Can you blame fans that with each birth of a super-group more and more of them are not too thrilled anymore? Over the last few years we've seen so many clones of the same band just with different members and under a different name that it isn't even funny anymore. So, with a lack of the usual excitement that comes with a super-group release, I picked up The Defaced "Domination Commence" and that's when it whacked me. Those five young men didn't just clone Darkane and Soilwork, they wrote quite an innovative mix of the new wave of modern thrash merged with interesting additions from the US alternative/rock scene. My attention piqued even higher when Mattias Svensson (guitar) assured me that they are not just another side-kick and that we should expect more from them in the future. But about this and much more you can find by yourself below...

Chris


Can you tell me how The Defaced was born? Not the official biography but rather the story behind it... was it during a party where all of you got drunk and decided to form a new band?

In contrary to what many people think TheDefaced isn't a new band. We're new in the sense that with "Domination Commence" we reach out to the public for the first time. But the fact is that three of us (me, Klas and Henrik) have been playing together since '95(!). This old band was sort of the foundation for what later became TheDefaced in '99, with our current line-up. In '99 with the joining of Jörgen and Henry, TheDefaced was formed out of the ashes from the old band and completely new songs were written. The idea has always been to write kick ass music, and will always be, so we needed a tight unit that totally supported that simple idea. And somewhat important as well, TheDefaced was formed out of the good reputation that the old band had on the local scene.

You guys are a Machine Head I wanted to be after "Burn My Eyes"... does this comparison bothers you?

I think it's quite natural for people to label stuff just to see where it fits in. Music is of course an area where labeling is frequently used. With this in mind that comparison doesn't affect me in no other way than it's a cool era of MH's career to be compared to. They did some good stuff on their two first albums. I believe we have some stuff in common with early MH, in the way that we express ourselves in music, but I also like to think that the differences are in a solid majority.

This release is already out for few months and by looking from this perspective are you satisfied with it or would you write some of the material differently?

Yep, it's been out in Europe since October last year. I see TheDefaced as a very dynamic force in the way that progression is an important factor. If you don't develop you stand still and everything will die away from you. We've got our solid base of influences and we develop around that base. And I definitely think that "Domination Commence" showcases what TheDefaced's all about.

Because of the involvement of few members in other bands does the Defaced have a chance to be a regular band?

This is a question that we often get and my answer is always the same, TheDefaced is by all means a regular band and not a side-kick. The two other bands have released more albums, since this is our first, and in that way established themselves more. But TheDefaced is a priority to everyone involved. The five of us all work hard to make TheDefaced into something really good and we're all very dedicated to the band.

Why "The Defaced"? Is there a history behind this name?

A good band name's quite hard to come up with I think. So one thing was that since our music is quite straight forward we wanted the name of the band to follow the same path. All in all I think we had like three criterias to fill: A band name that reflected upon the music that we play, an easy to remember name and a band name that everyone involved liked. So it was quite hard but when the "TheDefaced-idea" was out in the open it was all go for everyone since we all felt that that particular name had what we'd been looking for.

How does the composing process look like since 3 out of 5 members are pretty involved with Soilwork and Darkane?

The main part of the basic ideas of the music derives from me or Klas. Mainly guitar riffs that we come up with. From there on we develop the stuff that we like into a complete idea of a song. We both work with a computer software called Cubase to assemble and develop our ideas. Cubase is best explained as a home-studio and is a great tool because you can present your ideas in a proper fashion to the other guys. After presenting the raw material of a song to the other guys we pick it up at rehearsals to make it into a TheDefaced song. It's a bit of a process but we're careful in the songwriting process to get all the best ideas explored in the best way. So we're all pretty involved in the process.

How do you keep Soilwork and Darkane influences out of your band?

As a matter of fact it's no problem at all. First of all the guys involved in Soilwork and Darkane almost write nothing for those bands, but they do for us. Furthermore our influences are very different to the ones that the other bands have. These things make it into no problem at all keeping the bands separated. TheDefaced has a clear line very separated from the other two bands. Of course it's metal that we all play but in very different ways and with different elements.

Don't they try to enforce some of their ideas on the Defaced?

No they don't because, like I said earlier, TheDefaced is a band that has a life of its own and our creativity isn't depending on anything else than ourselves.

What do you mean by the title "Domination Commence", taking over the Swedish scene, world?

When we came up with the title we thought that it was a cool and cocky title for a debut album. Our idea behind the title was strictly a musical one. Of course we wouldn't mind to dominate (I mean who would?), but we also felt that the title had a good feel to it and that it can be adapted to many different things, not just music. Carlos del Olmo who made the artwork made his interpretation of what domination can be and he went after a more physical approach of the words in the title than we did.

How did you lend the deal with Nuclear Blast? For most of the bands it usually takes a few years not just one release...

One thing that helped some was that three of us play in bands that already are signed to Nuclear Blast. It helped in the way that we knew who to approach in the company so in this way we were fortunate. But other than that I think having a good product is the only thing that matters. I mean there isn't a single company in the world that takes on a band that they don't believe in. And why should they? They sell records and for them being able to do a good job they have to believe in their product. When we landed the deal with Nuclear Blast we were extremely excited being part of their team so let's see what the future holds...

I'm sure you already work on your new material... what can we expect from the new release?

We've got a bunch of songs written already and we're very thrilled about the way that they have turned out. We're going to follow TheDefaced-path with the specific sound that we have and we've also developed the grooves even more. It feels like the new songs are a natural progression of what we established with "Domination Commence" even if this is an early stage to talk about new material.

Is there a chance to see you live anywhere in the world this year?

