Hammerfall released their latest offering “Avenge The Fallen” through Nuclear Blast records on August 9 and to top it all off are touring nationally in January 2025 for the first time ever. Founding member and guitarist Oscar Dronjak caught up with The Rockpit to discuss the new album and tour. These shows will no doubt be ones that will be talked about for a long time after. Grab you tickets now, HERE.
Andrew : Hey, good to see you. How are you? First of all, welcome to The Rockpit and Australia.
Oscar : I’m good; thank you.
Andrew : Congratulations on the new album, “Avenge The Fallen”, which came out earlier this month. There’s so much for us to cover. I mean, new album, the tour announcement obviously, which is the massive news for us, Australian fans, fans. Can we start with the album?
Oscar : Sure, absolutely. Whatever you want to do.
Andrew : With thirteen studio albums under your belt now, what makes “Avenge the Fallen” different from anything else that Hammerfall has done?
Oscar : Well, it’s a new album with new songs. I mean, it’s very hard for me to have an opinion on what makes this album different now because we work so hard and so close with everything for such a long time that I can’t pinpoint what stands out with this album against the other albums until a couple of years have passed. It’s a very difficult question for me to answer at this point, but I think that we managed to create an album that sounds familiar, but still fresh. People know what to expect with Hammerfall and they’re going to get it. They just don’t know what shape it’s going to take; and that is what we try to do now that’s what makes people feel like, yes, this is exactly what I wanted. Because that’s the type of music that we play, it’s Heavy Metal. It’s never going to change. We’re not going to go and experiment and bullshit like that because I hate when bands do that; it’s absolutely not something I like at all. But at the same time, we’re all of course not trying to record the same album over and over again like some other bands do. We try to put together an album that makes a difference basically that takes us forward.
Andrew : Listening to the last album “Hammer Of Dawn” as well as “Avenge The Fallen”, I think there’s been a big sonic shift in the albums. There’s a real energy to this record that I can’t quite put my finger on it, whether it be the power behind it, it’s just such a solid record from beginning to end, it captivates and it’s a really strong journey in which every person in Hammerfall plays a really important part in this record.
Oscar : Yeah, you have got a point there. That’s one of the things that are different from before. It’s the energy and the live feel in the production. I mean, we did record it the same as normal, like a normal studio album, but we always try to get that performance thing going as well. During the recording of the previous album “Hammer of Dawn”, it was recorded during the pandemic actually. So, we didn’t really meet, we didn’t rehearse, we didn’t play together, we didn’t do anything together. Once we started recording this album we made sure we got where we wanted. It just took more time, with “Hammer Of Dawn” we didn’t have that energy thing that we did with this album. We had been on tour for two years almost constantly. When it was time to record “Avenge The Fallen” everybody knew what we felt was missing. David our drummer and I spoke a lot about that and he said that because he didn’t play drums at all during the pandemic, and all of a sudden we were supposed to record an album he knew what he had to deliver. David had Covid two or three weeks right before the recording too. So, he was not feeling great when he recorded “Hammer Of Dawn”. This time he said, I’m going to do things much differently. Well, of course we’re going to be playing live, so that’s going to be taken care of and I’m also going to be focusing more on the material. I think that’s where it all started for us because of the drums, he came into this with a high energy mindset and that translated into his playing. Because he was so energized and so, well, it’s hard to put a finger on it too, but this is how I see it anyway, such a powerful way of drumming that gave us, everybody who came after that, who recorded their instrument after that, gotten an energy boost from that. I think that was one key element too, why this album sounds so alive.
Andrew : The writing partnership between you and vocalist Joacim Cans seems to be a very tight knit one and one that works very, very well. With “Avenge The Fallen”, I guess with the opportunity to be back on the road and to be touring. Were there are a lot of ideas that started at soundchecks and those sorts of things. Did the band actually get a chance to piece together things and to give both you and Joacim further inspiration?
