Interview with Åskväder

Hello, congratulations on the release of your second album, “Fenix”! How does it feel to have new music out in the world?
Thank you! It is always nice to release new music and we are really happy with Fenix, at the point when it is actually released I believe that you’ve had a well-deserved break from the album itself and can enjoy it again. During recording, mixing and mastering you have to listen to the songs many many times and will get fed up with them. Luckily there’s a period of time when you can do other things between the finalization of the album and the release of it.

The name of the album is quite intriguing, can you tell us more about the meaning behind it?
Well, it is actually pretty simple and has two sides. One – we released our first S/T album just as the pandemic hit and because of that we could not play live and promote our music in the way we wanted to. Secondly, we had some line-up changes in the band and today we are not the same group as the group that released the first album. Hence Fenix – it should symbolize the rebirth of Åskväder.

Your sound is a mix of classic and garage rock, how did you arrive at this unique blend of genres?
Ah, that was really nicely put – to be honest I have not heard that combination in terms to describe our music. Sounds right on point. We probably mix these genres because of the fact that both genres are close to our hearts and part of what we all enjoy listening to! Åskväder has a really honest sound – we try to create music that we ourselves enjoy – the goal is not to create music that should fit in this or that context.

This is your second release with The Sign Records, how has the experience been working with them?
They are awesome. Kind and good-hearted people with a taste for great music. Good ears, good support and easy going! A bonus is that they have many other great bands connected to them, which means we are in really good company!

The album was recorded live in studio, what was the recording process like for “Fenix”?
Yep, that is true! We set up camp for a couple of days in a studio called Welfare Sounds and were led through the process by masterminds Kalle Lilja and Per Stålhberg. We co-produced the album together with them. The process was really fast, we worked 9-5 for seven days and nailed everything during that time, which was really nice. Before the recording we did some pre-productions ourselves so that the focus for the time at Welfare would be to create a nice vibe and nail the songs. Drums, guitar and bass were recorded live and then we added a second guitar, vocals and extras afterwards.

With the pandemic affecting the music industry, how did you stay motivated to create new music and continue your career during this time?
It was tough but we were lucky, no one in the band had serious effects from Covid, all of us got it eventually though. We just kept on rehearsing, writing new music and did some live streams. It wasn’t fun but kept us going.

How has your sound evolved since your self-titled debut in 2020?
We have confirmed what was already there and kind of found our platform to create and write music. Of course if you practice something you’ll get better at it. We try to stay true to our main idea of a trio-sound and that it should be possible to play live in the same way as on the records. We also constantly strive to challenge ourselves and the format of a rock n roll song. If it is good – it is good – no need to make it more complicated than that.

You mentioned having some changes in your line-up since your first album, how has that affected the creative process and sound of the band?
Yes, we have gone from being a trio with a singing drummer to a quartet with a vocalist. Sounds wise as described earlier the band has evolved, better songs, better productions and more output. Åskväder for sure always has been a nice bunch of people but different stages in life calls for different focuses – hence the changes. We are still good friends with the previous members.

Can you share a little bit about the songwriting process for “Fenix”? Were there any specific themes or inspirations behind the songs?
The lyrics of the Åsväder songs are focusing on everyday events and the bigger questions in life. So of course they have a general theme – a theme that should be recognizable by anyone. The idea is for people to be able to identify themselves in the lyrics and create their own personal views on the narrative. It is not like we have a specific theme connecting all the songs. Would be cool to have that but I need to be honest here.

What can fans expect from Åskväder in the future?
We are going to start recording our third album during 2023. Some new cool stand alone tracks will be released during the year along with some videos. We are also doing a tour in Spain and one in Germany.