METALLIAN - Hypocrisy

Penetralia - 1992 - Nuclear Blast
Osculum Obscenum - 1993 - Nuclear Blast
The Fourth Dimension - 1994 - Nuclear Blast
Abducted - 1995 - Nuclear Blast
The Final Chapter - 1997 - Nuclear Blast
Hypocrisy Destroys Wacken - 1999 - Nuclear Blast
Hypocrisy - 1999 - Nuclear Blast
Into The Abyss - 2000 - Nuclear Blast
Catch 22 - 2002 - Nuclear Blast
The Arrival - 2004 - Nuclear Blast
Virus - 2005 - Nuclear Blast
A Taste Of Extreme Divinity - 2009 - Nuclear Blast
End Of Disclosure - 2013 - Nuclear Blast
Worship – 2021 – Nuclear Blast

Members

Vocals

Votary, Dominion Caligula>>Masse Broberg>>Dominion Caligula, Althotas, Obscurity, Dark Funeral, Demonoid, God Among Insects, Sanctification - Conquest, Meltdown, Seditious, Pain, The Abyss, War, Algaion, Lindemann>>PETER TÄGTGREN>>Pain, The Abyss, War, Algaion, Lindemann

Guitar

Conquest, Meltdown, Seditious, Pain, The Abyss, War, Algaion, Lindemann>>PETER TÄGTGREN>>Pain, The Abyss, War, Algaion, Lindemann - Epitaph>>Jonas Österberg - Scattred Corpses>>Andreas Holma>>Soilwork, Uncharted Waters, Scar Symmetry, Road To Jerusalem

Bass

Scattred Corpses, Repugnance, The Abyss, War>>MIKAEL HEDLUND>>The Abyss, War, Dark Funeral

Drum

Conquest, Epitaph, The Abyss, War>>Lars Szöke>>The Abyss, War - Grimfist, Immortal, Pain, Lost At Last>>Reidar ‘Horgh’ Horghagen>>Pain, Immortal

History & Biography

Hypocrisy was formed in October, 1991 by Peter Tägtgren (originally a drummer and a guitar player since the mid-'80s) and Lars Szöke, both former Conquest members. Conquest had disbanded in 1988 because a couple of members did not wish to play really heavy music. The band was formed after Peter returned from a stay in the United States where he spent time in Meltdown and in Malevolent Creation. Joining the two were guitarist Österberg, bassist Hedlund and Satanist vocalist Masse Broberg. Broberg would actually be the replacement for the original singer of Entombed who would return to his original band just before recording with Peter. The band played its very first gig on June 6, 2002. The band had no trouble securing a deal with Germany's Nuclear Blast and soon issued its Satan-tinged debut, Penetralia. The song God Is A Lie was censored by Nuclear Blast and named God Is A... on this disc. The band would make sure that this is rectified on the upcoming Inferior Devotees MCD though. The band shot two videos and was soon featured on The Death Is Just The Beginning compilation. Österberg would leave the fold though and with Broberg becoming ill after Osculum Obscenum, ostensibly while on the road opening for Cannibal Corpse, the band would become a trio with Tägtgren taking over the microphone for the Inferior Devotees MCD. The band also put in an appearance for a Slayer tribute disc called Slatanic Slaughter Vol. 1. The band had supported Osculum... through a tour with label-mates Brutality.

The third full-length would see the band head in a more quiet direction. The band would even criticize The Fourth Dimension later on. Still, the band would tour on both sides of the Atlantic and be a part of Nuclear Blast's New Year's Festival. Tägtgren would fill in on guitars for Marduk as well. The man is also busying himself by this time with various side projects, like Pain and The Abyss, and work as a producer at his Abyss Studio. Abducted featured both metal and several rock songs probably inspired by Pink Floyd. A different version of this album featured band members switching instruments and was called Maximum Abduction. At this time, Nuclear Blast extended the band’s contract for two albums even though Hypocrisy’s contract had not ended.

The band seemed to be doing progressively more business when in 1997 Tägtgren announced that The Final Chapter would be the band's last release. The singer/guitarist had tired of his multi-fold duties and perceived lack of contribution by his teammates. He band had, in fact, obtained outside management over a year earlier. Simultaneously, his more commercial side-project Pain was obtaining a major record deal in Europe. In the coming years, Tägtgren would delegate more work to his band-mates, but would keep up a heavy workload at the Abyss Studio and would even join the death metal project Lock Up.

