· When you started with Zeromancer, was it just a hobby or was your goal to get signed and tour?
Music is all that matters. For me there is no backup plan. If ZMR makes it go around and I can keep living this life I'm happy. That's all I'm asking for. When we formed ZMR we were determined to get a deal asap. And it happened fast. We moved to LA in May 1999. Recorded a bedroom demo and got signed a week or two later. Major label in Germany for the whole of Europe. It was a killer start for the band.
· What inspired you to be a bassist in the first place?
I started playing bass when I was 17. And I think it all came from my fave bands at the time. The Cure. New Order. Simon Gallup and Peter Hook. The coolest bassplayers around. Bass down to the ankles and the high string playing. I just couldn't resist.
· Did you contact Cleopatra for a release of Eurotrash in the US, or did they contact you?
To be honest I really don't know. I remember we sent stuff around, but I'm not so sure Cleo got to us through that. We got more offers too, but the people at Cleo seemed genuinely interested, and it was an easy pick for us.
· Did you intend to sing a lot in the band, or was that someone else's idea?
It came naturally. Alex and me go way back. We have a common understanding. Usually we know instantly who's doing what lines and so on. Our voices back eachother up. We have a tendency to just add layers and layers of harmonies. Occasionally it just get to a point where it's too much and we have to strip it back down to just a single voice. He is of course the lead singer, but I love the way that we collaborate on the stuff. It's much like the situation in Depeche with Martin Gore writing the songs and Dave Gahan sings them. But still he leaves a few for himself every time. That sucker.
· Have you ever written a bass line that has ended up being played on the keyboards or vice-versa (a keyboard part being played on bass)?
Oh yeah. Happens all the time. I mean in the way we are working we experiment a lot with sounds and what was meant to be a vocal part suddenly works better as a guitar or a programmed trashy loop. There so much FX 's out there you can lay your hands on it's almost no end to the possibilities. I mean you could just get the files for a Britney album, and easily tweak it into an industrial ambient record.
· How long did you spend recording Eurotrash?
Forever. We spent like 6 months all together I think. We decided we wanted to do everything the opposite as we did it with the first album. Not because we weren't happy last time, just that we wanted a change in the working environment. Have lots of time, lots of space and produce the MF ourselves. Since what we wanted was to work together as a band over a long period, we rented these small houses, very much like cottages 2 hours outside of Oslo as a working base. Out in fucking nowhere. We did some touring too in between recordings, which made it possible to stay out in the wilderness for so long. Done it once. Never again. He He.
· What is your favorite song off of the album?
Dr. Online or Wannabe.
· How was the audience at the Hollywood release of Eurotrash in comparison with European crowds?
Oh you know. We didn't play or anything. We weren't even there. It was something that Cleopatra probably arranged so they could get wasted and listening to a cool album over the P.A. No, but we'd love to be there. Our first show with ZMR was actually at The Whiskey in LA back in 99. So far the one and only show we'd done in the US.
· Do you have any plans to tour the US?
For the time being there we have nothing booked. We are so to speak just starting up in the US, and we still have no booking agent to make it happen. But this is to change in the near future. Hopefully by early next year we could be out on the road again. And then hit it off with a serious North American leg. Nothing would please us more. ZMR loves to perform. And to get to do a tour in the US will be a reward well deserved I think. We've worked hard this three years, and to do well in the US has always been main priority.
· How long have you wanted to DJ (in reference to your DJing at John Dee in July)? How did it go?
The DJ gig was just a gag. Great fun though! It fucking rocked. I mean, what's more fun than playing your favorite stuff at ear splitting volumes in a packed club on a Saturday night. In Europe they don't really have a trend for playing other music than dance out at clubs So for me playing lots of heavy and industrial rock to fill up the floor, was really fucking cool.
· What are you future plans for the band; writing and recording, or touring?
I'm in studio right now. All the songs are written for the next album. And we are currently recording and programming at different locations. We will have it ready by December. Release can be as early as March or April. And with the release of Clone your lover, the first ZMR album later this fall, we might see a ZMR invasion in the US for the next 8 months.
· Is there anything I haven't asked about that you'd like your fans to know about you or the band?
Just that they should click on to our website, Zeromancer Zentral, to get to fully know us. Sign our guestbook and tell us to get the fuck out of Europe........for a while.