Hello Sonny! It´s really great to hear that MOTHERLODE are back together once again. Please tell us a little bit about your future plans. Will there be a new album?

Right now we are in the studio to record 15 new songs. We haven’t got a record deal, but if you listen carefully you might here the birds whisper...

Would you say that you (Motherlode) will continue with the sound that you guys had in the 80´s or has your songwriting changed or envolved into something else? Will the fans from the past enjoy your new material?

It’s basically melodic blues influenced hard rock like before, but at the moment we don’t use any keyboards. In the future? Who knows. I don’t think that those who liked us before will be disappointed because this is the real motherlode -“The Swedish Motherlode”.

How do you write your songs? Who brings in what into the mix?

It is usually Tom that is writing the music and then we arrange it together. I write most of the lyrics, but even the others in the band are writing. An old friend of mine Jan Friberg wrote a few lyrics and I hope he will write some more, Because I think he is a great poet.

I noticed that only you and Tom Nilsson (Guitar) are left from the original line up. Who are the other members and what have they been up to in the past?

Johan Evertsson – bass (Heatstroke, Fair Land). Fair Land did soundtracks to a movie production in South Korea together with Roxette. He also played in a cover band together with Martin Hedberg and Robert Wendelstam who now plays in the American band KEEL. Patrik Nordlander – Drums (Season, Bruse) made one album with each band. Bruse was played on national TV and radio and they also represented Sweden in a Nordic competition. (And here is the Swedish result, Bruse 12 points)

The first new signs of life from Motherlode on record are your covers versions of Grand Funk railroad´s "People let´s stop the war" and Thin Lizzy´s "Killer without a cause" both on Record Heaven´s tribute albums. I must say that I really like your versions, tell us why you decided to go with just these songs

I’m glad you liked them, we are quite satisfied ourselves. And we think they are great songs with great lyrics.

People always like to put a label on music. What kind of music would YOU say that Motherlode plays? Which bands/artists influenced you from the start.

Like I said before it’s melodic blues influenced hard rock. And I would say that all the music in the 70’s and the 80’s are the foundation in our music. My own favorite band through all time is Pink Floyd, but I listen almost to any kind of music. For example, The Mahavishnu Orchestra, Santana, Deep Purple, Carman, Rush, Rammstein, Spice Girls, [-wait a minute??] Queensrÿche, Magnum, Thin Lizzy, Jimi Hendrix, Dalbello, Rainbow, Elvis, Aretha Franklin [-hold it!!!!], Judas Priest, Black Sabbath, Stryper, John Holm, Nazareth, Rage against the machine, Queen, Styx, Kansas, The Who, Manfred Mann’s Earth Band, Bach, Beatles, Brain child, Madonna [-don’t push it!!!]. Okay I was about to say – and every thing on the Swedish scene of course.

Your first album "The Sanctuary" (1986) was produced by Kit Woolven (magnum) Mark Stanway (Magnum) played keyboards and the art cover was done by Rodney Matthews. How did all this happen? did you want the "Magnum" sound all over the album or what?

Magnum made "On A Storyteller’s Night" and we thought that it was a great record and a great production so we just had to get Kit as producer. Our Manager Dennis Karlsson sent him a demo, and he liked it and took a flight to Sweden to produce our record. And he did a wonderful job. We didn’t have a keybord player at the time so Dennis just asked Mark Stanway and he took “the next flight”. And I can tell you; we had a great time together and later that year we toured together with Magnum on their Vigilante tour as support. You can’t but love those guys!!

If you had to pick one track from "The Sanctuary" which one would be your favourite and why?

I would pick "Line Of Thoughts", because I like the choir part. I think we had 48 voices all made by Tom, Kit and myself. And I remember when we were listen to the choirs without the music and it was almost a religious feeling.

Is it true that you turned down the job as a singer in Yngwie Malmsteen´s band after you left Motherlode back in 1987? If so do tell us a little bit about the whole thing.

One day the phone rang and somebody asked me if I wanted to come and do an audition,but I said no right away. I mean who wants to stand in the shadows of a great guitar wizard When you wanna stand in the front…! The truth is that his harmonies and I don’t mix, mostly because he is the best guitarist in the world and I’m just the second best singer after…..??? After all it might have been a practical joke. Who knows? Yngwie possibly!!!

I know that you sang on a demo for Silver Mountain ,that you became the new vocalist in Leviticus (but never recorded anything) and that you helped out Bjorn Stigsson with his solo album. But did you also sing with CHARIZMA for a while?

I did a few demos with Charizma and we had a couple of gigs in Sweden and Poland. I had a great time with the brothers, they’re a hard working band and they will always be close my heart.

You and Stigsson formed XT in the early 90´s and recorded 3 albums for Viva Records. You started out very melodic but became a bit heavier for each album which of these albums are you most pleased with and why?

I remember when Björn was about to make his second solo album, and he asked me if I wanted to do the vocals. I said yes of course, and we made some demos in björns “studio”, he had in his wardrobe. When we got out of the wardrobe we were XT. If I have to chose I will say the third one “EXTENDED EMPIRE”. We worked really hard on that one, not just Björn and me. Kjell Andersson, Johan Stark, Niklas Johnsson did a terrific job. I like the songs and most of the lyrics are very close to myself, Especially “Kids on the hill”

If you have ANYTHING else YOU wanna say and let the readers know all about please do say it ...

In the “future” there will be released a new MOTHERLODE album the bird said… And when it does, I know that we have worked hard with it so that you will have at least one great album in your CD-collection, I hope to see you soon at a local club in Europe until then...

Urban "Wally" Wallström

PHIL LYNOTT/THIN LIZZY Tribute (Record heaven/2001) 1 track with motherlode