Catch 22 was singled out by fans as having a trendier sound. The band would hire Pain guitarist Matthias Kamijo for live dates. The band would again tour as part of the No Mercy dates across Europe. The Arrival would continue the band's alien motif, but not before being remixed by a dissatisfied band. Surprisingly, at this time drummer Lars would quit Hypocrisy and be replaced by Pain/Immortal's Horgh. Apparently, the trio had had an inter-band discussion regarding members' commitment and contribution to Hypocrisy. The band would tour North America again and hit the European circuit as part of the No Mercy festivals once more. Virus would emerge at the tail end of the summer of 2005 and would officially feature touring guitarist Andreas Holma and drummer Horgh as part of the line-up. Guitarist Andreas Holma quit in September of 2006 and was temporarily replaced with Darkane's Klas Ideberg. The group reported in late 2007 that it was rerecording the vocals and some of the drums for its 2002 album Catch 22. The new version was to be out later in 2008 through Nuclear Blast Records. A new album was further delayed. After a period of protracted silence, the band has announced A Taste Of Extreme Divinity as the title for its next album, which was due on October 23rd, 2009 through Nuclear Blast Records. The band was touring the USA with Ensiferum in November. Hypocrisy enlisted the help of Children Of Bodom guitarist/frontman Alexi Laiho for its upcoming North American tour. Alexi agreed to temporarily fill the vacant guitarist spot on the tour with Ensiferum, Ex Deo, Blackguard and Swashbuckle. Hypocrisy was next delayed by US visa rules. Ex Deo was also hit with visa problems. In the end, Hypocrisy was also forced to pull out of the tour after one member failed to receive a visa. Blackguard opened the tour. Hell Over Sofia - 20 Years Of Chaos And Confusion was the name for a DVD from Hypocrisy, which would be released on October 14th, 2011 through Nuclear Blast. The video featured footage from the band's February 27, 2010 concert at the Blue Box club in Sofia, capital of Bulgaria. The band issued End Of Disclosure in March through Nuclear Blast Records. The band’s Australian tour got cancelled once the promoter went AWOL. Hypocrisy was also forced to cancel its North American tour due to reasons beyond its control. The members had received verbal visa approvals when the USA embassy informed them that the earliest the visas would be available was late June. Hypocrisy bassist Mikael Hedlund Christian was forced to leave the band's late 2013 European tour with Heaven Shall Burn for the ever-popular "personal reasons." Filling in for him was Clawfinger bassist Andrea Skaug. Singer Till Lindemann of pop industrial band Rammstein and Peter Tägtgren had a 2015 project called Lindemann. Kataklysm and Hypocrisy announced a tour of Europe together for the autumn of 2018. The bands were using the Death Is Just The Beginning monicker for the tour, which was borrowed from the old Nuclear Blast compilation series.

Hypocrisy was working on a new album in 2021. Hypocrisy’s next album was called Worship and out on Nuclear Blast Records in late November 2021. It was recorded and mixed at the band’s singer and guitarist Peter Tägtgren’s Abyss Studio. Hypocrisy would embark on the Worship tour of Canada and the USA with Carach Angren, The Agonist and Hideous Divinity in April and May 2022. Reidar "Horgh" Horghagen left the band after 18 years of activity. The band was due to tour North America with Carach Angren, The Agonist and Hideous Divinity. Henrik Axelsson of The Crown was the tour replacement. Session guitarist Thomas Elofsson suffered a heart attack and was operated on in June 2023. The band continued on the road playing as a trio. The guitarist promptly updated his social media. The group headlined the Meh Stuff! festival in the summer of 2023. The band was playing at Hard Rock Laager festival in Estonia with Deceitome, Batushka, Carpathian Forest and more in 2024.

