’s your opinion of lyric videos? Have you shot any regular videos for any songs on the album?
Magnus Olsfelt (Bass) – I think they are a good tool to present a new song in an effective way. Compared to a music video, the lyric video is maybe not something that you will watch over and over, but I see it as an ad with sound and vision. But a music video is better as it is another artistic outlet. We have done a great video to Headhunter and of course the lyric video pales in comparison, but it can be a good compliment.
SOURCE – How does label support for videos today compare to the early days? I imagine the budgets are less, because they are less for everything in music now.
Magnus Olsfelt (Bass) – Yes, but also the price of making videos is cheaper these days I belive with digital cameras and editing. But I am glad that we got to make a pro video like Headhunter, I have always liked great metal videos, growing up watching Headbangers Ball, music videos was really important.
SOURCE – You did some cover songs that will be used on bonus versions Eternal by Paradise Lost and Agent Orange by Sodom. How did you decide on them?
Magnus Olsfelt (Bass) – Well we needed bonus material and I always like bands doing covers of bands they think their fans should check out, it’s education! We used to do Agent Orange really way back in the early 90:ties, but we never recorded it. We also used to play a Paradise Lost cover back then, so it’s honouring those bands that influenced us.
SOURCE – Your album art is always very distictive. What is your collaboration process with the artist?
Magnus Olsfelt (Bass) – We told him the basic idea of a horror pinball machine and he worked his stuff from there, pretty much on his own. I usually have very strong views on the visuals and used to be more of a dictator concerning the album covers. But I think we have some really good and striking covers! That is an important part of the puzzle as well.
SOURCE – Now that you have a new album to play material from, how much of your set list is going to be classic stuff, and how much will be new songs?
Magnus Olsfelt (Bass) – We have so many good songs that we can’t play them all! We will do a selection and include 3-4 new ones. But it’s great to have so many songs, we can vary the live set in so many ways, so we will try to capture all the aspects of our sound and career on one evening. I think we are a very strong live act these days regarding the musical content, it’s so rich and full and just doesn’t get boring eventhough we can play for 80 minutes or so.
SOURCE – Any chance of a Brazilian tour?
Magnus Olsfelt (Bass) – No plans yet, but time shall tell! We don’t really do big tours anymore, just a few special shows every year.
SOURCE – Is there anything else you need to mention or promote?
Magnus Olsfelt (Bass) – Yeah I can really encourage you to listen to the album as one piece, from beginning to end, to take the whole ride so to speak. (If anyone remember that way of listening to albums?) And play it LOUD! It will be a blast!
Thanks for the great interview and your time and support!
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