Robex Lundgren virkblogg.

Have any of you played in other bands? Yes we have! I (Victor) started my first band when I was 15 or so. It was called "Sober" and we played punkrock. After that I've played in some hardcore bands and other smaller projects. Svante had another band a while back, but I don't know if they are active still. Dan plays guitar in a black-metal band called "Prygla". Ronny have another band called "Self Deception". Actually, Ronny played guitar for I.D.A who appeared on the Swedish song contest "Melodifestivalen" in 2014, which is pretty cool i think.

Me and a friend used to skate a lot during the summers when I was around twelve. During those sessions we used to talk about starting a band, just like other skatepunk bands such as "Blink 182" or "Millencolin". One year I went to summer camp where this other kid played guitar. He taught me how to play some simple cords during those two weeks. The last day, before everyone went back home, I played live for the fist time ever for the other kids. We played "blitzkrieg bop" from "The Ramones". That moment changed my life. 

When I got home I continued to play. My mom bought me my first guitar so I could practice. I also inspired my skateboard friend, who also started to learn to play. Together we started my first band ever - "Sober".  

What are your names? / Who plays what? My name is Victor. I "sing" and play guitar in the band. I've also programmed all the synths and ambient sounds in our music. Dan is our new bass player. Svante player the drums and Ronny is the lead guitarist.

Have you had other previous members? Yes. Alex Stjärnfelt. He left the band last year, right after we recorded our new album "Esoteric Oppression". Alex was pulling towards another direction musically, which is why he left the band. However, we are good friends still and he is putting out new music with his other bands.

Where are you from? I grew up in one of the southern suburbs of Stockholm called "Gubbängen". Ronny is from "Tyresö". Svante is from the city Helsingborg, while Dan is from Leksand. 

What year did the band form? Me and Alex formed the band in 2008. The first record was released in 2013 which was the year Svante also joined the band. I think Ronny joined in 2015 or so, after being our live-guitarist for a couple of shows. Dan joined last year. 

What's your style of genre? This is a hard one. I know we have labeled our music as doom, sludge, post-metal, shogaze etc. I think people can get really stuck into this type of subgenre labelling. Honestly, I don't think about what genre our music is. If people find traces of other bands or other styles in our music it is merely a product of whom we are and what we've become as musicians and music consumers. Our personal biases and subjective interpretations of the world around us will unenviably affect the music we play.

Lots of things! Music, film, art, science, ideas, isms, politics, etc. The list can go on. 

I just read the short story "Understand" by Ted Chiang which was really inspiriting. I might wright a song that tries to capture the way used language to intensify the story - but with interments or something. 

Do you have other interests of work outside the band? We're all students at the moment. Both me and Dan are working on our respective master thesis in computer science. Ronny is also studying to become an engineer at the same university, but has a couple of more years to go. Svante is currently learning music production and technology. I guess that would kind of count as interests.

What are your songs about? Much of the lyrics revolve around depression and anxiety, and how that manifests itself in life. The band has been a good way to canalise the darkness in our lives, and so, the music and the lyrics is the product of that. 

They have been written in parallel. I think the music has to be able to resonate with us on its own, and the same goes for the lyrics. They don't fuse together until the very end. 

Perhaps that's a byproduct from the way we wright our music, but it seems to be working for us.

What are the least and most people to attend one of your gigs? haha, this is a really fun question. I remembering playing at a festival in southern Sweden called "Körpehöla festivalen" or something similar. We played infront of three people and the sound guy. Before we hit the stage we told ourselves to put on the most intense show ever, and so we did! I know those who saw us enjoyed it. The most people we've played for must be around 600 or more people at Dunk!Festival.

Do you always play the same songs live, or do you vary? We usually have a setlist for a year or so. Now, with Dan as basist, we all live in the same city for the first time that might change, we'll see. Before, with Alex living in Gothenburg, we needed to keep the variation to a minimum. 

What was your first gig like? It was surreal! We traveled to Kraków in Poland and played in this old abandoned basement turned into a venue called "Kawiarnia Naukowa". I think there was around 50 people at the venue, which was a lot for us given we had not played live before. Poor lightning and super loud. I think that's the first and last time any crowd have "moshed" to our music. I think it was during the song "A Road of Gravel And Skulls". It was really memorable!

Where have you played live this year? We haven't yet. We're going to Finland on the 6th of April. It's a small festival called "April Apocalypse". We're currently trying to arrange gigs in Stockholm and Gothenburg as well. Our ambition is to play our new record for as many fans as possible throughout the year!

What do you think about people downloading music instead of buying records now a days? Well, I don't know to be honest. If I had to speculate, I would say that it was inevitable. It seems to be the evolution of things, where the old gets replaced by the new. It's just the paradigm shifts that occur when new technology is introduced. The way to handle these shifts are to adapt, rather than oppose change.  

There is definitely a new kind of artist on the market. Like Post Malone, who released a song on SoundCloud one night, and the next he was trending all over the world.

There's also a wider range of music available today. People can release their own song independently from record labels on the same major platforms as the established artists. I think this is a great evolution of the industry. 

What do you think of my work? I love it! I think you are living proof of the new technological paradigm shift I was referring to before. And successfully at that! One person, you, working from a home computer, can bring thousands of curious music fans to one page with lots and lots of interviews. I think it's beautiful and shows how the new technology have revolutionised the journalistic field as well.

What have been your biggest obstacles? It's definitely when Alex left the band and the time prior to that happening. Even though it was for the best, it wasn't as obvious to any of us then. The first time we hit the stage at "Höstsabbat" in Olso without him was new and not as "safe" as before. You grow accustomed to certain things, which I think is only human, and so change can be tough. I think that moment after we had finished the first live performance, with Dan as the new bass player, was the moment when we knew we were going to be ok. I'm happy that it all worked out.

How do you get psyched for a gig? I don't. I get nervous as hell! I think we all do. Everyone is pacing backstage before we go out. There have been times I've felt like canceling gigs, right before the moment we hit stage. I often shiver from the anxiety I feel. But then I walk out, put on the guitar, and just do it. After 10 minutes on stage, none of the insecurities I had before are there anymore. I don't think anymore. I just act. 

Do you have any new material? We're releasing our new album "Esoteric Oppression" this week! We've released two singles from it called "Motionless In Oceania" and "The Drone Kingdom". There is also a video for the lastest track. We are super psyched for its release!

How can people reach? [email protected]

Do you have something to add? Thank you for reaching out to us!