Myteri Interview

1. Can you give us an update on what is going on with the band these days?

At the moment we’re planning the recording of our next album and rehearsing for the next tour. We will enter the studio shortly after the tour is finished and at the moment we’re looking at 12 songs. The reason for this somewhat rushed schedule is that we realized that if the recording wasn’t going to happen at this time it would have had to wait until next year.

2. Recently you have released an album, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording?

It’s actually been close to year since our self-titled album was released on vinyl, though it was recently released on CD.

I would describe the overall sound as melody driven crust punk, in the veins of crust bands typical to the mid 2000s era, like Remains of the Day and early Tragedy.

However there’s other influences that I think help contribute to the sound standing on its own. Personally I think a lot of those other influences come from Swedish folk music, as well as early Swedish punk.

To my surprise we’ve had a few reviews mentioning post rock influences. This wasn’t intentional but in retrospect I can kind see why you could make associations to that genre.

3. What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?

A lot of lyrics handle topics about neglect in one way or another. Either by someone closes to you, or by society as a whole. The song “Utan Mänskligt Värde” for example, is an interpretation of the book A Child Called “it” by Dave Pelzer, a true story about a child who during his childhood was physically and mentally abused by his mother, who also turned the whole family against him. There are also lyrics that tackle issues on a broader scale, such as “Deforestation” and “Girighetens Krig”.

4. What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Myteri'?

“Myteri” translates to “Mutiny”, meaning “Uprising”, “Riot” and “Rebellion”. I don’t think anyone in the band felt particularly strong about the name in the beginning, but by now I think it’s grown us and fits pretty well with the music and overall theme of the band.

5. What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and also how would you describe your stage performance?

We’ve had some amazing shows and meet so many awesome people during our relatively short lifespan as a band. I think we’re a decent studio band but we really play music that should be experienced live, and it’s been our goal from the start to do as many shows as we have time for. Playing live is what we enjoy the most about being in a band and we do our best to share that feeling with anyone coming to our shows.

Since we’re not one of the most well know bands out there I think we usually manage to surprise a lot of people with the level of our performance.

Some of my favorite shows have turned out to be the once where you get to a venue without any expectations, only to find the friendliest most hospitable people. For example we did a show in the small city of Ortigueira, northern Spain, only to find the venue was a 17th century farm, complete with its own chapel. We also did a memorable show in Čakovec, Croatia, where we arrived early and the promoters took us to a vineyard before the show. Playing these off the grid venues and meeting incredibly dedicated people is very inspiring to me.

6. Do you have any touring or show plans for the new album?

Out next tour is in October, together with Avast from Norway. Two of the members from Avast previously played in Agenda, which we did our first tour with in 2014. We’re really looking forward to hit the road with them again. We will be visiting the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany and Denmark.

7. On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of crust and hardcore?

I’d say the overall feedback has been quite good, and judging from more recent reviews it feel like we’re just now beginning to get some recognition worldwide. I feel like we’re starting to get more known in Europe, since booking shows is getting a bit easier than when we first started. I rarely think about other people listening to our recordings, but it’s always nice to get a good review from blog our fanzine that you respect and appreciate.

8. What is going on with some of the other bands or musical projects these days that some of the band members are a part of?

Except for Myteri I ‘am also the vocalist of Bombangrepp, https://bombangrepp.bandcamp.com which is more of a raw punk band. We’ve recorded our second 7” that will be released on Halvfabrikat, Skaven and Phobia Records, hopefully any day now.

The lead guitarist Mattias also pays in Gränslandet, https://granslandethc.bandcamp.com and Vengeance Of Karma, https://vengeanceofkarma.bandcamp.com that both of which release album just around the corner.

The drummer Erik also play in Illspirits, http://illspirits.bandcamp.com

9. Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?

Right now we’re mostly focused on the upcoming record. It feels great

10. What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

Johan, who writes most of the music in Myteri, is probably the one who’s the most up to date when it comes to the punk/crust scene. Since he writes most of the music I’d say that he’s preferences is what influences the direction of Myteri the most.

Erik is very much into old school American hardcore as well as power violence. Franz is into both fast and heavy music. Myself and Mattias have a pretty similar taste in music, ranging from stoner rock to doom metal, but of course also crust and HC punk.

11. What are some of your non musical interests?

Most of us are into video games in one form or another, retro as well as new games. For the next tour three of us have gotten Nintendo DS and I’m expecting some heated Mario Kart races J

Me and Johan are also into urban exploring and sometimes go by bike scouting for abandoned houses.

12. Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?

Thanks for showing interest in us and our music. Keep your eyes open for the next release and hopefully we’ll see you when we hit the road this October!

/John