JZ: Why did you guys choose “Decadence” as the name of the band and what’s the reason behind the nickname "Metallic Kitty"?

MK: “Decadence” was a natural development from a previous band of mine that never got started. That band’s name was “Dekapitera” and when I quit that to do something real then “Decadence” was the first thing I thought of. “Metallic Kitty” was a name I used online long before Decadence was created. I created the name from the fact that “Metal” is my favorite music, “Metallica” is my favorite band and “Saric” is my surname. That’s why Metallic Kitty came natural as an artist name somehow!

JZ: Can you tell us in short about the history of the band, the formation of the band, the goals and messages behind the music?

MK: Decadence was formed in November 2003 in Stockholm, Sweden and the members are: (me) Metallic Kitty (extreme vocals), Kenneth Lantz (1st guitar), Simon Galle (2nd guitar), Joakim Antman (bass), and Erik Röjås (drums). We have always been seen as a live band so if Decadence would be presented to someone new to us, a live show would definitely be the place to do it. We play something that we call Melodic Thrash Metal which is like the bridge where Thrash and Melodic Death meet. This genre can be described as Thrash Metal with the heaviness of Melodic Death Metal without keyboards, characterized by extreme female vocals and growl techniques as well as Thrash Metal screams. The combination of these effects along with the new touch of Thrash Metal gives a specific sound which is what defines Decadence. Decadence is representing the new generation of Thrash. Like classic Thrash we love the intensity and speed but we are adding melodic art and technicality to our Melodic Thrash and that is what we want to stand out for.

JZ: What exactly do you mean by a “live band”, could you tell us a little bit more about this, why are lives shows that important to you? and what would you say was the best live show you played ?

MK: When we say that we are a live band we focus on our live performances and how we feel when being on stage. We feel that when we play live then our music comes alive. It’s never the same feeling as when you listen to an album through a stereo or computer. There are many shows worth mentioning as our best but the most recent ones were Mangualde, Portugal in 2008 and Zaragoza, Spain 2008.

JZ: Could you tell us a little bit more about the reason for this fusion of genres, do you have any favorite bands in this genre of music, and would you say you were the first to play this kind of music?

MK: The main song writers in Decadence (me and Kenneth Lantz) are both fans of the great 80’s bay area Thrash and that is where the roots to our music lie. To mention some of the bands that have been inspiring to me I could say: Metallica, Death, Vader, Kreator, Testament, Megadeth, Cannibal Corpse, Children of Bodom, Annihilator, Tankard, Sodom, Slayer, Pantera, Exodus and so on. As you can see, the list mostly consists of various Thrash Metal bands with some exceptions. Our deep roots in Thrash and our influences of Death made us want to put this together and create something different. I don’t know if I have the right to say that we were first to do play a fusion of Thrash and Melodic Death, but I can say that the Melodic Thrash Metal concept is something that we’ve defined and created ourselves so this is our contribution to take things to a new level of development for us and hopefully even wider.

JZ: What do you think of the new wave of thrash metal bands coming out these days, and what do you think of Metal In general these days?

MK: It depends on what you mean with “new wave” because for me there are two types of Thrash Metal bands that are marked as new wave nowadays. One example is the bands that were with us on the Earache Records compilation “Thrashing Like A Maniac” featuring bands such as Evile, Bonded By Blood and Municipal Waste that was released earlier this year and the other example are the Death/Thrash bands that are marked as new wave Thrash. As far as it goes to bands such as the ones on “Thrashing Like A Maniac” then I think it’s great to hear the old 80’s bay area revived but for me that’s still old school, and that is of course great! But to label something “new wave” is hard and I still haven’t been able to do that myself with any band today. When we talk about Metal in general I still think the “old” bands are the best and that the new bands still have time to contribute. We are kind of in a transition stage where some of the old bands go and new bands come.

JZ: I was surprised to know that you’ve already released 3 albums and a demo, and out of those, only one was released through a label, which is an indie label that was formed by one of the members of the band, why is that? What do you personally think of labels, and the effect they have on the albums and the music itself?

