sobota 31. března 2012

Do you still believe in magic?

I´ve shared this video probably more than one time... and there´s no official point in sharing it here... and today. But hell I can actually do whatever I want with this blog :)) So here it goes again and again and again... 
Welcome April, by the way! 

středa 28. března 2012

úterý 27. března 2012

Det är så det ska vara

@Malin Sydne

The Heart Beat

If you wonder what Samuel Giers is doing, well, here´s the answer. Together with Viktor Norén and Jonas Karlsson from Sugarplum Fairy he playes in a new band called The Heart Beat. Go here to find more about their gig in Berlin. (where else, huh? surpriiiiiiiiiiise!!!) And here to discover something new about the gig in ... I don´t know where, somewhere in Germany:) 


I never wrote it down

I´ll tell you a secret. The best festival ever. You wanna know the name? Let´s see. This festival takes place in the one of the most beautiful cities of the world. (Gustaf´s Norén´s words.) This year will celebrate 20th anniversary and will bring probably all of the most important bands/musician for me right now. Mando Diao, Placebo, Paolo Nutini, The Vaccines and about thousands names that I wanna hear live like The Hurts, The Subways, Beatsteaks... This festival was always way too special. One year played there Manu Chao together with Mando Diao, on the same day.
Also this festival takes place in a city where once, down in the past, in the very same year I was born, took place very special concert of a very special band called Queen. And as Freddie Mercury said if he had to name one place that represents Magic for him, it would be this city, this very concert.
Cause I was kind of a Queen nerd I followed his words and discovered the most important place for me, practically by accident, if you look at it that way. Place that actually gave me Mando Diao, this whole new world I´m living in now, place where I met the Ochrasy, so to speak.
There are many more signs that has to be told, but maybe some other time. Let´s reveal this huge secret.
This is the best festival ever. If you have time, go there. Go to Budapest. You will never forget.
 

pondělí 26. března 2012

And I’ll never love you

 
If you wanna help a citizen with her Diploma go to this page and fill in simple questionnaire about Mando Diao. And if you´re registered citizen on mandodiao.com, you will receive 200 points. Cool, huh? 
And some pictures from Caligola/Mando Diao event, ECHO awards here


neděle 25. března 2012

Hold on tight to your dream

I love this, so I wanna share it. And also these wonderful photos from October Tour of Mando Diao. Click here!


Maybe we can go back and do it over again

Caligola was in Stockholm, in Bengals, and of course there was also a signing session with them. Check those awesome photos under this link. And watch the performance live.

 

středa 21. března 2012

But instead everything has to be analyzed

Interview that you maybe know from the Christmas video blogs. Now you can read it whole here. Enjoy.

If somebody told you ten years ago that one day you would release a Greatest Hits record what would you have said?
We had a difficult time ten years ago because we didn't have a record deal but we were very anxious to get one because we have tried for 6 or 7 years. We asked ourselves each year and each month why nothing was happening. We were in a way in a depression because of this so I don't know what the answer would've been at the time. We didn't think about a Greatest Hits back then we only thought about releasing our first record. But I guess we expected the success that's why we were so depressed that nothing happened. We thought we'd slowly get too old for it. During this time music was something that was given from young people to other young people. That was the idea we had of music back then.

Which track is the oldest on the record?
'Mr Moon' was written by one of our band members in a child's room. I think it was sometime in 2001 so it has to be the oldest song.

How difficult was it to choose the songs for the Greatest Hits record?
We can't really judge songs. It's up to the fans which songs are popular. It's always like that. After ten years it's pretty clear which songs reach out to most people and these are the greatest hits. So it's not at all the best songs but simply the most popular ones. If we had picked an album with our personal greatest hits maybe there would've been only 2 singles amongst them. You can't judge what makes a song good. That's something every single one of our fans has to decide this for herself or himself with his/her destiny and story.

So there weren't any discussions concerning the choice of songs?
There were of course little discussions it probably took an hour or so to pick the songs. We knew which songs were the most popular ones amongst the audience which songs get played most in radios and stuff. That's why it was pretty easy. It was mostly songs that we actually didn't want to have on the record. (laughs)

Why do you release a Greatest Hits now?
The record is mostly for the music industry and the fans - not so much for us. We can't stop and think about what happened. We always have to think about the next record. I never listen to songs from the past. If we give a concert or if we recorded something we don't talk about it again it is as if it never happened. We just continue that's the best way. Because from the moment it has been written until it gets released we listen to it so often. You sing it in your head every day, you dream about it you wake up and immediately think about the song again. And if the song gets released it's a huge relief to simply let go of it. It's like letting go of a child. At some point you're not responsible for them anymore so you let them go.

