Sleaze, Glam, Rock and a totally adoration about Stryper, Motley Crue and 80's scene. Crashdiet fo yuo all!!!

Hi guys, let’s tell us your story so far. I know that u formed the band in 2000 but during the years u had some problems with the line up. Would u like to explain us what happened? Is there still someone of the original line-up? And do u know what are the ex-Crash Diet members doing? Do u still keep in contact?
Dave Lepard: I started this project back in 97 and wrote a couple of songs that is released now for example Crazy Nites and we played it with the first official line-up with Mary goore on guitar and mace kelly on bass and Tom bones on drums but they where into death metal and still plays in a deathband called Repugnant which kikks ass so due to internal issues in the band they left ,and happy happy me found the guys that is in the band rite now , and this is the true line-up of Crashdiet...
Martin Sweet: I don´t know the old guys that well.
Eric Young: The main cause for the split of “old” crash was as far as ive been told, just differences in what to make of crash diet, Some of the old dudes where in to a totally different way of planning and making of the band, so the seperating of the members was a fact.
London: I don't know the old guys but I wish them luck in the future and thanks for giving me the opportunity to join crashdiet....

If I don’t make a mistake some songs of your last selftitled 7 tracks demo should be some old ones that u remixed during the year. Why did u do that and which are the new releases?
Dave Lepard: Well for starters we played with the first line-up Miss pain and gimme what i need and california white and those songs are still goin`strong so we havnt really done so much changes except a few solo diffs during the last year..the rest of the tunes is new and fullfilling the purpose to complete this first set of release...
Martin Sweet: Since the old recordings where never released, we felt it was time to do so. And some re-arangements were done to lift up them to new hights. One of the new songs “Roit in everyone” actually it was written e few years ago by me, and then Dave added som riffz and vocals to it. The first Sweet/Lepard C/O-written song!
Eric Young: The re-mixing was mostly because of the new band and sound that we had to offer. Old recordings are great but, we hold a new and more deadly line-up so we just wanted to show the “true” sound of “new“ Crash Diet! The new release is, “Riot in everyone”, its a kickass song written by Dave n` Sweet and it'll make ju swing!!

“Gimme What I Need”, “Out Of Line” and “Riot In Everywhere” make me think to some 80’s European hard rock bands like TNT and Europe, or Riot in “Fire Down Under”. A version of them without Keys . What do u think about that?
Dave Lepard: Personally i dont think it resembles to any of the bands above in direct terms, more then to some various riffs perhaps and maybe "Riot`s Thunder steel" should be better to refeer to but all thou we take influences from all the bands so in one way or another we`re a milkshake of `em all....
Martin Sweet: Hmm, I don´t don´t think I can agree with ya there... Europe?
Eric Young: Well, that is totally up to everyone and other, personally i think we sound like we do.
London: I don't think it's neccesarily to refer and compare our music to anything at all, it's just a question if you like the way we sound or not. We try to be as original as we can be but it's difficult today when pretty much everything already has been done. Our goal is to just do it even better hahaha....

Your look and the chorus in “Queen Obscene” or the bursting intro of “Miss Pain” make me suppose that u love Tigertailz, The Motley Crue and more generally speaking the Glam Sleaze Metal of the 80’s. Do u agree?
Dave Lepard: Yeah!!! Thats rite i love the glitter-gutter nasty hair doos combined rippin guitar screechin`and balls bustin 80`s sleaze glam shit the most, and in particular on the Queen obscene chorus youll hear all the bands above in a Crashdiet blender tryin to grip the best scene ever....
Martin Sweet: Totally! Don´t forget Stryper!!
Eric Young: Yeah man, you hit the spot right there. Ofcourse were not out to sound like Tigertailz n´ Mötley Crüe, but we just try to get our music out for the world to hear, and if someone hears Mötley crüe or Tigertailz in it, its just cool.
London: Of course. The look and sound of the 80's glam/sleaze bands kills that's for sure....

