INTERVIEW WITH SOILWORK GUITARIST PETER WICHERS

I first got turned on to Swedish metal outfit SOILWORK by my buddy, and former bandmate, FoundryMusicMarc, who introduced me to Figure Number Five a few years ago, and I have been a fan ever since. They just released Stabbing The Drama, which I personally really enjoyed, and they also snagged a slot on this year's Ozzfest, so if you haven't heard Soilwork's music yet... you will by the end of the summer. I sent off these questions to guitarist Peter Wichers, and I honestly thought he wasn't going to get some of the stupid, smartass questions (maybe because somewhere in my brain I thought the Swedes didn't comprehend sarcasm...yes, I'm a dipshit), but he definitely understood and took them all in stride. The interview went a little something like this...

Steve C: OK, let's get this out of the way first. You're on the second stage at OZZFEST this year. Describe in detail the size and shape of the erection you sprouted when you found out that you got that gig (which is a really tasteless way of asking how you feel about getting a slot on the festival).

Peter Wichers: Ha ha, well I must say that we have tried to get the band on OZZFEST for quite some time now, and when we heard that we got confirmed I nearly shat in my pants. You don’t really get a bigger chance than this in the US. (Nice...we start off talking about erections, and we end up talking about shitting in pants. I like this guy already)

Steve C: You guys have taken some bold steps creatively with Stabbing The Drama, much to the dismay of some hardcore metal fans. Obviously, you're not going please EVERYONE (there will always be that percentage who never likes anything new). How do you maintain your artistic integrity while pissing off as few loyal fans as possible?

Peter Wichers: You cant really think about what everyone is gonna think, in that case we would probably get so bored and the band should no longer exist. Think of change of music like drinking beer. If you drink nothing but Budweiser for years and years, you are gonna get so sick of it so its only natural to want to change a little bit.

Steve C: Considering how much musical fluff the U.S. music-buying public is bombarded with on a regular basis, how much of a priority is it for the members of Soilwork to become commercially successful in the U.S.?

Peter Wichers: Well, its obviously harder in the US to achieve success, but I think that that’s a challenge in a way and we are putting in a lot of efforts to be able to get the name out there in the US on this album.

Steve C: Soilwork has done a fair amount of touring in different countries. a) How many languages have you tried to/been forced to pick up as a result, and b) Which country's cuisine (which dish, specifically) sends you sprinting to the bathroom in a panic clenching your butt?

Peter Wichers: Ha ha! My first HOT SAKE and RAW FISH experience in Japan made my ass shoot doodooRockets, it was horrible I barley made it to the bathroom in time, and thank good the bathroom had a regular toilet seat, and not the Japanese style ha ha ha! (DOODOOROCKETS!?!?! I have a new favorite word now, people)
I like to learn a few new phrases whenever I come to different country, but they usually end up being totally useless when it comes to doing something useful.

Steve C: Hypothetical situation: You wander onto an airfield drunk and stumble into the spinning propeller of a nearby private airplane. You catch yourself just in the nick of time, so that you don’t die…but your arms are torn off, thereby ending your guitar-playing days. How is Peter Wichers going to pay the bills to support himself?

Peter Wichers: Oh my fucking god! That is a nightmare. Well I guess that I would go back to school and practice my other dream that would be producing, and I think that would be able to do this even though have any arms. I might never recover from something like that though, what a nightmare!

Steve C: Of all the songs you have written, and all the riffs you have contributed, which are you MOST proud of?

Peter Wichers: Hard to say, I like the verse on "Stabbing the Drama" (tittlesong) because it’s kinda tricky to play and it has that PANTERA vibe to it. There is some killer riffs on this album, so it’s really hard for me to say though.

Steve C: OK, now ...If you had to choose ONE song from your catalog as an example of something you wish you NEVER had a hand in, which song would it be and why?

Peter Wichers: I don’t know, I have no regrets of any songs actually, they are all a part of which I was at the time and they play a significant role in describing where is was at the time in my life.

Steve C: If we were to sneak onto Soilwork's tour bus, rummage through your porn collection (don't even THINK about bullshitting us; every walking upright male has porno), what kind of smut would I find?

