First
of all, could you please tell me how ESCAPETOR came to be, who's who in the band
and where do you guys hail from?
Current
line-up is:
Carl-Eric Sagård: Vocals and guitar
Leif-Ove Haugstad: Drums
Ragnar A Nord-Varhaug: Guitar and vocals
Svein Arild Kleven: Bass
Escapetor
came to life in the end of 1999 when Martin Lund Grødem came to our home-studio
to record some music he had made. Martin, Ragnar, Svein Arild and Leif-Ove came
together as a band to do these songs and that’s how it all started. Martin
decided to leave in the beginning of 2000, leaving Ragnar, Svein Arild and
Leif-Ove without a singer and guitarist.
We recruited Tom Roger on guitar and Carl Eric on vocals in mid 2000. Tom Roger
left us a little later and Carl Eric took over both guitar and vocal duties.
This line-up has remained as a steady group ever since.
The
members of the band hail from Norway in the Stavanger area.
Before
start playing with Escapetor, did you play in other bands or not?
Ragnar
and Leif Ove hooked up in 1993 where we played in a couple of different bands
doing mostly covers.
Carl Eric has played in a band called Osiris and The Hedersmenn before joining
Escapetor.
Svein Arild has played in a band called Silence and Mantown.
Actually,
how did you guys meet each other?
Ragnar
and Leif-Ove meet through a mutual friend in 1993.
Leif Ove called Svein Arild and he joined us in 1998.
Carl Eric joined the band when we put an add in a local newspaper in 2000.
How
would you describe the music that your band plays?
We
cover a broad range of music styles, from the 70’s up to date of different
metal genres. The music we compose comes straight from the heart. We will never
go main stream and this makes our music more interesting. Some people find it
hard to digest our diverse metal music.
Could
you name some other bands or musicians that influence you?
We
are influenced by many bands like: Metallica, Manowar, Helloween, Iron Maiden,
Black Sabbath, TNT, AbbA, Elvis, Pogues, AcDc, Dimmuborgir and many many others.
When
did you get interested in metal and rising up a band like ESCAPETOR?
We
all started to listen to Metal when we where in our teens listening to Kiss,
Metallica and other bands. We all started playing our instruments in that time
and joined or made many local bands. Luckily we all ended up here in Escapetor !
What's
your opinion on the nowadays abominations of metal such as Black, Death or even
the bullshit NU/Alternative alike music scene?
We
have all different opinions on this subject. Let’s keep it that way.
Can
you give me some information about the Escapetor releases so far? Giving me some
more details would be great!
We
started in 1999 and in 2000 we released our first demo called Escapetor with
Martin on guitar and vocals.
In 2000 we released a new demo called Drop the system featuring Carl Eric on
both guitar and vocals.
In 2001 we made yet another demo called No one will survive.
In 2002 we made our newest demo called Water. To this demo we also made a video
of the title song Water.
At
current time we are working on 7 new songs that will occur on our next concept
demo where the main topic will be miscarriage of justice.
Well
I heard your CD called “Water” and it’s a pretty good shot. Great
musicianc, but the vocalist could be even better to me. Do you guys working on
it in the near future or are you
satisfied with the job he’s doing now?
We
are always working to better ourselves and the vocal is no different. We’re
trying out different vocal styles all the time, maybe this wasn’t the best
choice but…. At the time we did it, it sounded right and we where satisfied.
You’re opinion is noticed. J
How
are the reactions world wide on the” Water” CD so far?
We
have gotten good reviews from all over Europe. Our music has also been played on
some radio stations in Europe. All in all the response has been very good.
Any
chance to catch a major record deal and release a full length album?
Not
at the present time, no. We have sent our demos to some record labels but
without a positive response. We are not working to hard on it either. Our music
will be spread mainly on the Web and by the people.
Has
the band ever written a song that thought it totally sucked when it was
finished?
Hell
yes…… Pretty much all our songs from our first demo are scrapped.
Can
you tell me about your stage experiences? The one you’ll never forget, where
was it and what makes it so special to you?
Our
first appearance on Zoom, a Norwegian music contest that is held in all the
major cities in Norway. We where three bands playing that night, and we where
the band that got the most people banging in front of the stage. We brought some
demos containing the songs from the set list we were performing. Very cool!
Your
favourite place to play live is……Why?
The
best gig we had was on Checkpoint Charlie in Stavanger. That was very fucking
cool.
Are
there any other local bands that you enjoy playing with?
Our
best experience was playing with Dizharmony and Imprint, two local bands from
Stavanger that kick serious ass.
Some
future plans?
Keep
on rocking. World domination?
Thanx
indeed for your time! Do you have any message for the people who will be reading
this and for all those who will stop by The Metal To Infinity website?
Stay
panzer.
Check
out our web site at www.escapetor.com.
The Metal To Infinity website rocks the Galaxy and beyond.