Interview with Andreas "Whiplasher Bernadotte" Bergh of Deathstars
The day started early with a game of catch-up over cell phones between me and David, the tour manager. Setting a time for the interview was finally accomplished, but not in detail until we actually met each other in the restaurant at Zeche Carl / Essen before the concert. But there it was at least as easy as David asking Whiplasher directly when it would fit. So, we got ourselves seated at the bar and waited until it was time to go backstage and start firing away some questions. Guided in by David, we first said a quick hello to the rest of the band before finding a somehow isolated spot at a bar table. The interview was held in Swedish and translated afterwards into English.
It's still in the beginning of your tour, how does it feel right now?
Andreas: Yeah, it's been a month and it's still only the beginning of the tour. That's totally fucked up; three months... it's too long. But it's pretty good anyway; I got ill the first week.
Aha?
Andreas: Usually you get ill after about a month.
In better form perhaps?
Andreas: Been taking it a bit slower too. It hasn't been that much partying. But all in all it feels good. It’s moving along.
Your tour back and forth between cities and even countries seems a bit unnecessary hectic in parts. Why is that, did it just sort of turn out that way?
Andreas: I'm not sure; it's not me that's responsible for the bookings. But it has been pretty fucked up with travels back and forth. In Italy you can go back and forth, coast to coast... but it's the booking company that handles all that. It just doesn't end up all that logical every time.
What about the Swedish gigs, you haven't played all that much in Sweden - Das Boot looked like a nice booking.
Andreas: Yes, but we cancelled that. We're doing England next week, not sure about the exact dates, but then we're going on tour with Cradle of Filth for five weeks. So we'll be home just in time for Christmas.
How do you like working with Nuclear Blast?
Andreas: Well, they rock. With Nuclear Blast it's been a new thing to work with this type of music that's a bit outside the usual metal genre. They've done a huge work and it's really been totally good. This album is a big difference to the other one. And it's been selling so incredibly well.
Does it feel more right for yourselves too - is it more you?
Andreas: Oh yes, we're growing more and digging deeper and deeper into the impression that we created with the first album. But there still is hell of a lot left to explore. It feels like we've only just got started. It's very inspiring.
How does your creative process look like? You had a previous member where distance was something of an issue; do you need to be all in one place?
Andreas: Well, now it's totally crazy. It's only me and Nightmare, Emil, who do the music. But he moves to New York now and I may be moving to Barcelona right after the tour. The drummer lives in Gothenburg, the bass player and our second guitarist is in Stockholm. So you see that is... ...but I think we'll record the next album in New York during next summer and fall. So... well, it works well somehow. We have correspondence. And we know each other well since we've been writing music together for 15 years.
I guess you know each other well enough to make it work. Besides, these days it's a lot easier to work over distances.
Andreas: Yes, and it's never been a problem. We're producing the albums ourselves, having our own studio and all that, so there's really no one else involved in what we're doing.
That sounds cool, and Nuclear Blast is of course letting you continue doing it that way?
Andreas: Yeah, we would never accept having it any other way. We were on Universal at first in Sweden, and they wanted to release worldwide. But then they wanted us to have a producer and so on. But we know what we want and so on. We want control over everything. We're pretty finicky and a hassle to have anything to do with.
But at least you're letting Stefan Glaumann have a bit to say in the end?
Andreas: Yes, he does the mixing. He did our last album too. We didn't know exactly how we wanted the mix, but then we heard "Mutter" by Rammstein and they got so damned good sound on that one. So, we wanted the same kind of heavy weight and meatiness. It's very likely that we'll use him in the future too, because he really hits the spot with his final touch.
You've said that Deathstars is a wake-up call and that it's about confronting your dark sides. You've also said that each band member has gone through a lot of personal problems and that you can hear it on the new album. What comes first? Have you been dealing with your personal problems by creating music or have you created music based on the difficulties that you've faced?
Andreas: I would say that there isn’t really a theme that we follow or anything, but on this one it’s been a lot of focus on…
* Thump! A bottle of vodka is suddenly loudly delivered in the middle of our conversation, by tour manager David, followed by a few seconds of silence and then a collective laughter. *
…ok, thanks!
Well, it’s a lot about conflicts and common dramaturgy. That you don’t grow as a person without seeing the conflict, and that you can get to know your weak sides through conflicts and in that way get new references and grow as a human being. So I guess that’s really the theme and also the reason why we choose to glamorize the darkness and so on.
I guess you should have something to focus on?
Andreas: Yeah, sure. But I guess it’s had a lot to do with the fact that it’s been an extremely black period for us. We don’t do songs about fiction or classical metal themes, about some warrior in the woods or something; it’s more about the back alleys of Stockholm or about our own lives.
You’re quite simply a dark band with guitars and a heavy sound!?
Andreas: Yeah… yes, that’s very well put.
I imagine that this may also make it a bit easier to find good gigs, other bands to tour with and perhaps audience wise too?
Andreas: Yes, we reach more people with it as it is now. We get people from different genres, even though it’s a lot of Goths - despite us not being a Goth band. A lot of girls in black clothes quite simply. But it’s not something that’s purposely designed that way. We’ve never had any guidelines for how we should produce our music or anything. It sort of just happens like does on its own, and that’s been very popular so far…
Sure, and then it’s no reason to change that. On that topic, how is your next album coming along?
Andreas: We’ve been working on it a little and have written a few initial songs. Ehm… well, I could tell you a bit more about it, but then I’d have to kill you afterwards… *laughter*
Nah, I think I’ll pass on that. I’d like to catch your show later. But it’s nice to hear that you’ve already started writing on some new material. I guess you may get some inspiration when on tour too? A lot of people you meet and so on?
Andreas: Yes, but I’m not very socially active myself – I’d rather hide away from everyone. I think it’s really just that everything has been going so well and that makes it so much more fun to develop what we’re doing. As soon as you get a feeling of accomplishment and you get some kind of exchange and feedback, you do of course get inspired to continue.
Being on tour you do of course get thrown into some odd situations or meet odd people, do you have any favorite story that you could tell us about?
Andreas: I really can’t tell you anything. It would be pointless if I don’t tell you the worst that’s happened, and the worst I really can’t tell you about. So… no… goddamn, that’s secret! *laughter*
Have you had any really bad drunken gigs?
Andreas: We try not to be drunk, or rather we never are during a show. We have a beer or so before, we try to behave as we should. We have style and aren’t some kind of wasted garbage on stage. So, no drunken gigs to talk about really. We were a bit too drunk in Madrid once, when touring with Paradise Lost. But even then it really wasn’t that bad, we did what we came to do anyway.
You have a new band member too, how does that feel – at least he’s played with you before?
Andreas: Yes, “Cat Moss”… *laughter* an 18 year old photo model. Incredible! *laughter* He’s a fabulous clown! Yes, he’s been with us ever since March / April. So he’s been with us for the 15 festivals that we’ve been doing during the summer, before this tour. So he’s been around for a good while.
He’s grown to fit with the band then?
Andreas: Oh yes, like a glove. I think he’s added a whole lot too. And just socially it’s fun to have him with us.
Ok, that was about all I wanted to ask you right now. Anything else you would like to say to our readers?
Andreas: Kisses.
{jos_sb_discuss:21}
Pictures by Daniela Vorndran (http://www.black-cat-net.de/) and Mattias Nordgren (http://gallery.nordgren.org)
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