Reviews

HYPOCRISY - THE ARRIVAL - NUCLEAR BLAST
Two years after the oft-derided Catch 22 album comes the new Hypocrisy album, The Arrival. The album marks a new beginning for the band member-wise, but musically sees the band stick to the tried and true sound first established on 1996's Abducted. The band uses melody, fast parts slow parts and mostly the trademarked Hypocrisy mid-pace to screech its point home. Peter's voice is in fine shape. His screams are accompanied by a fair number of forbidding growls. Songs like The Departure, Eraser and Dead Sky Dawning are exactly what fans expect from the band. A weaker songs is track five, New World, which seems to represent the band's attempt at something different. The band has also included a new version of the song The Abyss here for those who have not heard this older track. The album would have been even better had Peter and the boys deleted the background synthesizer track in favour of a rhythm guitar or bass of sorts, but that frankly is a minor quibble in the grand scheme of things. The Arrival is a good, no-frills and solid album. - Ali "The Metallian"

HYPOCRISY - VIRUS - NUCLEAR BLAST
Metal fans could be forgiven for being leery of new albums by bands which on occasion have strayed from the dedicated path and yielded to commercialism, trends or other influences. These bands albums do not qualify as sure things and are rightfully due a scrutiny before purchase. Hypocrisy is such a band given 2002's Catch 22 with its mallcore tendency or the abundance of Pink Floydisms tagged to the end of 1996's Abducted. The Swedes' newest album, entitled Virus, does not meander and delivers fast and heavy material within the trademarked Hypocrisy parameter. The album is not undiluted, but the exceptions are certainly manageable.
Past a short intro, amazingly named Intro, Warpath is just that. The song begins with an easily impressive scream and is out-and-out death metal. Sadly, the band backfills the material here with some synthesizers, but the damage is assuredly minimal. Scrutinized is up next and given the presence of Gary Holt of Exodus as guest guitar soloist is appropriately thrashy. This might be the Hypocrisy's heaviest song yet. The aforementioned lead, by the way, plain smokes. A couple of slower songs in the belly of the album are not as impressive, but Incised Before I've Ceased with its Classical medley, Blooddrenched with its growling singing and Compulsive Psychosis with its marvelous guitar work and melody manage to satisfy with ease. The album dies with the song Living To Die which is one of those weird offbeat ditties Peter and crew seemingly always need to mess with it. Ignoring that closer, Virus infects the mind, defiles the ears and contaminates the system with a needed blast of death bloody metal.
The band's new line-up has an achievement on its hand given the length of time it had to gel with one another and proceed to compose and record Virus. Even the vocals of Peter Tägtgren sport a renewed vigour given their range of extremity, while simultaneously remaining oddly intelligible. The lyrics though are another matter. This is probably the one time one would volunteer to get a virus. - Ali "The Metallian"

Interviews

Anyone who has spoken with me regarding the matter - including Nuclear Blast America’s indignant publicist - knows that I have had very mixed emotions towards this Swedish band in the last couple of years. After all, the third album The Fourth Dimension really clashed with my system; it was nothing short of a trendy wimp-out whose churning slow sounds and crappy production was a recipe for convulsion. I bring this up not because talk is of the older album, but rather because that plus my negative review of the current album fuelled by my loss of faith in Hypocrisy almost cost me this interview. An assertion of freedom of expression and a prevailing of cooler heads later, I get main man Peter Tägtgren (guitars and vocals, rounded out by bassist Mikael Hedlund and drummer Lars Szoeke) and discuss my opinion of album number four, Abducted. - 1996.

ALI “THE METALLIAN”: And what do you think of my opinion of The Fourth Dimension?
PETER TÄGTGREN: I hate The Fourth Dimension too. I think the music is too slow and the production is weak; in fact, I almost can’t stand the album. I agree with you, but we did everything we wanted on Abducted!

ALI “THE METALLIAN”: A disarming response, and a much different one from what I had anticipated. So, I let the matter rest and get on with the interview. Didn’t you just complete a European tour?
PETER TÄGTGREN: Yeah, it was with Meshuggah. The response was good, but in general, it’s kinda slow in Europe - like everywhere else. There are some people at shows, but it’s not like a couple of years ago. People are looking for something new.

ALI “THE METALLIAN”: What are the European kids looking for these days then?
PETER TÄGTGREN: That skate punk shit - I hate that shit. I guess it’s for the younger crowd. There are a lot of death metal fans out there, but they don’t go to shows anymore. They have other interests. Perhaps they’ve got kids now. The whole music scene is fucked up anyway. All albums are too expensive.

ALI “THE METALLIAN”: Why the need to acquire management at this stage in your career?
PETER TÄGTGREN: No reason really; nothing has changed. We are still the same band, but I work so many hours and I am busy with my studio, The Abyss. We need someone to take care of the shit for us.