I find that your 7-tracks demo has been realised with good techniques and have a deep impact, but I think that your look does not reflect your sound at 100%. Don’t u think that the audience could be confused by this? Do u think that it’s not the cowl to make the monk? How deceiving can appearances be?
Dave Lepard: For me the looks is just a part of me and the music dont comes from the way we look . so these days who can be decieved by the way anybody looks ...even thou we dresses up like girls one day dosnt mean that we wont look like gutter punks the other.....
Martin Sweet: I don´t agree with u there either.. People get what they want, don´t they?
Eric Young: The thing is that, music, as we play it is not to be expected as one particular “kind” of image rockers. We play what we play, we dress as we please and if people dont think it fits our image, so be it.
London: Well. My look is not an image, I'm just wearing the dirty clothes I happen to find on my floor every morning and I don't care that much... I think most people would get confused whatever we would sound like.

Dave u have a shrill high voice of a very good range that can make people remember King Diamond, but in my opinion it is more similar to the one of Tony Hansen (TNT singer) in “Knights of the Thunder”(’84)! Do u like this vocalist? Which were the singers that influenced u the most?
Dave Lepard: Thank man i havn't been compared to Mr.Hansen before but i like him alot his a great vocalist, my influences during the years must have been mostly from Sebastian bach and later on by Michael Sweet but im a huge GG Allin fan so i guess that fuckes up the credability of my influencal list....but im just tryin to scream my lungs out as much as i can and hopefully it will be better progressivly....

Let’s do some advertising: what is your favourite brand of make up? Is there any shop in particular where u find the stuff u use to make your look so original?
Martin Sweet: (laugh)... I always borrow!
Dave Lepard:: I buy all my make up on a store called KICKS and H&M and MAKE-UP STORE everything that is bright and fresh and colorful that makes me look like a girl i like the most...
London: Well I don't think our look is that original... we use the same kind of makeup every little girl does the only difference is that we actually are men wearing it.But I buy my stuff on H&M and Make-up store. Actually I get Isadora stuff for free so I'm using that alot, even though I'd never go out and pay for that shit.

Many Swedish girls I meet on ICQ seem to appreciate u, also physically I mean. So I suppose u should have a terrific success with women. Why don’t u write down a brief chapter of “Crah Diet - The Dirt” talking about some experience with groupies…I believe it’s one of the most exciting side of being a rocker!
Martin Sweet: Well... I´ll let Dave do the talking there...
Dave Lepard: Well that would be a nice way to put your self on the spot with the girls over here... But on the last gig a girl came up to me after the show and gave me the worst kinda lap dance you would ever see in the dressing room and i was shit drunk and puked on her shoes and took her money bought me some more beer and went home with another chick that didnt knew how to dance as well, but a great bedtime storie haha...in the morning i got breakfeast in bed with her head under the cover and i snuck out when she was takin a shower...
London: People tell me I have a tail of girls after me when I'm visiting our local rockclubs. Personally I'm not much into this groupie thing as I don't think they have thatmuch to offer in most cases.

Let’s talk about Italian girls: what do u think about them and what would u do or say to convince them to follow u in the backstage?
Martin Sweet: I don´t have to say anything..
Eric Young: I usually show my dick, and just because they feel sorry for me n' dont wanna break my heart they often follow. (laugh)
Dave Lepard: I havnt had the opportunity to meat any italian girls yet but im sure they are great and i cant wait to meet them... If they need to be convinced to follow backstage then we havnt been cute enough or playd a real shitty gig so then i guess the charm of an ass-hole must get going... But i reckon the girls will come along anyway. (laugh)
London: I'd show my dick and they would hopefully go home and I could concentrate on my drinking session with my boys.

What do u do before performing on-stage? Do u use to act some particular ritual or there’s some particular object u like to sqeeze? Are u superstitious?
Martin Sweet: We pray to Michael Sweet every night!
Eric Young: Well, some sacrifing of chickens n' rats never hurt.
Dave Lepard: Drinks alot of beer and say our prayers to Michael sweet of stryper to come rescue us from all the bad things that might occur, such as playin wrong and sing out o key... But some how he dosnt listen coz thats just what we`re doing... (laugh)
London: Maybe we still have something to learn here as Michael Sweet refuses to listen to our prayers.

