Swedish Dark symphonic metal outfit Eleine will soon be releasing a new EP, Acoustic in Hell, consisting of stripped-down acoustic versions of some of their songs. The decision to release an acoustic EP was made when the band was having some down time after being invited on Sonata Arcticas own acoustic tour last year, which got postponed. Now both that tour and EP are upon us, and I caught up with Madeline and Rikard to talk about the upcoming EP, the tour, and more.
Thanks for taking the time to speak with me. Now that the summer festival season has come to a close, how does it feel being back out on stage?
Madeleine: Fantastic. It’s mixed actually when you think about how it feels timewise. Because we stayed so busy during the pandemic, we really didn’t ever catch that, oh shit, it’s been almost two years. But at the same time, walking back out on stage, and seeing the crowd again, it was like oh yes! Finally! If also great to be back.
Rikard: That was a great feeling. And the thing about Sweden is we didn’t have lockdowns, we had restrictions. That allowed us to have rehearsal every week and continue as we always do. It was never like we had a downtime playing music. But being back in playing in front of thousands and hundreds, that was great.
You guys did something that many bands did not want to do during the height of the pandemic. You released an album. Is the reason for that was you wanted to stay engaged with the fans, and maybe bring music to them during a difficult time?
Rikard: I would say yeah partly. We actually didn’t write the album during the pandemic, it was written before the pandemic, so it was scheduled to be released on that date before the pandemic even happened.
Madeleine: Yeah, all of that was scheduled before the pandemic even started. We were out on tour and when everything happened in Europe, I think we got almost three weeks out of five, then everything was canceled and we had to go home. So we talked and were like we have the studio recording set for May, and were going to do that either way because we could.
But we also said, should we wait to release? Because we were probably not going to be able to tour this. No one knew anything. People were talking like this was going to be over by fall.
But we decided to go along with our plan and decided to add two more singles and two more music videos. For us, we felt that we needed to stay focused. I felt like in the beginning of the pandemic, I was going to lose my shit, I was going to lose my sanity because I needed to work. I love our job. But we made the right call to stay focused on ourselves, and the beautiful thing was to see and hear the response from our fans.
New fans discover us as well, and still to this day people thank us for releasing the music like we did. Even if it was written before the pandemic, so many related to the songs. We write so much about mental health. It’s very powerful! I got chills right now because our fans on Patreon remind us on a daily basis that we actually made them get through this. People were losing their families due to the pandemic, they lost their mom due to this, and that is some heavy shit.
Rikard: Many lost their livelihood and all hope. With our music, we write it in such a way that it becomes empowering, because Madeleine and I know what it’s like to be at rock bottom. We write about what we know, what we feel, and what we see. It becomes empowering for those that listen to it.
It sounds cringy when you say it aloud, but when people come to us and say they had lost all hope, and that our music had saved them that is so powerful and nothing that I want to hide under the rug or anything like that. So, it was powerful that we decided to do that, but it was very risky. Very risky. Because we’re willing to take risks and we’re in this for nothing but the passion and the love for the music being able to spread what we have to say.
Madeleine: We had no gigs to promote the album and it is our best-selling album. We did it very well and we’re very grateful, and it felt like the right decision for us.
Rikard: Definitely, and if I had to redo it, I would do it the same way.
So, during this time, you would say that platforms such as Patreon and Twitch helped you out in a big way?
Rikard: With twitch and Patreon to be able to connect with your audience directly, is super powerful. And I could tell you that without Patreon, we would not have made it. We would not have made it at all. And Twitch made it possible for us to actually put food on the table.
Madeleine: And with Patreon, upon the release we could stay even more in touch. We did release our Patreon in August 2019 and it grew and went well, and then it grew even more after that or, then the pandemic hit, and people wanted to support us; then we notice that we were building this fantastic community. We have a Discord chat server connected to it exclusively so no one randomly can join, but it is a little space where you can feel free and connect with others and share the same interest.
There are different channels. Some like nature, some like gaming, some like both. It’s beautiful to see and the results from this is that yes, they support us but they are finding each other at gigs, and meet up, and now I have friends to go to gigs with. It’s powerful and I am so grateful for it, it’s amazing.
That sounds amazing. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had to go to shows alone because no friends wanted to go with me.
Madeleine: Exactly, and it doesn’t have to be friends that you stay in touch with daily, but can meet up for a gig or meet up before.
The EP is going to be released soon, and how does that feel for you guys, what emotions are you going through?
Rikard: We’ve done this a couple of times before, and we’re very much a DIY band. I mean it’s just a lot of work. That’s where we are right now in our heads. Of course, it is exciting, and with an acoustic release, with each new release we never know if listeners or potential new listeners will like it because we always write what we feel is correct for the time. And if it’s right we go for it. As Madeline says, we never sit down on a Monday and say OK, what do people like? The thing is people mostly don’t know what they want until they hear it and perhaps maybe it is something that we can provide. It’s not that we’re uncertain, you just actually never know.
Madeleine: The thing is it’s all about where you put your focus. And we have put all our focus in what feels right for us. That is what we want to create, and we have a vision for Eleine, and we always have. So, it’s not like we have to ask ourselves what do people want to hear, because if they want to hear Eleine, they come to us. If they want to hear Arch Enemy, they’ll go to Arch Enemy.
Rikard: Or to us! And vice versa.
Madeleine: Yeah, that’s the thing with people having different tastes, we’re just going to stay true to who we are and if people like it thank you very much, and if not that’s totally fine. We won’t hate you.
Rikard: And this acoustic EP only came to be because of our tour with Sonata Arctica starting on October 20th and going on for seven weeks.
