Interview with Andreas Stenlund (TME)

METAL EXPRESS RADIO:
Please introduce TME to the MER readers. What does “TME” mean?

Andreas Stenlund:
Hey MER! TME is an aggressive and melodic Thrash/Death Metal band from Sweden. We’ve existed since around summer 2002, after some pauses here and there for other musical endeavours of the members (Vintersorg, Fission and so on). We started to write and rehearse for what would be Worlds Collide at the end of 2005. Well, TME could meen Total Metal Extinction or Taming Mad Entertainers or The Maniacs Endorsement … keep guessing! Hahaha

MER:
How did you come together as a band?

Andreas Stenlund:
All of us in the band have been close friends since way back! And, we have played together and apart for some 15 years in different Death/Thrash/Metal bands. So, finally we came together when Matte and Benny felt that they wanted to play some Old School Thrash Metal and formed TME in 2002.

MER:
Did have any second thoughts on signing with a brand new record label and being the first release for them?

Andreas Stenlund:
No, none at all! Matte has another band called Caskey Casey, which is signed with Bradd and Carrie’s (Aphotic owners) other label Blood and Guts Records. He had worked with them a lot and therefore we knew that they were dedicated and professional people who had the band and the music, not the money, as their priority. We are 100% satisfied with them.

MER:
Can fans consider TME a project or a full-time band?

Andreas Stenlund:
TME is not some one album project or project in any way. It is and will stay a full-time band.

MER:
What is the current status the TME camp?

Andreas Stenlund:
We are currently writing and rehearsing material for our next album. Benny is also in the process of completing the next Fission album together with Mr. V.

MER:
The album has been out for quite a while. What is the feedback you’re getting?

Andreas Stenlund:
We are getting really great feedback, both from magazines/reviewers and from the fans. We had the feeling when Worlds Collide was starting to come together that we had some new great stuff going on, and it seems we were right.

MER:
TME is comprised of members from Vintersorg, but in Worlds Collide there are no influences from them. How did you do that?

Andreas Stenlund:
It is quite simple, actually; we are two totally different bands, hahaha! Yeah, Mattias is in Vintersorg, and Benny and Johan are session, but TME is about Thrash and Death Metal and that was the intention when the band was started.

MER:
Did all the members of TME contribute to the song writing?

Andreas Stenlund:
Yeah, all of us have contributed with songs to the album and I think that that’s only positive because there is variety of the songs when we all write music in different ways.

MER:
Who wrote the lyrics?

Andreas Stenlund:
I wrote all the lyrics to Worlds Collide.

MER:
Did you face any difficulties in the studio?

Andreas Stenlund:
No, not really. Some technical stuff that malfunctioned, but otherwise everything went well. Though, on paper it may seem that is was troublesome since we recorded in four different studios for the album, but all of them, beside Ballerina, are in our hometown near where we live.

MER:
What is your personal musical background?

Andreas Stenlund:
I’ve played guitar for about 15 years or so, but I have always been interested in listening and playing music. Never in singing, other than death growls though! Hahaha, I got into the more extreme music at the end of the eighties. My first album encounter and still one of my favorites was Bathory’s Blood Fire Death.

MER:
What are your singing influences?

Andreas Stenlund:
Hmmm. Hard to say. I guess when I started to sing in Death Metal bands it was those great Death vocalists like Dan Swanö and Quorthon that were the lead stars of how it should sound. But nowadays, I’m doing it like I feel for the moment. Of course, I can think that there are other people with great voices. But, I’m not trying to sound like anybody else.

MER:
How difficult is it to sing in this extreme way?

Andreas Stenlund:
I sound like this when I’m talking … Hahaha! No, just kidding, it’s not just taking the mic and screaming. It takes a lot of practice and bleeding throat to get an excellent Death/Thrash Metal voice. So, it is nothing for the weak minded, hehehe. And, of course, it is a technique like any other singing style or instrument.

MER:
When did you choose to be a Metal singer?

Andreas Stenlund:
I’ve always been interested in writing lyrics and combining music/lyrics together, so when I started to play in bands it was easiest to sing the lyrics too. Me, and the ones I played with, noticed quite fast that I had a killer Death Metal voice and then it continued from there.

MER:
Will you make a video clip for the album?

Andreas Stenlund:
Yeah, we have some plans of making a video to “Blank Infinity.” Don’t know when we will do it, though, but it is on the way.

MER:
Are there any tour plans?

Andreas Stenlund:
We don’t have any booked at the moment, but we are planning on touring and doing festivals or shows and so on in the future. To all the bookers out there, start booking us, hahaha!

MER:
What makes a musician decide to form a project band?

Andreas Stenlund:
I really don’t know, since I have no experience in that. But, if I should speculate, I guess it is to broaden their musical perspective. Fans of a specific band may get quite suprised if they buy a new album and then it is a totally different musical style. Then it is easier to do something new under another name to not confuse the fans.

MER:
What do you do when you are not playing music?

Andreas Stenlund:
Besides being with my family and working, I’m hanging with my friends, drinking beer, watching movies (a lot of crappy movies nowadays) and reading.

MER:
Name the ideal band to tour with TME …

Andreas Stenlund:
Oh, tough question. Any band who likes to drink beer and are into Metal would be the ideal band! Hahaha!

MER:
Thank you for your time!

Andreas Stenlund:
Thank you for the interview! Cheers all TME and Metal fans out there!!! Thrash on!