We’d like to know your favourite: drink, record and pornostar.
Martin Sweet: Gin & tonic, Britney Spears “Baby one more time”, Amber Michaels - “Azz Worship”.
Eric Young: Beer, Motley-Too fast for love, Peter London!
Dave Lepard: Moonshine & California White, Brutality & Bloodshed For All (GG Allin), Kasha the old slut...
London: Beer, Guns n' roses - Appetite for destruction, myself.

Add an adjective or a brief description to the following men, girls or elements of the list below:

Mick Mars
Dave Lepard: The beauty and the beast of all times..
Martin Sweet: Better than Hendrix!
Eric Young: Kick ass guy
London: A rock n' roll icon!!! My favourite member of Motley crue.

Backyard Babies
Martin Sweet: I like them.. But I hate their “wannabe attitude”.
Eric Young: Backyard who?
Dave Lepard: Dont know what that is...
London: Rock n' roll music with a lack of attitude (Can't be good)

Lemmy Killmister
Martin Sweet: God of warts. Amazing that he´s alive...
Eric Young: Man he's ugly.
Dave Lepard: Should have stoped writing music after sacrifice...
London: Scary guy.

Ozzy Osbourne
Martin Sweet: Amazing he was alive in 1985!
Eric Young: Hate his wife.
Dave Lepard: I’m starting to walk like him...
London: He shouldn't let his daughter release records.

Ferrari
Martin Sweet: Nothing comes to my mind.
Eric Young: I know! Nice isnt it? I got it last year.
Dave Lepard: Lola Ferarri is my mother & the i havn't tryed the car...
London: ?

Jennyfer Star (Swindle A Go-Go)
Martin Sweet: A good chic!
Eric Young: Best chic-guitarist around!
Dave Lepard: I`ve tryed her... (laugh)
London: I'm her dog. A great girl!!

The craziest thing u’ve ever done in your life...
Martin Sweet: I´m a christian rocker, I don´t do crazy stuff!!
Eric Young: I guess if i have to pick one, it would be this time when i was all nice n' liquored up (as usuall) had this crasy idea of sitting my ass down right in the middle of a highway to drink, i thougt, "o well, there arent no tire-tracks here i the middle so that must mean that the cars dont drive here, just a meter or two to the right n left, right guys?" Funny how sane u get when u drink.
Dave Lepard: When i woke up in NYC so fukked up in the head whit a six pack o`swedish light beers and 5000$ with a friend of mine... That was totally insane we didnt even remember how we got there but we apparently been on a 6 hour flight from sweden to NYC during the night... (laugh)
London: It's too sick to write here and I don't want people to think I'm proud of it and bragging about it so I'm keeping it to myself. However I can promise there is no lack of crazyness here....

What’s in Crash Diet’s future? Do u already have some new materials or particular plans?
Martin Sweet: Who knows whats the future says
Eric Young: Right now were pretty much in a "planing" stage. Geting ready to qounqer the world!
Dave Lepard: Hopefully some good deal will come up soon, we have already been fukkin around with some labels but we need a better deal to be able to reach out to the masses fo the world... i guess we will try to record as much as possible this fall and winter so that we have loads of more material to pick out from when we shall release the first album...
London: Have we ever really planned anything?

Since Italian girls have already been warned, I suggest to end up this way: let’s greet with some of your particular sayings or some pearl of pure sleazy philosophy signed Crash Diet!
Martin Sweet: Fikk the world, Hail & kill, Shout at the devil, In god we trust!
Eric Young: Hope to see you gals soon and stay tuned for some action!
London: Just be true to yourself and wait nicely it's soon your turn to ride the crashdiet rollercoster...
Dave Lepard:"Sotto Vocce Primadonna Parmigiano" ....we`ll be coming to your beutiful country very soon i hope and then if you bake me pizza and practice your french kisses you can feed the starving Lepardman when he arrives.....Cheers Italy you rock!!!

Intervista realizzata da Bruno Rossi.
Traduzioni realizzate da Tony Aramini.
All photos taken by Eliana Ivarsdotter Haddad.