Mnemic

author MY date 24/09/06

Danish metallers Mnemic started working on their third full length album around December 2005 with the decision to work with Peter Tägtgren as the producer and Andy Sneap as mixer. But then dark clouds started to gather together and soon unfortunate things began to occur. Firstly the band abandoned plans to record the album at The Abyss Studios with Peter Tägtgren, then their singer, Tony Jelencovich, left the band only 6 months after he joined the band and at last but not least Andy Sneap called he quits from the project. The fans were worried about the band's future but no worries were needed as Mnemic is alive and well, as strong as they ever were. But now I will leave you with the band's guitarist Mircea Gabriel Eftemie, who will tell you all about the hard times the band went through and how they saw the daylight...

RF.net: Hey! The last time we talked was a few days before Christmas 2005 and you told me about Michael Bøgballe leaving the band and the welcoming of Tony Jelencovich to the band. But in the middle of the writing process of the upcoming album, Tony left the band too. What were the reasons for his leaving?

RF.net: After having one vocalist change already and the new one leaves the band while the album is in the making, did it ever make you disappointed, lose hope?
Mircea: Definitely, we were almost even close to breaking up the band. But, you have good days and bad days, and thats life. You need to be strong and overcome every obstacle if you want to make it in this business

RF.net: And Guillaume Bideau left his band Scarve and joined Mnemic. Will you please tell about the search for the vocalist and what made you think that he is the right vocalist for Mnemic?
Mircea: Well, basically we took our time in finding the right member. He really needed the voice, and he really needed to convince everybody on the musical and the personal level. We tried so many singers from Denmark, and actually none of them really fitted in the band. We said to begin with, that we didnt really want anyone outside of Denmark, but that became a very complicated task for us. Then we started to go outside of Denmark searching. We got tons of applications from people all over the world, which was very flattering, but at the end we needed to tell people to get realistic. Finally i got a call from Dirk's wife (soilwork drummer) who told me that Guillaume would be a perfect fit. To begin with it wasnt something we were interested in, until Guillaume got in touch with us, and we set up an audition. When we met Guillaume we just knew that it was the right choice. You will know it too, when you hear the new album. We are more than satisified with him, and we have never been stronger as a band.

RF.net: Correct me if I’m wrong but as I know Guillaume Bideau is French and living in France, wouldn’t it be difficult for you guys to work together?
Mircea: Why? I live in the US at the moment. It works out fine.

RF.net: Some time ago, there were news that the new album would feature guest appearances by Jeff Walker (Carcass) and Shane Embury (Napalm Death). Nothing has changed with regard to this collaboration, right?
Mircea: Nope, and in fact they did an amazing job. I was stoked to be in the same room, listening to Jeff's growls. I remember when we where kids listening to Symphonies, Necroticism and so on, it just made it into such an amazing experience. Jeff and Shane are the most down to earth and funny english lads i've ever met.

RF.net: You worked with Roy Z for one song. He’s surely one of the most acclaimed producers / songwriters in the metal world. Where did the idea of working with him come from?
Mircea: It was just something that happend... we were working on a song, and we simply couldn't get it done. Basically we got writers-block, and moved on to other songs, and all of the sudden i got the idea of, why not have Z work on it? Since we are good friends, and love his Bruce Dickenson and Halford stuff. When I asked him he was totally down for it.

RF.net: At the beginning of writing the new album you announced that the album would be mixed by Andy Sneap. But a few days ago you parted ways with Andy and announced that Tue Madsen would mix it. First question about this subject is; Why did you decide to work with Andy Sneap after working with Tue Madsen for years?
Mircea: Cause we wanted to do something different, we really love Testament's "The Gathering", and wanted to go into that direction, and thought that Sneap would be a good choice for us.

RF.net: The reason for parting ways with Andy Sneap was announced as "technical differences". Didn’t you talk about these technical things before saying "yes" to eachother?
Mircea: This is what i know. We wanted to work with Sneap to begin with, he was interested and we were interested. When we came to the point where we told him, NO TRIGGERS, he simply replied "Why do you want to use me then?". We tried to do something different that didnt work. Therefore we said, fuck it, we'll just go with Tue, cause he understands us better than anyone else. We didnt want to have the typical Sneap sound, the typical digitalized Arch Enemy sound. There's nothing wrong with that sound, it's just not us, and in the end it's just a matter of taste. We love Testament's Gathering album, as i said before, but actually I read about it, that it was recorded in the shittiest room you can ever imagine, and when it was mixed, it was mixed in a very untraditional way - so Sneap did something very different.... thats my guess at least. People can make up whatever they want to make up, to make them selves happy, i dont really care.

RF.net: I’m sure, having Tue Madsen as the new mixing engineer isn’t a hard decision, working with him again is kinda like returning home for you...
Mircea: Exactly. He has a heart of gold, and we love him as a friend and as a producer, and he always is on the same page with us, when we talk about music and life. Therefore it was very satisfying feeling we got, when we started our work with him for the 3rd album.

RF.net: As for the last question; Please let us know about the latest updates, hottest news from Mnemic’s studio.
Mircea: We just got done today, actually. Last week we did promo shots, and shot our new video with Patric Ullaeus and are waiting for the results. Everything is falling in place. We are out on the road at the moment, doing a small Scandinavian tour, and people seem to be welcoming us with open arms.

RF.net: Thanks for your time Mircea!! Hope to talk to you once more after the release of the album. Any last comments?
Mircea: I never have any last comments, haha. Thanks

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