COLDSPELL
Questions asked by Jon Wilde, added to Rock Realms 3rd March 2009.
Coldspell are a Swedish hard rock band who have just released their first album. Infinite Stargaze is one of those releases that should be in every collection... and is Rock Realms' favourite album so far this year.
Nominated victim, guitarist Micke Larsson is strapped into the interrogation chair. Please ignore his screams...
Hi Micke, thanks for taking a moment to answer these questions for Rock Realms. Hope all is well?
Micke: Yes it's perfectly fine, especially when we get such good reviews from all parts of Europe.
How did Coldspell start?
Micke: I guess ColdSpell is the “brainchild” of mine and started many years back, but I guess you could say that we got together with this line-up in 2005. I used to live in the south of Sweden and, when I moved up to Kiruna, I didn’t really know how to do it. Finally all the right people were found and ColdSpell was formed as a band.
Presumably the name is related to the Swedish weather? Last time I was over there it was a steady -20C!
Micke: Yes, well where we live it’s a loooong winter and can be really cold and when it's really cold you can add 20 more degrees to that. Its my wife who came up with that name and it couldn’t be more suitable. ColdSpell is a sort of abbreviation for the Swedish word “köldknäpp”, which could be translated into English as an “icebolt”, something that comes quickly and rapidly.
There’s a lot of amazing rock music that comes out of Sweden. Do you put something in the water?
Micke: In the water? No! It´s in the beer! Haha
Is the gigging scene in the country strong? To produce so many good bands there must be plenty of rock clubs!
Micke: Well I can tell you one thing. Where we live the number of rock clubs are zero! I guess in Sweden there's a good tradition of playing instruments and playing in bands. Maybe the choice stands between sport or rock´n roll when you´re a kid, and of course you choose Rock´n Roll then!
What’s the history of the various band members? Have any of you been in other bands we might have heard of?
Micke: The other four members are born and raised in Kiruna and have been playing in various different local bands over the years. I used to play in a band called R.A.W. who included members from Dalton and also Kicken from Poodles who played drums. R.A.W. did two albums in the mid nineties and a number of singles that where played on Swedish radio. The second album also got released in japan with King records and the first album was re-released by MTM records in 2004 as some kind of “classix” album.
Coldspell have been around since 2005 but have only just released the first album. What have you been up to in those 4 years?
Micke: We´ve been some lazy bastards, haha. No I guess some things in life have to fall in to the right places like family lives and so on. But yes, the plan was to have done the first album earlier. We have taken one thing at a time and I just wanted everything to be right. But the four years of waiting was well worth it as we got signed to Escape.
Did you start playing covers or were you writing original material right from the start?
Micke: No, with this band it has been nothing else but original material and that was the best part of it all. We've all been playing in different projects, cover bands and tribute bands over the years and you could get a little sick and tired of doin that. So to play original stuff and no covers, that suits us fine.
The new album is massive! Did it feel like it was going to be special as you were writing it?
Micke: Yeah, we got so much good feedback early on we really felt that this could be something! Pelle at studio underground in Sweden did a fantastic job with the recording and Tommy Hansen put his magic hands on the mix and did some fabulous work.
Where did the influences come from? We love the Hammond organ sound and the mix of vintage rock, melodic and heavy metal.
Micke: If I speak as a songwriter I can tell you that’s exactly where my influences come from – vintage, melodic and metal. Guess I was raised with Purple, Sabbath, Rainbow, Whitesnake, Dio, Budgie, Montrose, Priest etc... I guess I have a great love for prog metal also. And not to forget King´s X! Matti who plays the Hammond organ has a true hero in Jon Lord.
What’s your favourite moment or song on Infinite Stargaze?
Micke: For me personally I guess that will be - 'Eye Of The Storm'. It´s about a very hard time in my life. It´s about love and anger, hope and despair, about losing someone you love.
Who did the artwork? It is particularly impressive!
Micke: C-A Beckston did the artwork and from the first moment I saw that cover, I was in love! He has done some fantastic artwork for many bands. He listened to the songs and got inspired by where we live and after that he did this amazing artwork. He´s a genius!
Are you planning a big tour on the back of Infinite Stargaze? Can we expect to see you in the UK?
Micke: At the moment we haven’t got anything planned regarding touring, but we´re still looking for someone who is interested in getting ColdSpell on the road! We would love to come to the U.K. and play, that would be awesome. I guess we´re open for any kind of suggestions.
Do you party hard when you tour? What’s your drink of choice?
Micke: We´ll see about that! haha. If you come up with some six pack´s I guess we wont be shy!
What’s the worst/funniest thing you or any of the band have done when drunk?
Micke: That’s some kind of question, how is it possible to remember anything when you´re that drunk, someone has to be sober and who is that person? haha.
Is there anyone you’d really like to work with in the future?
Micke: Yes, we'd really like to work with the same people we worked with on this journey, I really haven’t had time to think about that!
Is being in Coldspell work, pleasure or both?
Micke It's my life, and my whole family is involved in this ColdSpell “circus”. But it´s a pleasant work!
What are you up to once you finish answering these questions?
Micke: Kiss my daughter goodnight, have a cup of tea with my wife and finally pick up my Les Paul and see if my fingers are numb. No drinks, it´s only Monday...
A huge thanks for your time!
Micke: Well thank you, it´s my pleasure. Rock Realms wrote some kind of review, never thought we could get one of those!
Coldspell's new album, “Infinite Stargaze“ was released on the 20th of February on Escape Music. Buy it now or no longer call yourself a rock fan!
Stay tuned to Rock Realms and the Coldspell websites for touring news.
