Interviews

SOURCE - First off before we start this interview could you please tell us a bit of yourself and your band mates. How is it going for you guys at the moment and where are you?
RAINER NYGARD - Hello our Brazilian friends! Greetings from Tampere, Finland!

My name is Rainer Nygard and I’m rhythm guitarist/vocalist in DIABLO. In DIABLO there are also playing Marko Utriainen (lead guitar), Aadolf Virtanen (bass) and Heikki Malmberg (drums). Right now I feel that I’m too old for this rock n’ roll business, hah hah!

We’d been touring all over the Finland two months now and I’m pretty tired to be on the road every weekend. Fortunately, there are only few gigs left and in May we have a long waited break for DIABLO. After the break we start to play on summer festivals here in Finland. That period lasts something like three months. Our calendar is full booked already. I was hoping that we sould be able to play outside Finland this summer but now I’m losing my hope for that..

SOURCE - Your new album ”Mimic47” is coming out March 2006, what kind of music can we expect? Your newest single ”Mimic47” has been played quite a lot in major finnish radiochannel YleX, did you expect that kind of reception from people?
RN - Well the release date is already behind us as you know ;) The album came out Finland in January and GSA countries (Germany, Switzerland and Austria) in the end of February.

I think that people waited some really heavy stuff from DIABLO and that is what we offered to them, hah hah! Metal music is now more popular than ever in Finland so that’s why you can hear even this kind of music in radio. Ten years ago things were totally different..

S - Your record contract with Poko Records will end after the release of "Mimic47", do you already know which company will release your albums in future ?
RN - No, we don’t know that yet. So far we have been too busy to even think about that. I think we will discuss about with the management in the end of this summer. It is also possible that we try to do a masterdeal with a suitable record company. But anyway, now it’s too early to say

S - What was the last album you bought?
RN – CHARON “Songs For The Sinners”.

S - I was wondering if there are some major countries for metal music where your album hasn´t been released yet? Have any of your albums been released e.g. in Brazil under a license deal or something, for example?
RN - Hmm..for example I don’t see U.S.A and England anywhere on my list, hah hah! I’m sad to say but I think none of our albums have been released in Brazil yet.

I heard that “Mimic47” is going to be released in France, which is not “a major heavy metal country”, I think.

S - What kinds of music do you mostly listen ?
RN - Right now I’m pretty badly fixed on the 80’s hard rock music. Bands like DEF LEPPARD, RATT, T.N.T. etc. I’ve been laughing to myself that I’m perhaps going through some kind of personal crisis cos’ I listen this kind of music at the moment, ha ha!! Weird, but Finnish black metal band AJATTARA is on my playlist too!

S - How much are you in contact with the Finnish Metal scene? Are there any lesser-known bands that you would recommend our readers to listen to?
RN - Uups, I haven’t followed the scene for years. Sorry !

S - So, are you saying that you haven´t heard from someone yet that some people could have bought an illegal copy for your new album from some well-known pirate countries...
RN - Well, I’ve been informed now Hah! Our drummer Heikki has an illegal copy of Renaissance (he’s father bought that for him for a joke) and few of my friends have also seen our records in Estonia.

S - Can you live on the music or do you have a regular job on the side?
RN - All of us had regular jobs. With this kind of music you can’t support yourself properly in Finland and I don’t want to starve to death either.