(Originally from 11/29/06)Lead guitarist Lars Johansson of the legendary doom metal band Candlemass has blessed us with the chance for an interview and a brief look at the past, present, and possible future of the band...
Starting things off, can you give us a brief introduction to the band, for those who may be unfamiliar with the history and music of Candlemass?
Lars Johansson: Well, the full story is long and would not fit in this document, but we are playing slow and heavy at the same time, 5 piece band: bass, vox, perc, axe and lead axe… somewhere a touch of the 70's but yet melodic and "modern" thinking... We always trying to build an atmosphere around the songs, so they also can work fine live...
I'll go right ahead and get straight to it - what can you tell us about the possibility of a new album?
Well, all the music is recorded, so of course there will be a new album.
How is the search for a new vocalist going?
It's out in the press by now, so we'll see what's hidden there. We have a couple of guys we have to check out...
Can you tell us who are some of the bands/musicians that have inspired you and the rest of Candlemass?
I think we all have roots in the 70's, with bands such as: Black Sabbath, Uriah heep, Rush... bands like that... But we all have a wide range in our listening-spectra.
Do you have a favorite song that you've written with the band - or perhaps even a favorite album?
Leif is writing all the songs for Candlemass (exept for 3 songs on the Chapter 6 album, that I wrote) And for me that’s fine, he is doing a fine job as it is... I write my own material in my corner for CreoZoth...
What do you think of the doom metal scene today? Are there any new bands around in the genre that you like?
I listen a lot to different kinds of music you know, but I have noticed a few that can both play & act like they really are in to it. But hey... the music industry pops a lot of crap in every shelf, and not so many bands stays longer than 2 or 3 albums, unfortunately...
Can you walk us through the songwriting process that Candlemass has gone through in the past for coming up with new tunes?
Now that we are old and lazy :) we don’t hang around the rehearsal room more than we have to... So Leif is sitting down for a couple of months, then we call eachother and make some moves in the agenda, then Leif puts together a cd with the riffs and drum-machine and support vocals, so you know where you are in the woods of riffs :) Then we listen to that for a while and then we rehearse the stuff and check out how it works...
What specific techniques or practice routines do you personally use to improve your playing ability?
Well I just sit down on my bed, grab a guitar and jam with it for a 30 minutes or so. Then a little finger gymnastic exercise that I make up at the time I'm doing it, and after that maybe some riffs start poppin up... :)
Is there any advice you might give to aspiring musicians, bands or guitarists?
Listen to a lot of different kinds of music, get inspiration from more than the instrument you are playing (piano, saxophone, harp). And the most important thing is to go with your heart and listen to what each song needs from your axe...
Last of all, is there any interview question you've always wanted to answer, but no one has ever asked?
People ask me about pickups, strings, amps, effects... So in a way I think you covered most of the "other" questions...
A big thanks to Lars and everyone from Candlemass for making this interview happen. You can visit the official website at www.candlemass.se.
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