{"id":6463,"date":"2012-06-05T00:00:36","date_gmt":"2012-06-05T00:00:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/?p=6463"},"modified":"2013-07-20T12:00:20","modified_gmt":"2013-07-20T12:00:20","slug":"feature-grand-magus-06-12","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/feature-grand-magus-06-12\/","title":{"rendered":"GRAND MAGUS – Iron Hands (June 2012) | Features \/ Interviews @ Metal Forces Magazine"},"content":{"rendered":"

GRAND MAGUS – Iron Hands<\/strong><\/span>
\nAnthony Morgan<\/span>
\nJune 2012<\/span><\/p>\n

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Grand Magus (l-r): Fox Skinner, Janne \u2018JB\u2019 Christoffersson and Ludwig \u2018Ludde\u2019 Witt<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n
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Drummer Sebastian \u2018Seb\u2019 Sippola departed from Swedish heavy rockers Grand Magus due to family obligations and work commitments, the man having lent his chops to June 2008\u2019s Iron Will<\/em> and June 2010\u2019s Hammer Of The North<\/em>. An erstwhile bandmate of Grand Magus frontman Janne \u2018JB\u2019 Christoffersson (the two former members of Spiritual Beggars), Ludwig \u2018Ludde\u2019 Witt was revealed to be Sebastian\u2019s replacement. The news was publicly disclosed on April 3rd, 2012.<\/p>\n

\u201cSebastian only quit because he wanted to spend more time with his wife and kids,\u201d Janne Christofferson reaffirms. \u201cEver since he came into the band, we\u2019ve been pretty busy touring and playing a lot. He wanted to spend more time at home. That was the only reason.<\/p>\n

\u201cSebastian and me were talking about if he ever left the band how there would really only be one drummer who would be able to do it the proper way, and that was Ludwig. Obviously I\u2019d known Ludwig for a long, long time ever since we had played in Spiritual Beggars, so I knew that he would work personality wise as well which is really important. He was basically the only option that we had. We were just lucky that he really wanted to do it. Otherwise, we would\u2019ve been in trouble (laughs).\u201d<\/p>\n

Little under a month earlier on March 8th, 2012, it was revealed that Grand Magus had inked an album contract with Nuclear Blast Records. \u201cWe\u2019ve been talking to the people at Nuclear Blast for a few years,\u201d the vocalist explains. \u201cWe\u2019ve met them at festivals, so we knew that they were good guys, were really professional, and knew what we were doing. Obviously they\u2019ve proven to be the ultimate heavy metal label, and it just felt very natural to finally start working with them.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fifth full-length Hammer Of The North<\/em> was Grand Magus\u2019 lone release through Roadrunner Records. \u201cI guess if you\u2019ve read the news, you kind of know why,\u201d Janne alludes. \u201cWe didn\u2019t know anything, but there was certainly a vibe. We could tell that things were happening, but we honoured the contract and everything. It\u2019s just that at that point, I guess they decided that they weren\u2019t gonna pursue the option. Then we got out of dodge.<\/p>\n

\u201cRoadrunner did some things really well though. I feel that we do our music, and we just want the biggest platform that we can get to get it out. Of course we want people to be dedicated to what we do as well though. I\u2019m not at all displeased with the way everything turned out; I think that our relationship with Roadrunner gave us a lot of attention as well, which is always a good thing.\u201d<\/p>\n

A demo was cut during early spring 2011 to preview tracks for Nuclear Blast, those three compositions surfacing on sixth studio outing The Hunt<\/em><\/a> which arrived in June 2012. \u201cThose three songs were written and demoed by Sebastian, Fox, and me, and then the summer came,\u201d the guitarist informs. \u201cWe did a load of festivals, and we knew after the summer that Sebastian wanted to leave the band. We also knew that we needed to get a new drummer for the album, so the rest of the songs were written between I guess mid-September until December. We then went into the studio in mid-January. Several of the songs were written by me, and a few of the songs were written by me and Fox together.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Janne \u2018JB\u2019 Christoffersson<\/em><\/b><\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n
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The Hunt<\/em> doesn\u2019t exhibit a deviation in musical style. \u201cI don\u2019t think it\u2019s such a huge difference really, apart from the variation,\u201d Janne concurs. \u201cLike you mentioned, some of the songs really have a more hard rock approach or feel than this streamlined metal approach. Other differences are obviously that the mix is different from the last one, things like that. I still think that you can hear very easily that it\u2019s Grand Magus and that\u2019s still very important to us, that you can recognise the band. We would never do anything that drastic.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe do what we do. We just want to become better at what we do, and the main objective is always to write the best songs that we can. We made a conscious effort to put a bit more variation in the songs this time; we really worked to make them not sound too much alike. We wanted the album to be a bit more dynamic. That was something that we were consciously thinking about.<\/p>\n