What is Christmas Could Have Been Good about?
Well it's a christmas song however not a happy one. We just don't want to agree with the fact that christmas always has to be happy. If you're not happy during christmas everyone thinks that something's wrong with you. Many people don't understand that, like for example parents or relatives. But it is a lonely day for many people. People you should sing to. Because the happy people technically don't need it. We know many people who fear this day and that's why we wanted to write a song for them.

Do fans sometimes tell you that your music has helped them through rough times?
Yes, very often. And that's been the idea behind it all, our goal. And I think we achieved this. A band can be like a friend it can take on the shape of a person so you don't feel lonely when you're alone in your room. Many use our band as the only friend they have. And that's the reason why we do all this and the reason why music exists.

You grew up in Borlänge. Is there a music scene?
When we started with music, at the end of the 90ies there were mostly metal bands in any form. When we played our first shows there. So we had to find a way to impress them. The difficult thing was that a song wasn't measured by how good it was but by how technical it sounded. Which we hated as it didn't have anything to do with what we were doing. We never were big fans of this type of music.

How was the reaction in Borlänge after one of the bigger Mando Diao shows?
After every show there were a few people running into our dressing room screaming of how good we were. It was a relief for them that there were bands without 7 minute long guitar soli. Every show should last 25 minutes and there should be room for 15 songs. We didn't say a word to the audience and many liked that. We felt that this was something that people needed. But of course most people were jealous. There used to be a lot of jealousy in our home town. Meanwhile it's better now there is more acceptance for musicians.

Where did you play your first gig outside of Sweden? What do you remember of it?

That was in Holland. That was quite the experience. (laughs). It all was very chaotic the guitars were smashed we didn't even use plugs. That's why our fingers were bleeding as hell we looked like murderers.

When did you play in Germany for the first time?

I think that was in Hamburg. We didn't know what we should expect. Everyone threw beer around and jumped around wildly. We smelled like beer a whole week after it. We were totally surprised of how much they all danced that was really cool.

Young bands and the Rock'n'Roll life style. How wild was your life when the success started to kick in?
We worked so much with our music when we were young that we never really drank alcohol. Just at the beginning of summer vacation maybe or other special events. Then we suddenly were drunk every night. But that's just the things every 20 year old does, whether you go to university or whatever. That's something completely normal especially when you're in a band and done with your gig after midnight. There's not much left. You can't go to the movies, coffee shops or library. The bar is the only thing left. So we were always on the move until 5 or 6 am and you meet crazy people. I think it's very healthy for my personality it was anyways because I learned to accept different people and different destinies.


What do you think of first when you think of Germany?
I think that Germany became the beating heart of european culture since 2003 up until today. It becomes more and more the centre of artists especially in Europe. I have many friends who travel to Germany. Especially artists, musicians, writers, actors. It opens up new doors for them. If you play the violin for example there are about 5 or 6 job possibilities in Stockholm. In Germany there is an orchestra in every small town. There are so many people a lot of money which mostly is being spend on culture. From movies to clubs. They are not spoiled though like many english people are. There's something inside of them that has already given up. They gave up on music and art. Here however people are very open minded. It's a dream for us to play in Germany. If you go to London as an artist you have no other option but to work in a bar to earn money. In Berlin it's not like that at all. It doesn't cost you a fortune to live there. A part time job is enough and like this you still have enough time for your art. That creates a certain freedom for artists. It was so easy for us as a band to find a photographer or a director.

Are there german bands you like?
Yes of course. The problem is that if you think of german bands you think: 'Who are the german Beatles?' or 'Who is the german Bob Dylan?' That's the swedish way of thinking but it most definitely isn't a good one. The reason why Sweden has so many good bands is that they are the english part of the culture which you don't have in Germany. Sweden doesn't have an own culture that's why we copy the ones from other countries and make them our own. The german music culture is based on classical music where the best composers of the world come from. That's the german culture. The culture in Italy is completely different, the one in France is completely different and the one in Spain or Russia as well. But everything gets more and more 'americanized'. So the question wouldn't be is there good music in Germany but is there american music and there really isn't. Germany has the best electronic music of the world, the best DJ's - no matter if it's Techno, House or Minimal. And the Heavy Metal scene is also very good. We have good bands in Sweden because we simply copy. That's nothing i am proud of.

How do you manage to stay healthy when you play more than 200 shows a year?