Oscar : Not really. That has never been the way that we write songs. We don’t go stand together in a room and jam out something that’s never worked for us, or at least not for me, for me, this music needs a bit more thought behind it. We can’t just hash out a few riffs and a few melodies and then you have a song that, well, you have a song, but will it be a good enough song is what I’m saying. When I write music, I start with something, I create the song and I develop it. It’s very, very rare that a song goes from start to finish in a couple of days; that happens once every 10 years or something. It’s very rare. For me, it’s more of a process. I mean, it’s not that I change things all the time, but I am looking for ways to change things. To see if what I’ve done can be improved, then I to do that. And then that doesn’t always guarantee the feeling that this is the way it’s supposed to be, it can take a while to get to that point. Even though it sounds the same as it did from the very beginning, it sometimes is a process for me to get my mind around it, so to speak. Sometimes I change things, sometimes I don’t. But that’s the way I write music and it’s always by myself. I’m not great at writing music with others. I’ve rarely done it for the past 20 years. I feel much more comfortable doing it this way. To answer your first or what you saw about Joacim, because the thing is we write music when Hammerfall writes a song, I write the music, put it on a demo with a drum machine, and then send it off to Joacim. then he takes over and does some lead vocals and the lyrics and that partnership has been, I think it’s better than it has ever been because we have this back and forth that we didn’t really have, let’s say 10 years ago, there was no back and forth. It was just here, here, here, here. Whatever it was. In Sweden, we call it Ball Plank because you shoot a ball at the wall and then it comes back to you because the wall obviously is the other person. You bounce the ideas off of each other is what I’m trying to say. That has happened more and more now. I mean, sometimes I know this is the way I want, this is the way the song’s going to be, but more frequently now than before I feel, is this good? What have I done here? Can we do it in this direction or should we, whatever. I sent something else I’m unsure of. And then Joacim always comes back with constructive criticism that sort of allays my fears, I guess you could say, my indecisiveness. He does the same thing with me. Sometimes, he comes up with a vocal melody for a verse or whatever, and he sends it back to me and says, this is what I’m feeling, what I’m thinking, what do you think about this? Then I have maybe some constructive criticism for him, and then we take it from there. This has happened a lot over the last few albums, which is really great. It feels more like a concerted effort rather than individuals writing songs.
Andrew : Was the recording of the album, that was obviously done in breaks between the Helloween tour dates, is that correct?
Oscar : The recording was done after all the touring was done. We finished the touring in mid-September and then started recording the album in early November, I think second week of November I believe we started. We had a few months off, to sort of finalise everything, I guess you could say. The songs were written quite early. I mean, most of the songs were done by then, by the time the tour ended. So those months before was more fine tuning than anything else, I think.
Andrew : That makes perfect sense. Have you been able to play many shows since then?
Oscar : Yeah, that’s the thing with today’s climate, the way we had it for the first, let’s say 15 years of our career, we recorded the album, we went on tour for the album, and then we had a break to write songs for like eight months or whatever for the next album. For the most part it is how we have done things, but not for all of the tours. I remember the tour for “Glory To The Brave” going into “Legacy Of Kings” the break was very short too. We had a few months there, but after that, we took always six to eight months to write the songs before we recorded them. You don’t have that luxury today. We need to be on the road so much more than we have needed to be before. That means also that I have to find other ways to write songs. I have learned how to write songs on the road. The thing is, I got this little guitar that fits in my suitcase. Basically, all I need is a guitar, my computer, and a small interface to plug it into. Then I can write songs that sound exactly the same as they do when I’m here in my big studio where I’m right now. That has helped me tremendously because what it’s really done for me is allow me a freedom because I never know when I’m going to get an inspiration from something, whatever I’m doing. Sometimes it just strikes and if I then have all the tools to work on the inspiration when it happens, it creates so much more flow for me then I have had before. Previously if I had an inspiration on a Tuesday or I was on vacation let’s say I had to wait until Friday when I get home to work on it; by then of course the inspiration was gone. It never lasts three days (laughs); I can capitalize on it nowadays, it’s much, much, much better, it’s also a way for me to kill some downtime on the road, a lot of waiting, a lot of nothing happening. Then I can use that adrenaline rush from being on stage and performing for people as well. I use that and channel it into writing songs and that has helped me a lot too, to just get through the tours.
Andrew : “Avenge The Fallen” sees the band return back to Nuclear Blast after a couple of years with Napalm Records. In today’s climate; how important is it to still have a good label behind you?
Oscar : That’s a good question actually. I think you can have this without a label or without a big push, I think because you have so many ways to reach out to people nowadays. Ways that you didn’t have before the internet. With YouTube and of course Spotify and platforms like Tidal everything is accessible all those things there are ways you can go viral. Today you can go viral from anything on any platform. It just has to be the right song, the right music at the right point. But that said, I think we do need the labels to help, unless you are so very, very, very lucky to have those things happen to you. You need the labels to do that, and what is great now for us, when we were with Nuclear Blast the first time, I think it was 16 or 17 years, maybe more we released nine albums. It was a long run with them initially anyway.
Andrew : I think that first run would’ve been closer to 18 years maybe.
Oscar : Yeah, because we started with them in 1997.
Andrew : “Renegades” from 2000 was when I discovered you guys and there was an album prior to that with Nuclear Blast. So that would’ve been 1998.
