Cool interview indeed. Highlights as I was watching:
- Nordstrom started off with HammerFall and Ceremonial Oath (which he basically calls In Flames). Says they brought in some reference records but Nordstrom told them to get rid of them as they were better than the reference records anyway.
- He didn't understand what these bands were doing at first, as everything was so unstructured.
- Becoming recognised internationally came after he produced ATG's 'Slaughter of the Soul'. He says that the people in these bands (IF, DT, ATG, etc) were all friends and says they were from an affluent area of southern Gothenberg.
- At the time (around 1994/1995) Nordstrom was going through a divorce and basically hyper-focused on work. He says people from abroad started to get in touch, and he didn't understand anything, unaware of why bands would be so interested in him as a producer based on Terminal Spirit Disease and SotS.
- Says ATG preferred his more laid back style, where they'd chill out "hippie style" in the studio and smoke, drink, etc. Says the studio they used for The red Sky is Ours was more strict - they had to pay for the coffee and weren't allowed to smoke.
- Nordstrom notes that he smoked back then, but stopped after he had children as he didn't think it was good for them to have cigarette smoke in the apartment. They originally started smoking in other areas but then decided it wasn't worth the hassle and stopped completely. He starting snusing and still does that.
-After SotS he had a lot more work from all over the world, but got kicked out of the original studio they were working in. He says that was actually his second studio - the first studio was a studio he used to record pop music, and that was the studio the first part of Lunar Strain was recorded in. The rest was recorded in this second studio.
- He then bought a much bigger studio in the city centre. This studio was bought in collaboration with In Flames - although Nordstrom specifies this was only Anders at the beginning. He later moved more out to a smaller studio the countryside, because the whole market turned around and nobody was recording in studios anymore, everyone was recording from home instead, so it seemed unnecessary to have a huge studio. In Flames bought the entirety of the studio he shared with them, which became "Studio IF", and he moved to the countryside in a smaller studio. Mentions Dimmu Borgir, Arch Enemy and Opeth recording at the big studio before he moved. Says that these kinds of bands came to them simply because they liked what they heard from his productions of other bands.
- His new studio was an old bank he converted into a space which was maining for mixing rather than recording. There was a small soundproof bank vault which became a recording area. He says that then things turned around again and suddenly everyone wanted to record at the studio again. He isn't sure why. He mentions recording a record for Nicolas Cage's son, which he rented a studio for (I assume this was Eyes of Noctum). He ended up selling the countryside studio and moving back to the city centre, which he preferred.
- He says recording with Cage's son was an "experience" with bodyguards and mercedes everywhere. Originally he was going to have a trainee produce the record as he assumed they were just a basement band, but it ended up being more than this, so he ended up taking on the project. He says Cage's son was a nice guy, but Nicolas never came to the studio - Fredrik only spoke with him on the phone.
- He doesn't like how songs sound on Spotify, and says that it doesn't capture how the music should sound. He prefers Tidal or actual CDs for sound quality. He also notes that Spotify's influence as a platform reduced recording budgets for bands, so often they would do something like drums in studio, then everything else from home. He's then hired to mix the record based on those recordings. He cites that this leads to a lack of control, without a clear vision from the producer throughout the recording process. He says it can be tricky to fix things when the recording quality isn't very good, but as long as the band is happy at the end then so is he.
- Calls Mikael Åkerfeldt a good guitarist and a singer, smart guy with an interesting taste in music.
- Talks a bit about recording with an orchestra for Dimmu Borgir in Prague for Death Cult Armageddeon, Fredrik says it was an awesome experience. Notes he had to explain things as certain points because the sound engineer didn't always understand. There was some disagreement between Nordstrom and Dimmu on where the orchestra should be placed for a 'metal' production, but Nordstrom's idea was ultimately approved with the backing of the most experienced member of the orchestra. Says it only took one and a half days to record the orchestra parts. He got goosebumps from the opening to Progenies of the Great Apocalypse, and he knew the record was going to be great from the beginning.
