Enemies Swe have recently published the single "Enemy" under Plug Or Die Records. I've been really positively impressed by the great impact of their sound and I've soon contacted the lead voice Rickard "Ricki" Andersson to know something more about this new Scandinavian creature! Well Exploders, I'm sure that these guys will catch the world with their dirty energetic rock'n'roll, but also able to capture listeners with its sweet melodic refrains. Check it out!

Hi Rickard, we're very pleased to have you here on The Rock Explosion to ask something about you. How and when did you meet and decide to form the band? Why did you change your monicker from The Enemies to Enemies Swe?
The band was formed 2001. Our first name was Sludgebucket, then we changed it to The Enemies. After a while a punkband from California tried to put us into lawsuit and stuff, so we changed it to Enemies Swe.

Your single "Enemy" seems to take the style of 80's artists as: Faster Pussycat, Motley Crue, Alice Cooper, Shotgun Messiah, etc. in the 21° Century, with a modern touch. You remember me other present bands as: Gemini Five, Beautiful Creatures, etc.. Do you agree with my opinion? In general, which bands of the past did influence you deeply, since the beginning of your career?
We don´t agree that we sound like Gemini Five and Beautiful Creatures. If you listen to our full length album you´ll hear that we are harder and heavier than other bands in the genre of glam rock ´n roll. It sounds like a mix between Appetite for destruction with a spice of Back in Black. First I would say Shotgun Messiah. They were friends from our hometown. I saw them as a kid on their first gig in Skövde 1982 (as the group Shylock, later KingPin, later again as Shotgun Messiah). My first impression of these guys is the reason why I am into this today. I really looked up to this band and I still do. I saw Tim Skold with Manson in Stockholm on December 2003, that´s big for a smalltown guy from Skövde (Sweden). Other influences: Kiss, Ac/Dc, G N R, Sex Pistols, Circus of Power, The Four Horsmen, Mötley Crue and many more. You can do the influence list very long, because we are collecting records of the giants of the 70's and 80's all the time. You always find something new that haven't heard of before.

Why did you choose to record Alice Cooper's cover "Is It My Body" and not other songs of the same artist? Why you particularly like it?
We like that song very much and we think that no other band has done a cover of that song before us. I think this song has little bit of weirdness, and the lyric too. We recorded the instruments as a live session, to get the right groove and we did the vocals after. I think it ended up in a pretty good version.
Last weekend we were at the Alice Cooper concert (Metaltown) in Gothenburg and gave him one copy of the single. He hasn't called us yet to ask us to open up for him on his next world tour. (laughs)

Generally, where do you take the inspiration for your songs from? What's the songwriting process that you use the most?
Mostly from life, movies and other stuff. We try to gather the song with the lyric and we see that the melodies always are the most important cornerstones in our songs. We want our songs to be direct. We try to jam a lot of ideas and put it together. It´s a long process. For this debut album we wrote and "demoed" 45 songs, so we are very creative. We know it´s a long way to the top... So we gotta work hard to be the worlds´ new supergroup.

How did you reach the deal with new Swedish label Plug Or Die Records? Please, tell us about the positive aspects in your work relations with this label...
A producer sent a demo to the label and we were contracted immediately. We have an give-and take-relation with the company. We are in the same boat so we have to cooperate to achieve the best result.

What's in the future of Enemies Swe? What about your first full length debut album? Can you do some anticipations about it?
We´ll release the album in August and we´re gonna play some festivals this summer. We know that it´s gonna be a killer, and we´re gonna let our music do the talking for us. We haven´t decided the title of the album yet, and same with the artwork and song titles.

I know that you recorded Sex Pistols cover "Anarchy in the U.K." for the soundtrack of an upcoming Norwegian movie! Tell us more about it...
The director of the movie had heard of us, so he asked us to record the song. And so we did. We tried to play it like the original and it sounds very ´77 in a British, "Cocknish" way. It would be fun to release it in the future as a B-side single or something. We don´t know if the movie is financed yet.