Oscar : There were two albums before “Renegades”. “Legacy Of Kings” first was the first album with them but back in 1997 Nuclear Blast brought the rights to “Glory To The Brave” and that’s when we got into contact with them. It was a long, long time. Anyway, what my point is, what I’m trying to say is we had a great relationship with Nuclear Blast throughout those years. We still had a great relationship with Nuclear Blast when we were on Napalm as well because we did these 20th anniversary re-release of the albums through Nuclear Blast during that period. We had kept a good working relationship with them. The reason we left Nuclear Blast in the first place was never because oh, they suck; we don’t want to have anything to do with them. The reason we left Nuclear Blast was because we felt taken for granted. We didn’t feel appreciated enough in what we brought to the table. I think they has become used to us just being there. We wanted something more, a change of scenery, I guess. So, we went to Napalm for a couple of years, and once that contract was up, it was very clear that Nuclear Blast wanted us back.
We started negotiating with them and Napalm of course, and others. In the end, it was no contest, I don’t think, because Nuclear Blast really pulled out all the stops to make us feel wanted again, which was great. The Nuclear Blast that we left in 2015 is a very different company now in 2024, because since then Marcus Straiger sold his shares and they were bought up by Believe Digital and the structure of the label is much more of a major label now. It was never bad before, it was just more independent and now it’s more of a major label; in that there’s a difference, they have also a lot more pull, a lot bigger profile, especially in the areas where we absolutely needed it. It also is the social media and internet promotion side that they have down pat. They have that under control, so to speak. They’re really good at that and that’s another really positive from there.
Andrew : The main reason for us really chatting today, aside from just being blown away by “Avenge The Fallen” is the tour. How has it taken 30 years for the band to do a full Australian tour? Why has it taken so long?
Oscar : There is no real reason. It’s just so far away. I think the main reason is we didn’t have any great contacts there. That would be the main reason for us. The booking agency that we work with, they’re German and they didn’t have any good ways in to the Australian territory. I don’t think that this type of music was, correct me if I’m wrong, but this type of music, melodic heavy metal wasn’t widely embraced. I think Australia is a little bit like the US and the UK in that they were late in coming around to this type of music. We did go to Melbourne once in 2015. It was a great show actually, by the way. But why we didn’t go back after that, I don’t know. I think we didn’t have any good contacts there and the world is such a big place, we have so many places that we have to go every time. We didn’t really look for new places, so to speak. This time we had found a good contact; we have a guy with our management who is Australian and we had a US booking agency who has contacts in Australia and that is why this is happening now. We didn’t have those things before and I’m pretty sure that’s the main reason why we haven’t done a full tour there before.
Andrew : I guess the pressing question is in a touring cycle and obviously coming to Australia for the first time, will we see a different, more comprehensive set list, one that makes up for lost time?
Oscar : You will get the set list that we put together for 2025, it will be pretty much the same for everywhere else too, but you will also get it first because that is the first thing we do in 2025. We’re going to have to rehearse before that and put something together for that year and tour cycle. Honestly, we are still in the middle of releasing the album, we are going to do a full tour in Europe with Powerwolf in October. Those are the main focuses right now, and then I guess we’ll start thinking about Australia after that in November and December. But rest assured it will be fun. We all really look forward to it. It’s going to be fun.
Andrew : What an incredible double billing of you guys and Powerwolf. I mean between both of you are the two strongest heavy/power metal albums of this year for me.
Oscar : Really?
Andrew : Absolutely. It’s an incredible double billing. I kind of wish you were bringing them out with you as well and no doubt they wish they were coming out with you guys too. Given that you’ve got a few months on the road now with Powerwolf, it really will get you warmed up for Australia. The anticipation around the tour is big in my circle of friends. What Hammerfall brought back to music and what was missing for so many years was that true heavy metal style that drew me to you guys in the first place. Fans are rabid for metal here. We don’t get enough of it. There would be so many waiting for this tour.
Oscar : I’ve been told it’s got to be successful, this is for us a little bit of an experiment too. If you go to a country, given it’s not the very first time, but we only did a one-off show, so this is the first tour that we are doing. If we go to Australia for the first time and it’s not a success, who knows if anybody wants to have us back. It’s important for us that this becomes a great tour if we want to go back and tour there continuously. These things are always a bit nerve wrecking when they’re so dependent on something you can’t really control. I’m not worried. I mean, the thing I know for sure is that everybody who is going to be at the shows, whether it’s a big or small crowd, it doesn’t matter. Everybody there, first and foremost is going to get one hell of a kick ass heavy metal party. I also know is that everybody that will be there is going to want to be there, and that makes it for an even better show. Regardless of the attendance is going to be a really, really cool experience.
Andrew : I think you all will be pleasantly surprised by the turnout. I wouldn’t be surprised if these shows do sell out at nationwide.
