Aeon

Once again I’m proud to bring to you, readers, another Scandinavian band. Coming from Östersund, Sweden, Aeon is a Death Metal band that’s been on the scene since 1999. Their line up is formed by Tommy Dahlström (vocals), Sebastian “Zeb” Nilsson (lead guitar/backing vocals), Daniel Dlimi (rhythm guitar), Marcus Edvardsson (bass) and Arttu Malkki (drums).

Aeon’s discography consists on the demo/EP “Dark Order” (2001) – so remarkable that even nowadays people asks for it – plus three albums: “Bleeding the False” (2005), “Rise to Dominate” (2007) and the most recent, “Path of Fire” (2010).

Polemic but talented for sure, Aeon has developed its own style of Death Metal featuring fast playing, heavy bass, powerful guttural vocals, killer guitars and rhythmical double kick drums. Some members replacement have been done since the beginning , just like most of the bands , however, Aeon has now a consistent line up you’ll be able to check live if you dare but meanwhile, take your time on reading the interview I’ve done with Aeon’s vocalist Tommy Dahlström. Have fun !

* AL: Ana Leary - Rock Pulse UK

*TD: Tommy Dahlström- Aeon

AL: Aeon was formed in 1999 in Östersund (Sweden) having as a goal creating a more modern style of Death Metal. How have you got to it? Was already pre-defined the way you wanted to create the bands musicality?

TD:It was not the Swedish scene that got me interested in this kind of music.It was the bands from Tampa Florida. And when you listen to our music you can hear that we don’t sound that much Swedish and weknew from day one how we wanted Aeon to sound .And when you are a couple of metal heads that share the same vision then it’s easy to make it happen.

AL: A couple of years later Aeon had its first replacement: Morgan Nordbakk left the band and Daniel Dlimi (ex Equinox of the Gods) assumed the position. Having Daniel’s experience on song writing was it too complicated for combining his skills with the band’s concepts? 

TD: Daniel has played in Death Metal bands as long as I can remember and he did fit the band perfectly. We did know him for years before he joined us and we’ve always knew that we would end up in the same band at some point.

AL:I’ve read in an interview that Alex Webster has a strong appreciation for Aeon’s music. How’s the feeling of having the guys from Cannibal Corpse as Aeon’s fans? 

TD:It feels great I’m a huge Cannibal Corpse fan. When I was younger I had tons of CC posters on my wall. And to see them now, wearing an Aeon t-shirt on stage or in some picture it always makes me smile.

AL: Right after “Bleeding the False’s release, more precisely in 2006, you’ve got on tour throughout Europe with Cannibal Corpse. It’s quite an achievement for a band especially considering you had only one album released on that period. What can you tell us about such experience? How important has been this moment to the band?

TD:As you said, we had only done Bleeding the False no one knew about us and suddenly, we get this call from our record company: “hey guys, Cannibal Corpse wants you on their tour.” I’ve dropped my fucking jaw. That tour was very important for the band we did learn a lot and the guys from CC helped us more than I think they know.

AL:  Although the great moment during this tour the band had to deal with another replacement: this time Johan Hjelm who’s being behind the bass for a longtime. It happened during a decisive moment on Aeon’s career once you’ve got signed with Metal Blade. So how it was to handle so much stuff happening at once in so little time? And what has been the major contribution the new bass player Max Carlberg has brought to implement Aeon’s style?

TD:Johan is a great guy and bass player. But at that point it felt like he was drifting away from the rest of us both musically and personally and we can’t have that in a band. Max joined, we did a few tours and the album Rise to Dominate but after that, he had to make way for Marcus who handles the bass now and for the rest of our career I hope.

AL:What are the bands that still influence and inspire Aeon’s music? And which of them do you still want to share the stage with?

TD:A lot of bands inspire us not only Death Metal but I would love to share the stage with Deicide.

