Clemens: Hey, there! Congratulations to your new release, which has become a real killer-output. How satisfied are you with Terror For Sale? Any things that could have done better?
Dan: Hey! Thank you, glad you like the album!! We are very satisfied and proud of Terror For Sale! It came out better than we hoped for in every aspect, so I really can’t think of anything I wished we had done different!

Clemens: Since I (and for sure also some of our readers) don't know your previous releases... where do you see the difference between the new and the older albums? How has your music and sound developed?
Dan: Well, the core of the music has always been the same: super fast and very brutal thrash metal! On the new album we really tried to take our music to a new level without loosing our sound. The biggest difference is definitely in the vocals. Bjorn is a really good singer with a huge vocal range, and we wanted to take advantage to this. So we experimented a lot during the recording and the results are some very cool and unique vocal styles! Another factor that has always been important to TERROR 2000 is humour and irony. We have always made fun of everything and everybody, including ourselves. On Terror For Sale this has become even more evident and the irony is more “in your face”!

Clemens: When and why did you decide to start this thrash-metal-combo?
Dan: The band was started in 1999 by Bjorn, Klas, Nick and Henry Ranta. They had been friends for a long time and never played in a band together. So they felt the time was right to do something about that and started TERROR 2000, a super fast thrash outfit with an emphasis on having a great time playing!

Clemens: Since TERROR 2000 could be categorized as an "project" of Swedish metal-musicians... how do you see the position of the band. I reckon your mainbands like Soilwork or Darkane have top-priority. How important is TERROR 2000? Just killing time or a "serious" band?
Dan: We all have other bands that we consider our main bands. TERROR 2000 is about having a great time with a bunch of metal-loving friends, so in that sense we are a “time-killing” project. But we are serious when it comes to making good music. We take the creative process serious and always try to re-invent ourselves as musicians, while having a good time! TERROR 2000 is an important outlet that lets us do different stuff than our main bands.

Clemens: The production of Terror For Sale is really transparent and somehow reminds me of the new System Of A Down album that has a very dry sound too. However, I miss the groove and heaviness from time to time compared to, let's say, Soilwork. Was it your intent to sound this way? If so, why?
Dan: Well the music is so fast and intense and we wanted a sound that made it feel even more brutal and crazy. Our songs are so far from the type of metal that Soilwork play and to have a production like theirs would not suit our style. So, yeah, we tried to get a really pounding, dry and crisp feel to the production.

Clemens: The cover artwork looks quite weird although I do not get the meaning... is there any message behind it or is it just an artwork that looks cool and works as an eye-catcher?
Dan: It’s mostly a really cool picture and it doesn’t have anything to do with the lyrics or concept of the records. We just wanted a cover that lets everybody know that the CD contains some very brutal songs. When you see it, you know you’re in for some thrash metal madness!!

Clemens: Since I don't know the lyrics I can only throw in some songtitles: King Kong Song, Wrath Of The Cookie Monster or Mummy Metal For The Masses... can you tell me a bit more about the contents of these songs? In general - are the lyrics meant to be ironic or is there also some serious stuff on Terror For Sale?
Dan: King Kong Song is about a guy who is totally fed up with his job, his family and his boss. He has a plan though; he’s going to become a million dollar rock star by writing some very heavy songs while smoking his bong.
Wrath Of The Cookie Monster is in the same vein as King Kong Song. It’s about a young guy who starts a band with some friends and steals riffs from At The Gates. They blend it up with some hardcore and cookie monster vocals and then conquer the world with their music.
Mummy Metal For The Masses is about a very crappy power metal band that thinks they rule! They get a gig in Egypt and wake up the Pharaohs while playing.
Judging from the songs above one might think all the lyrics are about music in some way, but that’s not the case. Songs like Five Star Prison, Satan’s Barbecue, Fed Up Anthem and Flesh Fever Fiesta, for example, deals with totally different topics.
Yeah, the lyrics are meant to be very ironic and funny. There isn’t a single serious lyric on the Terror For Sale album, in fact I don’t think we’ve ever had a serious lyric!! They are meant to make you laugh, drink and sing along like a madman…

Clemens: Actually I do not like thrash Metal at all. I seldom listen to it but TERROR 2000 seems to be different since I liked it from the first time I heard it. What could be the reason for that in your opinion? What makes you different from other acts?
Dan: I think we try to differ ourselves from the way that thrash metal is supposed to sound. We never think about what kind of vocals or riffs that we can use, if it sounds good we keep it, thrash or not… We try to write music that we want to hear, music that sounds fresh and inspired.

Clemens: Songs like Five Star Prison or King Kong Song e.g. contain somehow weird refrains someone would not expect on a thrash metal release. Is it your aim to invent some experimental-riffing, do you even try to establish such elements as a trademark of TERROR 2000 or is it just freaky ideas you could not use in your main-bands' sound? Who writes those psychotic parts?
Dan: We just write what comes to mind. The goal we had when writing Terror For Sale was to make an album that didn’t sound like the classic Swedish thrash metal that this country is known for. We wanted to push ourselves further and re-invent our music. So we took inspiration from all the music we grew up listening to as well as the music we listen to today. That’s why some riffs have a rock’n’roll vibe and some are pure American thrash… A lot of stuff was improvised since we experimented a lot in the studio, especially on the lyrics. All the members are involved in the song writing and we all have our say in every aspect of the music.

Clemens: Since a band like Soilwork is quite busy all the time, is there any chance of seeing TERROR 2000 live on tour around Europe one day?
Dan: Yeah, I think so. We have been talking about playing live ever since we were in Japan in 2003. We had such a great time there and we really wanted to do it again. Due to the busy schedules of some of the members it’s hard to find the time though. But we are looking into it and when the time is right we’ll definitely get our asses on the road. That would be a RIOT!

Clemens: What's your goal with TERROR 2000? What can we expect in the future?
Dan: Our goal is to keep thrashing and have a great time. As long as we have fun, we’ll keep playing and writing music. Hopefully we’ll be able to tour a bit on this album as well.

Clemens: In your opinion - what's the essence of thrash metal?
Dan: The true essence of thrash metal is speed, brutality, mosh pits, leather, hot chicks, Satan and lots of whiskey!!

Clemens: What do you think about the reunion-trend of bands like Exodus, Death Angel or the “original-line-up-touring” of bands like Testament or Anthrax?
Dan: I think it’s mostly good. Some bands shouldn’t reunite since they are now old and grey and can’t kick ass anymore. But some bands are still playing some serious great thrash and that’s great! All the bands that you mentioned are still going strong and are still playing powerful music!!

Clemens: Any thrash-metal stuff you can recommend our readers except for your own new release?
Dan: Sure, two bands that you should definitely check out if you love thrash metal is Defleshed and The Haunted. For even more bone-breaking metal you should check out our main bands!

Clemens: Well, good luck with the band, keep up the good work.
Dan: Thanks for a great interview! Stay thrash!