220 Volt - The True Rulers of Jämtland

Swedish 80-ies hard rock, that sounds solid as a Volvo. Some of those bands are ridiculed as hair bands wimps today, like europe and treat, others have aged better. We all know what they sounded like, innocent, fun, clear production, strong refrains and those unforgettable hits. 220 volt have managed it all and are the only one’s to remain unscarred on stage while playing a Christmas song in the summer. These Swedish heroes now return with a live album, “Made in Jämtland”. Perennial guitarist Mats Karlsson phoned to talk about now and then.

Most people know them from their heyday when the albums came out but what happened betwixt 1990-97?

- We played along until 1992, Mats began. Between 1990-1992 we recorded what later got released as “Lethal Illusion”. In fact we recorded three full albums.

As it turns out the reason for that album was Janne Stark’s book on Swedish metal. The band wanted to use the material they had recorded and Janne asked for a little something for the disc that was to accompany the book. Concerning the rest of the material a small company was particularly interested and brought the stuff to a music fair. There was even more interest from Japan it turned out. 1990-92 was also years of trouble, the band met up with some managements, e.g. accept´s American representatives but the offers were virtually unacceptable (pun intended).

Mats sighs at this point of the story, regretting how the band had turned from all fun and play to business only. He and drummer Peter “Herman” Hermansson decided to disband the outfit at this point.

All of them but vocalist Jocke Lundholm went straight on to voltergeist, a travesty of Poltergeist. Pelle Englund of blacksmith and mandrake root fame joined in on vocals. Things were apparently moving all right at that stage according to the guitarist in the other end of the phone line. But as life went on they were losing faith. They wanted more than just partying and playing. In the last stages of that band’s existence Mats Levén took over the mike, around 1993.

Without connections to 220 volt Mats continued in the music business, but not in hard rock.

The latter part of the eighties

Around 1996/97 plans for an album called “First and Last” were laid. Their first piece of vinyl, the “Sauron” 7”, had been bootlegged but they wanted to include it anyway. From our conversation I gather that the company that released “Lethal Illusion” as the album was finally baptised is not in fashion. Mats avoids the subject but says that the person responsible for the actions of that company is disliked by all involved.

Today 220 volt own the rights and consider a re-release. In spite of the limited release that was licensed copies still occur at e.g. Ginza.se. That does not add to the popularity of their former record company.

In 1997 Mats, original guitarist Thomas Drevin and “Herman” joined forces again and started creating new songs. No aim, no limits, just pure creativity. My interviewee had the advantage of studying music at the time and therefore had access to a studio. That year was very intense albeit the fact that “Herman” had a bad eye and couldn’t play at times. On the other hand Thomas Drevin had an amazing output, Mats adds.

Around that time mats had formative plans of a solo album, that meant that there was even more songs to boost. He also gathered old cassettes etc. for transferring everything on to disc. Around Christmas 2000 they all gathered for a serious discussion. The result was that they set out to have fun again. Old riffs were retried, unreleased songs were dusted off the shelves, everything to achieve the good old days of fun and laughter.

- We also ended up on the bill of Sweden Rock Festival, which was amazing, Mats reminisces. We also released a 20 th Anniversary Disc that was recorded in all simplicity. We only made a 1000 copies for our closest fans.

One of the live tracks was pilfered off a very old track, that nostalgia is “Don’t Come My Way”. They also did Anniversary concerts, many of which were recorded. In the blink of an eye I get the news that they hope to release a full album worth of that material within a year. The formula is simple, don’t end up under someone else’s spell, be yourself, do your thing.

The New Album Every artist loves that question so I guess I’ll leave it to Mats - The new live album is packed with easy choices. There weren’t much discussion which songs to pick. We re-arranged some of the tunes as well. The disc was recorded on three separate occasions, the last of them as late as November 2004. One interesting feature is the sound check version of “Mind Over Muscle”, a track that we never got the best of in the studio. In a live surrounding it grows and therefore we ventured to include a raunchy version, an audience or not. A very confident interviewee has spoken. But I must admit to never having stumbled upon a sound check version before. It feels as fresh and new as a heavy metal Christmas tune!

The Future

The heritage of the eighties is not a burden to the band according to their guitarist. Many people know about them and that is what they consider an advantage. There are also lose plans of not one but two DVDs. They have acquired the rights to fan-club movies from 1982-93 and additional material. Then there is a newly filmed concert from Östersund shot in February 2004. There might even be a double disc DVD!

It comes as no surprise that the reborn 220 volt have written tracks for a brand new album too. According to Mats the new material is like their eldest material but with modernizations. He assures me that it will come across as unmistakably 220 volt.

They sure have no plans of giving up the ghost to become Voltergeists!

A Quick Check in the Rear Mirror Before signing off I feel it is my duty to add an unexpected question. Here I am with one of the legends of Swedish 80-ies hard rock. Who were the top five Swedish hard rock bands in the eighties? - Pheew, it comes in the telephone. We shared rehearsal room with treat and even lived with them for a spell. If I exclude europe there were treat, six feet under, keen hueand torch. Oh, and then there was us of cause! After that little extravaganza we call it a day. Thanks for your time Mats and best of luck with the new albums and all the plans. Believe me, this is far from the last we’ve heard of this band. They seem to be having a second heyday! Miggo