Peter Tägtgren - Pain

June 20 2009 (Hellfest - Clisson)

Some people say that it's often the last minute (or not planned) events which are the best, and I can definitely relate to that. First, thank you Ika for your help obtaining a long shot interview with PAIN's leader Peter Tägtgren. Then, a thousand thanks and respect to this wonderful musician, for his availability and kindness during a not even scheduled but long interview (only done on behalf of friendship). Thanks for inviting us backstage after the interview for sharing some of your booze, and thanks Elodie for helping us get into this area. What a real fuckin' rock'n'roll evening it was…

Fab: So are you happy to be in the HELLFEST?
Peter Tägtgren: Yeah, it's fuckin' great. We finally get here.

Fab: And what are your feelings about the show you've done here?
Peter Tägtgren: The crowd was very good. Maybe it wasn't the best performance from us, but it was still good. I think it was like, almost "there" for us. But the crowd was definitely there.

Fab: A word about the cancellation of the Ice Hall in Helsinki?
Peter Tägtgren: Yeah. The local promoter, I guess, booked us to boost the advancement for the KORN show but KORN doesn't sell any out, any tickets anymore. I really love KORN, I was happy to play for them, but then the promoter said "the debt is too big, I have to let you go to reduce the cost". I could have played for free, just to play with KORN, because I really like them, but I guess it was in-between the management and the booking staff, so, I never got the chance to say anything, it was like "it's cancelled!" and I'm like "what?"…I really wanted to play with KORN because for me, "Untouchables" (2002) is in the top ten albums. So I was kind of sad, you know? I've seen them a couple of times and I find it was very good.

Fab: How do you find the time to produce, to sing, to do the song writing, etc…?
Peter Tägtgren: I don't know, I just do it. It's not really a job, you know. It's like having fun, it's a challenge, and it's inspiring to work with the music isn't it? So, for me it's not really a gun to my head everyday like "you have to do this…". I do whatever I want, and I've been doing that for almost twenty years now. To me it's a simple idea, I do whatever I wanna do, that's it. And I have to fortune to do that, even if sometimes there's a lot of money, and some other times, little money, but I prefer when it's fun.

Fab: Even if PAIN has already evolved a lot, is there still an evolution possible?
Peter Tägtgren: Well, I'm constantly thinking about PAIN and also about HYPOCRISY's next album. I'm always thinking "what I am going to do next?". I don't want to do the same album again, you know, because it's kind of boring. I always try to think to put some spices into it, to make the fan who's listening think "oh, it sounds a little bit newer or fresher", something like that. It's also really hard for me to change totally and do something completely different. I am what I am and I'll write what I do, but I try to renew myself, not only for myself or the fans, but because I don't wanna do the same thing because it's boring. Hopefully, a big step for me is a small step for the fans. Sometimes I'll do something that is for me a revolution, and the fans would say "no, it sounds the same" (laughter). So for me, it's a huge step to do something to make you feel like "oh, it's a little bit different". But anyway, you are what you are.

Fab: As you've mentioned it, any news about HYPOCRISY?
Peter Tägtgren: Yeah, I think that mid-October the new album will be out.

Fab: Will you work again with Anette Olzon (NIGHTWISH)?
Peter Tägtgren: Sure! We have something together to work with you know, but the next thing for me would be HYPOCRISY and I doubt she fits into that, so (laughter). Working with her was really great because she is really a great singer, and I really try to push her in different ways from what she's doing in NIGHTWISH, you know. I've never worked with a female singer before, and it was like, time to try. I think the song she did with me is really good.

Fab: About this tour with NIGHTWISH. How it went? And why this choice?
Peter Tägtgren: Really great! I remember the first show we did with NIGHTWISH, two years ago, it was like the management who told myself "do you want to open up (for NIGHTWISH), it's going to be great, we're gonna treat you like royalty….", and I was like "yeah, right, we've heard all of that before and you got shit".

But they actually rolled up the red carpet. Everybody was like super nice to us, and when it was over, they said "hey, do you wanna go on tour with us again? Because we had such a good time together". So, we became really good friends. And also when we did our headline tour, we bring BROTHER FIRETRIBE (Emppu Vuorinen Side-Project) with us. You give and you take. It feels very nice, like a family.

Fab: There was the same guitar and bass player on your last show in Paris. Did you find a solid line-up?
Peter Tägtgren: I hope so, because "hector ???" was supposed to be with us on the first Nightwish on tour, but he had to much work. He works for Pro-Tools, the recording stuff and he just became the Norman boss salesman. So it was the wrong moment for him, we had to get some other people to jump in and cover for him. But I think if everybody's happy, we can go as far as we want, because we have good chemistry now. I Hope everybody stick together, but you never know. I really like to work with people that are the same people as I am, who like drinking, destroying things (laughter), being idiots but not in the bad way, just clumsy. And that's what I have right now.

Fab: A word about the "Monkey Business" video you recorded in Paris?
Peter Tägtgren: That was a surprise. We went out on the net and said" hey, bring all your banners and stuff like that". That was very impressive, you know. The whole front row was just full of banners, PAIN stuff, etc…Of course, we threw out some t-shirts and flags, but everybody brought their own home made PAIN stuff. It was really good. The video came out really cool, it was supposed to be a rock'n'roll live video. French people, really, we can count on them. It's why it was so good.

Fab: What's new with LOCK UP?
Peter Tägtgren: Actually, last week I've got an email from Shane (Embury - Bassist from NAPALM DEATH), he was like "hey, can you do something with LOCK UP, a festival (ndr Damnation Festival) with the original line-up" and also with Tomas Lindberg (from AT THE GATES & DISFEAR). But it was the same time, I think, when we gonna start working on HYPOCRISY, so, I really can't because it would have been too much stuff for me. So, I said "sorry, man".

