Are there bands that inspired you or that you draw some of the music from?

Jens: Actually, I don't really listen to music a lot.

No?

Jens: I can't find any good records and it's fucking expensive [to buy records] in Sweden. I watch T.V. or get on the computer. But I Like Strapping Young Lad a lot. The main thing is it's got to be hard. The lead singer (for Strapping Young Lad--Devon Townsend) is the best I've ever heard. Frederick listens to Allen Holdsclaw and Rush. I don't thnk we are influenced a lot by anyone. Maybe a little by each other. Cause we don't make anything in the rehearsal studio, we make everything at home separately. Marten sitting at home on his computer, Frederick and I, you know, we make short parts of songs and email them to each other. "What do you think about this?" "Oh it's cool." Then when we have a whole song we meet up at the rehearsal studio and try it out. We don't make anything at the rehearsal studio.

Jens: No, never. We only rehearse before tours and shows. Otherwise we never rehearse. But we got back now after this last tour and we have practiced and rehearsed one time a week. So it's very hard. We practiced hard for like three months and you get here and do your sound and it's different and you have not played officially for like six months. It takes a while to get your endurance back. It takes like two weeks before you're at a level where you want to be.

You'd like to stay at that level all the time.

Jens: Yeah, keep the level up all the time. Yeah, it's tough, I'd like to, but we don't rehearse for couple of months. It's like aaaggh.

[noticing his lovely purple octopus tattoo] That is a really cool tattoo.

Jens: Yeah, it's a cover-up for an ugly soldier tattoo.

Any special meaning for the octopus?

Jens: No, It covers the old one up quite well. It was a soldier holding up a gun with a half Russian, half American flag. I don't know, I guess it was a Cold War statement.

[Marten Hagstrøm joins us]

Is it difficult for you to play guitar with Frederick (being a very good guitar player on your own) or does it just flow between you? You seem very well coordinated out on stage.

I thought you seemed to be pretty much on target tonight.

Marten: Oh, it's okay. We're just not quite there. We still haven't played as well as we could. It's like when we're on the road, it just takes time. We still haven't played a bunch of jams. That's when we get there.

Jens: We don't want to just go through the motions.

Marten: We have a real problem when bands go out on stage and just go for the crowd, they just go for themselves and do the hair things and don't jam or gel. I mean, there is acceptable stuff that just a part of the band, but you need the artistic side too--if you just don't have the energy why do it? We believe in energy and really jamming. Don't just go through the motions. We spit out just as much energy as we can. That's what our music is about--energy.

Marten: No, I haven't read it, but I know about it.

They rated Pantera harder than you.

Marten: They did. Well. I mean ... Well, for some people we're right on...for some...well I guess it just depends on who you're asking.

[You can hear the crowd getting louder for Sick Of It All]

Marten [big smile on his face]: The crowd's going wild.

Are you enjoying your first US tour? Have you seen a lot?

Jens: No. We haven't seen anything. We play and then we go.

Marten: We have a day off in Atlanta in a week.

How does it feel to play at Disney? Did you ever think you would play a show here?

Jens: No, I never thought we'd be here. But it's cool.

Marten: It feels good. It's so wrong, it's right. You know. It's a really nice place to play. It's surprising--Downtown Disney.

Carrie Hill, the tour manager, comes in and calls it to a close. Guess we ran out of time.. I wholeheartedly thank Jens and Marten for the interview, and Carrie for assisting. Big thanks also to Stevie Ramone for taking the photos and to Paula Hogan at Nuclear Blast for setting up the interview.

On the web:
Meshuggah

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