MK: Decadence joined forces with my indie label HTI Records in 2006, making the album "3rd Stage of Decay" the debut in the world of signed bands. The label was solely made for the purpose of Decadence. HTI Records helped Decadence to reach out and to strengthen its name and through that work we got our cooperation with Universal Japan and that’s also how Massacre Records found us. Our first two albums and our demo is something that will remain with us while the upcoming albums will be spread worldwide through more channels than only our own (which is http://eshop.decadence.se). We did it all this way because we didn’t want to sell ourselves to any label. We wanted a cooperation partner, not an owner and that is why we chose Massacre Records after all these years working alone and with HTI Records which still continues to help us. Labels can have an effect on the albums and music if you let them and that’s why you have to be strong, stand up for yourselves and not be afraid.

JZ: What kind of lyrics do you usually tackle on your albums? Any specific themes you try to stick with?

MK: The topics in the songs treat subjects like personal struggles, depression and anger in an abstract way which is there to make you think of different happenings and situations in life and hopefully relate to them in some way. The words could work as a guide and as a way to view the world, oneself and various situations through different perspectives.

JZ: Personally I’m a big fan of the music you guys make, could you tell us more about the composing process? Who composes the music? Where do you get your inspiration from to write such music?

MK: That’s great to hear! Well, as I said in before when I talked about our influences and inspirations, me and Kenneth Lantz are the main songwriters in Decadence so it’s either me writing a song and he co-works it, or the other way around. He usually stands for the rawness and speed while I’m more into the experimental rhythms and harmonies. When we combine all that we get the Melodic Thrash that I talked about before and I think “3rd Stage of Decay” is our best example of it so far. We are currently working on our 4th album and that will be even more characterized by that.

JZ: You’re handling vocals, as well as band management, where do you find the time (as a band) to do this, and why don’t you simply get someone to do it for you?

MK: I think you combined both “how” and “why” in that question and to answer it shortly then it’s because I have been with this band from the start, from an early age and grown with it. I know everything on how we work, what we need and how we should get it from experience. It’s a question of knowledge of Decadence that is hard to give to someone from outside. Maybe we will do that one day, but until then, we will do as we have always done.

JZ: Other than Decadence you’ve played as a guest with some bands, could you tell us more about those bands, and the experiences you had playing with them?

MK: I don’t have any other bands and I never have because Decadence is my number one but I love doing guest appearances every now and then to see how other bands work and to play with my vocals! The two recent bands I’ve done guest appearances in are Triton Enigma and Netherbird. I learned quite a lot from both of them, especially on how they record and work with vocals and mix. Both of the bands play music that I don’t usually listen to (Triton Enigma: Swedish Death Metal, Netherbird: Symphonic Black Metal) so playing with my vocals in ways that I don’t usually do is always fun for me!

JZ: You’re a vocalist, a writer, a designer, a manager, a record label owner, do you have the time to do every day tasks like hanging out with family and friends?

MK: Besides all that, I also study at University, the last year now before getting the title of Master *laughs* so my time is carefully distributed practically everywhere! At least I can say that sometimes I have a little time for myself but not that often!

JZ: I just have to mention how impressive your life is, I really do admire your strength and your personality as a human, a musician, and a business woman, how can you keep yourself and the band going, in addition to facing health problems, and all those stressful situations you’ve been through, not to mention being a woman in a male dominated area?

MK: Thank you, I do appreciate it very much. You ask how I can keep it all going, well I have the motto “if there’s a will, there’s a way”. That might sound quite optimistic but for me it’s more realistic. It’s all about willpower and by that you can put up strategies on how to get where you want. Of course there are as many bad moments as there are good but that’s life!

JZ: Who do you have to thank for your success? Growing up were you encouraged to go for your dreams from family and friends, or were you let down by people around you?

MK: My family has always been encouraging me but it wasn’t until after our first album was done that they actually realized what it was I was doing with Decadence and since then they have been my biggest support in all this.

JZ: I see you’re a fan of metallica, what do you think of the new metallica? Looking forward to their new album?

MK: Metallica has never been afraid to do what they want to do, regardless of what people think – and I deeply respect that. Metallica was new when the Black Album was released, it was new during the Load/Reload era, it was new with S&M, it was new with St. Anger and it will most likely be new now as well. I look forward to Death Magnetic and it will be great to hear what they will come up with this time!

JZ: Describe how you felt when you first found out that you have fans in the Middle East??