Fab: And you were also working on the new IMMORTAL.
Peter Tägtgren: Yeah it's done. If I was an IMMORTAL fan, I will be happy, because it's not crazy different stuff, it's IMMORTAL. It's just the way you want it.

Fab: Do you have a special ritual before going on stage?
Peter Tägtgren: Yes, I like to get dressed last. And I like to have my guitar the last. But today it was like I was running around with my guitar because we had so much time in-between, I was like "Oh, what am I gonna do?" (laughter). I like to put my pants on when the intro is right in. That's my ritual. And we always do "ooooohhhhhh" (miming a musician huddle, with the hands going up in the air at the end). Whatever it is, you know. Today, it was "oooohhhhh, escargot!!! (Snail in French)" (general laughter). Sometimes, when we are very hung over and stuff, we just go "oooohhhh, hangover!". It doesn't matter what it is, as long as we all feel the same.

Fab: I guess you prefer playing indoors?
Peter Tägtgren: Yeah. It's more closer, everybody is here for you. Today, maybe 2% is here for PAIN.

Fab: But it's a way to win over new fans.
Peter Tägtgren: Yeah, I know, that's the point of playing festivals, plus meeting up with all the bands that I haven't seen for a long time. I haven't seen cradle (of filth) for two years, we met up today and it was great. It's like a reunion. Get drunk and chaos. It's like a kindergarten, you know (laughter), for grown-up people. First, you go out and work, and then afterwards, you just…(laughter). And you watch one of your favourite bands playing on stage.

Fab: It's not too hard for you to play during day time, mood wise?
Peter Tägtgren: For us, it's not really…any time is good. I mean, I woke up at one o'clock last night, to drive to the airport to fly here, so I slept one hour so far. It's only rock'n'roll but I like it. We don't wanna be rock stars, or be treated like rock stars. We go to where we're supposed to go. Of course, the smartest thing is to fly in the day before. You try to compress your life you know, during the day I try to stay "normal", but we always fail, and we end up….(laughter). But that's part of the whole festival thing. When you're on tour, you just take as long (time) as you want. It's four o'clock in the afternoon and someone wakes you up and says "hey, you gotta do interviews", then you wake up (laughter). Then you do the soundcheck, you play…you have a good routine. The body knows how to adjust to the clock. We I get home, I can sleep. Then, I have done my job. It's very simple.

That's how the other guys feel too…"oh, I wanna die, I wanna die, I don't wanna fly, I don't wanna fly at 6:20 in the morning" (general laughter). But that's what you have to do, unless you have your own private jet, but we don't, so. No one is a rock star in the band, even if we were rock stars, we wouldn't act like ones in any ways.

It's at that moment that I felt the mood was getting better and better as Peter offered me some quid, explaining to me that it could make my penis longer…(how does he know??lol)

NDR After this the interview became more of a 4 people discussion (with théo and ika from the French fan club adding their voices in), talking between others of the next Pain's performance in France ( in September @ Raisme Fest). Chosen parts.

Ika: I was wondering what inspired you, to talk about ecology and stuff?
Peter Tägtgren: We always think about, you know, what makes this so big?…"You have to save this, have to do this, you have to recycle" and bla bla bla. Also the strange thing is that you have someone behind it, that make recyclable thing, so that they will make money out of it….Of course we have to recycle, yes, we have to take care of the earth. But there's always a bad side, that everybody is making money out of "saving the world". Everybody plans to save the world, but everybody also wants to make money out of saving the world?? That's what I'm saying. In the past you'd always said that of the USA. In the sixties or seventies they knew how to make money on all the things, but today the whole world knows how to make money. If they have to choose between saving money or saving the earth, they'd save the money.

When prompted about his musical philosophy, about good and bad album & songs…

Peter Tägtgren: As long as you know what you wanna do, it's not really a job, it's a fuckin' adventure. You never know what's going to happen. It's like going on a cruise in a jungle. That's what it's exciting. You can't be stuck in one place, you gotta try different things. If you do an album that everybody hates, at least, you've tried it. Then you do another one because you need to get it out of your system. Nobody's perfect. Of course, not everybody is going to like what you do, but you have to be creative and sometimes you'll create in a different ways that fans are expecting. Every band with a ten years career will release an album that makes people say "oh, that's the worse they did". You'll always do an album that not everybody like, but it's called artistic freedom. You're just trying things over, it's not a job … sometimes you'll succeed and sometimes you don't. You have to believe in what you do, you don't have to look to what other people are doing. (joking) Next year I'll write a new album and it will only be blast beat, black metal, and I'll ask dany filth to sing on it (general laughter)

Theo - why the cover album is on hold ?
Peter Tägtgren: Because I went from UNIVERSAL to ROADRUNNER, and ROADRUNNER didn't want a cover album, so I had to write a new album. It's why I did a few covers during the show (bjork, depeche mode, electric light orchestra …).

Theo - It is not difficult for you to play only 5-6 songs in a show when you have 6 albums?
Peter Tägtgren: That's impossible. Ok, one song from each album. You should make a contest on the website, the favourite 6 songs, one from every album or maybe two songs from each album and we'll make a 40 minutes medley (general laugh). But I'm happy, it's PAIN, so it's only 6 albums. With HYPOCRISY, it's about ten! And when you have to play 40 minutes, you go like "oohhhhhhh" (laughter).

Theo - Any idea about Pain's next album ?
Peter Tägtgren: I can't think about pain's next album, else it would be "woohoo" (acting mad) But for Hypocrisy, wait till you have the new album, I can promise you it'll be a good album. It's brutal but it's so good. It's not as brutal as Virus, it's more of a mix of Virus with the old stuff. Sometimes fast, sometimes slow, with the lot of mid tempo, there is also a seven minutes song on it.