Oscar : I’m hoping so.
Andrew : The one off show in 2015, what was your feeling for the Melbourne crowds? What kind of vibe did you get from the Australian audience?
Oscar : I thought it was great. I mean, it’s not like I thought it was different from anywhere else in the world. It was equally good, equally energetic. I also think, maybe even more so because since we hadn’t been there ever before, there was that bit of a special excitement in the air, which made for a really, really good show. We did Japan, Taipei and Hong Kong on the way down to Melbourne. Those shows in Japan were fantastic. Japan is always amazing to play. They have a great metal sense there. In Taipei and in Hong Kong the shows were in small clubs, but people who were there were really into, it wasn’t thousands of people. Once we got to Melbourne, it was also not thousands of people, but I do remember this as a really, really good show. If Melbourne in 2015 was any indication, this is going to be a really, really good tour.
Andrew : The band has a reputation for its love of interacting with fans while on stage, what do you prefer a club show or a festival type of circuit?
Oscar : Both have good and bad things. The good thing is with the club tours, you’re so close to the audience, you can see, feel and hear everybody’s reaction. It’s much, much more intimate. But when you start playing in a band, it’s always the big stages. That’s what you’re going for, you want to have those big stages, but they separate you from the audience aside from the first few rows. At times it feels like you’re performing for yourself, even though you can sometimes hear them, see them and feel them. But a club show is much more like we’re all in this together, that’s my favorite part of club shows.
Andrew : Having the length of the career that Hammerfall has, the band is now entering a stage in your career where the audience is generational. You’ve got parents bringing their kids to shows, and I can especially relate to this. I have a 19-year-old son and he comes to a lot of shows with me and loves getting into or seeing the bands that he grew up on. Is it pretty special for you guys to see that sort of stuff? I know I always bond with my son at a live show.
Oscar : What has risen up to be my favorite part of any show is when there are children there who just enjoy the music, they’re the next generation. You want to have them there and I have a good story for you that happened. We did a US tour in May with Kamelot and there was one show, there was a platform about 50 meters out in the audience and I could see the fans on it, they were almost leveled with the stage; not quite, but almost. When we play, I like to give my guitar picks to people that have earned it that I think, oh you know all the songs, here you go. I do it by way of saying thank you, I don’t want to just dump a bucket on everybody. I want these picks to mean something. At the end of the show, we threw out whatever is left and try to get to aim for the people that we feel it’s right to have the picks. There was a teenage girl, maybe 12; 11 to 13 I’d say as it is hard to see sometimes. She was there with her Dad in the audience on this little platform up there, so I could see them very well. People are hands up trying to catch my pick, asking for them to be thrown to them. I saw them waving and trying to get my attention to throw them a pick, I had three picks left and I threw the first one. It was way wide and went somewhere, I don’t even know where it went. The second one landed closer, but still not close enough it was like a meter away from her least. She didn’t know where it went either. With the last one I threw hit her right in the face or on the chest, I don’t know, I just know it hit her somewhere and she felt it fall down, but she found it and the next time I looked at them, I saw her dad and this girl embracing and jumping from joy. That’s how much it meant to them, both of them. It gives me goosebumps just telling the story. That’s the best memory I have. I think it’ll have to be a really special memory for me on stage to replace that. That is one of my favorite memories ever.
Andrew : Wow, that’s truly special. Those moments have to feel so special. I’m sure that as a fan not only bonding over the music and performance but creating a memory for life of that shared experience will live forever.
Oscar : Thing is I know exactly what they feel like. I’ve been there. Nothing with my dad, he hated this shit (laughs). But I’ve been there in the audience knowing exactly what people feel like when the bands that they love acknowledge them or when someone hands them a guitar pick or whatever it is, it is the interaction, because I’ve been there many, many, many, many times, sometimes I still have those moments. It is a really nice feeling. I know what they’re going through and it’s really nice for me to be able to give them that experience.
Andrew : We’re almost out of time. Oscar, I could really speak to you forever. I’ve got pages of notes here, but we are out of time and it really is great to celebrate “Avenge The Fallen” with you and obviously the 2025 Australian tour, which hits all major states. As a fan I am really looking forward to these shows. I would just like to thank you and the band for creating a great album and for being a part of my life’s soundtrack. I’m really looking forward to seeing you here in January.
Oscar : Thank you. It goes for me too. I’m really looking forward to that tour. I think it’s going to be great no matter what.
Andrew : Alright Oscar, I’ll let you go. Thank you so much for your time tonight and stopping by The Rockpit.
Oscar : Take care. Thanks Andrew, Bye.
A huge thank you to Nuclear Blast Records and The Phoenix for the opportunity.
