Mergel Kratzer

Hello Joel, how is everything going?
- "Everything is... a bit chaotic! We are running the 'Isotop' promotional campaign mostly by our selves and if I don't watch myself I can really spend a whole night just collecting addresses. We should hire someone next time, but it's under control, I'm actually doing some new-song-sketch-ups. I have some crazy ideas for the future."

The album is done and waiting to be released, what are your feelings right now?
- "My feelings... after releasing material that I have been working with for almost three years? It's such a relief! Finally I'm free. And with some distance to it, with comments dropping in from both critics and fans, I feel happy, but not satisfied. I'm hungering for more!"

You have released a CDM before but on another label, why did you decide not to release on it and what happened?
- "Because the label do not longer exist! And they were so small and without sufficient financial supplies and contacts, so their promotional work was a bit of a fiasco. But it was ran by just one guy who did everything at his spare time, so you cant really blame anyone. But it feels good to move on by our selves, now we have the control panel under our fingertips."

It's been a couple of years since your last release, what have you been up to and what has changed?
- "We have been growing, moving and exchanging band members. I had a really hard time about one year ago, when people broke into my car and took the majority of our musical equipment. I was financially and emotionally bankrupt, about to give up music and life. But thanks to friends and family, and me enslaved under a microscope soldering military electronics to get some money, I did survive. And now we're back!"

Can you tell us a bit about 'Isotop'?
- "Actually, 'Isotop' is our cat. But it is also the name of the album, and it's awesome. Or, maybe you just have to listen and make your own opinion. It's really a mix of old and new songs, I think there is something for everyone in there."

What is you main influences , what makes you create and what inspires you?
- "For me, music is always based on really deep feelings. But at the end, when i get some distance to it, I usually mix everything up with humor and irony, and then I am not afraid of the feelings anymore. It's a strange process to explain. Basically, any thing can give me inspiration. But most of the time i write about fucked up things that i do not understand."

You've changed some members over the years , in what way has it affected Mergel Kratzer?
- "In a good way. We still have the old members souls in the band, but we have moved on. I think the biggest change was when i moved to Gothenburg, met Angelica and got her into the band. She has become the visually thinking part of the band. She is a model and performance artist, and we have established some really good contacts thanks to her. And the fact that she drums like a machine doesn't hurt me at all. With Julia in the band, we're more musically independent on stage. She's great with the keyboard, usually she picks out the songs by her self, write down the notation, and plays it perfectly on the rehearsal. It's funny, from the beginning MK was a trio of guys. Now, we're almost a girl band."

Any last words for all the people out there?
- "Don't pirate music! Hehe just kidding. Music is for everyone. I would rather say "keep on listening, keep on exploring, do stop the music, do play it again""