Krepuskulum:
Which is the meaning of the name TEMPERANCE? TEMPERANCE INTERVIEW.
TEMPERANCE (Sweden) is the first thrash/death european band that invest in experimentalism and avantgarde proposal. Your debut album KRAPAKALJA (1995) was a masterpiece of crazy-marvelous thrash death. We called with Freede (V & G) about the band and their future.
Krepuskulum:
Which is the meaning of the name TEMPERANCE?
Fredde - Temperance is both the word for soberness ( yeah, can you imagine,he-he ) and the balance between things, could be good – evil, black – white, hard – soft…a.s.o. We found the name in the art of Tarot, and as the main card number 14 is TEMPERANCE and stands for " the one that pours water into water" we thought it suited the band perfectly..as we always tried to reach the balance between extremity and harmony… So the meaning of the word TEMPERANCE for US is mainly..balance between different elements in music and in life !!
TEMPERANCE has a long existence in the underground, talk us about the trajectory
of the band.
Trajectory ??? Not really sure what you mean by this. Anyhow the time for us as an underground band for almost 10 years now has ofcourse affected the band in several ways. We have gone through different styles and alot of changes in the band…but somewhere all those changes and happenings during this period – still makes us the same band as we were when we first started…a band that struggles for the chance to release their music and to play live performing the stuff for listerners in a direct situation. There are so many bands and people that we have meet and dealed with during the years, and maybe it was abit better in the scene the first 5 years for us, as the scene still was really underground and dedicated…today its too much Biz around everything, and the scene growned too big for its own good..Too much labels, and too low quality over the releases…thats how I see it.
But, in the long term its still all about metal, its still about recording, promoting, gigging and doing new songs…Personally, I see a more openminded attitude among the metalfans today. People are more "ready" for new styles into the metal field, and this is VERY positive. Thats what I find the most positive thing around these days…so much to choose between, and alot of styles are popular at the same time… Gives me hope for the metallic future in general, and for TEMPERANCE specifically.
TEMPERANCE just has a full lenght album in its history, wonderful
KRAPAKALJA (1995). Why until today you didn't record another full lenght?
Because Shiver records, which released Krapakalja, didnt thought it was so wonderful as you find it. We signed for 3 full cd.s at the label back in 94, and that would have been 1 Cd a year with a start in 95. BUT, after the release of Krapakalja he didnt go for the other 2 releases with us, much because we moved away from the Death metal style more and more. If he had released the second and the third album..well, then we would have been released on Cd even in 98. But, as the deal was signed for 2 Cd.s and he didnt want to tear the contract apart we were stucked to the label til 99, yeah. Directly after the end of the contracts signing period we signed up for a new 7" on the Swedish label Stormbringer productions. So, Shiver records is mainly the reason why we havnt released more cd.s. Now we are ready to hit the studio this autumn, and hope we will have the second Cd released after that…FINALLY. No label in the world can stop us this time, thats a fact !!!
What means KRAPAKALJA ?
Krapakalja is a word game. Its the mixture of two words actually. The english word Crap is put together ( in a swedish style ) with the swedish word Rapakalja. Both words have the same meaning = SHIT !!!
The CD KRAPAKALJA was a true mark of the avantgarde metal when it was released,
showing a great experimentalism and ruptures. How did go the composition of that album and
the underground reception to it ?
Thanx for those nice words… Im happy to see that Krapakalja gets the recognition after several years of our own stubborn believing in it. Yeah, I think the album was abit ahead of the scene at the time it was released…We tried to do something different with the songs which had been made quite along time before the Cd was recorded. We didnt put any of the old songs from TEMPERANCE demos and 7", and that suprised many people. We did this Cd as a new release, just as we did with the early release. We are not the type of band that do things over and over again. We are always moving ON, and Krapakalja is a BIG proof on that. We took the songs made back in the Deathmetal period of Temperance and took them into the studio and started to give them the "colour" of the evolution which we were going through in the band at the time for the recording (- 94). We started to improvise in the studio, looking for the right mood for the songs. Then we experimented alot with the mood which we gained out of those improvisations. I remember that we put the vocal on the second part of the Cd in the middle of the night all by ourselves. The engineer and owner of the studio was at home sleeping, but we worked the whole night. If you listen to the Cd you can easily hear how the whole Cd gets more and more intense and atmospherical as the trax runs on. In my opinion the Cd is splitted in two parts. The first half and the second half. The first half belongs to the old Temperance, and the second one has its foot into the "new" Temperance. If you listen to the new 7" you can hear that this time we take the second part of the Cd one step further and make it the whole way out.
