Interview with Sweden's Brigheye Brison by Johnny C of www.loudmetal.com 

You have new album out, please talk a little bit about it , is this your first album?

Linus: Yes, itīs the first album for us as a band but since we are all active musicians and have been so for many years we have all performed and recorded with various bands and projects earlier. Johan also has his band, Sub 5, which released itīs debut earlier this year. Daniel works as the principal percussionist in the Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra and have recorded a lot with them and others. Iīm doing and have done studio and live recordings as a saxophone player, keyboardist and vocalist. Iīm also playing with Swedish metal band Narnia which will release a live DVD in the near future.

I wrote most of the songs for the debut album but Daniel and Kristofer also contributed with a couple of songs. I believe that you will find a variety of styles and influences on the CD which I always think is a fun way to present a band. Rivel Records is great for letting us do whatever we feel like doing!     

Kristofer: Iīve recorded with other bands in the past as a bass player but also as an engineer and producer but this is my first record where everybody is involved in the songs and arrangements. Me and Per were involved in Stormwindīs first two records but that was more like Thomas Wolfīs solo project. In BB everybody is allowed to try any idea and because of that this is a genuine band record. Itīs great to write music to the band cause you have no limitations in lack of musicality with Johan on the guitar, Linus on keyboards and Daniel on drums.

This was also my first album where no one forced the music into a commercial corner. We just wrote music, rehearsed it and recorded it.

Per: Iīve done two records with Stormwind, a melodic metal band, as keyboardplayer. I made one with Wisdom Call, again on keyboard, with Christian Rivel from Narnia on vocals. After that I have been building my own studio and recording several CD productions.

You're signed to Rivel records, I belive this is a new label, why did you choose to work with them?

Linus: Once again I feel that they give me artistic freedom. Also Christian Rivel is simply a great guy who genuinely likes our band!

Per: Kristofer, a childhood friend of mine played me the first recordings of BB, and I liked it so much I offered to mix a demo for them. I later played it to Christian Rivel and he was very impressed and wanted to sign the band. We had worked together on the Wisdom Call album, so it seemed like a good thing going out on his new label.

Which guys would you consider to be your main influences?

Linus: There are artists that I generally get inspiration from and an urge to write music when listening to them. One of those bands is definitely Genesis. Of course also many of the 70īs progressive rock acts such as Yes, Jethro Tull, Van Der Graaf Generator, U.K. etc. Another favourite is Kayak. Iīm also a big fan of “younger” bands such as Echolyn and Salem Hill.

As a keyboardist I have to mention Roger Powell and David Foster as sources of inspiration. Vocalists I really enjoy are Bernardo Lanzetti and Max Werner. As a saxophonist I say John Coltrane, Sonny Rollins, Phil Woods, the list is endless.

Kristofer: As a bassplayer Iīm influenced in Jaco Pastorius, Chris Squire, Ray Brown, Bootsy Collins and many more and my favourite bands are Yes, Weather Report, Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple. Recently Iīve been listening to ambience and Squarepusher. Oum Kalzum, Björk & of course Miles Davies are a few of my favourites as well.

Per: I have always had Yes as my main influence, at least when it comes to progressive music. Genesis would be another in the same genre. I listen to a lot of different music though...

Daniel: Among the drummers that are very close to my heart Iīd like to mention Steve Gadd, Vinnie Collaiuta, Philly Joe Jones, Sonny Payne.

I enjoy listening to Beethoven, Mahler, John Coltrane, Clifford Brown, Chet Baker, Oscar Peterson, Frank Sinatra, Gilbert OīSullivan, Beatles, Utopia, Gino Vanelli, Pages, Maxus, Airplay, Jellyfish and others.

  How would you describe your music to someone who is not familiar with it?

Linus: All in all different musical influences mixed together, mainly rock, often having a 70īs vibe in sound and performance. Progressive symphonic rock, perhaps.

Kristofer: "Real music", in the meaning of that we donīt try to catch the latest sound or the latest style. We write music and rehearse it and if we like it in the band we record it. Of course we have the "Progressive" label on us and many people tell us we sound like Queen, Yes or another band but we try just to be Brighteye Brison.

How did you develop your own style of playing, did you take any lessons?