We are not healthy you should see the inside of us that looks different. No idea how we manage this but there isn't another option.

How does founding a family affect the band life?

I am married for 6 or 7 years now so basically the whole time of my career. I have kids since I am 25 years old and nothing happened basically. (laughs). The passion for music is as strong as it always was. You don't become lazy all of the sudden and just sit around in front of the TV. I think music became even more important due to this. It doesn't matter if you work on music 200 days a year or only 15 days. The important thing is that writing lyrics and recording songs remains. And this is more a drive than a job. And this drive won't go away under any circumstances.

Did the family experiences make you better song writers?
That's hard to analyze. When you write a good song you mostly get a brilliant idea and then the song just blurts out of you. It's very difficult to say where this comes from. But everything you do in life even when you just miss your plane affects your life. A family changes your way of living but you don't know the difference you just continue. I think there isn't any musician who doesn't have kids. All those i know were dying to get many kids. (laughs)

Did your audience change over the years?
Not so much. They got a bit older but it's still very mixed. There are just more of them now (laughs). The more fans you have the less you know about them. I mean when you play in front of 50'000 people you simply have everything. it's mostly young people but I also went on more concerts when I was a Teenager. That's why there are more young people who attend our shows.

Do you prefer festivals or gigs in small clubs?
I like the atmosphere at festivals a lot when bands come together and mingle. Sometimes you see a great performance of another band which inspires you. But fundamentally we prefer the gigs inside.

How does the next chapter of the history of Mando Diao looks like?
We will see but we will release a new record of course. We didn't do anything since 2008. We released records but didn't produce anything. So it's been 4 years that's a  big gap. We recorded a swedish record during summer which is almost finished and which we will release soon. That's been a totally new chapter for us. It was a lot of fun to sing in swedish.

Who are your idols?
We were lucky to grow up in the 90ies when people listened to all kinds of things. There were so many different styles which were cool at the same time. There was the skating scene, the punk scene, the graffiti scene. Nowadays all of this is very divided. People often get confused when you play in a rock band but dance to electro music or hip hop on the dance floor. They ask you: 'How can you like that?' and i just answer: 'Why the hell not?' Many see this as a threat. We call ourselves the second Beatles - Generation.
Our parents were born in the 40ies and 50ies and passed the music of their childhood to us. Beatles and Rolling Stones were mostly played at home. As many others they were influenced by Black Music. In the 90ies there was no difference between NWA, the Ramones, Public Enemy or Nirvana. Nowadays the music scene is almost racist. That's a weird thing. Back then Tina Turner was played right after The Rolling Stones there was no reason to talk about the differences - it all was just music.

What do you recognize to be good music?
Now I feel like a criticizer and I think that they have the most useless job of the world by judging music. It's just a feeling that you get. You hear something and you feel something that's the only basic ground of pop music. Music can't be good or bad. Why is it good? I have no idea. I just have to love it and I can't know why I do. That's pop music for me. The thing is that people judge and rate music because everything has to be rated and judged. It would be fine with them if music was like sports: If you practice enough you'll get good at it. But it simply isn't like that. You can't describe why a song is good. But that's something people can't deal with they want to describe why they like the song. Even if you follow every rule that supposedly makes a song good it still is shit. Why is that? I don't know. That's the reason why music criticizer have the most useless job ever. You can simply take them off this planet and nothing would happen. If you removed bus drivers there would be chaos, if you removed nurses there would be chaos. It would happen to every job. If you took the musician's job there would be a huge gap in the system. But if you removed music criticizers nothing would happen. People react on music with their hearts. But instead everything has to be analyzed. Everyone does it.

úterý 20. března 2012

I didn´t even know the meaning

It looks like MD will play in Italy - Rome, 1. July 2012. Oj. Nice. Still sad about the fact they will miss Peace&Love. But yeah, time to play all around the world. So check this and be there!

And watch this just because...

neděle 18. března 2012

Forget your love

Because nothing really happens in Mando Diao world, let´s talk about Caligola now. Watch their performance here - Forgive Forget. And watch this interview in Swedish with Gustaf and little bit of Björn talking about Caligola and that Caligola actually influence Mando Diao.


You didn´t want the heaven by your side

pátek 16. března 2012

Take a trip somewhere far, far away

This day won´t be bad after all. Just few minutes ago postman gave me this. And honestly I LOVE it. Can´t wait to see them in my city or better in this country. Those huge Caligola posters screaming WE ARE AMONGST YOU. Oh you are. 


