Fawkes: Hi, Mattias. First of all, I want to send my respect to you and MOB RULES. You're celebrating the 10th anniversary of playing together this year, aren't you?
Mattias: Yes! Thank you very much!
Fawkes: So, the new album "Among The Gods" comes out next Monday. Let's imagine for a moment that I've never listened to MOB RULES but you're eager to make me go and buy "Among The Gods." What words would you use?
Mattias: OK, on the new album we tried to combine strong melodies, good guitar parts, colorful keyboards, good vocals, and a kind of interesting and moody atmosphere. I would say the music is traditional melodic metal, but it's not a cliche. It's entirely our own style — a mixture of melodic metal, progressive metal, and traditional hard rock.
Fawkes: OK. What does the title mean? When you say 'among the gods,' do you mean specific gods in some fantasy setting, or is it a metaphor?
Mattias: It's a metaphor! It's a kind of headline for the whole album — for ten songs where we write about different things from the perspective of God. God is sitting in Heaven, looking down on Earth, and he sees all sorts of different things going on. Wars, destruction of nature, things the church does, some things from history, and also private and very intimate stories.
Fawkes: Wow, that's a good idea. Most melodic metal bands are preoccupied with fantasy stuff: dragons, swords, etc. I'd say that's a strong side of your music!
Mattias: Yes, I think so too!!!
Fawkes: And there's a song on your album called 'Black Rain.' It must be about the destruction of nature that you mentioned?
Mattias: Yeah. The black rain means poisoned rain. The poisoned rain comes from different things — from atomic wars, from nuclear bombs, from industry, from various mistakes that mankind is making. Black rain is a symbol of destroying the Earth. It's a kind of warning to people to stop destroying what they're living on…
Fawkes: I know you've shot a video for 'Black Rain.' Does it just show you playing your instruments, or does it have a kind of screenplay, a short film, you know?
Mattias: Yes, it is a short film. You can see the band playing, and at the same time you see the things the lyrics deal with: bombs falling, thick black smoke, fire burning, you see the ocean rising from year to year because the temperature is rising. There are many apocalyptic scenes in the video as well.
Fawkes: And the strange mechanism on the cover of your album — is it connected to all that?
Mattias: Yes, it's a sundial. And it symbolizes that our time on Earth isn't eternal. There will be a day when life will end, and to make that clear, to explain this to people, the sundial symbolizes that we must be careful with our lives and planet Earth — we have to be careful with nature and we have to be careful with the people we love.
Fawkes: In the past you've invited some renowned guests like Sascha Paeth, Roland Grapow, and Peavy Wagner. Did you invite anyone to participate this time?
Mattias: On the new album, Roland Grapow of MASTERPLAN is playing a solo again. He's a close friend of ours and we asked him if he'd like to do it again. There's also Ian Parry, a singer from HAMMERHEAD who previously played with VENGEANCE and ELEGY. And there was guitarist Stephan Lill from the German prog-rock band VANDEN PLAS, who did a solo as well.
Fawkes: And do the guys from MOB RULES play on other metal bands' albums?
Mattias: Sometimes we get invited, people ask us. But in the past we had no time for it. We were working really hard on the new album. We did three tours behind the last album. I went on the Wacken Roadshow, we played with SAVATAGE, we played with HELLOWEEN and RAGE. And between all that we had no break, no free time. All the time between tours we were working on new songs. And every time in the past when we were asked to play on other albums, we just had to say, 'Sorry, we have no time for that. Maybe in the future…'
Fawkes: What do you think — why did Germany and Italy become the worldwide center of the power metal scene?
Mattias: To be honest, I have no idea. Maybe the reason is that Germany is a strong metal market in general. I mean, there's a big metal thing in Germany. There are hundreds and hundreds of really good metal bands. There are some really strong melodic metal bands. MOB RULES is one of them. I can also name GAMMA RAY, HELLOWEEN, RAGE, EDGUY. And the same is true for Italy — there's RHAPSODY, there are VISION DIVINE, LABYRINTH, and many others…
Fawkes: What a crowd! Every time I see you making guest appearances on each other's albums, I start to think of the German power scene as a big family…
Mattias: Yes, it is a big family!
Fawkes: And like every normal family, it must have its father and mother…
Mattias: That's a good question. I think we have a lot of fathers. Obviously there's SAVATAGE. There are HELLOWEEN and IRON MAIDEN (huh, another renowned "Germans" :) — F.). I think those would be our forefathers. There are also four or five mothers and a lot of brothers. I can't name just one father or one mother.
Fawkes: OK. Then the Italians must be your cousins and nephews, hehe… Well, I know that making the debut album took quite a long time for you. About five years…
Mattias: No, it didn't take five years. We had five years from the beginning of the band to the first record deal. And when we got the record deal, it took one year for the debut album.
