Photo Credit: Seike Clowniac
Swedish horror metallers Mister Misery are back and they are scarier than ever before, with their brand new album A Brighter Side Of Death. The band will have you hooked on their meld of old school rock ‘n’ roll, sleaze and aggressive modern metal, delivering a record that will keep you on your toes from start to finish. We caught up with the four-piece to discuss their formation, influences, ambitions and more.
Firstly, tell us a bit about yourself and your band. How did you form and how long have you been together?
Harley: Lead guitarist Alex and I met up in 2018, to form a childhood vision of a visual metal band, with gothic and horror influences that blends all styles of metal and hard rock. Now we’ve been together for three years approximately so we are fairly new in the scene!
Can you remember the first time you realised you wanted to make music?
H: When I saw Metallica play in San Francisco with the orchestra on DVD – by then I realised I wanted to do something similar!
Alex: I remember when I went to my first huge concert. It was Iron Maiden and I was like 12 – that made me realise that I was made to be up on the stages and play music too!
Rizzy: My parents are musicians and they were rehearsing when I was really small. I got the chance to test all the instruments in there and after I laid my hands on the drums this amazing feeling came to me. It was there I knew that this was the thing I wanted to do!
Alister: I remember watching Gene Simmons spitting blood in a KISS live concert we had on a DVD when I was a kid! Started building my own KISS shows in the living room, then I finally saw them live and was like… I’m gonna do this! Also my entire family are musicians!
Who and what are the band’s main influences?
H: We listen to everything, so it’s hard to say exact influences when it ranges from GnR to Arch Enemy.
Alex: There are a lot of bands we’ve grown up with, such as In Flames, GnR, Linkin Park, Black Veil Brides, Nightwish, Avenged Sevenfold etc. I guess they’ve all inspired our sound to some extent!
R: For me Nightwish was the one band that really hooked and inspired me. I think it was the big and epic sound with a lot of melodies that really made me in love with that genre. I wanted to be like them!
What do you aim to achieve as a band?
H: A place in the history of the alternative music scene that refers to us as entrepreneurs of the genre. We also obviously want to live very nicely off of the music one day and play as many countries as possible.
Alex: I guess what everyone wants – to make it. Play the huge shows and not being forced to rely on part time jobs to survive. But also to leave a mark in history and inspire others who want to go the same way we have.
Alister: Just like Harley said, to be remembered and leave a footprint behind in this genre and the world of music! Also of course living “that life”! Touring, playing sold-out shows worldwide, making a living of it!
R: I can only agree with the others! But also I want to inspire others to play music, to make them feel like they have purpose in life and to make them happy!
For those who are yet to see you live, what can they expect from a Mister Misery show?
H: They can expect a show full of energy and theatrics! We tend to go nuts on stage and we have pre-written dialogues together to make it feel like your watching a show in hell! We always give our best and never step on stage with the wrong mindset!
Alex: Roaring and tight dual lead guitars, a beast of a drummer climbing his drumkit, blood, screams and a lot of theatricals! We want to really bring a big show for our fans!
Alister: What the others said! Mostly, people should expect to not know what’s around the next corner…..
R: A crazy show with a lot of energy!
What’s next for Mister Misery?
H: We are releasing our second studio album on 23rd April and are rehearsing and promoting that during the pandemic!
Alex: There are a lot of plans, in which we hope will turn into a reality! Our second album drops the 23rd April, we are going to Russia for the first time in June, we’re hopefully playing some festivals this summer and gonna promote the new album as much as we can!
Mister Misery‘s new album A Brighter Side Of Death is out now via Arising Empire, available to stream or purchase HERE.
