Our guest this week is the one and only Ola Englund. He is one of the biggest heroes within the guitar nerddom and also plays guitar for THE HAUNTED, as well as his own band FEARED. As we know from his videos, he’s a cool dude and and also a generous metalhead in terms of sharing his knowledge and experiences on everything guitar related. So,

let’s proceed shall we?

Hi Ola, thanks for accepting our interview request, hope you are well. Here are the questions for Pasifagresif.com (Turkey) interview…

FEARED released its second album in 2013. Y so short time between albums? Is it because you don’t tour and are capable of recording everything by your own and release it digitally? (I may have replied my own question) Or, juding by the album covers, are they some kind of a pair or something, like EXODUS’ “Exhibit…”s?

Well I just felt like making one more, and of course testing myself and see how quick you can actually do an album. It was a lot of stress involved but I’m happy with the outcome!

Were you surprised

when THE HAUNTED approached you after the departures? Was there an audition, or did they just check your YouTube channel, haha?

Jensen just asked me straight out, It came out of the blue. I didn’t know any of the guys from before or anything. I never did an audition but I guess Jensen had checked out my videos.

Anders has a distinct riffing style that shaped the AT THE GATES and THE HAUNTED sounds over the years and Patrik has his own characteristic style that we are mostly familiar through WITCHERY. Anders’ riffs are kinda more venomous and Patrik’s are more death’n rolly, kind of bluesy in my opinion. Now you are in THE HAUNTED and people expect some oldschool THE HAUNTED, due to Marco’s return and all. So when writing the new THE HAUNTED album, are you going as 100% Ola, or do you channel some Anders Björler feels to create the characteristic THE HAUNTED sound?

I know that I can’t replace Anders in any way so I’m trying to be myself in my writing with the band. But it’s an awesome experience, I’m not that used to the process of writing together with other people so I’m definitely learning and adapting. Every member is pumped and psyched about this new lineup so It feels like we’re onto something.

Why did your SIX FEET UNDER gig last so shortly? Were you

just helping them out for the time being so it was an amicable split, or was it something tasteless?

No it was more of an logistics issue. Me being in Sweden and them being in the US. Everytime they had a oneoff gig over there I had to fly over and back within a day. It was kind of rough. They are doing great on their own so I decided to leave.

You did lots of amp presentations and now you’re quite famous in the metal scene. How do you feel about this? Ever felt like buying a nice bottle of Chardonnay and have a little visit to YouTube HQ, telling “Thanks guys, I owe it to you, let’s have a hug for 10 minutes” or something, haha.

I’m very thankful for everything that has happened to me, but I don’t see it as a reason to celebrate. I know I’ve put a lot of hard work into everything that has led me to where I am today. Also I don’t want to ever become any kind of ego, so I try to keep my feet on the ground at all times. I’m not special in any way. I just work hard.

The internet plays a huge role in terms of helping musicians to make themselves heard. There are many amazing musicians in the metal world right now, whom were discovered through YouTube or some other online channels and ended up in high profile bands. There is also the fact that it’s much more easy to learn to play an instrument, thanks to YouTube with all the tutorial videos and all. So, even though the majority of the bands are complaining about how the internet ruined the music world in terms of album sales, are we to see a younger, more skillfull generation in the near future that will make us feel like the internet actually helped the music world (metal in general) by generating countless young talents?

These young acts have the world at their hands really, they can by no means get heard on Youtube or Facebook. That’s all thanks to the social media today. I love seeing how talents from everywhere show up, there are so many awesome bands and musicians out there. And I rather have it this way than the old way. I wouldn’t be anything if it wasn’t for Youtube. People who aren’t adapting are going to get left behind. So if you don’t like the new ways, then I feel sorry for you.

Related to the previous question, there is another aspect of this process, in which the musician is already playing in a band, and his/her online presence makes him/her more popular then his/her band (Andy James is a good example). In this case, do you think the band benefits from the fame of that said musician, or will it lead the musician to focus on his solo stuff more and more and eventually stray from the band?

Definitely depends on the individual and the band. As long as the band knows that this guy is supposed to be in the spotlight then I don’t see anything wrong with it. And also know that if that person grows bigger than the band that there will be a natural split at the end of the road. For me I don’t feel like I would work as a solo artist. I’m not good enough. A guy like Andy James though can definitely do that, he’s a monster.

Your earlier amp playthroughs include many expensive amps and you weren’t even famous back then. How did you had access to those amps at that time?