čtvrtek 15. března 2012

Här mycket lätt

Which brings me to this... again...



...kärlek.

Mando Diao skriver på svenska


Mando Diao píše ve švédštině

Mando Diao doufá, že se jim letos podaří vydat nová deska ve švédštině. Björn a Gustaf vypráví, o tom, jak je k nové desce inspirovalo zhudebnění básní Gustafa Frödinga minulé léto.

Jen to z nás pryštělo jako voda. Bylo to strašně jedoduché a najednou jsme měli  deset-jedenáct písní, takže z toho chceme udělat švédskou desku, doufejme už tento rok, říká Gustaf.

Ještě ale nejsou žádné konkrétní plány kdy by mělo album doopravdy vyjít.

Björn a Gustaf právě teď vydali nové album se svým dalším projektem: hudebním kolektivem Caligola. 

Hmmm, čím dřív tím líp:-) 


středa 14. března 2012

Journey

What do I know? I know.

ODIO CUANDO EL GRUPO 
DEJA DE TOCAR Y 
TIENES QUE PENSAR 
EN LO QUE HARÁS
EL RESTO DE TU VIDA.

Which means something like... I hate when the band stops playing and you have to think about what will you do for the rest of your life.
That´s why I read books. One day soon or later you´ll find something that will speak right out of your mind.


úterý 13. března 2012

And I´m feeling good

My Ghost&Phantoms vinyl finally at home ♥

Words and promises from people who don't make any sense

Caligola news! Watch cool video of Sting of Battle acoustic.



If you are interested in Caligola gigs, watch this:

GLORIA THEATRE
COLOGNE, GERMANY
MAR 27

HEIMATHAFEN NEUKOLIN
BERLIN, GERMANY
MAR 28

GRUENSPAN
HAMBURG, GERMANY
MAR 29

ROCK AM RING
NÜRBURG, GERMANY
JUN 1

ROCK IM PARK
NUREMBERG, GERMANY
JUN 2

PEACE & LOVE FESTIVAL
BORLÄNGE, SWEDEN
JUN 28

BURG CLAM
KLAM, AUSTRIA
JUL 10 (W/ GOSSIP)


 (wish these photos were taken on Mando Diao concert and I was there...)

If you wanna come back it´s alright

Mando news! There´s a certain award MD won and you can watch the award show via livestream here, on 30. March 2012. And what is it about? Radio Regenbogen award for The best international live band! Awesome, isn´t it?


sobota 10. března 2012

To collect them on sunday

Video spamming continues... this time I wanna share some thoughts with you. When I listen to Back to Earth album for the very first time I have this allusion to Ghost and Phantoms Calendar in my mind. Somehow it reminds me little bit of some songs from this brilliant piece of music. More than "official" Mando Diao music, Back to Earth is like Ghost&Phantoms stuff. IF you want to look for some similarities between previous records of G&B. And then I heard Hypokalypse and 7 Days of Falling. The first one reminds me the second, not on the contrary. Anyway, if you wanna meditate a little bit, you can listen to it and then decide.



Was it you?

Do you know Caviare Days? No. Well, Mats Björke does. And he actually produces their album and in adition you could saw them all together in Hamburg yesterday. So if you missed it, you can at least watch their song here. Or maybe attend their previous (I really wrote it. I´m not normal lately) next gig... somewhere in the future.

pátek 9. března 2012

We are the light

Caligola stuff. Watch this: Link... and watch also pretty impressive version of Forgive Forget here. Gustaf´s voice in this song is really stunning.
What´s next? Interesting english interview is coming soon and also my translation of one P&L swedish interview to czech. And maybe some surprise:)

I´m fool now that it´s over, can you guess my name?

Just because of that look they share...

středa 7. března 2012

Who would thought that it would end up like this



Weird hear them saying: "We come from Caligola."

Mando Diao has made an incredible journey

From now on, mandodiao.com has its own Mando Diao biography written by Carlos Barth. Read it here or on the page itself.

 
I remember the first time I heard Mando Diao. I was driving in my car to see them for the first time, had the music way up and my only thought was, “how are they going to make it sound like that live”?

