Rockezine.com interview with Hatesphere on Oct 21, 2007

with Pepe on Oct 21, 2007


		What did you do before answering this questions? I am sitting in a bus right now on the way to Berlin. I am going on holiday with my girlfriend – gonna be nice, hehe.
		What’s happening with Hatesphere. All the members are leaving and you’re the only original left. Is it hard working with you? No, it’s not like that at all. As we have specifically been writing in all of our statements, then there is nothing drastically about the departures of the members. Things have been going good for HateSphere, and then you come to a point where you have to decide, if this is really what you want to do – as this takes so much of your time. Heinz, Mikael and Anders all decided that they didn’t want to do it this much. They wanted more time with the family (as two of them has kids), more money and they didn’t like the touring part anymore. Therefore they decided all the way back in February that they were going to leave the band. So we have known this for quite a while and have had time to find the best replacements. I have never wanted to do anything else but HateSphere, so for me it has never been an option to leave or anything. But it’s a funny thing that some people think that just because I’m still in the band, there must be something wrong with me – strange. I just want to continue making great music. That’s why I’m still here, hehe. The new members are all amazing, so that really convinced me in going on. They want to go on as well, so we are kicking ass as always. I have been talking to the members that left before Jacob, and they are all happy that we continue even despite all of this – and that makes me really happy.
		Why exactly did Jacob leave the band, and how are you going to replace his voice and stage appearance? Jacob didn’t like to play in HateSphere anymore. It is strange, as he has been with us from the beginning and has been doing lots of stuff for us – but it apparently just was too much now. He didn’t want to do it anymore. It came as a shock for me, when he told me, as we have always been doing this together. But on the other hand, when you have to be in a band and tour with a guy who doesn’t want to this, then it is so much better to get in a new guy who want to do this 100 %. So now I am very relieved that he left. The atmosphere in the band will eventually be better, when everybody wants to do it 100%, and therefore we are looking forward to getting new blood in the band. We are searching for a great singer with a great live performance, and I am sure that we will find a very suitable replacement. It is great to get in new ideas in the band, and this is going to both healthy and exciting for HateSphere. So we are eager to both go on the road again but also to make new music.
		How are the reactions that he left the band? Both good and bad, haha. Luckily most of the fans have been very supportive, and we really appreciate that. In a time like this it is great to see that you have got some really great fans, and I must say that I am astonished about all the reactions that came after the announcement – and I am very thankful. Some are afraid that the band will stop, but are positive that we will find a great replacement. And finally there are the negative responses that you can’t avoid in a situation like this. I mean, some people don’t think before they write or say something. So some people have been quick to say that the band is dead, before having even read our statements or eventually seen us live. And some fans have been blaming me – like you said before – because they think that it is my fault! Again they apparently haven’t been reading anything of what we have been writing in the statements. That has been bugging me a bit, but I have come to the conclusion, that this would have been happening anyway. Some people just don’t want to realise what is going on. They need to have a scapegoat, and that happened to be me! If this is the way they support the band, then they should really go listen to something else. If they think that HateSphere is just the work of one guy, then they think wrong. But luckily many of the negative responses have been very disappointed fans that thought that this was the end. We have then been answering all the mails that have been coming in after the announcement, and that has calmed a lot of them down. They have been afraid that the band would stop, but we can’t emphasize enough that just because some members leave that doesn’t mean that we will stop! Not at all, haha. They aren’t going to get away that easy, hehe.
		In a few weeks Hatesphere will play at the Danish music awards. Who’s going to scream there? We will announce the new singer, as soon as we know it, hehe, so you have to wait a bit. We are doing auditions at the moment, and after they are done, we can tell who are going to take the spot. We are just as impatient as everybody else about this.
		What’s the biggest drive to keep this band going? The music and the fun of playing it. I have been doing this for a long time, and I haven’t at all thought about stopping it. And it is great to see that so many fans are supporting you. Without this support it would have of course have been hard to find the motivation. Just the thought about playing live again makes us want to go on. As I told before, I have also gotten the full support from the old members to go on, and that really means a lot.