AL: Now it’s time for the album I personally consider a huge reference on Death Metal: Rise to Dominate. It’s really impressive how Aeon has achieved such maturity and technique already on a second full-length. What do you consider the major elements that lead Aeon to such result? 

TD:Rise to Dominate is by far the easiest Aeon album we have made. We felt so relaxed when we entered the studio, we had fun recording it, we had fun while making the songs for the album, and everything felt so easy.  It was the first time we all really enjoyed to be in the studio. Bleeding the False and Path of Fire were a fucking nightmare to record.

AL:How’s been the experience of having Dan Swanö in charge of the mixing and mastering on Rise to Dominate’s album? What’re the best memories you recall from it? And the worst?

TD:Dan did an awesome job, he understood what we were looking for and made it happen. As I said, I enjoyed making this album so I don’t have a bad memory to tell.

AL:There’s a very peculiar story behind the artwork of Rise to Dominate. Had Daniel Dlimi had less than a week to design it and finish it? How have you got to such artwork? 

TD: Yeah that’s true he only had a few days to come up with the artwork. We had some gay making the artwork for us and when we got the final product we decided that we couldn´t use it, so Daniel had to work night and day to beat the deadline.

AL: As a recurrent theme the anti-Christianity is still a great source of “inspiration” for Aeon’s music. What can you tell us about it? Does the witness of Jeova still disturb you with conversion attempts?

TD:I have had my share of problems with the doorknocker. It went so far that I got in trouble with the law. The things we said and did to each other I can write many more albums about that and I probably will. They don’t disturb me anymore, understandable after the things that happened.

AL: What can you tell us about the Swedish dates in 2009 you’ve supported Mayhem?

TD:It was only for two shows, so not much did happen. All I can say is that the Mayhem guys were cool and it was nice to take a few beers with them.

AL:How’s been the period you’ve been on a break, after the drop of Nils and the cancel on Metal Blade’s 25th anniversary tour in the US? Have you been composing new stuff?

TD:Nils drop and the cancel of Metal Blade’s 25th Anniversary almost made us quit playing music but we got together and made Path of Fire .Nils played on that album then he quit the band again.

AL: In 2010 Aeon’s released Path of Fire. During the recordings you’ve faced some difficulties like several followed replacements. But in another hand, the album has been mixed by Erik Rutan. What can you tell us about it? Have you ever imagined this happening: working with Erik Rutan off stage?

TD:To work with Erik was amazing I mean the man is a fucking legend. And to have his touch in one of our albums is awesome. I remember when I asked him in the tour bus, after a gig, if he wanted to work with us on our next album I was sure he would say no but he didn´t and I am very happy for that. He is a cool dude and a good friend.

AL:The music video for “Forgiveness Denied” had its theme commented by Dlimi who’s also expressed his own perplexing about the scandals related to priests. Do you believe after such you’ve found a new way to actually contest the church and also revenge them? 

TD: There are many ways you can attack the church, the priest scandals is just one of them.

AL: This current year you’ve been on tour with Cerebral Bore and Flyed Disciple around UK and EU. How’s been the tour so far? Any expectations about it?

TD:It was a good tour we had a lot of fun very easy people to hang out with and I am pretty sure we will do some stuff together again.

AL: After the also great Path of Fire we’re anxious to have some news about it’s following up. Are you already working on new stuff? If so, what can you tell us about it?

TD: Yes, we are I have 5 new songs in my computer. I’m working on lyrics for them as we speak. The only thing I can tell you about them is that they are 100% Aeon.

AL: Could you please leave a message to our readers and Aeon’s fans?

TD: Keep supporting Death Metal and I hope I’ll see you on tour!

Thanks a lot for Mr. T and Tommy Dahlström for making this interview possible ! - Ana Leary

For further information about Aeon and tour dates, please check:

http://www.aeon666.com/ -> Official Site

http://www.metalblade.com/english/artists/aeon/bio.php -> Metal Blade Records