\u201cA track like \u2018Son Of The Last Breath\u2019 is something that we\u2019ve never done before, for example. I think it gives a nice change of pace to the heavy metal or whatever you wanna call it. We knew that we needed something a bit different. I\u2019m not saying left field, because I still think it really fits in with the rest. We wanted something different though, so I came up with the melody for the first part of the song which has a very Scandinavian folk music kind of feel to it. I basically just whistled it on my way home, so that was the starting point. We then built from that. There\u2019s a riff in there that also turns up in the song \u2018Iron Hand\u2019, so we knew that we wanted to have that motif turn up in different guises on the album. It was a long and complicated process making that song what it is.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe first song \u2018Starlight Slaughter\u2019 is something a bit more early 80s hard rock \/ heavy metal type of thing, and that is something we\u2019ve never done before as well. I think there are a few more condiments in the mix than we\u2019ve had before, which I think is a good thing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Closing track \u2018Draks\u00e5dd\u2019 bears a Swedish moniker, draks\u00e5dd an old Scandinavian word which translates to \u2018dragon\u2019s seed\u2019. \u201cThat\u2019s a saying which refers to actions that have terrible consequences,\u201d the mainman discloses. \u201cThe song also fits into the theme of The Hunt<\/em>. I guess for me it\u2019s bit of an odd song, but I think it really fits as a closing track on the album.\u201d<\/p>\n

Genre discussions inevitably exist, though Grand Magus firmly belong in one musical genre as far as Janne is concerned. \u201cI would say that we play song-oriented heavy metal,\u201d he states. \u201cHeavy metal is something that you say with pride. I would definitely say that we\u2019re a heavy metal band. We\u2019re more concerned with the song and the music than we are with the sound, or any kind of special… I don\u2019t know what to call it, but the song is the most important thing in what we do. We try to be the best songwriters that we can be, and write stuff that is memorable. It\u2019s not just something that you hear where it\u2019s \u2018Okay, this sounds a bit like New Wave Of British Heavy Metal\u2019 or whatever. We want to write great songs, not a throwback to something else. To write a great song is always the goal.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nonetheless, a 70s hard rock influence is quite audible. \u201cYeah, but if you listened to an album like Stained Class<\/em> (February 1978) by Judas Priest it\u2019s got a lot of different vibes to it, and it\u2019s got a lot of hard rock on it as well,\u201d the singer critiques. \u201cJust machine-like, double drums all the way through stuff. The borders or whatever you wanna call it between hard rock and heavy metal I think are hazy at best. I wouldn\u2019t limit myself. It would be easy to just do a formulaic album where every song is basically the same, a bit like power metal albums for instance. It\u2019s just double-kick drum all the way through, and the same tempos and everything. I\u2019m not interested in that, because I think that there would be variation. There\u2019s always gonna be a bluesy element in what we do anyway, because it\u2019s the thing we grew up with.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Fox Skinner<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n
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Albeit a trio, Grand Magus\u2019 sonic output isn\u2019t in contrast to that of a quartet. \u201cBlack Sabbath<\/a> have the same line-up as we do; it\u2019s just that I sing as well as play guitar,\u201d Janne muses. \u201cThere\u2019s only one guitar there. It\u2019s the same thing with Manowar and other bands with just one guitar, but then again you have trios like Firebird which are more like rock trios. You can\u2019t say that a trio sounds like this or sounds like that. It all depends on the band. Mot\u00f6rhead are a trio, but I don\u2019t think they sound like The Jimi Hendrix Experience (laughs). It just depends on the music, and the people involved I think. What choices you make.\u201d<\/p>\n

The axeman is hesitant to wholly divulge The Hunt<\/em>\u2019s lyrical meanderings. \u201cI can give you a basic outline, but I\u2019m not gonna discuss specific details,\u201d he cautions. \u201cThe Hunt<\/em> is about the band\u2019s relationship with nature, and vice versa. It also deals with the relationship specifically between man and wolf, and this is on one level. There are more levels in each of the songs, but it\u2019s almost like a themed album. A song like \u2018Iron Hand\u2019 for instance has at least two levels of interpretation. To me \u2013 and I\u2019m not saying this in a pretentious way \u2013 lyrics are a bit like poetry. It gives you a feeling of something on one level. It\u2019s a logical statement about something, but on another level it\u2019s about colours and smell and feelings, and things like this. That\u2019s the cool thing. It\u2019s also about how they work together with the music, because that gives it other meanings that it wouldn\u2019t have just on paper. With the basic theme of the album, that doesn\u2019t mean that there aren\u2019t other levels of interpretation.<\/p>\n

