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S.T.: Hey Snowy! Hope all is good in rockin Sweden? We are a little german webzine called Rockingboy and we want to introduce XXX a little bit to our readers. So, here we go:
Can you tell me something about the Characters behind XXX?!
S.S.: Hi there Rockingboy from Germany, I’m actually in Los Angeles at the moment for various reasons connected to XXX, but anyway. Something about the characters you say…
What can I say, the three of us in XXX are just being ourselves, 3 guys, 3 musicians, 3 singers. And the different personas in each individual are emphasized in the drawings.
S.T.: How did you get in collaboration with famous Comic designer Al Rio and which ones idea was this extraordinary concept?
S.S.: It was my idea. I thought it could be a pretty cool idea to use the song “Heaven, Hell or Hollywood?” as the album title and apply and tie each of those words to a certain member and enhance the characteristic personas in each guy in those drawings. I have always been a really big fan of comic books since I was a kid, and that sorta explains the tremendous impact KISS had on me when I discovered them as a 7 year old. I used some of that comic book style with Notre Dame too, but then it was more horror comic style while with XXX it’s more superheroes. I discussed the whole idea with Rob and we agreed that if we gonna go ahead with this paintings it must be the real deal as in an artist from Marvel Comics, DC, EC comics or something. I was busy in the studio making the album, so Rob who also has the visual talent was assigned to track down the best guy possible, and he found Al Rio, who had previously done Batman, the Incredible Hulk and so on.
S.T.: There are a number of four already finished songs online. Can you please tell me something about the other songs and when will the CD be released?
S.S.: Those 4 songs are taken from the upcoming album “Heaven, Hell or Hollywood?”
It’s to be released in Japan on November 5th and we’re currently in negotiations with various labels as for the rest of the planet Earth.
S.T.: You wanted to do a video-shoot for “Hello”. Why was the shoot cancelled?
S.S.: Let me tell you, It’s a nightmare scenario. Not the concept of the video, but the fact that we had invited tons and tons of fans and friends to the video shoot that was to be shot on location at this square in Gothenburg City. We had together with the Swedish video director Johan Bergström prepared everything for many weeks when one day all of a sudden I couldn’t get hold of him, after about 5 days I went to his place and it was all closed down and his phone shut off. I talked to a mutual acquaintance who told me in a surprised voice “oh, Johan went to LA to study, didn’t you know that?” – What!!! Fuck no, how the hell could I know that? We had a big ass video production planned with hundreds of people showing up in less than a week. The bastard took off with all our advance money and ruined our video shoot completely. We had no choice but to pull the plug on the whole fucking thing. I rescheduled my planned trip to LA in an attempt to track down the asshole and take out money back.
I’m in Hollywood right now where I tracked down the bastard at AFI (American Film Institute) a few days ago, and with some firm persuading I got some of the money back and I expect to get the rest by tomorrow, ..or else.
S.T.: You are the superheroes of Sweden. Does a superhero have his own (secret) hero?
S.S.: Hahaha! Yeah, Rob is a sucker for Spiderman.
Mine is 70s KISS and X’s appears to be Betty Boop..haha!
S.T.: The whole Glam-thing is going to rise again. What do you think about?
S.S.: I like it of course, everything goes in circles or cycles and will eventually come back again.
In the early stages before everything goes downhill to hell out of over exposure , mainstream acceptance or whatever, every subgenre movement is cool.
S.T.: Your style isn´t that typical Sleaze&Glam. What are your musically influences?
S.S.: My personal influences when it comes to glam, glitter or sleaze rock is basically
Sweet, T Rex, Ziggy Stardust era Bowie, Guns N Roses, KISS, Alice Cooper and WASP if you call that glam like some do. I’m personally not that hung up on categorization or genres, everything is somehow connected anyway. Just like Sex Pistols did cover Iggy Pop and the Stooges and Alice Cooper songs, and Guns n’ Roses did Nazareth, AC/DC and ,..Sex Pistols. There are also some other rock, punk and pop influences in there in XXX.
S.T.: You were in so much other bands so far? I guess they all were some kind of different to XXX. Is that style of music you wanted to create ever?
S.S.: The type of music we’re doing with XXX is one part of me, and very much part of my roots.
Being just a little kid growing up in the 70s and 80s I didn’t see any difference between Sweet or Deep Purple, Black Sabbath or T Rex, back then it was all labelled just pop music basically. Of course, I could sense that Sabbath for example felt more dark and serious in a way compared to Sweet, but I liked it all. And I have felt a strong urge and desire to write and play this kind of feel good songs for at least 10 years, as opposed to much of the negativity and shallow aggression that I’ve been surrounded by or involved in through the years, and that I’ve grown more and more fed up with. XXX will balance it up, so that I can enjoy and digest a varied musical diet over a long term. I have in fact on the side of Notre Dame, Dream Evil, Therion been involved in several glam/glitter rock bands or projects simultaneously.
To me there’s no contradiction in for example having a black metal thing and a glam thing co-existing at the same time really. All I do 24/7 is working with music or things related to it in one way or the other, and to have variation is essential to me, otherwise I tend to get easily bored with one style and quit to do something completely different. I guess some people find that quite odd and that it lacks credibility, but I’m not faking anything or putting on an act, I’m just being myself all the time.
S.T.: What are your plans after releasing “Heaven, Hell or Hollywood”?
S.S.: As it looks now XXX will be going to tour extensively all throughout 2009, starting in January in Europe.
S.T.: I´ve waited for a new LOUD´N NASTY record for a long time. What happened?
S.S.: You have to ask Rob that I guess, I was never part of that band, I was just trying to help out my good friends. I brought in my best friend Micael to play bass so that Rob could concentrate more on the vocals, we did one show that was filmed by national Swedish TV, after that nothing really happened and I was already starting up XXX so when Rob and X decided to join that, they put their own band on ice or to rest.
S.T.: Well, thank you for taking the time to answer my questions. I wish XXX all the best for the future, hope to see you someday on stage in Good Old Germany?!
Cheerz
S.S.: You will, before not too long. C ya all then.. thanXXX
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