Left Hand Black will release their third album DEATH CAN ́T KEEP US APART in September and I was lucky enough to hear all their songs already now and I felt that the craving for a new interview with the group is great so I decided to interview Johan once again. June-2025

Now you will release your third album in September. How do you feel about that?

-It feels really good! We have developed as songwriters – or rather become better at developing the songs Hans comes with, since he writes most of them. Then everyone puts their stamp on the songs in the rehearsal room. We do everything there.

You call it Left Hand Black 3: Death Can't Keep Us Apart. Did it take a long time to come up with that name?

-We had first thought of calling it just Left Hand Black 3, considering Danzig 3. But when we got the cover – painted by the American artist Frank Walls – it felt natural to call it Death Can't Keep Us Apart. The picture is in four parts and could represent the four of us in the band, that not even death can separate us, haha. The cover only has "III" on it, no logo or title. The title instead comes as a sticker on the record.

The new song is called Murder on My Mind Again. Are you so murderous that you have to murder again?

-Hahaha! Our lives revolve around evil, sudden death – so yes, we are quite murderous. And who doesn't have that annoying bastard at work you dream of getting rid of?

Who writes the lyrics?

-Thomas Karlsson wrote like a thousand lyrics for The Dead Next Door, so we use a lot of them. The rest writes Hans.

Have you ever mixed politics into any song?

-No, we have not – and we will not do that. We only sing about tough horror stuff, satan and wonderful creatures, hahaha.

Do you like political bands? Do you have any good examples?

-Bad Religion – which also reflects a certain influence in our music.

Which label releases the record?

-We have signed with the Greek label The Circle Music, which is responsible for the main investment. Our old label, Sick Taste Records, will also release a license edition in the form of a box. We chose this arrangement because The Circle Music has better financial opportunities for promotion and distribution worldwide – which hopefully helps us reach a wider audience. But it also feels fun to have STR, which is a DIY company, on a corner.

You were part of a gathering where horrorpunk bands do pop songs. What was the name of the record and which song did you do?

-Horror Punk Chartbusters. We did Working for the Weekend by Loverboy.

You collect records yourself – is it important for you to release the music physically?

 -Yes, absolutely! Preferably in stylish editions that make us collectors lose our breath. So buy our records – you won't be disappointed. The new album will be released in three different variants and colors on vinyl:

·         300 examples in transparent blue

·         100 in black/orange sunburst that comes with the box

·         100 copies in turquoise vinyl

What has happened since I interviewed you five years ago? Have you changed members?

-No, we are the same gang as then.

You have gained a larger audience abroad. Which country is best to play in? It feels like you are bigger there than in Sweden?

-Horrorpunk is biggest in Germany and USA, so we have to say Germany. We have more listeners in the US, but you don't really want to go there right now. We have quite a lot of listeners in Sweden as well, but it's hard to get gigs here. Trallpunk dominates the punk scene in Sweden. So – if any booker is reading this: we are happy to play in Sweden!

Which five records have you bought most recently?

-Ghost, Paranoid, Lik, Gruesome and Black Birch.

You recorded the album in March 2024 – why does it take until September 2025 before it is released?

-The mixing took a long time, so it took a while before we got a result we could send to different companies. Once we had decided and signed the contract, the process itself started – and it also takes time.

You have guests on the album – tell us!

-We have Nim Vind on the title track Death Can't Keep Us Apart, which is great fun! We all like his music, and he's a big profile in the genre. Then we have Per Stålberg himself who does a duet with Hans on Why Do I Kill Everything I Love. The idea was actually that a female colleague of Hans would sing, but in the studio Per tried it out – and it turned out perfectly!

Do you play any covers live?

-No, we don't usually do that. But since we recorded Working for the Weekend, we've done it live sometimes.

Have you ever thought about doing a song in Swedish? Or would it feel ridiculous?

-Haha, no, we've never thought about that – and it's probably not something we will. But now that you're asking... Maybe we'll try anyway!

Can you give some tips on horror punk bands you just have to listen to?

-The Crimson Ghosts, Nim Vind, The Others and BZFOS – to name a few.

Which bands do you usually play with live?

-Outside of Sweden it has only been other horror punk bands. The few times we have had the chance to play in Sweden it has mostly been at smaller punk festivals. We really want to play more here at home, but it's hard to find bookers.

What kind of audience comes to your concerts?

-Very mixed! Everything from hard rockers to synths, hahaha.

You released a beer too. Tell those who don't know!

-It was Rörö Öl who released an APA. The recipe is created by our friend Nicklas Lathvenis from Nästås Brewery. Unfortunately, Rörö Öl has closed down, but maybe we will find someone new who wants to brew something with us?

What is your favorite brewery and beer style?

-My favorite beer is Bedarö Bitter from Nynäshamns Ångbryggeri. I am also lucky enough to know many good homebrewers out on the islands. Hönö Ölagille has an autumn beer meeting every autumn in Klåva harbour. They also collaborate with Barlind on Björkö, which usually releases some beer. Then we have Malte – they run Beer for Ukraine every Good Friday, where all proceeds go to those in need.

What is your strength live – and what is the most fun about playing live?

-Our strength is that we have played together for many years and have damn fun together. Me, Hans and Jonathan grew up more or less together and played in Eframis Söner, an Eddie Meduza cover band. Anton and I have also played together for 15 years in Skeletunes and Overdrive Solution. The most fun thing about playing live is everything around – meeting other bands and above all the audience. It's great fun!

What is the weirdest review you have received?

-That Hans would be a plagiarist of Glenn Danzig – which he absolutely is not.

Many bands think that their songs are ruined by people listening in the wrong order digitally. Do you recognize that?

-In some cases, like with concept albums where there is a common thread, absolutely. A good example is Lake of Tears – Ominous, which you should really listen to from start to finish. In our case, it's not as important, but we still try to avoid putting two similarly structured songs one after the other – it can easily become repetitive.

Futureplans for the band?

-The record will be released on September 22nd and we hope it leads to more gigs. Then it's actually time to go back into the studio – the next album is pretty much done.

For yourself?

-It's a lot of work behind the scenes when you have a band – releasing records, booking gigs and everything around takes time and energy. So now I'm going to take a well-deserved vacation. Then it's just to go for it again! What we do is a damn fun hobby after all.

Words of wisdom?

-What the hell, I think that everyone who listens to us is already damn wise. So it's probably hard to come up with anything more sensible than: Stay horror!