ALI “THE METALLIAN”: Speaking of your studio, do you have any technical training? It seems that The Abyss Studio is very much in demand.
PETER TÄGTGREN: I just did Marduk’s cover songs for an EP of theirs. I also did a new Therion cover thing. I don’t know why everyone’s doing covers all of a sudden. Then there was Abruptum, Naglfar, Fleshcrawl et cetra. Where we live there are no bands; it’s a small village. I can scream and no one will hear - that’s the way I like to keep it. I just started doing the studio. It’s all a matter of just working on it. You get better and better with every work you do. It’s all a matter of taste.

ALI “THE METALLIAN”: Expand on Abducted.
PETER TÄGTGREN: I like it and I never say that six months after an album is out. The vocals and drums should be a bit higher, but otherwise it’s perfect. I think that this is the direction we’ll pursue for the future. Perhaps the next album will be all fast stuff. We are all writing songs for the next album right now. We all live in a twenty-kilometre radius of each other.

ALI “THE METALLIAN”: What other developments do you have to report?
PETER TÄGTGREN: We just signed again to Nuclear Blast. They were so cool that they gave us a whole new contract without the old one being over! Nuclear Blast are cool to us. We now have two more albums to give them. We are not really into touring much, but we are into going to America. Nothing is being done about it because it doesn’t seem like anyone wants to bring us over there. I know that Kataklysm wanted to get us over there, but I don’t know what happened with that. We’ve played Mexico. Next, we are doing a new The Abyss album. This one is going to be mush faster, and I mean fast. None of that bullshit melodies anymore! At the beginning, no one was supposed to know who was in The Abyss, but the word somehow got out. I think it was Nuclear Blast, which revealed it.

This interview initially appeared in Pit Magazine No. 17.

If you enjoyed this, read Dismember

The voice at the other end of the telephone line is polite, well-spoken and remarkably interested. This despite it being midnight in Sweden, the band's ninth album and umpteenth interview.
The voice belongs to Mikael Hedlund of Swedish metal juggernaut Hypocrisy. The band, completed by singer and guitarist Peter Tagtgren and new drummer Horgh (replacing long-time skinbasher Lars Szoke) and guitarist Andreas Holma, has just issued the well-received The Arrival album and is fitting in a bunch of interviews with the media before hitting the road again. Read on as Ali "The Metallian" crisscrosses Hypocrisy's career with interview partner Mikael - 04.02.2004

METALLIAN: Mikael, will you begin the conversation by describing The Arrival in your own words? Why would a metal fan pick up this album and not one of the many others on the market?
MIKAEL: I agree with many people who are saying that we have gone back to our roots with this album to the Abducted and Hypocrisy albums. The music we do has melodic stuff, more heavy stuff and mid-tempo songs. It is also more atmospheric this time. When I say 'atmospheric' I mean the album has a kind of feeling, it is something special.
All the albums we have done, OK the last four we have done, mix fast songs with more heavy stuff, but we still want to have the catchy stuff in there too. The listener will hear the chorus and recognize the song. I think that's typical Hypocrisy. On the last album, Catch 22, we tried to work more on the melodies of the vocals, but it seems that people didn't like it that much. I don't know why. I love that album. Of course you have to listen to what the fans are thinking. We did that and said that we should go back and do what we do best. We also wanted to do it and go back too.

METALLIAN: It is a good thing that you brought up the previous album. Were you trying to go towards the mallcore sound?
MIKAEL: It wasn't like we wanted to follow that trend, you know. That was not the reason. We listen to it. We all listen to Slipknot and you can hear it in a couple of songs of ours. We must be influenced by it. You can't hear it on The Arrival though.
Of course we noticed the reactions to Catch 22. To be honest it is very easy to say that we do what we want and we don't care what people think as long as we are satisfied. The truth is that we listen to what people say and the reaction. We try to do it fifty-fifty. We don't do anything that we do not want to do, but at the same time we listen to what people say. I am honest. You have to listen to the fans. They are a part of Hypocrisy too.

METALLIAN: The first four songs on the album are cool Hypocrisy bruisers. New World though seems to be of a different breed.
MIKAEL: I don't know! It is a fast songs and has heavy parts. I like that song very much.

METALLIAN: Listening to the song one comes across two specific segments where the drums sound suspiciously mechanical. Does Hypocrisy ever mix real drums with drums machines in the studio?
MIKAEL: No, absolutely not. No, no, that's totally wrong. We can leave that question.

