interview with The Strangled

Have you played in other bands? Yes i have played in many bands over the years. Sjelferd, Haggis, Dingir Xul, Harpua just to name a few. Most of them are pretty obscure and unknown except for the punk band Haggis that enjoyed some success in Norway and abroad.
How is it that you started playing music? Ever since i was a kid i was allways fascinated by rock music and the whole enviroment that surrounds it. So i guess it was only natural for me to pick up the guitar and try it out for myself.
What are your names? / Who plays what? / How old are you? My name is Christer Amundsen, i am 36 years old and i play guitar, bass, drums and basically all the instruments except for vocals in The Strangled. Since it is a one man band/project everything is done by myself at this point. Maybe this will change in the future but we will see.
Have you had other previous members? I used to have a bassist with me called Damian in The Strangled. He played bass on the "We May All Be Killed" demo. Tragically he passed away shortly after that. May he rest in peace.
Did you make music even when you were young? Not really. My music making years started when me and some friends founded the band Sjelferd in 1995. Before that i was just a passive listener.
Where are you from? I am from Stavanger, Norway.
What year did the band form? To be completely honest with you i am not quite sure. My memory fails me there, but if i had to guess i would say that the year was 2011. 
What's your style of genre? The main genre that The Strangled resides in is metal, but this changes from time to time depending on my mood and the music i listen to at the moment. Right now i am working on a song that has a more "pop" feel to it, yet still it has a very dark undertone. 
What inspires you? I can find inspiration anywhere, in books, movies, the struggles of everyday life etc. 
How often and where do you reherse? Rehearsel for me is basically just sitting in my sofa and playing the guitar. If a good idea or riff comes out of it i take it into my home studio and build it into a song.
How have you developed since you started with the music? I think i have developed mostly in the songwriting process. Back in the early years we just threw some riffs together if it sounded cool and that was that, not thinking too much about the structure and momentum of the song. Now i try to build it up more and find a balance between the verse, the chorus and everything in between to make it all like an interesting journey instead of just a straight line from A to B.
Do you have other interests of work outside the band? My main passion in life is and forever will be music, both as a listener and a practitioner. Other that that im really into reading books, watching movies and tv series, photography. From there is also where i find most of my inspiration to make music as well. When it comes to work i have a day job as well, im a mechanic in an oil-company. Allthough that is just to "feed the monkey" so to speak, not much passion there im afraid.
Are you looking for a booking agency, and what are your thoughts around that? If The Strangled were a full band with ambitions to play live i would definitely prefer having a booking agency at our disposal to help us book gigs and stuff like that. That makes being a band and focusing on the music so much easier. 
Are you looking for a label, and what are your thoughts around that? I am not actively looking for a label at the moment, but if the right offer should come along i would absolutely consider it.  Maybe a small, independent label would suit me fine i guess, but for now im happy with the way things are. I need to be in full control of everything concerning the music and i would not like the pressure of a label breathing down my neck.
What made you decide to make this music? Its just something that felt natural for me. I have for a long time had a darkness and a melancholy inside me, and it feels natural and cathartic in a way to channel it through music.
What are your songs about? Most of my songs revolves around pretty dark and anti-social subjects. Life, death, war, violence, religion, depression and so on.
Who does the composing and writes the lyrics? I do all the composing and write all the lyrics, one of the perks of being a one man band.
Do you start with the music or the lyrics? I usually start with the music, and write the lyrics around the song. 
Do you compose in a certain inviroment? Yes, to a certain degree, but its mainly about the mood and my mindset when i compose songs. A quiet and undisturbed enviroment in my own home is allways the best for me. Thats when i can put all my energy and focus into the music.
What language do you sing in? All of The Strangled lyrics is in english, i feel thats the best language for me to express myself in. I have some ideas for some songs in norwegian also but we have to see how the future unfolds.
When did you start to sell merchandise, and what do you have for sale? Unfortunately i dont have any merchandise at the moment. Hopefully soon i will get some t-shirts made.
What do you think about people downloading music instead of buying records now a days? I think there is both positive and negative aspects about downloading music instead of buying it. It really depends on if it is a legal or an illegal download site. Offcourse it is positive for the consumers that dont want to pay for other peoples work and support the bands they like. Then again very negative and destructive for the bigger and more established bands that live of their music and rely on record sales. On the other hand, most bands make more money from touring and selling their merchandise than on record sales anyway, so until the day you can download a "real life" live concert or a t-shirt it will propably be ok.
What do you think of my work? I think you do great work and you perform a valuable service for the new, upcoming and obscure bands around the world. You are giving the "little man" a chance to be seen and heard. There should be more people like you out there, especiallly in the music industry.
How do you think and know that this interview will help you in the music business? Hopefully more people will check out my music and hopefully like it, and that is what it is all about basically. "An artist needs to feel appreciated, if not his efforts are futile".
Do you have any role models or idols? I have many people/artists that i admire and that i find inspiration from, but i would not say that they are my idols or role models. I have enough with beisng myself really.
Why do you think that they exist? One group of people need to have role models and idols to help them get by in life. It gives them something to strive for and inspiration to obtain "greatness" or whatever they choose to call it. In my opinion it is a weakness. And you have the other group of people who just want to be themselves and make the most of the cards they have been dealt in this life.
Is it easier to find inspiration from older bands, or bands that are more active today? I wouldnt say that, there will allways be great and terrible music out there. No matter what year is on the calender.
What have been your biggest obstacles? My biggest obstacle when it comes to making music is finding the time. With a full time job, a wife that demands attention and other obligations it sometimes feels like there is not enough hours in the day, but such is life.
What advice would you give other bands or artists? I would say that the most important thing for a band or artist of today is to be true to yourself, never compromise and dont pay any attention to trends and what is "in" at the moment.
Do you have any new material? I just released a new instrumental song called "Bleak" wich is available on Youtube, Soundcloud, Twitter and Facebook. That would be the most recent.
What are your web sites? I dont have any official website, i just use the social networks.   https://www.facebook.com/christerstaticamundsen?ref=hl
https://twitter.com/AmundsenStatic
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChdWKvCskV4OIrMKm2MLEZg
https://soundcloud.com/christer-amundsen
How can people reach you? The best way to reach me would be by e-mail: [email protected]
What are your plans for the future? I dont really have any concrete plans with The Strangled for the time being. I am the kind of guy that usually just take things as they come. All i know is that i will keep creating and releasing new music for as long as i am able to.
Do you have something to add? I only want to say thank you very much for the interview Robex, and keep up the good work!

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