In the end, we all die anyway – for over 25 years, Katatonia have been considered the great masters of depression, that carve their nihilistic thoughts and most melancholic lyrics into the walls of the metal scene’s darkest corners. And with their tenth master ‘The Fall Of Hearts’ (Click Here To Read Our Review) they once again throw their listeners into a disturbing vortex full of soft melodies and incomparable Scandinavian sadness, that will prove to the world once more, how beautiful the feeling of pure despair can be.
But guitarist Anders Nyström is by far not as depressed as fans would expect him to be and seems like a rather happy gentleman, as Metal Wani’s Anne Catherine Swallow had a little chat with him about the pressure he felt before writing the magical tenth album and the recent line-up changes in Katatonia‘s universe. In our interview, he explains the challenging aspect of still creating a fresh and unconventional sound, but also speaks about the elements that didn’t change since the bands creation – may it be the simplicity of their songs or their fundament of true emotions, that has always been more important to the Swedes than high-end technical perfection. However, Anders doesn’t always need to plunge into a horrible sea of depression to write his music and describes the setting that he usually needs for his songwriting, but also points out why no Katatonia song has ever been written on tour.
We asked for his personal interpretation on why the band often uses birds in their artwork, maybe it be on covers or in promotional photographs and as a little bonus, the founding member of the band and axemaster reveals his opinion on Axl Rose joining AC/DC.
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