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Sweden is a nation known for producing many renowned hard rock/heavy
metal acts (some of the all time greats, as a matter of fact). One of
their latest exports is Freternia, a melodic power metal band. They are
relatively new, and have just released their second album, "A Nightmare
Story", which is their first for the Arise record label, and a concept
album with an interesting story. I recently had the chance to
interview Freternia's vocalist, Passi Humppi. Here's what he had to say:
Q: Are
you pleased with your new album, "A Nightmare Story"? What do you
think are the album's high points? Do you have any favorite songs?
Has it gotten a positive response from the critics?
A: Yes, I am very pleased with how the album turned out. The sound
and songwriting has been improved since "Warchants And Fairytales"
(Freternia's debut). I believe the whole story and atmosphere is amazing
and I couldn't be more pleased. It's very hard to pick any favorite
songs but if I had to choose I believe it would be "New Hope" and
"The Darkside", both songs make me proud of taking part in this album.
Q: Please tell us about Freternia's history, like how the band got
started?
A: The story of Freternia begins in the summer of '98. It was a reformation
of an earlier band that Tomas and Patrik Lund started back in '95.
The original lineup was: Patrik Lund-Guitars; Bo Pettersson-Guitars;
Tomas Wappling-Vocals; Peter Wilberg-Bass; and Stefan Svanfesson-Drums.
With this lineup we recorded the demo "The Blood Of Mortals" in '98.
After some lineup changes, we recorded a demo called "Somewhere In
Nowhere" ('99) and that was the demo that gave us a deal with the
Swedish label LNP. In autumn '99 we recorded out first album "Warchants
And Fairytales" which was released in the summer of 2000. A short
while after the release of "Warchants..." LNP went out of business
and we had to search for a new record company. The solution became
Arise Records (the band's current label).
Q: Any touring/concert plans yet? Do you plan to play any festivals,
like Wackan, for example, in the future?
A: No, nothing planned yet but we are sending promos to festivals
all over and hopefully we will be able to play at some of them. It
all depends on selling rates so it's kinda hard to know if there will
be a tour or not. Only time can tell.
Q: Where does your name come from?
A: Freternia is the name of a land that Tomas wrote about in an early
song ("Last Battle Of Freternia"). We wanted an original name and
I really think that we managed to find a name of our own. The frets
as you know maybe are placed on the neck of a guitar and that's why
it became Freternia.
Q: You used to be a dual guitar band but now you've replaced one guitarist
with a keyboard player...?
A: Actually we still are a dual guitar band. We are searching for
a guitar player to fill in the missing spot. Tommie (keyboard player)
joined the band long before recorded out first album and we used keyboards
on "Warchants..." so there hasn't been any actual change.
Q: This is your first album with Arise records. How has your relationship
been with them so far?
A: Arise is great towards us and we have a very good contact. Our
relationship is very good and I think we did the right choice when
we decided to sign with Arise.
Q: "A Nightmare Story" is a concept album, is it not? Please tell
us about the story and where the inspiration came from?
A: Yes indeed it is a concept album. The story is very long so I'll
give you a shortened version of it: It's about this guy who every
single night has the same dream where creatures are calling for him.
This is an ancient people living in a dream world (the world of Grimbo)
calling for him. He finds out that he must enter a portal in his dream
to enter this world. Of course this is what he does and after he enters
this world, he finds out that he is destined to save this world from
evil. During the story he has many doubts about his "hero status"
and finds himself hesitating about many things and having second thoughts
about his destiny. This is a fantasy inspired story created by me
and Tomas. We are both big fantasy fans and read lots of books. I
will not reveal the end of the story. I think it's more interesting
to find it out on the album.
Q: You are from Sweden, a country that has produced very many renowned
hard rock/heavy metal acts over the years, and still does to this
day. What do you think of the metal scene in Sweden these days? Any
favorite bands, past or present?
A: I think we have a great metal scene over here and there are new
bands coming all the time. Bands like Axenstar and Dragonland are
great and I can mention many, many more. One of my favorite Swedish
bands must be Evergrey. Amazing music and singing that makes you feel
good inside. I like them a lot!
Q: One Swedish metal band that has really become popular in recent
years is Hammerfall. Do you know them personally? What do you think
of their music? You must have heard that their singer, Joacim Cans,
was recently the victim of a violent assault. How do you feel about
that?
A: I like Hammerfall and I know Joacim. They play music "the German
way" and I think it's great. I think their first two albums are their
best ones and "Renegade" (Hammerfall's previous album) must be some
kind of low point. The new one ("Crimson Thunder") I haven't heard
yet but I hope it will be better than "Renegade" Yeah, I've heard
about the assault. Damn what a sick world we live in! How the hell
can a "metal fan" do such a thing to a metal artist? I haven't talked
to Joacim about this but I hope the guy who did it ends up in prison
or something.