METALLIAN: That sounds like a categorical answer. Let us discuss Peter's vocals. Given the many vocal layers, the question that comes to mind is how much work goes into that at the studio.
MIKAEL: No, he doesn't take that long. Of course we use two or three channels at the same time for the vocals. It makes it more powerful and it is great. We try to do it as soon as possible. As long as it sounds good.

METALLIAN: The Arrival features a re-recorded version of the song The Abyss. What is the reason for it?
MIKAEL: Hmmmm many people were asking for it. We could see on our website that people were wondering where they can hear it. I think it is a very very good song. It is one of the best that we have done. We thought to re-record the song with a much better production and put it on the album.
It was OK the first time around. I mean it was back in 1994. We could do it better though ten years later. It was merely a bonus song on The Fourth Dimension album. You can hardly find it because we did it later for that album. It has a different sound this time around. It was recorded at another studio too. We had recorded it in Stockholm at another studio at that time instead of at Abyss Studio.
People might say it is a cheap thing to do, but it is good for us.

METALLIAN: How do you explain Hypocrisy's affinity for the word 'abyss?' It has become your answer to Dio's use of the word 'rainbow.' The word appears as a song title, album title, side project and studio name!
MIKAEL: That's a good question. That is a very good question. Actually, I don't know why. I don't know if I have answer. It's like it follows us.

METALLIAN: If that is the case, let me ask you another question about one other song. An enjoyable song on the new album is Dead Sky Dawning.
MIKAEL: It is a mid-tempo song with a lot of melody. It is a catchy song. The first time you hear it you remember it. It is a very good song. It is one of my favourites.

METALLIAN: An odd point about the new album is how it is titled The Arrival, yet features a song called The Departure. Furthermore, shouldn't The Arrival have been your first album's title?
MIKAEL: I have nothing to do with the title of the album. Dan Swano from Edge Of Sanity wrote five of the lyrics on the new album. He wrote The Departure without knowing the eventual title of the album. That is interesting (laughs). I had not thought about this!
And no, we are not going backwards! Perhaps it is a boring answer, but we came up with this title a year ago when we got the cover artwork. The title is connected to the cover. It is the same with all our albums. It is backwards. Everything is backwards (laughs again). We are going backwards all the time.

METALLIAN: So would you be able to affirm that all the lyrics are science fiction?
MIKAEL: All except The Abyss. The days when we write lyrics about God or religion are over. From the beginning it was a case of having Masse as a singer. He was our first vocalist and he was into the Satanic thing. He used to write the lyrics. Then Peter took over and he is into the aliens type of a thing. He is the alien freak. Therefore, it is quite natural that he wants to write about that. I am also into the topic. I am not into it as much as Peter.
We are not talking about the X-files or stuff like that. We are talking about abductions. You never know, maybe one day you are abducted!

METALLIAN: Are you being serious or are you joking?
MIKAEL: No, you never know! I believe in that stuff. That is the thing that makes it so interesting. You never know what is going on around us on the planet. Maybe we will find out one day what is going on.

METALLIAN: Does Peter take a fantasy point-of-view or is he expressing personal experience?
MIKAEL: There is no concept on the album. Each song has its own ideas. Again, a song like Dead Sky Dawning was written by Dan Swano. It is one of the fives written by Dan.

METALLIAN: In a surprising move, there was a change of personnel in Hypocrisy. What was the reason for the departure of Lars?
MIKAEL: We have been touring for the last two years and he was tired of it. If you have a band then you have to be one-hundred percent into it otherwise it does not work. We had to make a decision what to do. Were we going to stay home and not tour that much or are we going to move ahead as we had planned? That is why we had to do something about it.
We had a meeting and we came up with the final decision of Lars' departure together.

METALLIAN: Are you fully onboard? There have been times in the past years when you seemingly have been less than active in the band's affairs yourself.
MIKAEL: Yeah, absolutely I am there. We all agreed after The Final Chapter album that we would all have to be more involved. Peter had to take care of everything before that. After that everything changed. Of course, people want to talk to Peter all the time because he has the studio and the band Pain and so on. People ask questions about things other than Hypocrisy too. Now things have changed and we all have to participate. For example, Peter and I wrote the whole album musically together. It is team work. Peter doesn't have to do everything. He wants to have a band feeling.
If I had a magazine I would have liked to talk to the other members of a band and not always to the main person all the time.

