INTERVIEWS & REVIEWS!
LATEST RELEASED ALBUM...
Progressive Melodies: What prompted the band to create a concept album?
Was it a decision that the members discussed or did it just happen that way?
Andreas Blomqvist: I have been dreaming about writing a concept album
ever since I first picked up an instrument. It is something I knew I would
have to do some day, but I dreaded the effort, as well as I know it would
have to be really, really good for me to even bother, and that it would be a
very painful process.
So, one late night during the studio sessions for Waiting In The Wings
when I sat in the studio with Tommy recording vocals, we started talking
about it. Something just clicked and within just a couple of minutes the
framework for the story was complete. During the mixing of WITW in Denmark
in March 2006 we presented the idea of a concept album to the rest of the
boys over a couple of beers and everyone approved of the idea. So then it
was just the small matter of actually writing it…
Progressive Melodies: Where did the concept for the album come from? Were the events based on
any sort of true events, or is it pure fiction?
Andreas Blomqvist: It started out as 100% pure fiction. Like I said, me and Tommy were
tossing ideas back and forth regarding the story and the basic principles we
wanted to tie the story around. Then the real challenge began: to make this
multi-layered story work, to make it consistent; to also make it
understandable and graspable but yet not too obvious. That was a lot more
challenging than either one of us had anticipated, and I definitely have a
new-found respect for film writers these days.
Anyway, back to the question. It is a fully fictional story, but when you need to portray sorrow and grief or other equally strong emotions, it certainly helps to feel that way, and I was going through a really shitty time in my life in the middle of this process so tapping into those feelings was an easy way to get the right emotions down on paper.
The first time I heard the final mix of the intro of Break the Silence, I
actually burst into tears because it was so personal for me. But that’s more
on that higher level; the actual events and characters are purely fictional.
Progressive Melodies: How did the band approach the writing of the music for Mercy Falls? Were
the lyrics first completed, then the music? In addition, did the music
undergo any major changes during the planning and writing of the album?
Andreas Blomqvist: Well obviously it was something of a catch 22 when you start with
something like this. What we did which, for us at least, was unique with
this album was that we did a story outline first. Me and Tommy spent many
hours coming up with that and piecing it together. During that process, we
wrote down what we wanted to convey and which events were essential to the
story. From that work we then derived a list of songs that we would need to
write, all with a specific purpose and a predetermined feel to it. So at
that point we had barely written any new music, so I wouldn’t say it
underwent any dramatic changes, but it certainly was extremely difficult to
match the writing to the preset conditions. That too was something entirely
new for us.
Progressive Melodies: Did the band make a conscious effort to evolve its sound between the
releases of Waiting in the Wings and Mercy Falls? If so, what was the main
goal? What did you want to change?
Andreas Blomqvist: No, not really. I guess as time progresses you get a feeling for what
types of stuff in your own playing you feel works and gets through as
opposed to stuff that you just feel is unnecessary.
But as far as complexity goes, we turned it up to max on this album. Mercy
Falls will probably be the most complex work this band is ever likely to put
out from a musical standpoint. We have worked very consciously to involve
recurring themes in different feels and tonalities throughout the album.
This is a way to add an extra dimension to the music as well. If someone
really dives deep into this, there are literally hundreds of little
surprises and quirks here and there for the attentive listener to notice. No
effort was spared with regards to that. That level of conscious or perhaps
“on purpose-” writing was the main difference between this album and the
preceding ones.
Progressive Melodies: What is the most important thing that you feel sets Seventh Wonder apart
from other progressive metal bands?
Andreas Blomqvist: That is a tough question for me to answer, being part of it. It is close
to impossible to objectively judge or evaluate your own band. From my
perspective though, and tying that to previous reviews and fan mail, people
definitely tend to notice the leading role of the bass in our music, which
is cool. I’ve worked very hard to use the bass in Seventh Wonder as it has
never been used in other bands and I honestly feel people are beginning to
notice.
Other than that the most obvious advantage we have is Tommy. There is no one
like him in the world, and that sets us apart - miles apart from any other
band. He is my favorite singer in the world - hands down.
Progressive Melodies: What bands is Seventh Wonder influenced by? In addition, what are you
currently listening to?
Andreas Blomqvist: This is a question that will be very colored by the fact that I am
answering it. We all have very different backgrounds in music. Tommy and
Kyrt, our keyboard player, didn’t start to listen to rock or metal until
they were in their early twenties, whereas me, Johan and Johnny grew up on
bands like Europe, Helloween, Iron Maiden and stuff like that since we were
kids.
I don’t want to list all the bands that influenced me, but certainly Iron
Maiden has a very special place in my heart and Seventh Son of a Seventh Son
from ’88 played an integral part in me wanting to write a concept album,
that’s for sure.
Other bands I respect today are Symphony X and our Norwegian pals Circus
Maximus. I am also generally addicted to the following singers and pretty
much everything they do; Jeff Scott Soto, Jorn Lande and David Coverdale.
Progressive Melodies: Is there anything else you'd like fans to know about Mercy Falls or
Seventh Wonder in general?
Andreas Blomqvist: I want them to understand the amount of work that went into producing
and creating this album. We have poured every ounce of ourselves into this
production and I truly believe this is a one of a kind record. Now my
greatest wish is for as many people as possible will feel the same way about
it.
Also, I would really like, from the bottom of my heart, to plead that everyone who likes it actually buys the album as opposed to downloading it. For larger bands I guess they hardly even notice the difference but for us the harsh reality is that if we don’t sell more than the previous album this could very well be the last Seventh Wonder album ever – so please support us and help us carry on what we all love doing so very much...
Interview courtesy of: www.progressivemelodies.com
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