Troubled Horse interview: "If you really are into this music you can easy hear who is a trend follower and who's not"

Troubled Horse were for me the biggest surprise of the year. Their debut album which was released ten years after the founding of the band, stuck on repeat for weeks and it made me wonder (yet again) what the hell they drinking in Sweden and they create such great bands. The singer and soul of the band, Martin Heppich, spent some of his time to answer our questions about the vintage scene, trends in music and for the strange sartorial choices in their live performances. Read what he said to us and please ...do not ignore the fantastic "Step Inside" album.

Hello Martin. Give us a brief version of the history of the band.
Me, Ola and Jens grew up together playing in a band called Great Mammoth. (1995-2001). We played the same music as we do now but with a different set up. We dissolved in 2001, band members were getting jobs and starting at different schools. Then back in 2003 I started up Troubled Horse. I was really psyched to start playing again and so I gave Ola a call.

Tell me, really, why it took you so long? It’s been almost ten years.
I've been down in the gutter not feeling that good at all, and Ola and John played with Witchcraft. We have had a lot of bad luck but in 2010 we released a 7" and we got a new spark going.

You managed to create a fantastic album. Many songs were written during all these years from 2003. How did you work with the old and the new songs and how easy was it to make such an album in the studio?
Thanks man! It was no problem working with the old material, I still love those songs and they mean a lot to me at a personal level. To tell you the truth it has not been easy recording these songs in the studio. We have been putting down a lot of work.

Did the producer play a major part in the recordings or you already had in your mind how you wanted the album to sound?
No we knew how we wanted the songs to turn out. And Anders who recorded us knows what he is doing.

How would you describe "Step Inside"'s sound? Can you name some of your influences?
We wanted an old feeling to it, but yet fresh, (haha). We have many influences from the 60s and 70s garage rock and hard rock scene. And we wanted to combine the old with the newer feel of today.

Can we consider Troubled Horse as a full band? I'm asking because as far as John and Jens are with Spiders (who are to tour with Graveyard as we speak) and Ola is, of course, a member of Witchcraft.
No need for you to be concerned, Troubled Horse is a full band. We will make it work for both Witchcraft and Troubled Horse.

Why didn't you include the cover version of Mammoth's "Weep Not Child" in your album?
It didn't fit the record. But maybe we will record it again in the future.

Are there any touring plans?
The tour is getting booked for this spring as we speak.

Ok, now tell me what's the story behind the dress you are wearing in live performances?
We were touring with rock band Horisont back in 2010, and I got a bit drunk sometimes and decided to do the show in a dress. The thought behind it all, I guess, is to be the hardest band crushing everything music wise, and be doing it all in a dress. I doesn’t matter what you look like, or wearing, we still crush 99% of the bands out there live.

What is your opinion about this vintage scene which is somehow a trend at the moment, with bands like Witchcaft and Graveyard signed in a major label such us Nuclear Blast?
The problem with trends is that all the really good bands that has been in this scene for a long time and really genuinely loves it, can be foreseen by critics as just being another trend following band. It kind of makes me sick! Fuck all trend followers! But if you really are into this music you can easy hear who is a trend follower and who’s not. It’s great the scene is getting the well deserved attention at last though.

What do you think in particular about the Swedish scene? Βecause I have to admit that your country has give us a lot of great bands (yours included).
Thanks! I really like the Swedish rock scene. I think it’s the best in the world right now with bands like Horisont, Dead Man, Graveyard and Witchcraft. And with even bigger acts like The Hives.

The absolute dilemma now: Graveyard or Witchcraft?
Love both bands. There is no need to choose between them, they both have their own groovy style crushing most of the bands out there.

Is there any new music that you listened lately or are you a 'die-hard fan' of the 'oldies'?
We are really into the oldies but you’d be a fool not to take in and listen to some of the newer great bands. I really like “Big Business”, a band from USA.

Thank you for your time and I hope to see you live very-very soon.
Thanks for doing the interview with us. And all the best to the people in Greece!