Slob 78 is a band that one of the singers of
Slobobans Undergång, the younger (62 years) of
the Hassling brothers, has together with Mats
and Björn who are the same age. One of the best
albums that have been released this year and
this on Sockiplast Records. This interview was
done in December 2023.
Please tell me lie about every member first,
age, band before etc etc?
-Members Mats Byström, drums, Björn Holmudd
guitar and me on vocals. Born 61 Björn was in
the original Sloboban but dropped out in 1979.
He has said that he has always regretted it. We
met again after 40 years and Björn wanted us to
start making songs together. I would sing and do
lyrics, he would make music and melodies. I
immediately declined. I didn't think I would be
able to do lyrics, I didn't have anything to
write about, not an idea. I was also unsure if I
would be able to front as a singer. In Sloboban
I have been quite comfortable standing in the
shadow of Per. Maybe I sing better,
But I've
always thought he's had a more personal voice.
And except for the first two years in Sloboban,
it was always Per who wrote the lyrics. I hadn't
written a text in over 40 years. But Björn
nagged me and in the end I agreed to try. Björn
and I had some years earlier done two new
recordings of two Slob songs which was from the
time when Björn was in the group. Vi vill också
komma in in and Klapton. They had never been
recorded and were so good that they deserved
some new life and immortality. I thought it was
so much fun and was such a creative kick when we
made them, so it was a feeling I wanted to
relive. The first text I wrote was FotoAlbum and
I discovered that you might be able to be a
little personal without it being navel-gazing
and boring. Now Björn is back with Sloboban as a
bass player. Something that felt very natural
and good. It's always nice when you come in a
full circle.
It almost feels like this is the punkiest thing
you've done, is it you who are the punkiest of
the brothers?
Yyes, this is the punkiest thing I've done.
77-punk is a form of music which is very natural
to me. I listened to it so much when it came
out. All great singles. Our workflow is that
Björn sends me drafts of songs with a shell and
a melody. When Björn sends me a song, I can
hopefully hear what needs to be added or
subtracted. And I'm starting to think about a
text. Then the collaboration between us develops
and we can sometimes send the same song back and
forth 20 times before we are satisfied. No songs
sit directly. And it's maybe not so punky.
Before, you could do 2 songs in one day that
never changed. But we are extremely careful and
keen to make it as good as possible.
Tell us a little about the following songs. Fet
ful och grå, Nittonhundrsjuttionfem and
Välkommen till Kyrktorget.
-The idea for Fet, ful och grå comes from a line
of lyrics by Sprints, I swear to god I'm the
only fucker in this place who isn't doing fine
And I'm not fine Something I could relate to.
You could say that the lyrics are about mental
illness, self-loathing and the difficulty of
dealing with this without alcohol. How hard it
is not to feel ugly, fat and gray in a sober
state. The background of the solo is exactly
stolen from ourselves. It's the same chord as
Sloboban's old song Maktgalen. Then Noel, my
son, came along and did a fantastic solo over
Maktgalenparties.
Välkommen till Kyrktorget is yet another
nostalgic flashback. We went to Porthälla school
and during recess we went to Arne's Konditori
where there was a jukebox. And for some strange
reason it had Plastic Betrand's Ça plane pour
moi It ran all the time. And at KH there was an
incredibly beautiful girl who I never dared to
talk to. We listened a lot to Specials Message
To You Rudy, when we did the song.
Nittonhundrasjuttiofem is a sadness at the fact
that life is coming to an end and a vain,
bittersweet desire to start all over again. How
influenced you were by music at the age of
fifteen. How one could fall in love just by a
moment of eye contact. And how sad it is to feel
that your body has started to give way to it. We
had problems with my vocals on the stick. I
didn't succeed, so we had an idea to contact Kai
Martin if he could do better. He said yes right
away and put it on first. Maybe not exactly as I
imagined. But better.
To be in the 60 ́s and play so vital punk, what
́s the recipe for this?
-I don
́t think it has so much to do with age. I
believe it's important to do things. Whether
it's painting, writing, coaching a football team
or starting a band. I think it's revitalizing to
have something to get involved in. Something to
think about. Something you can always carry with
you. And when Björn wanted to start this band,
it was natural that we would pick up where we
once left off. It would be weird if we would
suddenly start making dance music. We, and the
rest of Slobbar, have our roots in the
seventies. Status Quo, Slade, Sweet, Deep
Purple, Alice Cooper, New York Dolls, Queen.
When punk came 76-77 it was a tidal wave which
it was very easy for us to take to heart.
