Pop/Rock
Per Wiberg - Zweedse multi-instrumentalist heeft nieuwe plaat uit ‘Head without eyes’
Per Wiberg
2019-05-16
Erik Vandamme

Per Wiberg ‘Music’s an art form and is always an expression of some kind, humorous, sad, funny, serious, angry or whatever’

Al meer dan dertig jaar maakt de Zweedse multi-instrumentalist Per Wiberg  het mooie weer bij Death Organ, Spiritual Beggars, Opeth, Kamchatka en King Hobo. En dan hebben we het nog niet over de talloze andere projecten waar hij aan meewerkt. De man had ondanks die drukke agenda niet alleen tijd gevonden om een nieuwe schijf uit te brengen: 'Head Without Eyes'. Hij wilde ons ook graag te woord staan i.v.m. die nieuwe release en beantwoordde ook andere vragen die we op hem afvuurden.

Congratulations on your new album, what are your own expectations about this?
Hi and thanks! Since this is the first solo album I wouldn’t know what to expect really, but so far the feedback has been really positive. The ambition is to make another album and hopefully to get more of a steady band together for this in the future.
How did the collaboration with Despotz records come about? And do you like that label?
I play in a band called Kamchatka who were signed to Despotz so I’m well familiar with them. When I finished the album I started talking to people and labels about a possible collab. I meet Ömer at Despotz on a Tiamat gig in Stockholm and he asked me what I was up to and wanted to hear the album so.. I like being on an indie label cause it’s pretty flexible and you can work an album for a longer time frame compared to being on labels with gazillions of releases.
You are also busy in other projects, in which you also spend a lot of time, how and where did you find time to put together a solo album?
I started to write and record this album in 2016. Since I play and sing most of the stuff on the album it was easy to record. I just did bits and pieces in my rehearsal room when I felt inspired in between touring with other things. It didn’t feel rushed at all and I took my time with things actually.
As for those other projects, are there plans for the near future?
Me, Thomas(Kamchatka) & JP Gaster(Clutch) have a band called King Hobo which will release the second album May 31 through Weathermaker Music. With Kamchatka we’ve started working on new material and if all goes well we’ll record this summer. The same goes for the band Switchblade, lots of stuff written and it’s getting closer to putting it together and record sometime later this year. Spiritual Beggars won’t do anything this year as most of us are busy with other things. Leif Edling’s feeling good and is back touring with Candlemass so there are no plans for me to do any shows with them at the moment. I’ll play a few Tiamat shows filling in on keyboards this year as well.
Is something actually planned as a release show (or are we late). if so how did everything go?
There are no shows booked at the moment. I wanted to take my time with this and ask around to see who’d be available and up for playing these songs live. Also since it’s a new thing I was curious about the feedback on the album. Looking forward to play live later though!
Do you have plans to tour solo with your new album? if yes, also in Belgium?
Yes I will definitely play live but right now it’s impossible to say to what extent. I want to play a couple of shows at home in Sweden first to see how it works out and then of course I’d love to play in Europe, incl Belgium. I’ll give it my best and we’ll see what happens!
Regarding the title of your solo album, does it have a mutual meaning?
Head Without Eyes was originally the name of the project but I decided to be brave and use my own name instead... It depends on what you want it to mean kinda, If you can’t look outside you have to look inwards if that makes sense!? 
To continue with that, does your solo work have a personal meaning? in the sense that you can express your frustrations or emotions in it? or shouldn't we go that far?
I think all music has, or at least shoud have a personal meaning. Then it’s up to the artist how to show or present that. Music’s an art form and is always an expression of some kind, humorous, sad, funny, serious, angry or whatever but I understand what you mean and yes, it’s a way of expressing my emotions and frustrations.
You will also be responsible for the vocal input on your solo album. How did you like it?
I’ve done lead vocals in many bands through the years, maybe not the most well known bands I’ve played with but it’s not a new thing for me. The difference lie more in the vibe of the songs and I wanted it to be something else than shouty rock vocals. I’m happy with the performance but it’s one of those things, at least to me that benefits from having someone you trust around to bounce ideas with, like a producer for example. I’ll probably try to work with someone next time.
Are there other artists and musicians who collaborate on this disc? if so who? and how did it work?
Yes, Karl Daniel Lidén has mixed 3 songs and he also played drums on those. He’s a great producer and engineer and has worked with bands like Bloodbath, Victims, Crippled Black Phoenix etc. Lars Sköld(Tiamat/Avatarium)played drums on the other 3 tracks, good friend and a very powerful drummer. We recorded his stuff at Black Lounge Studios with Jonas Kjellgren who also mixed those songs. Jonas is a super talented guy and mostly known within the metal world. Billie Lindahl from Promise And The Monster helps out with vocals on 3 tracks. She’s a great artist and I really like her music and vocals. I hope we can do something more together in the future.
Can we see this album as the start of a solo career? or should we not view it that way?
Yeah I guess it’s a start of a solo thing but that doesn’t mean that I’ll stop doing other things. I’ve always loved playing in bands and still do!
As a big fan of Opeth, for example, what I appreciate about you is that despite that legendary status, you are always on the ground with both feet? Is that a conscious choice? The "why" may be a weird question, but I sometimes see other things with front men with your status.
It’s not a conscious choice really but more how you live your life I think. To me it’s always been really important to be humble about the the so-called career because that could be gone any day for many different reasons. I don’t think it’s too much to ask to just be polite and respectful and say hi to people, the reward is so much bigger than being a douche. The ego thing seems to take a lot of time as well and I don’t have the patience for that, I just want to rock out :-)
Is it really interesting to release a disc in these times of streaming? You have experienced different times, what is your personal opinion about steaming?
I’m a complete music nerd and I stream, buy downloads, cd’s & vinyl and don’t care about formats that much. I think it’s good that there are all kinds of ways to enjoy music these days. But, having grown up with records I think physical(vinyl/cd)is probably my favorite way of presenting a vision, both the music and the graphics/package as it makes it more interesting and gives a better understanding of what you’re listening to.
It is perhaps a somewhat far-fetched question. But where do you see yourself in, let's say ten years? Are there any ambitions after what you have already achieved? because in the meantime your euvre is impressive (and that is an understatement)
I hope that I’ve had time and the opportunity to explore some of the stuff I’d like to try, both as an instrumentalist and as a songwriter. I have many different musical ambitions and things I’d like to learn and get better at. I don’t look back a lot and can’t really afford to think too long term either, it’s more about focusing on the moment and do as good as you can with whatever I work on and move on after that. 
I get through my questions. Are there any communications to our readers?
Check out the album, it’s a little bit different but worth a try! I’ll do what I can to bring this on the road in the future so hopefully I’ll be able to make it to Begium as well.