Nowadays, Janne lives closer to nature. \u201cI live by the sea very close to the forest, so I step outside my door and 30 metres away I go into the forest, the lake, and everything,\u201d he enthuses. \u201cI used to live in the city centre here in Stockholm before, but I just realised that I grew up in the countryside and it\u2019s something I really need. I got tired of having people in my face 12 hours a day. It\u2019s just something that gives me harmony. It makes life worth living, you know (laughs). If I wanna be around people, I can always go into the city.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI have TV, internet access, and all that stuff, but I don\u2019t necessarily use it. For instance, I\u2019m in our ex-drummer\u2019s house phoning from his phone (laughs).\u201d<\/p>\n

Entombed member Nico Elgstrand handled production duties for The Hunt.<\/em> \u201cIt\u2019s a very dynamic and very creative process,\u201d the frontman reckons. \u201cWe had a lot of discussions, and we had a lot of ideas that we tossed around and tried. Usually the combination of him and us was something that is better than if we just did it on our own. Then again though, every time you record an album it\u2019s a new experience and you learn things from every recording. There are always new problems turning up that you didn\u2019t expect, and things like that. I would say though that we have a very good and very disciplined working relationship when it comes to doing Grand Magus albums.<\/p>\n

\u201cLet\u2019s say we had the basic framework of a song \u2013 the riffs, the verse, and the vocals, all the pieces of a song so to speak \u2013 he would say \u2018The song as a whole is good, but the chorus needs to be expanded somehow. It needs to go somewhere else other than where it\u2019s going at this point. You need to develop it more,\u2019 or \u2018You shouldn\u2019t go back to the bridge after the solo, but straight to the chorus.\u2019 Things like this would be typical. He could say \u2018This part is useless, because nothing happens\u2019 for instance. We talked a lot about if we were gonna have a riff just going on and on, how we needed a special type of riff. Otherwise, it gets boring. I would say that especially in the arrangements. He basically said \u2018Yeah, this is good\u2019 or \u2018This needs to be worked on,\u2019 or \u2018You need to change this, and you need to change that.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

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Ludwig \u2018Ludde\u2019 Witt<\/em><\/b><\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n
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The record\u2019s cover artwork was designed by Arik Roper. \u201cArik did the artwork for Iron Will<\/em> as well, so we obviously knew that he was a talented artist,\u201d Janne submits. \u201cWith the theme that I was talking about, this time around we knew that Arik could create something really special because it\u2019s the kind of neighbourhood that he works in anyway. He\u2019s got a very strong feeling of nature in his artwork, so we basically just gave him the title and this is what he came up with. It was almost telepathic that he somehow knew that this was the perfect image for the album.\u201d<\/p>\n

The axe-slinger\u2019s departure from Spiritual Beggars came to light on June 6th, 2010, the man having lent vocals to two full-lengths in total; On Fire<\/em> (November 2002, Music For Nations), and Demons<\/em> (March 2005, Toy\u2019s Factory). \u201cIt was simply a matter of not having enough time,\u201d he remembers. \u201cThe thing is at that point, there suddenly opened a window of time for Michael (Amott, Spiritual Beggars \/ Arch Enemy guitarist) and the other guys in the band to do an album. At that point it was simply impossible for me to do it, so I just had to tell them \u2018I love you guys, but I can\u2019t do this now.\u2019 I simply didn\u2019t have a choice because with all of the stuff that we did with Hammer Of The North<\/em> and everything, there wasn\u2019t time for me to do anything else that year. It was a difficult decision, but I had no choice.\u201d<\/p>\n

Janne is nonetheless content with the Spiritual Beggars material he supplied vocals to. \u201cI\u2019m very happy and very proud of the stuff that I did with Spiritual Beggars,\u201d he beams. \u201cIt\u2019s something that I have really fond and great memories of.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Hunt<\/em> was released on May 25th, 2012 in Europe and on June 5th in North America, all through Nuclear Blast Records.<\/p>\n

Interview published in June 2012. All promotional photographs by Audrey Dujardin.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

GRAND MAGUS – Iron Hands Anthony Morgan June 2012 Grand Magus (l-r): Fox Skinner, Janne \u2018JB\u2019 Christoffersson and Ludwig \u2018Ludde\u2019 Witt Drummer Sebastian \u2018Seb\u2019 Sippola departed from Swedish heavy rockers Grand Magus due to family obligations and work commitments, the man having lent his chops to June 2008\u2019s Iron Will and June 2010\u2019s Hammer Of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[322],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6463","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-grand-magus"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6463","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6463"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6463\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6478,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6463\/revisions\/6478"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6463"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6463"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6463"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}