Sweden's Hazemaze has tantalized the ears of the heavy underground since their 2018 self-titled debut. Since then, they have released two more incredible albums, culminating with this year's Blinded by the Wicked, an album that will surely be on many lists for best of the year. Combining the riffs of 70s rock and roll (think Iommi meets Swedish proto-metal) with occult lyrics, Hazemaze is among the flag bearers of the standard of stoner doom. This week, I spoke with guitarist Ludvig Andersson about the history of the band, guitars, Swedish rock in the 1970s, and more.
First of all, thanks for doing this interview, Ludvig. Let's start with a little bit of your own history and the history of the band. How did Hazemaze come together? Were you writing these songs on your own and put together a band or was this a longstanding project with friends? How did you meet and what do you think makes you guys work so perfectly together?
It started in april of 2016 when Estefan had heard me and a friend of mine jam in the rehearsal room next door to him and Nils. After that he contacted me and was wondering if I would like to come and play guitar with them in a garage rock kinda band. I said yes. We played for a couple of months rehearsing and trying to put together songs and did a gig in June, but we weren't satisfied with the sound so we tuned down and tried to write heavier songs. One thing led to another and now we are here, tuned down to C standard haha. What makes us work together is the fact that we've become so close that we can call each others' bullshit, plain and simple in my opinion. We have good conversations and we respect each other as well, as much as we can...
What are some of the bands that influenced the sound that we hear on your albums? Do you find that different bands influence the sound differently on each album? Do you avoid listening to other bands when you're writing so as not to have too much influence?
I think that the ideas come at the spur of the moment for all of us when we write. Almost all our songs have started with one of us coming with a riff to the rehearsal and then we take it from there. When it comes to our influences it's a mix of a lot of bands since we have all different backgrounds in music. My playing is rooted in 70's rock for example.
Let's talk about lyrical themes. What are you trying to say to your audience with Blinded by the Wicked? To my ears, there are a lot of dark and occult influences but sometimes those are used to discuss other subjects much like Black Sabbath did when they were really talking about war, for example.
All the lyrics on Blinded by the Wicked are about different cults and their leaders. Since we write the music first and the lyrics later we try to feel what the music is all about. This time the music was dark and eerie, like the eyes of Charles Manson and Marcus Wesson for example.
How important are specific guitars and amps to your sound? Are you somewhat of a gearhead? What kind of gear did you use on the album?
The short answer is, yes. In my opinion the guitar and gear matters, but I'll elaborate just for you, Blake. On this album I used my 1977 Marshall JMP 50w head through my open back Marshall 2x12 creamback/greenback cabinet. On the pedalboard I used a Vox wah, BCC Iommi Treble Boost, MXR carbon copy, and a TC Electronics Hall of Fame Reverb. It's a pretty basic board but it does the thing for this music. The guitar on Blinded by the Wicked is a Burny SG Custom from 1974-75 with a Lundgrens dog ear P90 pickup in the bridge. The neck pickup is stock.
One of my favorite questions to ask an artist is what makes a good riff or a good song. What catches your ear the most about a riff or a song, whether it's your own or someone else's?
I'd say it's a gut feeling. When a riff moves it moves, so to say.
You and I have talked a lot privately about Swedish rock from the 70s. I don't understand how a lot of the music you've shown me didn't get bigger across the world. What are some of the bands you enjoy the most? How have they influenced you? Which bands do you think the readers of the Ripple Effect would enjoy and why?
November, Trettioåriga Kriget, Made in Sweden, Vatten, Wasa Express and Nationalteatern are some great old Swedish bands that everyone should check out. The fun and experimental sound that these bands created is what intrigues me the most. I believe that it has had an impact on my own writing.
With the pandemic seemingly easing back and live music making a return, Hazemaze has been taking the stage. What makes the Hazemaze live experience special? Do you pull out any special songs for the setlist that might be a surprise or do you stick to material from your albums?
We always give it all on stage - that is a rule. No use being on stage if you are not going to perform. In that regard we might pull out a cover now and then. Who doesn't like a bit of Sabbath?!
What does the future hold for Hazemaze? What are your plans moving forward? Are you planning a tour of Europe/America? Are you already working on your next album?
We are laying low for the moment, tending to our families and other projects. But we have some dates in June and are planning some dates for the fall. No real touring in the works though.
