Dismember
August 27th 2008 00:15
Interview with
Tobias Cristiansson
from
DISMEMBER
Tobias Cristiansson
from
DISMEMBER
Discography:
Like an Everflowing Stream (1991)
Pieces – EP (1992)
Indecent and Obscene (1993)
Casket Garden - EP (1995)
Massive Killing Capacity (1995)
Misanthropic – EP (1997)
Death Metal (1997)
Hate Campaign (2000)
Where Ironcrosses Grow (2003)
The God That Never Was (2006)
Dismember (2008)
Like an Everflowing Stream (1991)
Pieces – EP (1992)
Indecent and Obscene (1993)
Casket Garden - EP (1995)
Massive Killing Capacity (1995)
Misanthropic – EP (1997)
Death Metal (1997)
Hate Campaign (2000)
Where Ironcrosses Grow (2003)
The God That Never Was (2006)
Dismember (2008)
When was Dismember formed and how did the name come about?
Dismember was formed in 1988 by David Blomqvist (guitar) and Fred Estby (drums) But I don’t know how the name came about really, I guess it just sounded good. Nicke Andersson (Entombed / Hellacopters etc) did the logo by the way. After a short while Robert Sennebeck joined on bass / guitar and vocals. They did two demos as a trio before Fred left to join Carnage (with Michael Amott) David went on to play bass for Entombed and Robert joined the newly formed Unleashed on guitar and vocals. Later on David also joined Carnage and they got Matti Kärki as a singer and recorded the album “Dark Recollections” (1990). Not long after the albums release Michael Amott joined Carcass so then the others took up Dismember again and recorded the “Reborn in Blasphemy” demo which led to a deal with Nuclear Blast Records. They got Richard Cabeza on bass and started recording the debut album “Like an Everflowing Stream” in March 1991.
Which original members remain in Dismember?
Matti Kärki and David Blomqvist
Who is your current label, how do they treat you and how are they compared to other’s you’ve worked with?
We’ve been with Regain Records since 2005 and they are very good for us. It’s a Swedish label and they have lots of good, successful bands and I think they are the perfect size for us. They do good promotion for us when we release something. In the beginning Dismember was on Nuclear Blast but over the years that label grew big and suddenly the death metal that Dismember played was no longer fashionable so they started to give less and less promotion and support for the band. So after the Hate Campaign luckily the contract ran out. But so far Regain has been very good for us.
How would you describe your music?
It’s very basic Stockholm Death Metal we’ve played since the start. It’s very down tuned with a very raw guitar sound. But we always throw some melodic Heavy Metal inspired parts here and there.
What one thing do you feel sets you apart from the rest in this genre?
I think the fact that we still have kept the sound that we had from the start. Today there are not many bands that have this sound. A lot of bands today have a lot more polished sound if you compare it to ours. And many of the newer Death Metal bands just seem to focus on playing fast all the time and they have this over triggered drum sounds which make it sound like a drum machine. I think that we are very unique in this scene today.
My favourite Dismember song is ‘Silent are the Watchers’ off the ‘Death Metal’ album, what would be your favourite?
That’s a good one! It’s been a long time since we played Silent are the Watchers live, but we will start doing that again now very soon. We just have to rehearse it a few times first, but that’s a fun song to play live. I like a lot of songs, but for example I like to play Pieces and I like Reborn in Blasphemy, Stillborn Ways, Sickening Art, Dark Depth, Europa Burns… ahh, I have to many songs I like I guess!
How long does it usually take you to record your material?
The actual time in the studio is usually a month or a month and a half. It’s the process before that that takes the longer time with the writing of the material.
What is the inspiration behind your latest material?
Music wise it would be the same old as usual: Autopsy, Death, Sepultura, Celtic Frost, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest.
Any plans for a music video?
For this album we won’t make any video for a certain song. We did one for the previous album, “Trail of the dead”, I don’t know how much impact a video would have these days. In the 90´s it was way more important to have a video for a song, but nowadays you can find so much on the internet, YouTube and stuff. We tour a lot so there are tons of live clips with Dismember on YouTube for all to see. But maybe we will make a video for the next album – I don’t know.
When you go into recording mode, do you find it easy or challenging?
The hardest thing is to get all the songs together, your head starts spinning after a while when you try to have all these ideas in your head for all the songs. You must remember all the riffs plus be able to come up with creative ideas of arrangement and structure. But the actual recording I don’t find so challenging. You just have to concentrate to play it correct.
What kind of message are you trying to relay to your audience?
When we play live its Headbang! Go crazy! Have fun! We just love to play live and I think that shows when we are up on stage, and I want the audience to feel that too. If they give us a lot of energy we give back a lot of energy, it’s a give and take thing. I hate to see bands who just stand still and do nothing on stage. What is up with that?! I want to see some action! Otherwise I could just stay at home and listen to the records.
Who’s responsible for the bands artwork?
