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Tim Svanberg (FESTERING REMAINS): the future of swedish death metal

Tim Svanberg (FESTERING REMAINS): the future of swedish death metal
BANDS : Festering Remains

Tim Svanberg, the front man of the Swedish band Festering Remains, is probably the youngest musician I've had the honor to interview. Born on October 1, 1997, I have to say that the swede is for his age more articulate and coherent than a lot of the adults singing in various bands or not. Festering Remains have released in 2012 the debut album - an EP entitled Stabbed Beyond All Recognition an old school death metal masterpiece that makes a lot of serious bands to be ashamed of some of their works. More details in the lines below:



Metalfan: Hi Tim and welcome to Metalfan.RO!
Tim Svanberg: Hi, and thanks!

Metalfan: As this is your first interview for us and if I'm right the first one for a webzine/magazine from Romania, it would be nice if you could introduce Festering Remains to our readers...

Tim Svanberg: Festering Remains began as a 3-piece band, we formed the band in late 2011 when I met the guys Oliver Dahlbäck and Erik Karlsson. They already had a band, which was a black metal project, but they wanted to change the bands style and create a new band, a death metal band. Oliver would be the drummer, and Erik would be the main songwriter and guitarist. So I joined as the vocalist and lyricist and we then felt the line-up was sort of complete to start writing material.  Oliver left the band a couple of months after the actual forming of the band, we then remained a two-piece band for almost a year. So Erik and I proceeded with writing the first songs and then completed the debut EP Stabbed Beyond All Recognition that we released in late 2012. Today we have a full line-up with our newest members Kim Wikman (Bass) and Wille Sjöberg (Drums). And we are just playing together, creating old school influenced, groovy brutal death metal. We're about to release a new EP with brand new tracks and finally a full line-up. But you will get to know some more about that in the coming months. 

Metalfan: Do you think that most of the people are interested in Festering Remains because of your age or because of your music? Let say something "exotic"? Could you tell us more about this matter?

Tim Svanberg: Well, I think it's mostly because of our music. We pretty much have our own sound, and we blend alot of different death metal styles which alot of people finds very intruiging. However, I do not deny the fact that mine and Eriks age could be giving us a little bit more attention. People seem to find it interesting to hear what two people born in 1997 could accomplish in the sounds of death metal, I don't have a problem with it at all. They still enjoy our music despite our age, so it all works fine!
 
 

Metalfan: In 2012 you have released your first EP titled Stabbed Beyond All Recognition. Could you tell us more about the title of the record and as well about each song from it?
Tim Svanberg: When we wrote that EP we wanted to make something that would remind us of old splatter films. Me and Erik are both die-hard slasher film fans, and that was pretty much our main inspiration for the lyrical concept and the theme of that entire record. We found Stabbed Beyond All Recognition to be a very fitting title because it's scary, very to the point and also, very brutal. The first song, Deformed Hillbilly is based upon the modern slasher film Wrong Turn 2: Dead End. It's about an inbred, hillbilly cannibal family in West Virginia that traps people in the woods, kills them and eats them. It's a really horrifying concept for a song, but it's an awesome movie and we just wanted to write about something as brutal as that. Hatchetfucked, the second song wasn't directly inspired by any horror film. When I wrote the lyrics to that song I was mostly inspired by the ideas that bands like Cannibal Corpse and Gorgasm had used for their lyrics. The combination of gore, a murder weapon and sexual intercourse. The last original song on the EP (one of the 4 tracks was a Bloodsoaked cover), was the title track. The lyrics for that song was inspired by the opening scene in Friday the 13th: Part 2 where the main character from the first part, Alice, is murdered in her apartment by Jason Voorhees. The lyrics aren't really a direct copy of that scene though, I made my own interpration of it and created a similair, but a different horror story with those lyrics.

Metalfan: The production of the record sound very tight. Old school death metal but with a clean sound. Could you tell us more about the recording and the production process?
Tim Svanberg: We actually recorded it in one day. I think we spent about 4 hours in the studio the day we recorded it. We had our good friend Ronnie Björnström from Bone Gnawer to program the drum parts we had written. He's also the producer who produced the enitre EP. Which he also finished in about a day. So it was a pretty fast process, and the results were fantastic, he's a very talented producer to say the least.

Metalfan: Also a curiosity of mine. How did you got signed by Sevared Records? For how many albums is the contract available?
Tim Svanberg: We were actually never signed by Sevared. The physical release of our debut EP was a non-contract bound thing where Sevared Records made 200 copies of the CD, sent about 25 CD's to us for free, gave us alot of promotion but we were not signed by them. It was more like a collaboration between us and them.

Metalfan: Do you think that there is a connection, something in our DNA that make us choose the music we enjoy? What do you think about this subject?