		Is Hatesphere your full time job? That depends on how you look at it. It is most certainly not paid like a full time but I use a lot of time on it – as do the other guys. Right now I am working as well, as we haven’t got that many gigs the rest of the year, but when we have a busy tour schedule there isn’t time for full time jobs on the side. Then you have to do this full time. The last four years I have been studying, but I am finished with that now, so when there are small breaks in the HateSphere-program I need to work to find the money, hehe. But that’s very normal for the usual metal musician. There isn’t that much money in this business and none of the bands sell that much, so you have to get something on the side. But I like it that way. I don’t know many people that get to travel, as much as me, and then even get paid for it + getting to play in front of a lot of crazy people. So I wouldn’t trade that with anything.
		The artwork from Serpent Smiles and Killer Eyes what should it express? First of all we had come up with the title before the album cover this time. When the cover artist knew that, he had something to relate to. So the cover should express fake, dishonest and shallow persons. People that say, they like you, just to stab you in the back, when you turn the other way. People that say they are friends of yours but really aren’t. And people that tell lies just to gain personal success. The world is full of people that promise you everything but do nothing about it. On top of that the cover is a bit unusual for us, I think. The colours are very red, and I wouldn’t say that it’s the typical metal cover. I like that fact, as people have been discussing it a lot. It is always great, when people discuss something you have done, because that shows, that they care about it. Even though they don’t like the artwork, they still care about the band, because otherwise they wouldn’t have bothered to even look at it – and especially not to discuss it!
		What’s the worst part of Serpent Smiles and Killer Eyes? Hard question, hehe. The worst part of an album for me personally is always the recording and mixing process. It can be really frustrating to record songs and make them sound the way you want it, when you have been used to playing them in the rehearsal room for so long time. You have an opinion about how it should sound but it can sometimes be pretty difficult to get really get that specific sound. So for me, this is the worst part – luckily it often turns out really good though, hehe. Apart from that I really don’t have any bad things to say about the new album – and that is how it should be.
		How long will it take to prepare a new album? That is hard to say. It depends on how many shows you have planned, and what else you have going. On top of that it is never easy to say how long it takes to make the new songs. But we have been used to working under some kind of a pressure, so I think it works best for us that way. If we get a deadline from the record label, then we automatically focus on writing the new songs, and then we will get it done. If you haven’t got a deadline, you usually use the time for other stuff – like playing shows – and then the song writing get pushed a bit in the background. Therefore I like the idea of having a deadline to follow – because it gets you more focused. So when we get a deadline I guess it will take us around six months to get a new album ready.
		What`s the best and the worst part about being in this band for you? The best part is without doubt the possibility of playing music in front of fans all over the world – and to be able to play with some of the bands I have listened to all my life. I actually can’t see a down part of this thing, hehe. The only thing is that I will definitely not earn millions of dollars on this, hehe… but we’re not in it for the money anyway!
		What is the most overestimated band in the scene, which band is most underestimated? I can mention a lot of overestimated bands, hehe… just look at all the metal core stuff around – that is overrated. A band like Nevermore on the other hand is very underestimated in my opinion! I mean, they get great reviews all the time but I think they ought to get much more attention.
		Who inspired you to play music, and why? In the very beginning I listened a lot to Def Leppard and Mötley Crüe. Their albums, Hysteria and Dr. Feelgood, both inspired me to get on with playing music – and to this day these albums are still some of the best albums ever made in my opinion. Steve Clark, the guitarist in Def Leppard, not only was a fantastic guitar player and songwriter but he also had that kick ass attitude on stage that made him stand out from the others.
		What is the most embarrassing album in your own private album collection. (How/why did you get it?) Haha, unfortunately I think I have thrown all the worst albums out…
		What can we expect from Hatesphere in the future? Lots of kick ass shows and new music of course! We have some shows left this year and are starting to book shows next year very soon. So before long we will be back in Holland – don’t worry!
		Is there something you want to say to our readers. Please fill in the last lines with your own imagination. I want to say thanks for all the support in the last couple of months – it really means a lot. We will be back on the road very soon, and we look forward to meeting you all again.
(Jeroen Habets)