Which have been the most difficult moments of your career and which ones have been the best?
We use to say it´s been heaven and hell and a whole lotta fun to play in this band. It´s always difficult to be five band members but we always agree in the end. The best thing to be in the band is that we are very focused on our career. We know that we must create good music to get anywhere with this band. It´s hard work all the way through.

Now is time to questions about life on the road, I know that you played with international acts as: The Hellacopters, Backyard Babies, Entombed and Hardcore Superstar! Can you tell us something weird or particularly memorable occurred during one of your gigs?
You can call Hardcore Superstar and ask them about the 25.000 SKR bill from the hotel they were staying at... Some of the members of Enemies were there too, but they didn´t do anything, (laughs). Hardcore Superstar are good friends to us, they always give us a helping hand. We like them a lot. And wish them luck with everything after their break. We have only good things to say about the other Swedish bands you mentioned. We think they are the one's who put Swedish music on the musical world map. We have a lot to thank these bands for. They have opened many doors for other Swedish bands.

What do you usually do before going on stage? Do you have any particular usage or kind of spell against bad luck?
We eat iron and shit chains before going on stage (swenglish). We don´t do anything particular.

Is there any band on today's rock scene that you particularly admire for some reason and would like to cooperate or share the stage with? Viceversa is there any band you particularly dislike? Please, be nasty'n'true guys...
Hellacopters is one of the best live acts from Sweden, and it would be nice to tour with them. I don't think that no one of us like the Swedish pop scene today. I don´t like Gene Simmons anymore after reading his book. I think he´s an old, greedy money-making asshole who has forgotten what Rock n´roll is all about.

What's your habitual instrumentation in studio and on the stage? Is there some brand in particular you love the most to use?
The heart in our sound is: Gretsch drums, Marshall and Laney amps (hotted by Tommy Folkesson) and Gibson Les Paul guitars. It makes our sound heavier than many other bands in the genre.

Which are the most singular craziest things happened during your way to rock? Can you tell us about these mad experiences or can you tell us some anectode?
We were opening for Hellacopters at Kalas, I was screaming to the audience " Move your fat disgusting bodies between every song". I've heard that Nicke and the Copterboys were laughing a lot about my "Peptalk" to the audience. At the same concert, Bevis, the Bassplayer was screaming to me on the stage that his Bass-amp was burning. And I said "Easy Boy, It's just stagesmoke coming from behind your amp!"

I know you're fond of tattoos. Why do you like this kind of physical decoration? And which is the tattoo you fell deeper linked too?
All of them, but I think "Bevis" Enemy tattoo is a cool description of our image. Tattoos are like drugs, it´s easy to get addicted to them. The skin is like a puzzle you never ever will finish.

What's your opinion about internet and about exchanging music on-line, sharing mp3 files and so on? Which are the best and the worst aspects of the net?
It doesn't bother us. We know our fans gonna buy our album. It's too good to be downloaded.

Fav pornstar, drink and your personal top 5 albums of all times...
Don't need porno to get it on. I drink water. Fav albums, in order: Guns'n'Rises with "Appetite For Destruction", Ac/Dc with "Back In Black", Kiss with "Rock 'n' Roll Over", Black Crowes with "Shake That Moneymaker", Sex Pistols with " Never Mind The Bollocks"!

Choose one between these "be or not to be" options...
Nu-glam or old glam: Old!
Making enemies is good or making friends is good: Friends of course!
Silicon tits or natural tits: Natural.
Drugs or sex: Sex.
Everybody hates you when you love rock'n'roll or girls love you when you love rock'n'roll: I love when the girls love me, that's for sure.
Sweet dreams or hard fuckin' reality: Sweet dreams!
Live fast die young or live fast die old enough to bury your enemies one by one: I'm not that young anymore, so I have to bury my enemies if I have some.
Kings of sleaze or perverted queens: Kings of sleaze!
Jeans and t-shirt or chains and leather: Both, I can't choose between these options.

Ok we've almost finished. I thank for this interview…Would you like to say something to The Rock Explosion readers?
You gotta support Enemies Swe for your own sake! Enemies Swe will not disappoint you! We go behind the enemy lines and take no prisoners! See you on tour!!!

Intervista realizzata da Bruno Rossi
Traduzione di Margherita Realmonte