Linus: I have studied music since I was ten years old, when I started playing both saxophone and drums. I began to practice the piano when I was eleven. I also attended both a music gymnasium as well as the Royal College of Music in Stockholm for four years. 

Kristofer: Iīve studied music in 9 years where the last four was at the Royal College of Music in Stockholm in the same class as Linus. Iīve studied mostly jazz but I think my style of playing in BB comes mostly from playing in many different bands throughout the years. In BB you get to play very complex lines and you have to be alert and on top of that you have you’re vocal part. I can’t think of a more developing environment to be a part of. 

Daniel: Iīve played since I was five years old and attended several lessons for example at the College of Music in Malmoe.

Johan: I’m self-taught from the beginning. Iīve spent hours and hours listening to records, trying to pick up everything from melodies and solos to chords and bass lines (and I still do!!) That helped me to build up a great and strong relationship to music and to my instrument. I donīt transcribe that much though, because I’m kind of lazy when it comes to that...
I went thru all kinds of music, and I’m learning just as much listening to Chaka Khan wailing as I do listening to Yngwie, Benson or whatever! Later on I took lessons from some of my absolute favourite guitar players here in Sweden. I also got a masters degree in jazz guitar from Ingesund School of Music.

What is the most important, feeling or technique? can you survive with only one of them?

 Linus: Feeling is without a doubt the most important thing. Hopefully you can find a balance between the two which makes technique a tool for your expression rather than just a party trick.

 Kristofer: Without feeling there’s no music, just math. In BB you have to be able to play complex lines quite often but if that was all there was it would be awful. I think you have to have a certain amount of technique to be able to play anything you’re feeling tells you. So: Without technique you canīt play what you feel and without feeling thereīs no music.

 Per: I would say that feeling is of the greatest importance, but itīs hard to get it across without some technique, isnīt it?

 Daniel: In our band I believe both feeling and technique to be quite necessary.

 Johan: For me the most important thing is FEELING! But you got to have the technique to be able to express yourself. Who cares about technique if the groove and feeling isnīt there...?

 What kind of equipment are you using live or in the studio?

Linus: One goal for our album was to exclusively use analogue instruments which definitely bring a deeper dimension in sound than using digital keyboards that tries to simulate the real thing. This is a way of thinking that we always have when recording a new song.

We also had the privilege to work with Mattias Olsson of Anglagard who helped us in recording lots of old keyboards like Mini Moog, Mellotron, Solina String Ensemble also Moog Taurus pedals and other less known stuff. For the album I also used grand piano, Yamaha CP-80, Hammond organ L-100, Rhodes, Korg Synthesizer, alto- and soprano saxophones and maybe something else.

When BB play live I use electronic piano and occasionally grand piano when possible, Rhodes, Roland XP-30, Korg Triton synths and also alto- and soprano saxophones.

Kristofer: On 90% of the recordings and all the time live I use my Fender Jazz bass.

On "In disguise" I use my custom fretless bass which is a one of a kind bass, itīs the bass I use on all my jazz and soft pop recordings.

Iīve also got an 5str musicman style bass but I donīt use it in BB. Itīs to slick and itīs not me.

I use a Pod and a EBS active speakercab when I play live and mostly only the pod in the studio.

Daniel: I play a Tama Superstar from the late seventies both live and in the studio. On our first record however, I play a Pearl set belonging to the Eng family.

Johan: GUITARS: Sadowsky - Standard Strat (HSH), Fender/Squier - Stratocaster (w. two DiMarzio HS3īs and one HS2 in the middle), Ibanez - AS 200, GB 10
AMPS: Mesa/Boogie - TriAxis (Tommy Folkesson mod), 2:90, Fender - Dual
Showman Reverb; 4 channel head (modified and "transplanted" by swedish ampguru Tommy Folkesson), LABseries - L5 2*12"
CABINETS: Mesa/Boogie - two 2*12" and two 1*12" (w. EV speakers), Marshall - 4*12" vintagecab (Celestion)
EFFECTS AND STUFF: TC Electronic - G-Force, Yamaha - SPX 90, BBE – Sonic Maximizer 422A, Arion - Stereo Chorus, Tommy Folkesson - Fat Dist, Digital Music Corp. - Ground Control, Ground Link and GCX Audio Switcher, Roland - Guitarsynth. GR-33, DÁddario XLīs: 0.10 - 0.46, Thomastik Swing Series: 0.12 - 0.50

 How and where was the album recorded?