Fawkes: And from that perspective, what do you think about the power bands that started playing recently because melodic metal became fashionable? As I see it, they get together, rehearse for a month or two, then go to the studio, lay down a demo, and — oops! — they've already been signed to some label…
Mattias: Things are hard for new bands. It's more difficult now than when we started. We had five years of playing every club where we could play. We did a few demos in the first years with the band. Then we recorded a six-track EP and sent it to different record companies. And from that we got a record deal. I know that right now it's really, really difficult for young bands to get a record deal. It was difficult in our time, but now it's much more difficult. You need a lot of luck, a lot of good friends, and good supporters in the industry if you want to get a record deal...
Fawkes: And do you support these young bands?
Mattias: Yeah, we often play with younger bands. We do a lot of shows with MOB RULES here and there, and if someone wants to come with us and play as a support band, we never say 'no.' We try to support younger bands as much as possible.
Fawkes: A big family, indeed. Elder brothers mentoring younger ones…
Mattias: Yes. When we were the little brothers, the bigger bands helped us. In the old days we were little brothers and needed help from bigger brothers. So now we're among the bigger brothers and we help the little ones. It's the natural way of the metal scene's progression…
Fawkes: Why do singers of many power bands sound so similar to each other?
Mattias: I think there are a few singers who sound like the others. But I think the reason is that this kind of music requires a really strong and melodic voice. So I think people who like MOB RULES and FREEDOM CALL need a typical melodic singer in those bands.
Fawkes: And who is the most talented typical melodic singer?
Mattias: The most talented or the best one?
Fawkes: OK, name the best one…
Mattias: I think Timo Kotipelto from STRATOVARIUS is a great one. Bruce Dickinson is perfect. Rob Halford is perfect. But I like Zachary Stevens from SAVATAGE, and I really like Geoff Tate from QUEENSRYCHE.
Fawkes: All rock veterans. I think that all of you — I mean MOB RULES — are really into this classic rock stuff. Even the name of your band is taken from a BLACK SABBATH album title…
Mattias: (cuts in) No! That's wrong. The story of the band's name came from the band LYNCH MOB, which was the band of former DOKKEN guitarist George Lynch. So I took that name and derived LYNCH MOB RULES. MOB RULES!!! It's a cool name. We chose it from that — not from the BLACK SABBATH album.
Fawkes: It seems like you've been asked this question too often…
Mattias: Yes! In the old days people even thought we were a BLACK SABBATH cover band. As you know, we're not.
Fawkes: You've toured a lot with bands like OVERKILL, SAVATAGE, and even SCORPIONS. The latter are maybe the most cherished German rock band here in russia. They are true megastars. How was it playing with them?
Mattias: As you mentioned before, our scene is a big family. Even bands like SCORPIONS, OVERKILL, or SYMPHONY X are like brothers to us. So that's it.
Fawkes: A friend of mine was in Germany two years ago and got caught there by a terrific flood that happened that summer. And every year, terrible things seem to happen more and more often. Do you think these disasters are a prelude to a biblical end of days?
Mattias: Of course. This is the reason for songs like 'Black Rain,' 'Among The Gods,' 'The World Symphony'... These are bad signs for the whole world.
Fawkes: But do you see this in a religious context? Are you religious?
Mattias: I'm not religious, but I believe in a power that is bigger than mankind.
Fawkes: Have you already seen 'The Passion' movie?
Mattias: No. Did you?
Fawkes: Yes, I watched it.
Mattias: And you liked it?
Fawkes: Am I still the one interviewing you? It pulled me into a half-shock, honestly.
Mattias: I can imagine that… But I haven't seen it.
Fawkes: Maybe you should see it?
Mattias: Maybe. As I said, I'm not religious. I couldn't say for sure.
Fawkes: Why not? How is it religious? I think it's about suffering and redemption and human pain, and where frailty and iniquity can lead us…
Mattias: But the story is based on the Bible! So it is a religious story.
Fawkes: Hmmm… OK, let it be a religious story. During the last holidays we had a celebration dedicated to the 59th anniversary of the defeat of Hitler's nazi regime. As a German, how do you feel about those pages of your country's history?
Mattias: (with gloom in his voice) It was a crime! It was the biggest crime that a country like Germany could commit. Moreover, it is the biggest crime that was ever committed. And I'm really pissed off about what went on from Germany during the First and the Second World Wars…
Fawkes: But I also know that nazi parties still exist in Germany…
Mattias: It's a shame! It's a shame for Germany. I know that this kind of party exists in all countries: in France, in Italy, in Scandinavia. They are restricted everywhere but they meet in secret places. It's a shame! People are too stupid to learn from history…
Fawkes: "What did we learn from history lessons? — How to sit quiet in the back of the class…" /M. Walkyeir (SKYCLAD)/ Thank you, Mattias! Hope to see MOB RULES here with a show!
Mattias: We also hope to visit moscow this time! Thank you for the interview! Bye-bye!