METALLIAN: Going back to the drummer question, how did Horgh get the vacated position?
MIKAEL: He has been a good friend of ours for a long time. We did a European tour with Immortal two years ago. After that he drummed for Peter on the Pain album. Peter has recorded three times with Immortal. We know him well. He is a good drummer. We called him up and asked him if he can join Hypocrisy now. He was totally into it. He is very dedicated to doing it. He is the guy we were looking for, you know. He was our first choice and we are lucky. Next week will be our first show with him. We will be in the USA with him.
We are never home, but I like it. This is my life. I don't complain. I am not married and that helps. I have a girlfriend. It is difficult, but she understands.

METALLIAN: The drumming style of Lars and Horgh are very different. Will Hypocrisy's drumming now undergone a big change?
MIKAEL: Our new drummer will drum Hypocrisy style. Of course, he will do it his way. It is not like he is going to play blastbeats. Hypocrisy is not going to change drastically. It s going to be Hypocrisy.

METALLIAN: Will the logistics be an issue his being in Norway and you guys being in Sweden?
MIKAEL: It is not a problem. We only rehearse when we go on tour, and sometimes in-between, but not that often as a band. We come up with riffs at home when we want to record an album. Then we go into the studio and record them together. It is not going to be difficult now. He doesn't need to move to Sweden.

METALLIAN: What is going on with the second guitarist situation?
MIKAEL: Right before Hypocrisy I was in a band called Scattred Corpses. We didn't record any demos. We had several good songs though. Andreas Holma who was our live second guitarist played with me in Scattred Corpses. He is now an official member. He is not a session player anymore. He and I grew up together. We played together before Hypocrisy and we live in the same area too. He became an official member a month ago.

METALLIAN: The band has shot a video for the new album. One assumes it is unlike the band's earliest efforts because Peter is on record as claiming that the videos for Left To Rot and Impotent God were detrimental to Hypocrisy's image.
MIKAEL: We started two weeks ago shooting a video for the song Eraser. It follows the alien concept. I haven't seen the result yet. We appear in the video along two naked ladies who are painted in black. I don't know what they do though. I am very curious to see the result.
We were talking earlier about videos and Peter, all of us, agreed that the first one was the best. I am not sure what he was saying about those videos because he was saying the first one was the best too. We were standing in the ruins. It was shot in an old theatre here in our area. It was a famous theatre that was burnt down. It was good timing and we asked if we can shoot a video there. I think it is a cool video. I think that is the best one we have done except for the sound. We had to take the song from the demo at the time. At the time, we were just signed and were asked to do a video before we had finished the album!

Hypocrisy is on the move with a new album on Nuclear Blast Records, new members, new video and is currently touring on both sides of the Atlantic. Fans and hacks alike are invited to check out the band's website at www.hypocrisy.tv.

In the mass cesspool that is the death metal scene Hypocrisy is one of the few veteran acts to have maintained its composure and maintained an unusual break-neck sound and attitude. The consistency on new album Virus is further fueled by new members second guitarist Andreas Holma and drummer Horgh who make their official debuts here. Having given Virus the Metallian seal of approval, Ali "The Metallian" reached bassist Mikael Hedlund at home, who along with singer and guitarist Peter Tägtgren completes the band, in order to find out about the origins of the band's latest sonic venom. - 04.09.2005

METALLIAN: Thank you for your time, Andreas. It is customary to discuss the music foremost, but we have to discuss the furious lyrics strewn all over Virus first. Is the world such a big mess?
MIKAEL: Yes, it is. Peter writes all the lyrics and those are things he had inside. This album has less to do with aliens, which we have covered in the past, and more about the world in general. This is actually the first time that we printed the lyrics for the album. It is very good that everybody can go through it and see what we are writing about.
Of course, the world is a big mess right now. Bad things are happening almost every day. It is not a good feeling because things will go on like this and will get worse and worse. I don't know, and am afraid to think, what will happen in ten or twenty years. All the terror in the world is scary. I don't know why it has to be like that. It is very scary.

METALLIAN: The music is consistent with your previous album, The Arrival. The album delivers everything Hypocrisy fans want and is not a slouch in the extremeness department.
MIKAEL: This album is a bit harder and more aggressive. It is also more technical than usual. We have two new members, Horgh and Andreas, who came up with some really cool things. They influenced this album very much.