Peter Wichers: I wouldn’t know, and even if i looked for Porn’s I’m sure that i would find them if I lifted up all the “bunk socks” glued to the frontcover of them. All the bunks reek of sweat and other bodily odors so I wouldn’t even try and go in there ha ha ha!
Once you get a bunk in the bus its kind of like a lion marking his territory with his Urine, but in most cases people aren’t aware of the fact that they are marking their territory in their sleep, ha ha ha! (Wait a minute, I'm getting the distinct impression that Peter might NOT have any porn of his own on the bus. How can this be?)


I happily acknowledge that I keep NO porn on the bus.

Steve C: In your online BIO, you state that your favorite countries are Japan and Sweden. Obviously, you get along fine in Sweden. However, let's say you're in Japan on tour and you’re approached by a gushing fan who is struggling to communicate with you, how do you respond? Is there just a lot of polite nodding and smiling involved?

Peter Wichers: I love Japan, it's a fucking great country, but the language barrier ca n sometimes cause some problems. The japanese english i would like to call “BABYENGLISH”. For example If you wish to go and grab something to eat you cant just ask them “When are we going to Dinner” NO NO NO, it is a very confusing sentence and way to complex, instead you have to say “with a full body language showing what you mean” –WE EAT NOW YES???
No offense Japan he he!!

Steve C: Hypothetical situation 2: You're playing your heart out on stage at Ozzfest this year, and halfway through one of the most complicated songs you guys play, some dickhead in the crowd launches a beer bottle your way, and it nails you right in the head. You're 95% sure you know who did it, and you could very easily jump off the stage and smack this asshole right upside the head without any consequence. Do you jump into the crowd to cave his skull in, have one of your secuirty guards beat the shit out of him, or just suck it up and finish the song?

Peter Wichers: I never though of that, but i saw something hilarious on the Primus DVD recently and i would probably do something similar. Les stopped the song and said to the guy, Why are throwing a bottle at my face? I don’t come to Mc Donald’s when you are working and throw a Burger in your face, and then i would say I’m sorry people because of this guys, we will not play this song and move on to the next one. That will get him a bit stressed out. (I think he's talking about Hallicino-Genetics, but I'm not 100% sure about that yet)

Steve C: Obviously, he was catering to a somewhat different crowd than you guys are, but does the shooting of Dimebag Darrell affect the way Soilwork is going to play out? Are you going to travel with added security? Will you take extra precautions when playing clubs?

Peter Wichers: Well hopefully the clubs have taken this whole incident seriously and upgraded their security, can just say that if something like that would ever to occur, I would throw my guitar in his face and make a run for it. HE was my god, and he was the reason why i play the music that i play R.I.P. Dime

Steve C: What do you look for when buying a new guitar; tone, feel, type of wood, thickness of neck?... or pointy with airbrushed dragons/skulls/tattoos/boobs? What are you playing these days?

Peter Wichers: Im actually endorsed by a pretty unknown brand called Caparison from Japan. They make the fucking greatest guitars on the planet, i have recently gotten offers from ESP (who never returned my phonecall a couple of years ago when i would kill for an ESP), and some other guitarnames, but its so funny to see them stress out about the fact that so many bands like to play Caparison. I hooked adam and joel from KILLSWITCH [Engage] up with their Caparison guitars and i know they love em. I actually wanted to start a cheesy, eighties band just for fun and if i do it will have White finish with Boobs, sculls and blood all over it ha ha ha!!! (nice...boobies AND skulls!)


Peter rocks out with a fan from Soilworkers.com...Photo credit - Soilworkers.com

Steve C: Finally, describe if you would...the perfect sandwich.

Peter Wichers: Hmm, There is a question i never got before, my favorite sandwich would have:

Whole Wheat Bun, Jalapenos, Sharp Cheese, Tomatoes, Cucumber, Chicken, Black Olives and Honey Mustard.

Sounds like im looking for a SUBWAY endorsement ha ha ha, well they do have some awesome subs.!! (oh man...that's an awesome sandwich... finally, someone answered it right! Soooo hungry now).

Take Care dude!

Best!
Peter

That went REALLY well, I think. doodoorockets, sandwiches, and boobie/skull guitars. We like Soilwork even more now that we know their guys (well at least ONE of them) can take a joke.

Check out SOILWORK online at Soilwork.org.

Be sure to pick up their latest disc Stabbing The Drama, out now!

...and finally, they're playing the Second Stage at this year's Ozzfest! Check out tour dates online at Ozzfest.com