Sometimes I think that Slob78 sounds more like
if Slobobans have continued on the more punky
style we had in the beginning. If we hadn't gone
over to being a little heavier and tougher. A
style that I also like very much.
It feels sick that you thought 65 was so far
away when that song came... Now we're almost
there, how do you feel about that?
-Since I've started a new family with two
children aged 8 and 10, I don't have much time
to think about my retirement. But when Grisen
Skriker wrote the song, it felt very far away.
And the 65-year-olds in 1978 were incredibly
frail than we are now. But of course it was a
little bit dizzying when we recorded the song
with all its punkicons and it dawned on you that
now we are actually there.
How come you do this LP which is almost your LP
debut... sure you did the split with Rövarna but
here it ́s mostly own songs.....how is the
feeling? Why at Sockiplast?
-We didn ́t have any real plans at all when we
started to do songs. But we were so pleased that
we got in touch with Danne at Sockiplast who to
our immense joy was positive to publish it. It's
all been a treat. From making the songs to
thinking about the album cover. Just deciding on
the order of play is a boyhood dream. What is
the opening song? The all-important second song.
Which songs go together? Which don't fit
together. How to end the record?
Välkommen till Kyrktorget have a little skasound,
is it a style that you like a lot?
-We really liked it when Madness, Specials and
similar groups came up. I remembered Madness'
first record. I had never heard anything so
funny and danceable before. Those records are
still very good.
Your son is playing on the record, how does it
feel, do he have an own band otherwise or how is
it and which style of music do they play?
-It feels really good to have Noel on guitar. I
don't think any guitarist in the world could
have done it better than he did. He's extremely
talented. He plays with Internet Friends who
released an LP this spring which of course is
much better and more vital than anything we will
ever be. I can really recommend them. I have
another older son, Nils, who is also very good
at guitar. But more interested in jazz. Both
extremely musical, something that surprises me
because I've never considered myself musical.
More like a consumer of music.
The last song it says that Tore Sundström
sings... Who is it?
-Tore is a poet from Vilhelmina. We went to folk
high school together. I've always liked his
voice, so when Björn came up with the idea to
include a ballad, it felt like a good idea to
bring in Tore and ask if he had a lyric and
wanted to be a part of it. Maybe I didn't really
dare, or felt comfortable fronting a ballad. We
had Clash Getto Defendent in the back of our
minds how we wanted him to sound. It turned out
great. It was also great that I got a brass
section that is very influenced by one of my
favorite bands, Hunters & Collectors.
Was it difficult to write the lyrics to the
record, or is there so much to write about?
-It ́s really hard to write lyrics. One hell of
a process. I also have such a strong performance
anxiety when it comes to things I don't really
master. I talked to Jönsson in Attentat about it
but he said what? It's just a matter of
reconnecting your brain to the writer's mood,
and you get a different way of looking at life.
Then come the lyrics. It's so easy! I understand
what he means, but for me it's incredibly slow
and time-consuming. But now I feel proud to have
done 8 lyrics which I actually think is good.
But I wish I was the kind of person who can just
sit down and write while the band makes the
music. As I've heard Johnny Lydon and Bono do.
Completely incomprehensible to me. But I steal
some. A word, a line here and there that I can
then elaborate on.
It feels like if you write nostalgic lyrics in
the same time as it ́s contemporary depictions?
What inspires you to write?
-Like I said. Or as Jönsson said, it's important
to connect the writer's brain. So you pay extra
attention. It can be a line in someone else's
song, a phrase in a podcast. You can't write
about what was important 40 years ago. It would
be a bit strange to write about the school or
the police. Or politics for that matter. I
dislike SD as much as most others in our
audience, but I have a hard time seeing what I
could express that no one else has done. I
desperately dislike them, they are evil and a
little too smart and I feel a great frustration
that people can't see it. Maybe I should do a
text anyway.... Therefore, there will be more
personal texts. And nostalgic. Nostalgia is
close to my heart, I have always liked Torsson's
lyrics.
How does it feel to have done one of the best
punk records of 2023?
-It feels good and I'm proud of us. Listened to
it last week and was struck by hubris. I felt
that it was the best Swedish album that has been
released since Ebba's first. Good lyrics, good
production, sound. A fun, tough record.
Therefore, it feels a bit sad that it will
probably just disappear into the ether and not
get the attention it deserves. It should have
been published in 1978!
How have the reviews been so far?
-We have only got one review and that is Skrutt
Magazine. We hope for more, so that more people
will listen to it.
Will it be a continuation of the group?
