ROT FESTER - Bound by Death... (Sweden - Old-School Death Metal - Interview with Michael & Daniel).

Hello! Can you introduce yourself and tell us how it all began for you - your encounter with this musical universe, what appealed to you, what fascinated you and what made you want to get into music?
Michael: Hello and thank you for having us! I'm Michael, I play the guitar and bass in Rot Fester. I've always loved music for as long as I can remember, but when I heard Judas Priest's Screaming for vengeance when I was 11, music became an obsession. I wanted more, I wanted it faster and harder, always searching for new bands, faster bands, more brutal bands. I wanted to know how the hell they did it, how do you make a guitar sound like that? So I picked up an electric guitar and I haven't looked back since. 

What if I told you that you have to leave for a desert island in 5 minutes—you have no choice… except to take three albums with you… which ones, and why? Would you say that these were game-changers at some point in your life?
Michael:
Judas Priest - "Screaming For Vengeance" : For obvious reasons, that album started it all.
Darkthrone - "Transilvanian Hunger" : Quite possibly the most pure black metal album ever made.
Death - "Scream Bloody Gore" : Pure and raw. Now THAT album was a game changer in my life.
Ask me again tomorrow and I'll probably give you different albums on that list. Judas Priest will alway be on it though. 

Tell me about the band... How you met - the current line-up - past experiences - and above all - WHY the need to form THIS band?
Michael: I've played in many bands over the years, mostly black/thrash/doom metal, but never death metal prior to Rot Fester, so when Daniel approached me about writing death metal together, I was onboard in no time. 
The swedish scene is quite small, and we knew about each other before we had any contact; I once released an album on a label run by a guy Daniel has a band with, so there was mutual ground.
The core of the band is me and Daniel. Henke from my more melodic band Nined lends his talent and plays the lead guitars. 

Describe your sound and explain why I should listen to YOUR band at all cost ?
Michael: Dirty, rotten old school death metal. We keep it real, it's not about perfection, it's all about that pure underground death metal feeling. 

Lyrical and musical inspirations/influences ? How important are the lyrics for you ? Are there any specific messages or thoughts you try to develop and share through your lyrics ?
Daniel: I write the lyrics together with my bro Mikael. We put a lot of emphasis on the lyrics, which usually, as for Rot Fester, reinforce the moods of the music. Our lyrics typically have dark themes, but here and there with a twinkle in the eye. The inspiration comes from daily life and something unspoken from within.

About the band's discography... Imagine someone who doesn't know your band at all and wants to get interested in.. Which release would you recommend to start with, and why?
Michael: We've only made two ep's so far - a full length album is written and being recorded as we speak btw - so my obvious answer would be: Both! Together they make about a full album, and you need to hear them both. Yes, you do, you know it. 

About your latest release ?
Michael: We are close to finishing our first full length album and we are very excited about this album to say the least. We've not evolved, we've devolved. We are now even deeper down in the death metal soil. It's heavier, it's dirtier, it's more Rot Fester.
It's recorded the same way as the previous releases; I write and record everything but the vocals and the drums, send the files to the other guys and when everything is recorded we hand it over to Mr Dan Swanö for the final mastering. He's become quite important for the Rot Fester-sound.  

Future plans ?
Michael: To get our debut full length album out as soon as possible. We can't wait to unleash this beast upon the world.
After that we will continue to write and record more, we are in this for the long run.

Your most insane dream with the band would be?
Michael: Selling a million copies..haha.. 

Your BEST & WORST concert - as a band - and why ?
Michael: We don't play live. I'm not saying we never will, but it's highly unlikely.
Daniel: But as musicians we’re used to playing live, so it wouldn’t be a huge leap. It would undoubtedly be a blast to do it also with this band!

Some words on your local scene - bands you're friends with and you'd like to name?
Michael: The extreme metal scene where I live is basically dead. There are no bands playing anything that could be called extreme, at least not that I'm aware of. Unless you call Arch Enemy extreme... (Hmmmm... not really! Ed.)

What’s the question you’ve always dreamed of answering but have never been asked? Just a heads-up: I’m also waiting for the answer that goes with it...
Daniel: I can't really think of any question that I've dreamt of being posed at me.

Well, the interview is coming to an end… Is there anything else you’d like to add? Anything I didn’t think of? Something important, funny, silly… It doesn’t matter!
Daniel: Well, it’s mostly a call for all readers to check out our little band, if you haven’t already. Come along on our journey—right from the start.