The manic guitars and the raw, pitched vocal sounded like they were trying to squeeze every second and every ounce out of the stereo system leaving me exhausted when the album ended. That's was my first introduction. Mando Diao has made an incredible journey. Using music as ticket to get them out of their industrial steel town of Borlänge, their first album Bring 'Em In (2003) was fresh and explosive on the Swedish Music scene. Critics loved the adrenalin, in your face, hectic garage
rock. The tradition of 60's rock and roll and punk attiitudes together with their uncharacteristic for Swedes, shameless and brash attitude, quickly established Mando Diao as Sweden's most arrogant band but they couldn't be ignored because they always delivered. The debut album was a success, delive
underground as well as radio hits and it spread around the world by import. The first trip overseas was an unprecented reception with festival organizers  being forced to stop the show due to collapsing barricades during Mando Diao's first performance at Summer Sonic in Japan Mando Diao remained productive and has delivered 5 studio albums and 2 more records to date. With deep roots in muaix like The Kinka and Bob Dylan, the Beatles, Rolling Stones  music created modern rock music that continued their other influences like the Libertines, Oasis and Nirvana. As accomplished musicians, the albums after Bring 'em in changed in characters reflecting the bands interest for traditional melodies, urban and vintage rock. All of these influences and the profilic songwriting team of Björn Dixgård and Gustaf Norén delivered over 80 tracks that in 2009 became a b-side collection that contains many fan favourites and songs most bands would have used as singles rather that nonchalantly dismissed to obscurity. Mando Diao has always had a no compromise approach to their music. This has meant that the path to success often has been longer and more difficult that it might overwise have been if they were willing to compromise and it has firmly established them as an incredible and respected musical team. The two singers and songwriting pair of Björn Dixgård and Gustaf Norén has consistently delivered exception music. With two distinct voices and front men, Mando Diao offers stark conctrasts in the form of punk and pop, ballads and rock, elegance to down and dirty. In spite of the diverse nature of each album, the audience and success continues to grow. The common denominatior is their absolute conviction and live act. The response from audiences has always been immiediate from the first "line around the block" shows at the Molotov in Hamburg to headlining the largest festival stages like Rock Am Ring. In 2008 the reaction of the audience got to such a fever that the floor of a theater literally collapsed under the dancing crowd sending many to hospital.. 

Mando Diao toured relentlessly in Europe, America, the UK, Japan, China, Russia and South America. With over 100 shows a year, the constant touring Mano diao has played such diverse special events like Live Earth with Shakira in Hamburg, performances at the Spin Offices in NYC, The village, Voice Party at SXSW Coachella Festival and Late Night with Conan O’brian. They have been special guests for REM, Iggy Pop and Franz Ferdinand. The awards and accolades piled up with gold albums across Europe and Japan, GQ men of the year and many Radio, industry and government awards and acknowledgements. Hurricane Bar (2005) with *Down In The Past" provided the breakthrough video and radio hit, Ode To Ochrasy (2007) with "Long Before Rock and Roll" set the record for 10 weeks at #1 on the “Tracks” radio chart, Never Seen The Light Of Day (2008), the do-what-we-want-attitude record featured the brutally honest and personal lyric in the favorites "One Blood" and "If I Don't Live Today". At the end of 2008 Mando Diao found themselves in a unique position. Suddenly at the end of recording contract and without a record company they built their own studio and began the process of writing and recording what would become their most successful record to date.

Give Me Fire released in 2009 was an absolute chart topper. The lead single "Dance With Somebody" would become the most played song in Europe in 2009, was remixed 
by GZA was featured on Pitchfork. The video, produced in Long Beach while the band was in California doing some last minute sessions at the end of the Give Me Fire recording, was a youtube phenomenen. To date it has over 600 000 views in spite of being blocked 3 times by record label lawyers. Mando Diao was asked to perform the track as heavy weight Champion Wladimir Klitschko took to the ring for a title fight and more recently in was featured on Dancing With The Stars on ABC TV and was featured in a mashup with Lil Wayne. Mando Diao has outlasted many of their contemporaries, many bands that they opened for or were popular when Mando Diao arrived have disappeared or lost their significance while Mando Diao continues to mature and re-define popular music.

In 2010 the band was asked to record an MTV Unplugged album. Refusing to compromise the band broke stale mold of the format and delivered and energetic inspired and unique concert experience that was recorded in real time, one take. The album was a critical and music lovers dream with new interpretations of some of their most popular songs, less known treasures, two unbelievable new songs, and epic bonfire performance with Juliette Lewis and the classic feature with Ray Davies from The Kinks.

//Carlos Barth

That I may love you

   

Being nostalgic. Sheepdog in Berlin. That was the second song and I have to confess in that time I was absolutely out of my mind and I really don´t remember this song... but it looks so good on the video :-)

pondělí 5. března 2012

I hate it when you go

The last playlist from few days ago is here...