-We will continue to write songs together. Björn
drowns me with song ideas, but I haven't had any
energy this fall. Among other things, a
herniated disc that was not a hit. But we're
aiming for a new album in a year or so.
Have you played live yet?
-We've never played live. We had a thought about
making an acoustic set in connection with the
release of the album. But, as I said, my energy
has not been at its peak. I have a hard time
seeing us playing with a whole band. On the one
hand it takes a lot of power to rehearse a whole
band and on the other hand you want people to
come, and would it really do that? Then both
Björn and I suffer from stage fright. And it's
one thing to hide behind the people of Sloboban,
then it can even be fun. But to front
yourself....Very doubtful. Or would it probably
be useful.
Is there any new punkgroups you like and some of
the old ones which is still going strong?
-I listen very little to new punk. I'm one of
those guys who think it was better before. But I
like Bad Nerves. And Gallus. If they count as
punk? I think Trubbel is terribly good. I saw
them live this spring and it was really good. By
the way, at Välkommen till Kyrktorget we stole
their way of laying choirs. Genius of them. We
will certainly use it again. I think KSMB
released a record a couple of years ago which
had a couple of songs which was really good. I
like a lot of what Attentat still does. Jag
äslkar inte dig något mer, it's one of the best
things they've ever done
Which five records have meant the most to you
through the ages?
-You listen to music in a completely different
way today. I never put on a record at home, I
only listen to Spotify where I put together
playlists with new music. You listened in a
completely different way in the 70's when you
could sit with headphones and listen to the same
record for hours. And you sat with the fantastic
cover and studied it meticulously. I miss it.
During the 70's almost all the music I love was
made. Paradoxically, I rarely listen to it now.
Punk was very much about singles. Not everyone
was able to complete an entire album. If I have
to rank my top 5 punk albums it will be like
this:
Sex Pistols: Never Mind…
Damned första
Stranglers: Rattus…
Vibrators: Pure Mania
Clash; London Calling
Ramones: Leave Home
Ruts: The Crack
Would I rank my 70´s favorite it would be like
this:
Slade: Slayed
Queen: A Night At The Opera
Status Quo: Quo
New York Dolls
Led Zeppelin: Physical Grafitti
Alice Cooper: Billion Dollar Babies
Alex Harvey: SAHB stories
What does punk mean to you? Is it just a word or
is it a lifestyle?
-Punk came to mean a lot to us. We had never
formed Sloboban, Slobobans had never got an
audience. We went from Partille into town and
met like-minded people. I sometimes think that
we were damn lucky to be right there, right
then. It came to characterize our lives and
those of many others. It was a fantastic do it
yourself movement with its own aesthetic, music.
Fanzines, singles, music venues. For many, it
came to characterize their entire lives. To
always question, not to be afraid, to stand up
for yourself. For me, who is a bit shy and maybe
not always so good at standing up for myself,
it's more, I think, that I like to start things
up. That I get ideas that I implement, even if
I'm scared and uncertain all the time. Like the
project when we did the remake of 65. I thought
it was a great idea to collect all the old
Gothenburg singers who are now around 65. But
once the idea is set and is about to be
launched, it is only characterized by fear and
uncertainty. I have to force myself to contact
Grisen Skriker to get their approval. With
Jönsson, Per, Tobbe Kai to hear if they want to
be a part of it. Terrified that they won't think
it's fun or good. That they should say that is
the worst idea they have ever heard. Pathetic
and useless. Same when we all got together to
make the recording. I was afraid that it would
be stiff and only half-good. Then everything
became awesome, it's a fantastic energy in the
recording. But it's only then that I can enjoy
it. When I have the result and it turned out
just as good as I hoped for. Maybe even better.
But the process itself is only marked by
uncertainty, anxiety, and low self-esteem. I
have to force myself to do it. But maybe if I
hadn't grown up with punk, I would never have
even started the project.
Futureplans for the band? For yourself?
Something to add?
-I hope that Slob78 can do more songs, that we
can maybe release more records. Both physically
and digitally. It's great to release vinyl, to
have something physical to look at. I hope that
Sloboban can do more songs. Now that we have
Björn in the band again, we have got a
creativity and engine that we can benefit from.
I hope that Sloboban can do more gigs. We are in
favour of that. As long as the conditions are
right. That we know it will sound and look good.
That we know it will come. It would have been
horrible to play in front of 15 people in a
basement somewhere. If Slob78 will ever play
live is written in the stars. In one way it's
tempting, in another it's frightening.
Otherwise, I just hope that everyone will be
nice to each other.