Kristofer: The first demo which was to become the cd was recorded in my fathers "Mar-Len Studios" in Hälsingland, Sweden. The studioīs got many fine instruments like: Hammond L100/760 leslie, Yamaha CP70, Rhodes, a one of a kind grand piano that automatically sounds progressive rock and other keyboards like reed organ, upright piano & an analogue Korg synthesizer. Itīs recorded through a Tascam 32ch inline mixerconsole to adat.

When my friend Per Hallman heard the cd he wanted to be a part of it and we continued to record the rest of the CD in "Mar-Len Studios" but this time through different microphone preamps and into a hard disk. All the vocals except on the “One Year Alone”-suite are recorded in "ToneZone Studios" (Perīs studio) in Stockholm where the cd is mixed. I think the Brighteye sound comes from combining the studio in Färila (Hälsingland) with the more modern "ToneZone Studio" and on our next cd we continue to work the same way. This time we even use a pipe organ from a church near "Mar-Len Studios". 

Linus: After most of the recordings were finished we moved to Mattias Olssonīs studio (Rothe Hande) in Stockholm to record even more keyboard parts.

Finally we recorded percussion in the Stockholm Concert Hall.

 Which musicians would you like to play with some day?

Kristofer: I would like to play with Yes but not without Chris so I guess I would have to play a different instrument, keyboard maybe.

Daniel: It would be fun to go on a world tour with Paul McCartney’s band. Or why not Utopia or Jellyfish if they were to be revived without drummers.

What kind of music do you like the least?

 Kristofer: I hate the kind of music that comes from people who try to remake the Cheiron success. I think you can hear when people play music instead of desperately try to make a hit to get rich.

 Per: Muzak, or any music without soul.

 Daniel: Music without any nice melody and which in the mean time has no groove.

 Johan: Sometimes I think a blues and some reggae music can be really boring. But...a good song is a good song, no matter what kind of music it is! And hey, I didnīt say I donīt like blues or reggae!!

 Do you ever listen to music that is very different from what you do, if so what?

 Linus: I listen to and play jazz. I love artists like Chet Baker, Bill Evans, Phil Woods, Yusef Lateef. I also listen to Westcoast music like Gino Vannelli, Marc Jordan, Maxus, Pages, Airplay, and pop artists like Motorpsycho, Jellyfish etc. but I donīt think itīs so far away from our own style of music.

 Kristofer: I work with music all the time and I write music to different theatres and so. When you work on contract you have to be able to make the music they want so I try to listen to any kind of music just to be updated. For my own pleasure I listen to jazz, classical music, music from different parts of the world.

 Per: Yes: Jazz, P-funk, Pop, Bulgarian female choirs...

 Johan: Yes, mostly jazz and fusion music.

  Are there any plans to tour in the near future?

Linus: No plans yet but it would be cool to do lots of gigs with our next album.

What other plans do you have for the near future?

BB: Recording the follow-up to the first BB album, currently in the works. Also finishing a song for Rivel Records upcoming tribute album to The Sweet.

 What are your feelings about the world we live in and how do you look upon yourself in 15 years from now? 

Linus: Musically I think itīs great with all the new, smaller labels coming up. It gives every artist great opportunities to try to evolve their vision unconditionally. The internet is good in getting that music exposed, no matter how narrow the music is.

In 15 years BB will turn eighteen years old. We will celebrate that with a greatest hits record (at least a double!).

Per: I feel that we could learn a lot from the old Greek and Roman societies where you couldnīt be a real member of the community unless you studied art, music and philosophy. Today all music is about is sales, hype and fame. I believe that if more people would be thinking about the next beautiful poem they were writing they would think twice before stealing, lying, starting aggression and chasing empty dreams of riches, fame and self-glory.

As for myself I will hopefully do what I love the most, making music!

Brighteye Brison are:

Linus Kåse - keyboards, vocals, sax
Daniel Kåse - drums, vocals
Johan Öijen - guitars
Kristofer Eng - bass, vocals
Per Hallman - live sound, engineering, vocals