Ol' Dirty Bastard - “Recognize”
Snoop Doggy Dogg - “Gz And Hustlas”
Tweet - “Oops (Oh My)”
2Pac - ”Hail Mary”
Lauryn Hill - “Everything Is Everyting”
Dr Dre - “Kush” feat. Snoop Dogg & Akon
Lil Wayne - “3 Peat”
Portishead - “Sour Times”
The Notorious Big - “Nasty Girl”
Beck - “The New Pollution”
Daft Punk - “End Of Line”
Major Lazer - “Pon de Floor”
Primal Scream - “Kill All Hippies”


Lyssna: Musikguiden i P3 med gästredaktör Mando Diao

You need to get away from suffering

Some more Caligola news. The official site is working now, so check this out. Caligola.com. And under this link you can find funny short video with Caligola members. They are about to discover which album is the album of the week. Enjoy.

pátek 2. března 2012

This is not a goodbye

For those who haven´t heard the song Milagro from Caligola yet... do it. Link here...

 They got me. They are amongst us.

Back to Earth

Today Caligola album Back to Earth is released! You can also buy this album as mp3 on amazon.de.


Some Caligola photos from Munich and Baden-Baden.

čtvrtek 1. března 2012

Be amongst us

Man har rätt att fråga varför

 
Yesterday´s playlist consist of G&B swedish favorit music. Let´s dive into it.

ABBA - “Gimme Gimme Gimme (A Man After Midnight)”
Cornelis Vreeswijk - “Vaggvisa”
Mando Diao - “Gloria”
Evabritt Strandberg - “Den svarta tuppen”
Stockholmssyndromet - “Speciell”
The Latin Kings - “Kompisar från förr”
Monica Zetterlund - “Elin i hagen”
Jussi Björling - “När jag för mig själv i mörka skogen går”
Ville Valle Viktor “Varför”
Jay-Jay Johanson - “So Tell The Girls That I Am Back In Town”
Bo Hansson - “De Svarta Ryttarna”
Kenta - “Var finns alla polarna”
Alf Robertson - “Emily’s Foto”
Leila K - “Electric”


Lyssna: Musikguiden i P3 med gästredaktör Mando Diao

If nothing matters to you, a very different form of expression arises

Just some interesting parts from interview with Björn and Gustaf about Caligola.

The cloaks that appear in 'Sting of Battle'? They remind of 'Eyes Wide Shut' and a secret society..
Gustaf Norén: No, no worries. The cloaks should simply clarify that there are no boundaries concerning expression and style. For example you can be a transsexual from Thailand, a dancer from Russia, or a Rastafari - we are all Caligola and all the same with those cloaks.

What does this have to do with the crazy Roman imperator who really has not been an appealing figure?
Björn Dixgård: This is a metaphor. Caligola was ruthless. A merciless ruler. Just: to create art, that possesses a certain half- life period you sort of have to be ruthless in a way. Combined with loads of lust and passion. That's what we have in common with this imperator. Because he was crazy. And to be crazy is good when you want to create something. That however doesn't mean that we applaud his cruelty. 
Gustaf Norén: And when Little Wayne says: 'If you earn money you'll turn crazy', i rather say: If I become crazy I get money. Because our job would make every crazy person happy. We observed this over the last years a lot. That it doesn't consist of being normal in any kind of way. Total freedom rules beneath these cloaks which supports the philosophy that one should be crazier more often or that craziness is the normal state of mind. 
...
That's the reason for horses with erected penises as artwork?
Gustaf Norén (laughs): A horny animal explains the feeling of Caligola much better than anything else. It's in a certain condition, has a clear goal and is ready to achieve it. (laughs) meaning: It has a mission. And everyone who is horny had a clear imagination of what he wants and  is about to make it happen.
 ...
Will you also go on tour?
Gustaf Norén: Of course! It's not about stars with Caligola, who stand in a distance on stage, we try to include the audience actively. I mean when we play shows, and that's what we will do soon in Germany there are at least 25 people who belong to the band. Artists, painters, photographers. Everyone who contributes to Caligola is Caligola. So there are many ways for the fans to be a part of it. I mean just have a look at what happens at our facebook wall. People post photos, paintings and remixes. They try to include themselves, just like us. And this is what it's all about. To be active instead of consuming only. 

And how does it continue with Mando Diao?
Gustaf Norén: We will definitely release a swedish album this year which has already been finished. It's just about finding the right moment to release it. But it's not as if Caligola and Mando Diao would collide.