For our latest album we used a guy from Australia called Craig Rogers, and we are very satisfied with his work. I think this album cover looks so great! He paints with paintbrush which is unusual for cover paintings today, a lot of bands use just boring computer edited covers which I in most cases find boring. Before, we used Dan Seagrave for a couple album covers, he is also great and I especially love the cover for the first Dismember album. That’s a classic!
How hard has it been to get to this point in Dismember’s musical career?
You have to be stubborn and never give in I guess. I wasn’t there since the beginning so I’m not really the one to answer this. But it’s important to have the dedication and love for what you do.
What is your favourite venue to play?
That’s a tough one. It all depends on your mood of the day and the audience. I don’t have to play any special fancy venue to get a kick out of it. I can play in a crappy small place but as long as the audience is good I don’t care about anything else. And we have done so many tours and played so many venues it’s hard to remember everything.
What are some of your favourite local acts? And have you had the chance to play alongside them?
Last time we toured Australia in 2005 we did most of the shows with Gospel of the Horns and that’s a band that I like, and they are very nice people as well and that is also very important when you are out on the road with bands. We did a European tour with a band from Denmark called Hatesphere which music wise differs a lot from what we do but they were nice people to hang with and that’s more important when you are on tour with someone for almost a month. I also like to tour with Grave, we get along very well with them, they are good friends of ours.
You mentioned to me that whilst you toured Australia, Sydney was one of your better shows. What made that gig stand out for you?
The crowd was excellent at the Sydney gig, it was a lot of people there and they were going crazy. What more can you ask for? Australia in general is a good country to play in I think, the people there are one of the most friendly people in the whole world I think, plus there is a good scene for old school death metal.
What would be your most memorable gig / performance to date?
Oh, it’s hard to remember every gig but the one we did in New York in 2006 with Grave and Vital Remans was really good. We played a festival last year called Brutal Assault in Czech Republic and that gig was killer. And actually the Sydney gig this year also stands out as a favourite of mine.
What festival do you prefer to play and who do you prefer to be playing alongside you?
Europe has a lot of festivals every summer so we have done quite a few. This year, we have done Party San in Germany and Summer Breeze also in Germany and both where really good. It doesn’t matter really who we play with at festivals, we just go up there and do our thing no matter what.
Have you got any weird signing stories?
I always think its weird when people come with their instruments and want them signed. I’m not Yngwie Malmsteen you know! And it doesn’t happen too often that we get to sign girls tits either, cause we are not Mötley Crüe or Children of Bodom or some band that girls seem to adore, haha!
I must note that our paths crossed via a ‘Get Well’ card thanks to my promoter friend Dave from Metal Evilution. It would seem that you care a great deal for your fans. Have you been approached for other similar instances before? And do you feel obliged to honour your fans?
I don’t remember anything like that happening before. But like you said we care a lot for our fans, we always try to hang out with them as much as we can when we are on tour. I really like to talk to people at shows, I mean I have the opportunity to go to countries all around the world and backstage rooms look all the same so I rather take the chance to meet people and hang out instead of sitting backstage and try to be a rockstar and distance myself from the audience. Of course sometimes you are really tired and want to be left alone, but everybody has their ups and downs and that is just natural I think.
Have you ever had any Mystical experiences?
No, I’m not like that. I have never had any experiences like that. It would be cool if I had, but it has not happened yet.
Fame, fun or finance?
I do this for the money! No, seriously for me its all about the fun of it. I love music and I love to tour and play live and just to have a blast. And the last thing I consider myself as being is famous. I’m just a normal guy who plays in a band.
What words of advice can you offer anyone looking to enter the music industry?
I didn’t think like that when I started playing, that I should enter the music industry, I just played music because that is the best thing I know in life, I have been a music fan all of my life and I still am. But just keep on playing, there will always be ups and downs in your playing, maybe you don’t have a band for some time, but just keep on doing it. Just like Saxon sings: Never surrender! It demands a lot of dedication from the one who wants to play. And try to make contact with others, you never know when you need those contacts. And be friendly to people (if they deserve it) There is a saying that says, “The ones you meet on your way up, you will also meet on your way down”.
Anything you'd like to add or say to your fans?
Keep on supporting metal music. Go to the shows, buy the albums and so on. Don’t give in to any stupid trends. Hopefully we will come back to lovely Australia again soon, cause you rock! Cheers everybody!
Links:
Dismember Website
Dismember Myspace
‘Interview with Dismember' by Dea di Morte © 26 August 2008
Hails! to Tobias Cristiansson of Dismember for agreeing to participate, and taking
the time to the complete this interview. All pictures courtesy of ‘Dismember'.
Hails! to Tobias Cristiansson of Dismember for agreeing to participate, and taking
the time to the complete this interview. All pictures courtesy of ‘Dismember'.
| 45 |
| Vote |
Add To: 
Subscribe to this blog
