TALISMAN (METAL ZONE #2, 1994) < TRANSLATED

Metal Zone was a Swedish metal magazine that started around late 93/early 94. Not sure how long it lasted but at least a couple of years. Here’s an article/interview translated from Swedish to English.

Talisman is Sweden's most outdated hard rock band

The last few months have been very intense for the Swedish group Talisman, led by bassist Marcel Jacob. 

The latest album "Genesis" has been released in several European and Asian countries, and the group followed up the releases with tours in Sweden, Europe and Japan.

A live album from Japan is to be released and a new studio album may be recorded in Los Angeles. This from a group that is probably the country's most outdated hard rock band.

After much if and but, the Swedish group Talisman, that is, in principle bassist Marcel Jacob and singer Jeff Scott Soto, was able to record a new album in late 1992.

Early this spring, the album "Genesis" was released via Dino Music in Stockholm. But it is only now in the fall that things have started to move seriously for the group.

The album, which has sold more than 15,000 copies in Sweden, has been released in a large number of countries in Europe as well as Japan. Another four or five Asian countries are in the works, including Taiwan, Malaysia and the Philippines.

A club tour in Sweden was followed by a visit to Japan in September where a live album was recorded for release shortly. That tour was followed in October by a tour under his own name in Germany, among other places.

— Well, it's not so bad considering that times are tough in Sweden right now, that we are musically unfashionable and that we haven't had a hit single to speak of, Marcel says with a laugh.

Down with goatees

But let's start from the beginning.

Marcel Jacob, who has a background in one of the first editions of guitarist Yngwie Malmsteen's 134 or so different bands, is a man with very strong opinions when it comes to music and instrumental knowledge.

He appreciates musicians who know what they are doing and above all why, but absolutely does not understand "more attitude than knowledge" bands, that is, basically anything that breathes death metal and grunge with Dr. Martens boots, blue-checked flannel shirts and goatee.

Talisman's music is not of the present. Some would call their form of extremely competent hard rock performed by talented musicians with a sense of harmony and melody "night stands". But it is rather as "outdated" as "timeless".

At the same time, Marre, as he is called, is extremely picky when it comes to which musicians he will work with and he has sometimes been "forced" abroad to find such people to work with.

The singer and American Jeff Scott Soto has known Marre since his time with Yngwie (nothing bad that doesn't have something good in it) and the two decided to write songs together under the name Talisman.

This meant that Marre did not have to answer the constant question "who do you work with?" with the answer "with myself!".

At the time of the recording of what would become the second album "Genesis", the duo was supplemented by guitarist Fredrik Åkesson and drummer Jakob Samuelsson alias Jake Samuel. The latter, however, is not heard on the album because it was recorded before he became a member and because Marre thought it both sounded and sounded better with a drum machine.

— The drummer probably got it earlier this year and has been replaced by “Jompa”, that is, Jamie Borger who once drummed in Treat, says Marre, who is very happy with the current lineup of the group.

Many countries

“Genesis” has, as previously mentioned, sold around 15,000 copies in Sweden. Marre doesn’t know what the figures are for the rest of the world. But it should be a lot.

The rest of the world is, by the way, a very adequate description because the album was actually released in Europe via the German record label Intercord in countries such as — hold on — Norway, Denmark, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, France, Holland and Belgium.

Talisman therefore carried out a club tour mainly in the German-speaking countries (plus detours to Paris and Belgium) and in places that could take anything from 500 people to up to 1200. The band was the German Subway.

— An OK tour actually but also quite tiring. Maybe not so much the playing itself. But since it was a low-budget tour, you could never really sleep or eat properly. We were very tired when we got home after two weeks of touring, says Marre.

— The distances between the venues were actually OK. It was only the trip from Germany to Paris and back that was a bit of a hassle.

But the tour also gave us an enormous amount, not least in terms of contacts with and interviews for rock journalists.

Live album in Japan

In September, that is, the month before the trip to Germany, Talisman traveled to Japan for a few club gigs. This was on the advice of the Japanese record company Zero, which had released “Genesis” a few weeks earlier.

— Actually, it's too early to tour Japan so soon after an album has been released. But the record company thought it might be a good idea to go over there already, Marre explains.

Even before Talisman left, it was decided that a concert would be recorded to be released as a live album.

— I've listened to the tape a number of times and it's good, I think. A little jet lag and a certain amount of 

Record in Los Angeles

The release of the live album is connected to Talisman's upcoming studio album.

The extremely productive Marcel has already managed to write and demo tape several songs and is currently considering whether it would not be possible to record and mix the album in Los Angeles, where, as is known, singer Jeff Scott Soto lives.

— If it comes to fruition, Jeff and I will produce the album with the help of the sound engineers available in the studio. There is no reason to hand over the production to someone else when you can do it just as well yourself, reasons Marre.

He finds it difficult to make a categorical statement about the song material and thus what possible direction the album will take.

But it will probably be "more of the same as before" and thus absolutely nothing that for any nanosecond reminds of goatee beards, out-of-tune instruments or strange attitudes.

And Marre agrees with my statement with a laugh that Talisman thus continues to be the country's most out-of-date hard rock band at the moment. But it is a “concept” that apparently wins in the long run.

Front cover of the magazine