I live in Stockholm which is a pretty big town, I also hung around in forums and people eventually wanted me to demo their high end stuff. I was driving around to peoples homes to pick up and drop off amps. Haha I must’ve spent a lot of gas doing that. But it was my hobby. I loved doing it.

What do you think about Toontrack products and how did it affect the metal scene?

Well Drumkit From Hell was a game changer for up and coming home recording artists. You didn’t have to go record a drummer and produce a bad drumkit and end up with a shitty sound, with DFH you can have a well produced sound for a very small sum. I remember trying it for the first time and I was like “No way. This is going to change my life.”

Nowadays there are so many great guitar and drum softwares in the market. It seems like a good thing (and actually it is), yet, do you think it leads to lots of good sounding but musically not so great albums, due to the fact that practically anyone can reach and use them?

I think that with this oversaturated scene we have now, only the really good artists will stand out and grow big, which means that the smaller ones have to adapt and do better. I think it’s healthy in that way. And also hopefully they’ll still pull it off live. If not then stay home haha.

In your mixing tutorials you are telling quite effective things that many producers may hesitate to share. Do you have some information that you keep to yourself, or would you share any tip if it would

help others?

I probably have a lot of tips but I don’t keep any secrets, it’s just that for me these tricks are something I do every day, I might not think of them being useful for anyone else. I do think it’s important to share knowledge if people are asking for it. I’m all for helping people, that’s what I try to do back in the day when I was hanging a lot at the Andy Sneap forum, and I still get a lot of people mentioning that I’ve helped them in the past. But you have to remember that with recording and mixing, there are no rules, so just if I say something that doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s right or wrong.

You’re sharing so many great things about your new Washburn Parallaxe signature guitar. How did this happen? And what I really wonder is, is it really the guitar that makes all that magic, or can you get a great sound off of any high quality guitar anyway?

The Washburn Parallaxe Solar came along this past spring when Washburn approached me and we had such a great meeting. They felt really hungry and really listened to everything I had to say. We’ve been talking daily since then just talking about details and specs of the guitars. They are true nerds and I love that. Also I’m so proud of the outcome it’s insane. I know a lot of people are saying that I make everything I demo sound the same, but I wouldn’t say I do. I can’t help it. I do have this sound that I can’t get out of my playing, I’m not fond of it but I’ve learned and accepted that that’s how I sound and I can make the best of it. Of course the tool I need to record is very important to make a good sound. In general I’ve stayed away from demoing shitty stuff for a reason haha.

Axe FX or Kemper? I’m just kidding, we know quite well how you

feel about it. With these digital processors, it’s like beginning of a new chapter for musicians. Does it upset you after using all those great amps including Fortin Satan?

It’s funny cause I just see it as different products and fields. I play a lot on my Axe Fx 2 when I’m home writing ideas in Logic. But nothing removes the sheer joy of cranking up a real amp and cab. I have yet to get the same feeling from any modeler. I have tried it all, axe into tube poweramp etc. I can’t get that last 10% for some reason. A lot of people would settle for that though but I’m not. I just love the way amps work. I use real amps and modelers for different applications and setups. It always have to be a war for people, amps vs. modelers. Why not both?

As far as we can see from your videos, you have a great sense of humour; actually it may be one of the key elements that you attracted the attention of people in the first place. I wanna ask, all these gear stuff and videos and all, how much of it is hobby and how much of it is actual work? Are you able to live off of your online presence and its perks, or do you have another job? What is your near future career plan?

It started out as a hobby, but it became work pretty quick. Nowadays I live of many income streams, album sales, advert income, video demos, mixing, royalties etc. It’s important to extend your arms as much as you can to be able to make a living off it. I’m not making much but I love what I do, so it’s easy for me.

Can you name some of your favorite new bands that you heard recently and go “Wow”? Any newcomers that you would suggest us to keep an eye on?

Swedish band Port Noir, not metal at all. Just a really awesome mellow band. Produced and engineered by Daniel Bergstrand. A really big and bass heavy album. I dig it a lot! Also David Maxim Micics Bilo 3 might be my best discovery this year. I just love that EP. Playfulness at it’s peak.

This is our last question that we ask all the musicians that we interview. We want you to tell us the headline of this interview.

Ola is overrated

That was all Ola, thanks again for your time and music. Take care, cheers.

Questions
Bahadır Sarp
Ahmet Saraçoğlu