Back on Trakk
Wednesday, June 27, 2007 at 12:04AM Bring Back Glam! recently spoke with Eric Young, drummer for Swedish glam sensation Crashdïet. During the chat, Eric spoke about working with Mick Mars of Mötley Crüe, recording a new album, life after Dave Lepard and growing up. Transcription follows.
Bring Back Glam!: Let’s talk about your new album. How is it coming along?
Eric Young: It’s coming along great actually. Next week we’ll work to complete five new songs, for a total of eight songs completed, with vocals, arranging and everything. Then, we need a couple more tracks. So, in pretty much one month, it should be done.
BBG: So, the new album will have ten tracks total?
Eric: Exactly.
BBG: Do you have a tentative title for the new album?
Eric: We haven’t really nailed down a titled yet. We have a lot of ideas, none of which are decided on.
BBG: Can you tell me about the ideas?
Eric: Well…I don’t really have them on my right now. We have about 50 different options. It depends on the outcome of everything. You know, surrounding the album. The photo shoots and everything. The title needs to be something that really sums it up in a good way: striving how we are now, restoring ourselves and ramping ourselves for the future.
BBG: When do you expect the album to be released?
Eric: For Sweden actually, it’s planned for September. In Europe, the beginning of next year…something like that.
BBG: What about America?
Eric: I’m not sure for the date over there…I’m positive it will be released there as well, but I just don’t know the date.
BBG: Mick Mars of Mötley Crüe recently traveled to Sweden to help you write some songs. What was that like?
Eric: Well, it was quite amazing (laughs) if you want one word. I don’t know. I wasn’t actually the guy recording with him. But, Martin (Sweet), our guitarist and songwriter told me a lot about it. He was so excited, meeting a guy that’s his idol. Pretty unreal situation. In some ways, it kind of levels out after a while, I mean, they spent the whole day together. At the end of the day, it was like they knew each other quite well. I mean he (Mick Mars) is a person just like you and me. They went along really great. He (Mick) started riffing the second he put his stuff down. He went in the room, sat down, got his guitar out and started riffing. It was…he’s just a riff machine that guy. So, we built two or three songs around his riffs. Hopefully, we’ll use some of that material on the upcoming album.
BBG: Does this mean Mick will have a writing credit?
Eric: Well, I don’t know how that will fall into place. I’m guessing he’ll be credited as a co-writer in some way on the album. Just the idea of having Mick Mars helping us out and doing these collaborations is really cool!
BBG: So, who came up with the idea to bring Mick into the recording process?
Eric: Well, that was actually from our record company. I think Mick heard about us in some way. We met up with him – well, not “we” actually – but our record company and his management met when Mötley Crüe were here. Mick said he would come back to do a writing session. It felt like the most obvious thing for Sweden’s most up and coming glam rock band. So, I think that was really how it came about.
BBG: When do you plan on posting some of your new music on your Myspace page?
Eric: Well, it seems we will be holding onto that…until we get all the mixes ready to go. Not sure about the process of that. We’re going to release a single later in August. I would say, maybe in August or something like that.
BBG: Are you planning an international tour after the album is released?
Eric: Yeah, probably. I mean, that would go hand in hand with the release of the album. Like I said, we’re releasing the album in the beginning of 2008 in Europe, so by then, we will probably do a European tour to support the release. In Sweden, we’ll do a tour around the September release and we’ll probably do the same for the American release, whenever that will happen I’m not sure. But it will happen!
BBG: There are a lot of American fans that would love to see you play live.
Eric: I’m sure. That would be awesome to get to the states to play, actually. We have a lot of contacts with different people. They say we should come play and it has never been possible. This time it’s going to be possible, for sure.
BBG: It’s kind of amazing to think that the band who recorded an album as strong as Rest in Sleaze has never performed in America.
Eric: I know. Well, we were on our way in some ways, and then the whole thing happened (the death of former lead singer Dave Lepard). That really stopped everything form developing.
BBG: What were those first live performances without Dave Lepard like?
Eric: It was sort of natural in some ways. We had already rehearsed with the guy (H. Olliver Twisted, new lead singer). We first met him in November. We would hang with him a lot. It wasn’t a strange thing at all for us to perform with him. We noticed by the reaction of Dave’s family and the fans that they we’re like “It’s so strange to see you guys on stage with a new singer.” I never really thought of that. It was so natural, you know? We had so much fun, and it was really a blessed evening even though it was a tribute for Dave (Rest in Sleaze Festival). The whole idea of the night wasn’t to mourn his death or something like that. It was to celebrate his memory. It wasn’t a bad evening at all. We had a lot of fun.
BBG: What’s the typical scene backstage at a Crashdïet show?
Eric: Lots of ladies and stuff like that. We’re quite professional in some ways. It sounds quite boring, but we’ve grown up since the last time we were out on the road in 2005. We’re more keen on doing a great job this time. We choose when to party and when to not party, you know? I think it’s average, like all rock bands. There’s a place and time for everything.
BBG: Where did the band get its name?
Eric: Laughs. The thing is – Dave – when he started the band back in 2000 or 2001 with the first line-up… he was trying to find a name. I remember he told me he was having difficulty finding a name to suit the band. I think the former drummer actually told me that Dave had called him in the middle of the night – like 4 a.m. or something -- and he (Dave) was really, really, really drunk and said “I think I have a name for the band: Crashdïet.” And then he hung up. The next day, the band members met to continue drinking or rehearsing, and they said they’d thought about the name Crashdïet: “Sounds pretty good!” Dave was like “Crashdïet?” He didn’t remember it at all! Actually, he never could tell us where he got the idea from. I think there’s some disease that old sailors used to have, when they ran out of food on the seven oceans or whatever you call it. Anyway, I think that’s called Crashdïet when you run out of food and you die of starvation. Dave used to tell me stories about that. I guess that’s where he got the name. I’m not sure, though. No one is.
BBG: Finally, why do you think Sweden is such a hotbed for glam music?
Eric: I don’t know. I think…the new scene with all these different bands. You know the new bands - the emo rock bands - isn’t something that’s so big over here in Sweden. In a way, the old bands - the 80s bands - didn’t become a real big thing over here before the emo scene reached Sweden. I think the whole glam thing got really big around here amongst the youth before they got a chance to hear the stuff from America and the U.K. I’m not sure; maybe the kids didn’t have anything better to do. The young guys and girls started doing their hair and rebellion against their parents and being glam rockers – which they do best! They have really developed an anti-emo thing. Of course, you have the emo scene here as well, but it’s a bigger thing to be in a glam rock band here.
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