- They talk about Bring Me the Horizon, but who cares about that. Does note that they liked and wanted to emulate the Gothenberg sound early on in their career. He talks about Architects and says he was going to 'give it up' if the record they recorded with him wasn't successful, due to how good it was.
- He mentions working on HammertFall's next album, and he'll be producing Obscura's next album in the summer.
- He says that he's more confident these days with the amount of experience he has, whereas in the earlier days he was never satisfied and worried about whether the record was good or not. He does still get anxious, but not to the extent he did back then. He notes that it was his commitment to his work that caused the divorce from his first wife. He says that in the early days when he had his first studio, he worked so much that he ended up in hospital with heart palpatitions. He says back then he was working 17-18 hours a day, 7 days a week, so that he could raise enough money to build the second studio. This went on for a few years before he ended up in hospital and at that point had to calm down a bit. He also says he developed a panic disorder, and says things like this and general anxiety are very common in creative musicians. He says he knows whole bands who have panic disorders. He thinks it comes from never being satisfied with what you do, and focusing on super small details.
- Fredrik says that now he's older he takes more breaks, but even on vacation he'll work an hour a day on mixing.
- He talks a bit about Gus G. He met Gus in Greece and then Gus came over to Sweden, but they couldn't find him a band and even struggling advertising guitar lessons for him to earn some money. He says they decided to just start a band together instead (Dream Evil). After the second DE album Gus got a sponsorship with ESP, and now in the same store where nobody was interested in Gus' guitar lessons, his signature guitar was displayed. He says Gus got his own band and a gig with Ozzy, then moved back to Greece, and it was awkward at this point to record with him, which is why Gus left Dream Evil.
- They talk a bit about the equipment used, which I don't care about, but if you are interested it's about 30 minutes in.
- They talk a bit about Dream Evil. He says that he was told getting a big advance from the record company is the most important thing, as it means they will then work on advertising your band to get their money back. That's how they got going with Dream Evil on Century Media, as he says in adverts they would be immediately placed alongside bands like Arch Enemy, which aided in perception. he compares a record deal nowadays to a "very bad bank loan" and says that bands should look to make money outside of record labels if at all possible. He says a band is a business and needs to be run accordingly. He notes that recording the album is far less expensive than touring, merch, etc.
- He says DE's second album (Evilized) was recorded from start to finish in just 23 days, and says he was a "rotten apple" during the process, which I assume means he wasn't in a great mood. He says he mixes quite fast these days, but that comes from experience and practice.
- Touring with HammerFall after Evilized was released was a good experience, but the smell on the bus was horrible. He says the sound guy had monstrous foot sweat. He says there will be more Dream Evil tours, and they are have finished recording and mixing a new album which will be released on Century Media within the next 6-12 months (from whenever this interview was recorded). He says he doesn't make music for money, but for fun, and that a tour is likely after the new album is released.
- He's asked his opinion on the tightest drummer he recorded with, mentions Anders Johansoon and David Wallen. Also Nils Fjellström.
- He says that in the beginning metal was underground, and he once sat down with In Flames and they wondered when songs with growls will be played on the radio. He said it'd be 20 years, and suggests that was about right as 20 years later they were playing In Flames on Swedish national radio. He says that as soon as a band signs a deal with a record company they are commercial, as at that point it becomes a business.
- Interestingly, he says the entire Clayman album was purposefully rearranged with a "pop" concept, different from their previous albums. The songs were designed with less "Opeth parts" and instead intro, verse, chorus and so on, ideally around three minutes long. He says it went well, but not all music should be like that.
- He thinks music in general is more commercial today, but that an anti-commercial subculture that wants something different will always be there. He says that whilst on a technical level it's far easier to record and mix today, the fundementals of what a band needs to be successful is essentially the same.
Overall a really cool interview, although it doesn't go too in-depth on anything specifically. There isn't a great deal of IF specific stuff in there, but some interesting information:
- Parts of LS being recorded at two different studios.
- People from the Gothenberg scene coming from an 'affluent' area. Explains how Anders in particular was able to own a studio at such a young age with In Flames yet to make any real money.
- Clayman being purposefully recorded as a 'pop' style record compared to previous albums.
