Polsi: DECEIVER
is under the sign of Iron Fist Records from Sweden. Did you
release any demos before you got signed by them?
Pete: No, but in a way we see the M-CD as our demo.
It was supposed to just be a demo recording first. But Iron
Fist Productions got interested in the band and wanted to release
it. So, instead it came out as a MCD, and that was great for
us as we didn’t need to pay for a demo version.
Polsi: Your
songtitles make a quite mystical impression. What's the meaning
of titles like Slay The Rainbow, She-Ghost
or Mexican Thunder?
Pete: Well, Slay The Rainbow is about women
you always dream about but never gets, and finally you turn
to the darker side to get some help to get in her pants. She-Ghost
is instrumental and was a good name for the ending of the story
to the track God Of Dead that is before She-Ghost.
Mexican Thunder is about tequila and booze in general,
all the stupid things you can do under it’s influence.
It’s for sure not a "moral" song. 90% of the
lyrics we do are self lived, if I write a lyric about suicide
thoughts after a hard night of boozing, then I also mean it,
it’s all there.
Polsi: Could
you describe the writing process for a typical DECEIVER song?
Are you working together in the rehearsal room?
Pete: I do most of the riffs and arrangements at home.
Then me, Crille and Flingan gets together in the rehearsal room,
we try it out and if they like the ideas we keep it. We work
as a unit, everyone must be satisfied...and mostly everyone
are. Then in general I have the idea for where the verse and
chorus will be. If I don’t have done the lyric I get together
with Destormo and we work it out together. Then we try it out
in the rehearsal room. We try to not do songs from the ground
in the rehearsal room, in that way you keep away a lot of irritation
etc.
Polsi: Please
describe the attitude, the band is feeling and the essence of
DECEIVER with three adjectives!
Pete: Energetic, honestly and spiritual!! If now those
three are adjectives, not so good at grammar, haha!!
Polsi: Your
info text says, your favourite bands are Motörhead, Mercyful
Fate, Judas Priest, Black Sabbath, Metallica and Venom. So your
taste of music seems to be quite old-fashioned. Honestly, don't
you listen to new bands and styles at all?
Pete: Of course we listen to other stuff as well; these
are some of the faves we have when it comes to the inspiration
for DECEIVER. I mean, I like "overkill"
with Motörhead as much as "altars of madness"
with Morbid Angel. But it would be stupid to bring in that influence
in DECEIVER. We are all Metal freaks from all
types of genres. I fucking love bands like Destroyer 666, Pentacle,
Aura Noir etc. not so new maybe. Do you mean new styles like
neo-metal and stuff like that?? No I don’t. I don’t
only listen to Metal of course, but I have my limits.
Polsi: In
my opinion, your music is made to be played live and I guess,
you all love playing concerts, right?
Pete: Yes, we like to play live, and live is where
we are best. Even if a person really like us on an album, they
often think we kick bigger ass live. We are a band with lots
of energy, and that is often hard to capture on an album, but
we try our best.
Polsi: Have
you made any strange or funny experiences on concerts?
Pete: I think we only have done 9 shows so far, so
the experiences are very limit now. But there are some, and
they are often about our drummer Flingan, he is a real original,
haha!! Don’t know how I would explain them in English
so you would get them right. But if you see us live sometime
I’m sure you will see something stupid he does after the
show when he starts to drink.
Polsi: Which
role play alcohol and drugs in your lives? Or are you all straight
family men?
Pete: Non of us have family’s of their own right
now, I will get my first born in September, so I guess I will
throw away all my Metal albums then, haha...NO!! Drugs are nothing
that ever or will be a part of DECEIVER. Alcohol
has the role that we like to drink sometimes, some more often
than others...but it’s absolutely not an image that we
would take to make us look more "Metal". The music
will always be prior nr.1!! Some of us have had some problems
with the alcohol. I for example had to go in rehab some years
ago. I still drink, but not that often...I take it easy when
I’m home and concentrate on the music, interviews, contacts
in the underground etc. I save myself for gigs, festivals I
visit. I would simply die if I drank like I did before.
Polsi: Where
do you see DECEIVER in ten years? Will there be any musical
changes or are you satisfied with playing your typical style
of thrashing Heavy Metal on and on?
Pete: If none of us die I still see DECEIVER
alive in ten years, still playing "Thrashing Heavy Metal".
Polsi: The
music scene in Sweden is very big and internationally renowned.
I think it is much easier for Swedish bands to achieve international
success than if you're coming from, let's say Austria. What's
the reason for this phenomenon?
Pete: I can tell you man that I also have had big thoughts
about that. For me there is more good bands from outside Sweden
than in Sweden. Maybe it started when bands like Entombed, Dismember
etc. started out and got much press, don’t really know.
I really hope that the press someday would start to concentrate
on other countries. Take for example South America, a lot of
fucking great bands from there like Anal Vomit and 1917. But
I think it’s cool that Poland has got all good response
of their Death Metal acts. Guess Vader open up a big road there.
But Sweden is mostly about the old school Death Metal and the
melodic that is today. The Black Metal is "owned"
by Norway, old school thrash from Germany etc. But like I said,
hope it will change someday.
Polsi: Of
course we are interested in your opinion of your Swedish musical
companions... just give a comment to each band name.
Pete: Dismember: - Their two first
albums are two of my faves in Death Metal. Deserves 100% respect
for NEVER compromising with the trends.
Dissection: - Also a fave band. I met Jon at
Inferno Festival in Norway where we both played this year. Didn’t
notice any attitude that everyone is talking about today. He
was the same guy I met in ´95 when I played with Maze
Of Torment together with Dissection. And the stuff he is into
today that also is a big discussion is nothing I can relate
to, as I don’t know anything about it. I live in my own
cave with my own ideas...I never try to get influenced by others
thoughts that way. But as I know he is still really loyal to
his fans.
Siebenbürgen: - Don’t know much
about them more than I can recall that they are a Black Metal
band from Stockholm, right??
The Crown (RIP): - This was a band that was
hard for me to capture first. Honestly it took me to their last
album before I really listen to them. Fucking great singer!!!!
And with that I mean the one that was before and after Tompa.
Don’t understand how I could miss "The Burning"
back then, great stuff!! I guess to late than never.
Hypocrisy: - Some great albums and some not..."Abducted"
and "The Final Chapter" is great!! Now when I was
up in the Abyss studio to record my solo album I got the chance
to hear some from the new, bloody great!!!
Polsi: Why
did you choose the Abyss studio for your album recordings and
not a different one like for example the Sunlight studios?
Pete: I have been in Sunlight two times before when
I played in Maze Of Torment. I have my reasons, but I don’t
like the studio. Neither did Crille and Flingan when we where
there with an old project we had. I have had great experiences
in the Abyss before; I told the other guy’s if they where
up to it...we tried it and we all felt that we came along with
Tommy Tägtgren really well. It’s fucking easy to
work there. The atmosphere etc… everything. We could not
care less if people think it’s a "trend" studio
or anything. It’s simply great!!
Polsi: Do
you care about politics? How would you describe the current
political situation in Sweden?
Pete: I’m not ignorant to politics, I have my
ideas and point of views. But I rather keep it out from the
music as this is nothing we discuss within the band.
Polsi: Thank
you very much for the interview and good luck with DECEIVER!
Would you like to give us your final words?
Pete: Thanx for the support, bloody great!! Feel free
to contact us for more information on the band. Otherwise visit
our homepage: http://www.deceiver.tk
For the interested visit: http://www.peteflesh.tk
for more info about my solo album.
HAIL THE HORDES!!!!