Hopefully we'll show up at festivals this summer. Nothing is confirmed but I can tell you that we're dying to play. I know it's a cliché to say that you're a live band but that's just what TheDefaced is. So hopefully things will work out real smooth and I can promise that we'll kick some major ass when they do!

End it the way you like it...

We're totally excited about the release in the American territories and we really hope that the overseas metal-heads will check "Domination Commence" out and give it a chance. Hopefully they'll love what they hear and hook up to TheDefaced family. We also really hope that we get the chance to play in the American territories in the near future and we just can't wait for that to happen. And of course... Let the domination commence...

You might be quick to write off another band entering the land of thrash/death metal these days, but if this is the case then you obviously haven't heard Defaced! They are a band that knows no boundaries... a metalmonster waiting to be unleashed! They have just finished recording their full-length debut for Scarlet Records entitled Domination Commence, and what a proper title it is too, since these guys are just about ready to dominate the whole metal world with their hyper-sonic sound. I recently got to speak to their lead singer, Henrik Sjowall, about the band and everything metal! Join us, will you...

Adam Block


So tell me a little bit about Defaced... how did all you guys get together?

It all started way back in 1994, I was singing in band called Cul De Zac (which included Ola from Soilwork). We were going to record a demo tape and the guy who worked in that studio was Klas Ideberg. A few months later the other guys kicked me out. I didn’t care really. Klas found out somehow and called me up and asked me to join. I didn’t know any of those guys then but I thought I could give it a shot. Here we are 7 years later, stronger and more brutal than ever!!!! I think Jörgen joined in 1998, and Henry joined forces last year.

How long was until the deal with Scarlet Records came about?

Henry contacted them by midsummer last year and I think we finished the deal in September. Everything just went great and it seems that they liked our stuff a lot.

What was it about Scarlet Records that interested you guys? How does it feel being label mates with your fellow metal buddies Terror2000?

They were the only one interested, (ha ha ha) just kidding. Stefano from Scarlet REALLY wanted us to join. He though the promo sounded fucking great and Terror talked positive about them, so we signed. We just have to hope that they don’t let us down. I think it’s so cool that this city (Helsingborg) now has a few real good metal bands, so it’s fun to be under the same "roof" as Terror.

Your group features members of both Darkane and Soilwork, but really bares little resemblance to either one of those bands. How easy was it for you guys to find your own sound?

It hasn't been any problem at all. First of all, me and Mattias never listen to music like Soilwork or Darkane. Don’t misunderstand me here, I think both the "Soilers" and Darkane are very professional and they have a few real killer songs but their sounds just don’t fit my ear.

Mattias is our main "riff master" and he never composes those kinds of riffs. Klas is much more of a speed/trash metal guy, he can slide in to those kind of arrangements sometimes, but it’s rare. We want it to be groovy and it must not be fast stuff all the way. We just create right in your face metal, as I see it.

So you just finished your first full-length for the Scarlet Records label: Domination Commence. Tell me a little bit about the record. How happy are you with the finished product?

Am I happy about the finished product?..........I´m real fucking proud of it, and I think we all are. Everyone has made an exellente job. It was recorded in small town in the south of Sweden, during 2 intense weeks. It was real hard work all though the production. Klas handled all the studio stuff himself with some help from a guy called Nisse. That´s right, we recorded everything by ourselves, thanx to Klas. I had some minor problems with my voice but everything worked out great. We didn’t have any major trouble, we were lucky I guess. It was my and Mattias’ first "real" recording so it was great fun. It’s very dynamic record which includes fast / slow music and angry/ soft singing. I’m really looking forward to sharing our music with the rest of the world.

Any word on a release date for the record?

No, as far as I know Scarlet will release it in Aug-Sept.

I see that you guys decided to go with an old Zeppelin tune (When the Levee Breaks) for the Japanese bonus track. How did that all come about?

It was Mattias who came up with the idea, and we though it was a cool idea and a great song. We made it a bit heavier though.

For the folks here who don't know, and that would include me, please describe what an average live performance is like with Defaced. How much touring have you guys been able to get under you belt so far? Any plans for a tour supporting the new album?

It’s hard for me to describe, I guess our fans think it’s hard and intense. We haven’t done any live gigs for a long time, we have focused on making new songs. There aren’t many possibilities to play here in the south of Sweden, if you play metal. 3/4 of Sweden’s population listen to all that commercial shit like Britney and the Backstreet Boys, which really SUCKS!!!!

I hope we can do some touring to support our album, but we haven’t heard anything from Scarlet so far.

So apart from Defaced are any of you guys working on other projects as well?

No, me and Mattias are not involved with anything else.

In your spare time what bands do you enjoy listening to? Do any of these bands bare influence in the music you make with Defaced?

My favorite bands are Kiss, Red Hot Chili Peppers and Machine Head. I´m kind of a rock n’ roll guy. I just think that there’s so much shitty music coming out these days that it’s hard to find new good bands. The Defaced sound is complicated to judge, it’s mixed with all kinds of styles.

I want my singing to contain a lot of melodies, and I get inspiration from all kinds of bands. An example of what I call good singing I think the singer of Stuck Mojo. [He did] an excellent job on their latest album. I want it to be a nice mix between brutal and clean singing, and that’s what I’m trying to do. Some of the Defacers think it’s too much "rock n roll" sometimes though! (laughs)

So In closing, what would like to say to those metalheads out there looking for some new music?

If you like music from Sweden and want to discover something new... Pick this shit up!! Prepare you ears for some "new" Swedish music!! C ya and watch out for The Defaced in the near future.