1.-Here don’t exist any doubt PAGANIZER has done a reborning of the SWEDISH
death metal art again, your sound is similar than old death metal acts like
GRAVE, CARNAGE ENTOMBED (OLD).When you created PAGANIZER you had thought that
your sound could be consider like a special tribute to the above mentioned bands?
Yes in a way Paganizer is of course mean to be a tribute to all those bands you
mentioned. Back when they formed we were only listening to music as we are
younger, but when we decided to start playing this music was what we really
wanted to create even if the scene was mostly overflowed with black metal in the
mid ninties when we started Terminal Grip wich later came to be Paganizer.
2.-About your beginning; When you formed the band, What went the most difficult
to PAGANIZER, knowing the recognize of SWEDISH death metal scene and high
quality of bands?
Well we never intended o become a record releasing band at first, we were just
happt to be given the opportunity to release something at all with Paganizer.
But then it just continued and people seemd to think Paganizer was a band worth
releasing albums with. Personally I never think we can macth those old gods of
the Swedish scene but we are happy with just being a smaller band in the scene
and to some extent we indeed have also our own personal sound mixed with the
more common Swedish death metal style.
3.-Your first work was released by PSYCHIC SCREAM RCDS from MALASYA and I knew
that this release sold-out. Do you has decided re-edited this stuff again?
This album was more of a project, as it´s more thrash influenced than our demos
or the following albums. So we hade no intentions on re-releasing it actually
but last year Forever Underground asked to do it as part of a doublecd release
of the first 3 Paganizer album. So now it´s available as part of that package
anyway, if anyone should want to get hold of that album.
4.- After comes your second release on FOREVER UNDERGROUND a small label. Why
did you changed of record label? I told you that, this cause in this moment you
has changed to xtreem records other record label more bigger. It’s so hard to
work with PAGANIZER?
No we are not hard to work with haha. We are very very easy to work with
actually, and we will release stuff on any label as long as we only get our
studiocosts paid for. Most times we have even paid for osrselves for artwork and
even mastering sometimes, so i guess we would be concidered an easy band to work
with. The reason we changed from Forever Underground to Xtreem Music was simply
because Xtreem Music is based in Europe and had much better distribution than
Forever Underground who couldn´t really get our album out on the European market.
As you understand it´s important for us to have our albums released in europe as
we live here, without the album being available it´s hard for us to promote
ourselves and we never got offered any shows back then as people simply hadn´t
heard about us and that all changed very much when we changed to Xtreem Music.
5.-Talk to me about your band logo, Who did you create this logo very inspired
on Viking way?it’s so important to PAGANIZER add a THOR’S HAMMER into this art?
The Thor´s hammer wasn´t part of the logo originally, we just added it for a
couple of the albums as we though it was a cool idea. We have removed it now
actually again as we grew tired of it. The only reason we added it was because
it´s a cool part of our Swedish history and it fit well into the concept of the
band and the logo aswell. We might use that logo with the hammer again if we
want to but for the coming album we removed it.
6.-PAGANIZER is a band that had some line-up changes, What’s your current line-up,
Nowadays?
Nowadays we´re back to a trio wich we have been for most of our career actually.
These days it´s me (Rogga) on guitars and vocals, Fiebig on drums and Patrik on
bass. It´s not the ideal lineup to have when playing live, especially since I´m
a rhythmguitarist and doesn´t play leads or solos but it works ok anyway. We
have tried too many times the last years to get someone into the band for lead
guitars but it always seem to end up with a split. Strange but true, maybe we
are hard to work with or so haha.
7.-I guess that your MURDER DEATH KILL, it’s a memorable death metal album ,
inclusive this has had a great repercution on the death metal scene. What’s your
opinion about this album? Are you satisfied with him?
I am very happy with this album, recently it has become my fave album of the
ones we have done. The only thing we could have done better is of course the
playing at some parts but that´s something I don´t care much about. Small
mistakes and things that could have been improved will always be part of an
album,
8.-How’s your contract terms with xtreem records? Are you happy with DAVE’S work
to your band?