METALLIAN: When we spoke last you asserted your view that the new members will play in the 'Hypocrisy style.' How did the new members end up affecting the sound?
MIKAEL: For example, previous drummer Lars and Horgh are two different drummers, you know? Horgh is more technical and he played that way on the album. It was good for us to have him on the drums for this album. Lars actually came to the studio during the recording sessions, although I was not there. I am not sure, but I think he liked the album too.

METALLIAN: You have over ten albums to your credit now and one has to ask whether writing and recording is a complex process with uncertainty for you or has writing and recording extreme albums, such as Virus, become almost an automated process for Hypocrisy?
MIKAEL: We have never had a problem coming up with material for Hypocrisy. We have all these riffs inside. If you are into it and like what you are doing then it is easy to come up with material. We can go on and write more and more. We feel our music one-hundred percent.
Also, we never know what will happen when we come into the studio. You never know how it is going to end up. I am always curious to see how it will end up being in the end. You work step by step and you finally have the album in the end. I am excited every time I enter the studio. That makes it easy. It is not a routine because then it would be very hard to do anything great.

METALLIAN: To what extent are you conscious that Hypocrisy has become a veteran on the scene?
MIKAEL: I don't think about it that much, but sometimes when we tour bands come up and say things like 'I have been listening to you since my younger days' and then we notice that we are getting old! It is funny to hear because I recall how it was when we started. When we had a chance to tour with Cannibal Corpse and Fear Factory in 1993 I had the same feeling. That was a dream come true for me and I remember my feelings.

METALLIAN: Do you ever feel any resentment towards or question the younger bands which were formed after you, but have, for whatever reason, went on to sell more or be more accepted? Do you ever think it is time to reassess things?
MIKAEL: No, I can be honest and say it does not bother me. For example, we now have many good Swedish bands and four of them are part of Ozzfest. I am so happy that they are there. I am happy for them. I am not jealous. I am honest when I say that.

METALLIAN: Let's get the off beat song out of the way as we begin discussing the music. Why do you insist on including songs like Living To Die on albums?
MIKAEL: I like that song very much. It is a very depressing songs with a lot of melody. That is Hypocrisy! You might not like the clean vocals, but I do. It is good to mix things. I have no problem with that. I can understand some people thinking like you though. We cannot always be I mean you have to be more open-minded. We like to mix things. We don't say the next album has to be a fast album or whatever. It doesn't matter what the song is as long as it sounds good.

METALLIAN: Speaking of good songs, the albums first song is Warpath.
MIKAEL: I think that song is a mix of death and black metal. It is also a bit different for us. You can also hear Horgh there. We could use his skills on that song. It is a really good opening song for us.

METALLIAN: Warpath is followed by the incredible Scrutinized.
MIKAEL: That is more thrash metal in style and also the video for the album. The video was almost completed, except we sent it back for a re-edit. The editor is working on it and we should have it ready for viewing in a couple of weeks.

METALLIAN: How did the lead guitar contribution by Exodus' Gary Holt come about?
MIKAEL; Yeah, it is a really good solo. When I heard it for the first time was when we were mixing it and I just went 'wow.' He is a good friend of ours. We asked him to contribute a solo. He likes Hypocrisy and it was an honour for us to have him do it. More or less the way it happened is that, since we are friends, we asked him to do it and he mailed it to us. We didn't have to go through other people or whatever.

METALLIAN: Let's talk about a couple of other songs.
MIKAEL: Warpath is my favourite song and a good opening track. Elsewhere, Andreas came up with the classical part on Incised Before I've Ceased. That is good because the two members have contributed new elements. Compulsive Psychosis is a really cool song too with a mid-tempo melody and good drumming.

METALLIAN: What is next for Hypocrisy?
MIKAEL: We have a Scream magazine fifteenth anniversary show next month in Oslo, Norway. We will start practicing for a November/December European tour with Exodus, Naglfar, Wintersun and Primordial. We are also planning on hitting Canada and the USA in January with Nile. They are working on that tour right now.

Both sides of the Atlantic will get the chance to enjoy/suffer Hypocrisy's Virus live it seems. The album is out later this month. For more information just type www.hypocrisy.tv into your browser.

Hypocrisy