Here you have an interview with the (in my eyes) mighty INCAPACITY who released one hell of a debut album last year! Death Metal the way it was meant to be! Since they just recently released the follow-up called "9th Order Extinct" I took the chance and sent some boring questions to Anders Edlund. Follow his words and check out their albums. They rule!!!
Who do I have the honor with and what is your role in INCAPACITY?
You have the honour to speak with Anders Edlund. I´m the bassplayer in INCAPACITY.
You recorded your debut full-length in 2001. What happened in between the recordings of “Chaos Complete” and its release in 2003?
What we did when "Chaos Complete" was recorded was that we made some gigs with friends in bands on smaller places in Sweden. At the same time we started to write new material for an upcoming release. That´s what you´re about to hear on "9:th order extinct".
What do you think are the main differences between “Chaos Complete” and “9th Order Extinct”? Personally I think that the new record is much more diverse and it takes some time to get into it while “Chaos Complete” offered straight forward Death Metal.
People often say to me exactly what you do. The new album is more diverse and especially that it takes some listen-throughs before one really appreciates the album. I think I have to agree. This one is a lot more diverse and that is a result from working more frequently with arrangements and riffs as well as more time from the start of the writing process until we entered the studio. One will always get a better product if there is time to work with the material. At the same time I think the quality over the entire album is a lot better than "Chaos Complete". Both when it comes to song material and album production.
How was it working with Mieszko Talarczyk? The sound on “9th Order Extinct” is excellent so it´s no wonder that more and more bands want to work with him.
He is extremely dedicated to what he is doing and I guess that is why the productions from his studio always have great quality. I don´t want to bullshit anyone... but remember when Sunlight was a big studio with a lot of qualitative releases. Nowadays no one wants to record there and what I have experienced from my friends who recorded there in the early days, the owner lost his will to record Death Metal. That you can hear on the album, as well. Miezsko is most dedicated and professional in his entire approach and he also gives you good advices etc. to improve each and every song.
It seems like Oldschool Death Metal is back on the map. Bands like Bloodbath and Chaosbreed sound like the old bands in the early 90s. Do you think that it´s a good thing to keep this sound alive or do these guys just live in the past?
I'd say that most people don't realize that even Death Metal follows trends based on other hypes in society. It´s like a circle that goes round and round and right now the Gothenburg sound is not as popular any more. That offers space for new bands with new sounds. Like for instance the old school sound. I don´t think these guys live in the past, I mean the members from Bloodbath for example were young and fresh when this “old-school” style was new. So they are kind of the “real deal”. Most members in Incapacity was parts of founding the Swedish sound in the early 90´s so what we do is nothing else than natural.
How
did you get into Metal, especially Death Metal?
I had listened a while to Metal like Metallica etc. and then one day I heard a Death Metal band, I don´t remember which one it was, but I was caught directly. I didn´t like the singing but I loved the frenzy and energy in the music. Then I started to search for more and more different bands with that energetic approach... and here we are 13 years later.
It seems like these are good times for Metal in general: Rob Halford got back to Judas Priest, Suffocation got back together, there are more and more Metal-Festivals, Shania Twain is wearing AC/DC merchandise, people are running around in Maiden or Motörhead T-Shirts (although you know that they never listened to “Ace Of Spades” or “Bomber”) and so on. Do you think that this “trend” will leave Heavy Metal weaker than it was before all that started or is this the rising of Metal that the whole scene has been waiting for for a long time?
A trend can never be bad for a style/genre. The more you hear about Metal bands in TV, radio, everywhere where people meet and greet etc., the better it is for the style. Bands will get more attention, more fans will join the hype. Some of them will just stick with it as long as it is a trend but some of them will continue listening to Metal all of their lives. And in the long run it´s great both for Metal's survival and also for record labels. I think it´s only the “die hard fans”, you know the ones who can´t open their ears for anything else than Metal, that hate it when Metal becomes popular. But as I said in a previous question... the only ones they are fooling are themselves. Metal IS trend based and as long as Metal can ride on the mass-medial train it´s really good and strengthening for the scene.
What are your plans now that “9th Order Extinct” has been released? Will there be a tour or are you too busy with all the other bands you play in?
Ha ha... no, we´re not too busy with other engagements. Incapacity is the band that generates most attention for all of us so if there was a tour offered we´d surely go along. We will do some smaller gigs in Europe this autumn but no full tour is planned. Not yet at least. Perhaps we´ll do one next year?
Did you realize the development into Death Metal that a lot of Hardcore bands made in the recent years? Do you think that Death Metal and Hardcore are totally different styles of music that should be kept separate?
No, why separate styles? Cross as many styles you like and I promise you´ll get fresh influences into the music. I think it´s the only way to secure smaller genres or sub-genres survival, in the long run. Also you´ll probably get a bigger and more diverse fan base. Death Metal and Hardcore are not totally different when it comes to the music itself but I think the culture around the different genres are separated and pretty different.
Most of these bands (like Heaven Shall Burn) are very political compared to “real” Death Metal bands like Cannibal Corpse. Death Metal and political lyrics fit together?
Yes, I think you can mix political elements into the lyrics in Death Metal. I mean... how many bands in Death Metal write lyrics about death, these days? Death Metal is more or less a term for extreme music with guttural growl song, I think.
Ok, we´re almost through. This is one of my favourites: Just tell me what comes first into your mind when speaking of...
...Lemmy
Old, ugly, but a real women's man and one of the most admirable persons within the rock genre.
...Edge Of Sanity
A band that we often are compared to. An extremely great band back in the days when Dan Swanö didn´t have 100% free space to do what he pleased with the material that was supposed to represent EOS. Our singer in Incapacity was guitarist in that band.
...Religion
Can be a good thing but not when one get fundamental or fanatic. A big reason to disputes and wars worldwide.
...Bad Religion
A band from the US that recently released a new album. I haven´t listened a lot to these guys but I like what I´ve heard this far. (Anders and Incapacity rule! Buy all their stuff! - Stefan)
...Keyboards
Can be a good thing to use in choruses on songs but merely to lift the atmosphere in the choruses. When you clearly can hear a keyboard it´s no good. At least not in Death Metal. In other styles I think it´s a great instrument to use.
George W. Bush
A man that obviously think he is a God. I´d say he is dangerous for the entire world and I really hope that the American people understand the surrounding world's thoughts about him, so that they chose a new president in next presidential election.
...Sweden
The place to be... ha ha. It´s, in my eyes, the worlds most beautiful country. Beautiful people as well as beautiful countryside and landscapes. There are nothing in this world that´ll ever make me move away from Sweden. I recommend every person to experience the summers in Sweden... they are a blast!
Thank you very much for taking the time for answering these questions. Is there anything else you wanted to say?
Thanks to you for your shown interest in Incapacity. To all metalheads: Go check "9:th order extinct" out if you like the best from the old school and the best from the new one and with a lot of variation. Bottoms up!!!
(Tobi)