Tim Svanberg: I don't really think it's about our DNA. It's more about how we develope our personalities to be, and also how we are raised in my opinion. Our parents are a big part of the inspiration we need to develope our own personal preferences. I, for example grew up with my dad playing me Motörhead, Rammstein and Judas Priest, and I grew up to remain a metalhead, but I followed the path of another generation of metal music.
 
 

Metalfan: At the beginning of the song Hatchetfucked there is a intro about drugs, about cocaine. What do you think about the people who use drugs?
Tim Svanberg: I really don't like drugs. So I have no plans of using them, not now or in the future... The people who use these dangerous drugs like meth, cocaine and heroin should really try to realize that they are just harming themselves. Weed on the other hand isn't as big of a deal like the previously mentioned. But I still wouldn't use any drugs, I wouldn't wanna ruin my health or my voice.

Metalfan: As far as I know, in Sweden less than 8% of the male population is smoking. Do you have an explanation about this? Do you have a logical answer why people smoke or take drugs?
Tim Svanberg: Honestly, no. Smoking cigarettes has been common in this country for a long time. And alot of people usually begin when they're even younger than me for some reason. I've never really understood why, but I know for sure that it's nothing to me. I really care for my health and my voice (I wanna be able to keep singing you know) so smokes or drugs are just not my thing.

Metalfan: Which is the most important artist of all times in your opinion? Why?
Tim Svanberg: They're not my favorite band, but I'd say Black Sabbath. In my opinion they were the first real metal band and they really set a ground for all future generations metal bands. It was the first step of developing this huge genre of music we all share today.

Metalfan: Do you consider extreme music to be art? What is art for you?
Tim Svanberg: Yes, I do. To me art is when you create something to express yourself. Extreme music is art, it's just as creative as anything else, and we create it to express ourselves some way or another.
 


Metalfan: Which are your favorite five death metal albums of all times? Why?
Tim Svanberg: 1. Dying Fetus - Killing on Adrenaline - it's the perfect death metal album in my ears. A combination of technical, brutal and old school death metal with tons of groove and intensity all performed in a fantastic way. It just gives me the absolute death metal feeling, I love this album to the day I die. 2. Obituary - Cause of Death - it's just a fantastic album. It's groovy, doomy and heavy as hell. John Tardy does an outstanding vocal performance on this one as well, he is one of my main inspirations for my own vocals. 3. Aborted - Engineering the Dead  - Aborted's best album. One of the first death metal albums I ever listened too and it has remained a favorite. Intense, grindy Brutal Death Metal and it's just outstanding in my opinion. 4. Baphomet - The Dead Shall Inherit - the only album from them, but it's an underground classic of heavy, old school Brutal Death Metal and I just love it so much. 5. Cerebral Bore - Maniacal Miscreation - an album that blew me away from the second I first listened to it. It's brutal as hell and definitely one of my favorites.

Metalfan: At this moment there are any plans for a new EP or a full-length album?
Tim Svanberg: Yes! I mentioned this in one of the earlier questions, but we are releasing a new EP this year. It's going to be even better than the last one. We recorded this with our present line-up, so this one will contain real drums, bass, even better songwriting and even better vocals. I can't say too much about it, but there's going to be some good stuff coming up in the next few months!

Metalfan: Soon Carcass will release a new full-length album - Surgical Steel. Do you like Carcass? What do you expect from this album?

Tim Svanberg: I love Carcass! I expect it to be triumphed return from these legends, I think it's going to be something in the vein of Necroticism, Heartwork and Symphonies of Sickness (this is what I'm thinking from hearing their single Captive Bolt Pistol from the new album). I think it's going to be another good Carcass record and I already have the CD pre-ordered!

Metalfan: In November you will play with Festering Remains here in Bucharest at November to Dismember Metal Fest. What do you expect from this festival and what should the audience expect from you?
Tim Svanberg: I expect this to be a very good indoor festival. I know that the organizers are professionals and they will certainly do a good job arranging this fest. I also exptect tons of mosh and energy from the festival attenders (hahaha)! And what the audience should expect from us is a very intense, punch in the face Brutal Death Metal performance. We are not coming to give a weak performance, we're going to give 110% for this performance like we always do. It will certainly be a sick as hell show!

Metalfan: Thank you Tim for your time and for your answers! In the end would you like to add something or to send few words to our readers?
Tim Svanberg: Yes, I wanna say that I and the rest of Festering Remains are very excited to come to your country for our first show ever outside of Sweden. And that we are incredibly grateful to all of you who are already planning to attend our set and to all of you that will show up. It will be a weekend to never ever forget! Also, thanks to you guys from Metalfan Romania for letting me do this interview! Cheers, and stay fucking sick.   
Autor: H.
   September 26, 2013  | 0 Comments  | 7794 Views « BACK

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