Ha-ha, yeah the underground response was really mixed. Many ones waited for the full release of the "Death metal band " Temperance…and sure…many of those waiters got dissapointed, cause Krapakalja was not that release at all. We got alot of bad reviews and stuff in the beginning, but after a while things started to change…and the years after that the response has been going more and more in the direction which you are describing. Makes me happy and confused at the same time. There is a slice of irony thrown in here, dont you think ?
Your vocal are very interesting and sensitive, who are your favorite vocalists?
Interesting is ( as all artists know ) the same as boring LOL. But, sensitive - thats something else, ha-ha..That must explain the fact that we have so many female fans nowadays LOL. Nah, to be honest its first NOW in the year 2000 which Im ( for the first time ) almost totally satisfied with my voice…and that goes easily back for 15 years of struggling and frustrated singing. The new 7" makes the first time when I really feel that I can stand behind my voice all the way, and really enjoy it. BUT, I personally think that it could have been even better on the 7", as I know that my voice can reach much more quality than that today. So, Im bloody curious to see how the Vocal will turn out after I let it blow out totally in the studio for the next release… That Feels gooood.
Well, I listen to alot of singers actually. I think I listen more than I get inspired, yeah. To listen and to sing is two totally different things for me. So, when I listen to vocalists for their voice its just for pleasure, nothing else.
When I listen I prefer singers like: Ronny James Dio ( Rainbow Days ), Phil Lynnot, Kobain, Wreeswijk, Eddie Wedder, Jim Morrison, Lemmy, Lennon… among others…all depends on the mode you know…
Which the 10 best albums in the metal's history in your opinion?
Well, some of them atleast. But, defiently not in any particular order:
In the new work of TEMPERANCE, a 7 " EP released by
Stormbringer, the band continues with its interesting and curious style. What can wait for
the next album? Have you some date to new release?
Well, as I already mentioned the new album will HOPEFULLY be recorded this autumn here in Gothenburg. It will be about 8 new trax and it will take things further from the new 7", which means we will follow the line of Krapakalja and the 7" BUT we will take it even further. More Soul, more power, more emotions and more METAL !!! No date is set for the release, and no label is for sure either. So it will take a while before its released, thats for sure. I hope it will be released sometime during spring 2001. Dont worry, you will notice when the time is gettin short !
What are the themes that inspire the lyrics of TEMPERANCE??
Things that in one way or another attach to the life which Im living. It can be things that I feel is wrong about life, things which I feel strong for, things which I want to share with other people, things which is connected to the existential platform of being a human being, things which touch feelings, thoughts and emotions… Yeah, the most which is important for me and basically - for the human race really. BUT, there are always an ironical, sometimes dark, view on the topics which are dealed within the lyrics… I dont think that lyrics should be taken too seriously. If they are, then we lose the heart for the mind…That will really mark the end of the emotionel creation which we call – LIFE, the inspiration !
What is the dream of the band?
That this interview will be published LOL. No, I dont know if we have any dreams for the band. For me just being in this band together with my brother, still playing the stuff we want to do, after over 10 years together, is a dream itself. I would be a greedy bastard if I said that I could dream of anything better than this. Right now I just hope that we will effect the Europé tour which are set for September, and that we will make it to the studio and have the second Cd released on a label that dare to believe in us… Thats more than enough, dont you think ?
Contacts: TEMPERANCE SITE: http://www.angelfire.com/tx/temperance999
E-mail: temperance@BeerMetalLegions.zzn.com