Madeleine: Yeah, we’re going out in Europe and it was supposed to take place last year in 2021 but that wasn’t possible because of all the restrictions still being there. So, when it got postponed, we looked at each other and we were like, yeah, we’re going to make a release out of it this. Because we had already rearranged and the entire set was still there, we thought why not just do that.
And we’re very happy that we did because it was very fun, and it was a challenge. To make our authentic and majestic music into this very raw and stripped-down songs. But I’m freaking excited about releasing it next week because I like it. Because to me it’s still metal, the song is still metal but even though there’s no distorted guitars, I still get a metal vibe. I still want to run into an audience and just go crazy and that’s the beauty of it. So, it came very naturally being able to do this, and the fans are super excited about it also.
I’m excited too, because it’s not very often you find a metal band that is doing something with just acoustics. It’s a weird change, but you love it at the same time.
Rikard: And thank you very much, it was very important for us to keep it raw and authentic.
Madeleine: And if you listen to our music, songs like Dancing in Hell and Until the End and whatnot it has a certain groove, which many of the songs do. I just love that we can bring that groove to the front, and make it even more because when we rearranged these songs I was like, on yeah, I feel this in my hips! Because it is something that happens to you energy wise any mood wise and you just feel it. It makes you happy even if you want to just run into a mosh pit and just mosh away.
Yeah, jumping in a mosh pit to an acoustic song, that would be a good sight to see! Did you have any problems during the recording process with arranging the songs or was the acoustic session easier to do?
Rikard: A little bit of both actually. The thing is we were always very well prepared for what we had in front of us, and we set up the recording period over five days, and we knew that we had five days to make it happen. And the main thought was to have everyone in the same room together, and have Madeline behind a glass wall or something so that we can make like a live session of it.
And The thing is we came into a little bit of a snag there because of the vocal parts because one of our cats became very, very ill and had to be monitored 24/7. This occurred over two to three weeks before the actual recording. Madeline and I hadn’t slept for three weeks, and Madeline had to stay home while me and the rest of the band were at the studio to record it all at once and that’s why you can hear like a live vibe to it. We recorded our stuff in about four days and then we went home.
Madeleine: I drove there and it was about four hours away, and I have no how I did it and I was so tired. And as Rikard was saying, we didn’t sleep for like two or three weeks, and we woke up like every hour or every second hour to monitor her to give her meds and cleaning up. And you can really feel that like, holy shit, I’m not here right now.
But we did the vocal recordings in three hours and after that I totally passed out in the bed at the studio. So, it wasn’t exactly how we planned it, but. But it was not because it was acoustic, it was because of what happened to our cat. We plan to start the studio session with five days and finish all the songs with all the guys.
I wouldn’t say that we had any challenges because it was acoustic, but it was only because of what happened in our private life.
Rikard: The only difference is that it took longer. We would’ve done it the same way otherwise. It was very interesting and it was the first time we ever did an acoustic kind of anything. It was nice to play it all together all at once. I’m also kind of a perfectionist also, because when I record my guitars in the studio with electric guitars, I can do takes forever. But you can’t do that in an acoustic live kind of setting because you hear everything, and you can’t cut. And the thing is what you hear is what you actually get when you hear it live, and that is very cool.
That is definitely awesome, but I do have to ask, is the cat okay?
Madeleine: Yes, she is still on her mind, she is still alive, and she’s very happy.
Rikard: Yeah, thank you for asking, she’s doing good and is a chunky baby right now.
That’s great to hear, and I’m glad that the cat is okay. Do you think with how much fun you had with recording this that you would potentially ever be doing more of this down the road, and potentially adding some of the songs in a setlist with future tours?
Madeleine: For now, the entire tour that were going on with Sonata Arctica will be acoustic since we were invited on their acoustic adventures tour, and then this happened, and it’s really all because of them. But yes, we are taking the entire acoustic album out on tour, but after that we don’t have any plans to make any acoustic, but you should never say never.
The beautiful thing when it comes to EP’s and stuff like that, is you have that kind of freedom, just makes and do whatever you feel like. Our All Shall Burn EP had two new songs, and one cover, and we had two tracks that were symphonic versions. Just the symphonies and my vocals. I love that EP, because it includes everything that is Eleine but in a very free way. So, you never know, when you’re out and about, and you’ve major tours, and you’ve written a new album, who knows what you feel is the right thing to do.
The acoustic vibe is very appreciated now, it’s very sweet to hear but we never say what we’re about to do in 20 years. Maybe we will have our own festival and we want to start the festival with a very small acoustic set for VIPs, and then work on it and the festival with a big gig and lots of Pyro. Who knows? But nothing is planned after the store and after this one.
We’re are all excited for the tour, and are very excited to see you on the road. I just want to say thank you again for taking the time to sit down and chat with me. Is there anything else you’d like to add or say to the fans?
Madeleine: We always think of fans for being the best fans in the world. They’re always so supportive, they’re so sweet, they’re so beautiful and they remind us each day of really why we’re doing this even when going through struggles in life. I mean life happens, and they are right there to remind us. And lots of our fans this year have shown us this tattoo that they have done which is our symbol, and it’s very beautiful that we have that as a constant reminder. And we thank all our fans, and this is a reminder that this is an in between albums we’re doing. Just because of the tour that we’re invited on. And next year, a lot more will happen. You can expect new music from Eleine, and we would love to talk to you again about this next year!
Yeah, I would love that!
Madeleine: I would say this while this is great, we’ll talk again soon.
Rikard: Thank you!