Right now we are not signed to Xtreem anymore, the next Paganizer album will be
released on VIC Records. However Dave and me are still friends and he is still
the webmaster of the Paganizer site. we are very happy with Dave´s work for
Paganizer through the years, he has really put some effort into promoting us and
I think he has sold pretty good of the albums we have released on his label.
9.-‘NO DIVINE RAPTURE’ is your new one album. How was conceived this stuff?
New? It´s 2 years old now haha... Anyway, it´s the latest album and this album
is also the most worked through and well played album we´ve done. Some of the
songs are very much at the top of what we can play as we are not very great
musicians in any way. So we are happy the album turned out as killer as it did,
and much thanks to Mieszko (R.I.P) who delivered our most brutal sound so far.
The next album though will be going more for speed and oldschool brutality as
usual.
10.-Here I have a CARVE album , its has been released by BLACK HOLE productions
from BRAZIL. (A great magazine and record label). It’s a band project of
PAGANIZER members. When you create the CARVE tracks, How do you do to not sound
equal of PAGANIZER riffs or sound? It’s difficult to someone who’s never heard
PAGANIZER find out some influences in CARVE music?
To be honest Carve and Paganizer sounds pretty much the same. The reason for
releasing the Carve albums was at first just to do some work together with
Fernando at Black Hole as we are friends. Then I happened to have a bunch of
songs wich then turned into the second Carve album, but these songs sound of
course very much like Paganizer and with my vocals on top it sounds even more
Paganizer. So in short anyone liking Paganizer and owning all album should
really get the Carve albums too.
11.-What’s your favourite PAGANIZER track and why?
That would have to be "Landscapes made of human skin" from the "Dead unburied"
album. That songs is a total classic if you ask me haha. We managed to get
everything right on that one and the groove and brutality is really killer. Aslo
on that track Jörgen (ex Grave) did some great guestvocals as we did half of
each verse like a growlbattle. My second fave song would be the title track from
"No divine rapture" just beacuse that too is a total kick in the nuts...
Straightforward classic Swedish death metal just the way it should be.
12.-I know that it’s so hard to play a gig around south America to some European
bands, but do you can describe a PAGANIZER show to all south American death
metal bangers? What’syour most memorable gig?
We haven´t done much gigs due to the lineup problems we always have. But a live
show with Paganizer is just as it should be: sweaty and brutal haha. We rely on
that the people attending do their best to tear shit up as we try our best to
deliver the songs from the albums so iguess we´re your pretty standard live act
in that way. Nothing special or new but just fucking brutal and most often a bit
drunk too haha. But the heavy drinking we save ´til after the gig of course.
13.-‘DEAD UNBURIED’ Cd included it to JORGEN SANDSTORM (ex-GRAVE) on vocals. Why
did you decided include this participation? How was the people response about
this CD?
We simply think Jörgen is the best fucking growler in the world so we just asked
him and he said yes. It was really cool to have him helping out on a couple of
tracks. The response on the album has been very good indeed, however as it was
released by Forever Underground it didn´t get too much reviews here in Europe
wich is kinda crappy.
14.- Do you prefer to be called DEATH /VIKING metal, invoking some remembers of
the beginning of UNLEASHED? Usually What topics do you write?
No not really, we don´t write either typical viking metal riffs nor lyrics. I
think that name fits better on bands like Unleahsed or Amon Amarth who deals
with these things on most albums. Our typcial lyrics are more towards the shit
that organized religion brings and also very much about the human fear of death
as we have no fucking idea what or if anything happens wehn we die. This fear of
death and not knowing is what has built the empires of religion throughout time
and allows it still to control people everywhere.
15.- How do you see the PAGANIZER future? What are your next steps? When We can
listen your next album?
So far we have a new planned recorded and ready to be released. It will be out
some time this year on VIC Records and it´ll be called "Basic instructions for
dying". We also have a tour in Spain coming up later this year with Machetazo
wich will be very cool to do.
16.-Extremely thanx for your time, I’ll spread PAGANIZER name to all South
American Metal heads. Do you want add anything to all them?
Thanx for the interview! And my message to your readers would be; keep death
metal burning and be sure to check out Paganizer if you´re into oldschool brutal
death metal!