Q: You guys contributed a track to a Helloween tribute album. Obviously
they were a big influence on you. What other bands/musicians would
you say have influenced your music?
A: I believe I am the biggest Helloween fan in the band. The "Keepers..."
albums are on my top ten list of metal albums so I was very happy
when I got the opportunity to do a tribute to them? Bands like Edguy,
Gamma Ray, Blind Guardian, have been a great influenced on us. The
members of Freternia have very different taste in metal music and
I think this is very good for our sounds and songwriting. Peter (bassist)
is a great 80's fan. He likes bands like Dokken, Ratt, etc. I am the
power metal guy and like Gamma Ray, Helloween, and that kind of music.
Tomas has a weird taste...I don't really know what he likes ( ha ha
ha!)
Q: What bands have you played with/opened for? Are there any badns
you'd like to play with?
A: We have played with Morifade, Persuader, and played at the same
festivals with Gamma Ray, Halford, etc. I don't think we have any
favorite band to play with or open for...the most important thing
is Freternia and how we play. We are always 100% focused on our job
onstage.
Q: I know you guys are a relatively new band, buthave you had any
experiences on the road you'd like to share? What's the most "Spinal
Tap" thing that's ever happened to you?
A: When we were in Paris for a promoting gig we thought we should
at least visit the Eiffel Tower. We left the hotel early the day after
the gig cause we were supposed to get on the plane at 3:00 PM. Someone
asked if we got the phone number of the hotel if something would happen
but we left without it becuase we knew the hotel's name and how hard
would it be to find a taxi back to the Hotel Ibis? So we get to the
Tower and after a few hours of waiting finally we were at the top...Hmmmm,
nice view, let's get back to the hotel. We got down and out into the
streets. We actually had to had wrestle down a lady in her late 80's
to get a cab and when we told the driver that we wanted to go to Hotel
Ibis he just shook his head and said, "No address?" After stopping
ten cabs we finally found out that there were about 20 Hotel Ibises
in Paris! At this point Stefan came up with a brilliant idea-"Hey
guys, I know...why don't we take the bus?" ...So how did we get back
to the hotel? Before the trip we got an email with all the info so
we had to make a phone call to Sweden and ask somebody to connect
to the internet and check out the address and call us back. We got
to the hotel 45 minutes before we were aupposed to be at the airport.
Q: Will your first album, "Warchants And Fairytales" ever be re released,
or issued in the US? How do you think that album differs from your
new one?
A: Actually I don't know (about re-releasing the first album). We
are at this moment investigating the possibilities to re release the
album. We recieve mails from all over the world telling us it is impossible
to find "Warchants...". Since out former label went bankrupt we don't
know who owns the rights for the album and we are investigating the
matter. I think there is a great deal of differences between the first
album and the new one. I think the sound, as I mentioned before, has
been improved and the songs have a rawer feeling. I think it is a
harder Freternia you will hear when you listen to "A Nightmare Story".
Of course it still sounds like Freternia, we have just taken the Freternia
sound even further.
Q: Do you think you've gained some new fans from the new album?
A: Well, I hope so. It's hard to tell since the album was just released
but we have gotten many positive responses and our website gets lots
of hits every day so everything looks indeed very good for us right
now.
Q: The world of rock music has, of course, always been fiercely competitive
and can be very tough, especially for new bands. Has it been tough
for you? Have you felt the competition?
A: There are tons of very talented bands out there and of course there
is a lot of competition but we don't think of it in competition terms.
We make music from out hearts and are very proud of it and I believe
this is the most important thing. Some people say say we sound like
a thousand other bands and some say we have a unique sound. We sound
like Freternia and are very proud of it and that's enough for me.
Q: What are your future hopes for Freternia?
A: My hopes are many regarding Freternia. The most important thing
is that we are five crazy guys who love making music. So I guess my
hopes for the future are is that we will be able to continue with
the thing we love the most...making music.
Q: Maybe my ears are playing tricks on me, but I think you sound a
lot like Sebastian Bach of Skid Row! Was he/they an influence on you?
A: First time I've been compared to Sebastian. Hmmm, maybe I do sound
like him, it's hard for me to tell. I've been compared to many singers
and the most wicked I've ever heard must be Mr. Udo D.!!?? (That's
Udo Dirkenshcneider of Accept and UDO). Well, in my teens I was a
huge Skid Row fan. I still listen to songs like "Youth Gone Wild".
Of course Skid Row had an influenced on us and I think most bands
with members from our generation have been influenced (by them) as
well. A great band and a great singer if you ask me!!
Q: Do you have any advice for aspiring metal musicians?
A: Never give up, believe in what you do, and practice.
Q: Any last words? Messages for fans?
A: Hopefully you metalheads like our new album and bang your heads
to it. Stay hard, proud, and heavy and I hope to see you guys sometime
in the future!
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