Interviews: Sterbhaus

On this new occasion, we had the opportunity to interview the Metal band Sterbhaus, from Sweden. Check out the interview and follow this band on their FACEBOOK PAGE. 

1. Where did you get the idea for the band name? You planned it or came out just like that? 

We had just started the band in 2007, but didn’t have a name yet. I then happened to buy an apartment in which the previous owner had died – making it a “sterbhus” in Swedish – which is in fact a half-borrowed word from German. The “hus” didn’t sit quite right with me, so I changed it to “haus, “ seeing as it was already kind of German. And we went with that because it sounded original and pretty heavy.

2. Why did you want to play this genre? 

Well, initially, there was a decision made by the three founding members (which don’t actually include me) to play Gothenburg Death Metal like At the Gates. When those members quit or were fired, we slowly moved away from that. But since then, there has been no active choice made on what to play. The reason we play the genre we do today is probably the same as why anyone takes a shit every now and then, or stuffs their face with food when they’re hungry. It’s what comes to us completely by nature, which is the only way to do it really. We write stuff we love, and since the main songwriters today (Jimmy and I) listen to quite a lot of different stuff, the music in itself reflects that. We’re also quite easy-going when it comes to personalities – even though heavily passionate, and that’s where the humor comes in. We like to have a good laugh most all the time, so that finds itself in the music ofc.

3. Did you know each other before the band was formed? 

I guess we got to know each other due to situations related to the band in one way or another. Jimmy used to go to Sterbhaus shows when we were in the demo stages, and it turned out he was better at playing guitar than anyone we knew, so when he joined, I guess we started to get to know each other from then. Erik was always in the periphery of the band with whatever musical activities he was involved with prior to his joining as well. We weren’t childhood buddies. We come from different backgrounds and to some extent different generations.

4. Each band member's favourite band?

I’m going to speak for the rest here as well, so I hope I get it right. Jimmy's fav would be Opeth, Erik's would be Death, and mine (Marcus) would be Marillion (post Fish). Quite a surprise, eh? 

5. Who or what inspires you to write songs? 

The riff, the creativity in itself, and the fact that it’s in our blood. Regarding inspiration in general, I think we moved away from anything like that a long time ago. We draw every ounce of inspiration and creativity from ourselves and from the material and song itself. So when you come up with something, either together or alone, you let that material decide what’s going to be created. But the odd, poor joke from American Dad or Futurama can always find its way into Sterbhaus somehow.

6. Where was your last gig?

Hmm… I have to struggle to remember here, because we’ve been completely dormant when it comes to live shows for quite a few years now, and I played a lot with Shining during that time. I used to keep good track of this on our websites, but it’s kind of fallen out of memory a bit. I believe it might have been Berlin. It was a small festival and we got rushed out pretty early, unfortunately, due to shuttle situations, which meant we couldn’t hang out too much with the crowd. Which sucks, ofc – not the hanging out, but that we couldn’t do it. It was either that or another German show where we actually got to meet the legend Harris Johns without realizing who it was. That dude produced most all the legendary German stuff for Noise Records back in the day.

7. Where would you like to act? 

If we toy with the idea that we were still playing live, then most every larger festival would ofc be awesome. I’d love to play most everywhere – if we’ve played there before or if it’s new, it doesn’t really matter. It’s all in the meeting with other Metal heads for me. I’ve toured the USA twice, and I know it’s on most people's bucket list, but from my experience, you get treated pretty badly as an artist, so that isn’t something I’m itching for atm.

8. Whom would you like to feature with?

Any band that would have a fanbase that would love us! Because essentially that’s what you’re after! And who’re also genuinely good to hang with. I’ve toured a lot with both Sterbhaus and Shining and know that a trip can be absolutely fantastic and also rather tedious if the social thing doesn’t work properly.  

9. Whom not? 

Disturbed. Signing bombs soon to be dropped on people can be about the most brain-dead thing a musician has ever done.

10. Have any of you ever suffered from stage fright? Any tips for beginners on how to beat that?

No, I don’t think so. I think maybe in the beginning you’re extremely nervous and that causes your muscles in your hands to seize up a bit, and the best way to try to prevent that is warming up -and playing more often! My only advice would be to know your shit / be on top of your game. Warm up before the show and go through mentally what you expect of yourself and the show. Be self-critical and deal with stuff that doesn’t seem to work. It’s not a failure – but a learning curve. It’s actually quite a lot about building your self-confidence as a performer, and if you know you’re stuff, you should be able to do your show.

11. What bands have inspired you the most?

Oh, that’s impossible to say… And to be honest, name-dropping other bands is not a good way to communicate for us. It’s going to be misleading anyway because the stuff we listen to changes and sounds very little like Sterbhaus.

12. What's the weirdest thing a fan has ever asked you for?

I’m sorry, but I don’t think I have a good example. NOTHING is weird to us! – haha! Playing in the far north of England at the end of the Shining support tour in 2013, and having a dude in a dreadfully small and tight women's thong having a moshpit with his two buddies does spring to mind, though. It wasn’t something he said – more a fear from my part that the thong would snap.

13. What do you think of your fans?

I have a hard time using the term “fans”, because hanging out with the people who attend our shows or buy our stuff is about hanging out with fellow metalheads to me. I find we’re all equals if we love the same thing. We’ve always hung out with the crowd before and after shows and never sit moping backstage, really. So yeah… We love hanging with our fans. It’s so much about a community for me, even though Metal is accepted these days in mainstream, and that community is getting weaker due to that.

14. What do you think of our site?

I’m afraid I wasn’t too aware of your site before this interview, but I like how you present bands and give them space in presentations. That’s a great initiative!

15. Something to add?

Yeah! Thanks for the chat and to whoever reads this, I strongly recommend checking out our back catalogue if you find the new stuff interesting! There’s a reason we call our craft “timeless”, and you’re sure to love our weird videos!