MK: It was an amazing feeling to know that our music have spread so far. Knowing that we had fans in, for example, Japan was one feeling but the Middle East is really something extra! That’s also why I was glad to do this long interview to introduce myself and Decadence to all of you officially.

JZ: You’ve gone through a lot of lineup changes, why is that? And what do you think of the current lineup?

MK: In some cases it was about technical music skills and in other cases it was about the attitude to the band and personal chemistry. Now with this line-up we’ve grown to be more than just band members, we are like a family.

JZ: Nowadays we’re hearing more and more about females of metal, females who are kicking ass in the international metal scene, what do you have to say about this?

MK: I think it’s great to see a new stage in Metal which also involves women.

JZ: You’ve written a song entitled “The Bell Tolls For Thee” which was inspired by Ernest Hemingway’s “For Whom The Bell Tolls”, could you tell us more about this song, it’s meaning, and your favorite writers and books??

MK: “The Bell Tolls For Thee” was written for our first demo, the first recording we’ve ever done with Decadence. This song is however no longer played with respect to our past guitarists who wrote the music to that song together. I read the book by Hemingway shortly before and I was inspired to write my thoughts down as lyrics. I’ve done so in future albums as well, for example, “Settle The Score” (album: “3rd Stage of Decay”) and “Foyer of Hell” (album: “Decadence”). I don’t really have any favorite books or writers, I just get inspired every now and then by such and I don’t particularly look for a certain one but I’m rather open minded there.

JZ: How did you come to be, as band members?

MK: Me and Kenneth (who was then a session member) have been in the band since 2003 and we knew each other since way back. I looked for new members in 2005 right before we were to record our second album “The Creature” then I found Joakim Antman (bass) and later Erik Röjås (drums). We played on “3rd Stage of Decay” as a quartet and then when we headed out on the road we felt we needed that 2nd guitarist so I went out looking again and I found Simon Galle (2nd guitar).

JZ: Any musicians you’d like to collaborate with, or meet?

MK: Metallica will always be on top of that list but then again there are so many inspiring artists out there that it’s hard to tell!

JZ: How were you introduced to metal? Why metal and not any other music genre?

MK: At the early age of 11 I ended up in a class in school with only guys in it. All of them were pure metalheads and I actually have them to thank when it comes to introducing me to this awesome music. Since then, Metal is my love in life, especially Thrash Metal which has always been my favorite. When I was that little I couldn’t even begin to imagine that it was the beginning of a musical career, and when I look back, it still amazes me. I don’t only see Metal as music – it’s a lifestyle. Metal is my life and everything evolve around it. It’s the music I listen to, the clothes I wear, the opinions I express, the decisions I make, the band I have, the dreams I have, the goals that I want to reach and the person I am.

JZ: Some people around the world still see metal as noise pollution that’s got no positive effect on people’s lives, what would you say to those? And how did music change you personally?

MK: Metal is my passion and hobby so if I wouldn’t have had it all around me I would be a more empty person somehow. I don’t know which path I would have taken if I was to do this again without my music lifestyle. Metal can be more than just listening to, it was also about instruments for me and my passion for playing guitar, and later singing and also the connection with people at concerts etc.

JZ: You’re one of the very few extreme female vocalists, how did you find out about your ability to do this kind of vocals, And what did you do to improve it?

MK: As I also mentioned before, singing this way was just something I did for fun and I didn’t take it to the next level before I started singing in Decadence. I constantly wanted, and still want, to develop my vocals and hear as many different styles of Metal vocals as possible to create my own voice. I still experiment today to come up with different pitches or styles and I really enjoy that and discovering new, inspiring bands.

JZ: Most of you either have other jobs or studies, why aren’t you taking playing music professionally for a living?

MK: At the time being, we like having this distance between our music and our “ordinary” life. It gives us the opportunity to play and make albums whenever we like, and at the same time doing things away from this.

JZ: What do you think of Middle Eastern metal bands? Know any bands? Any favorites?

MK: At this moment I can’t think of any I know of!

JZ: Ever been to the Middle East, any plans on playing here anytime soon?

MK: I have never been to the Middle East but if the opportunity would come up, it would be a place we could visit some day.

JZ: What do you think of the new wave of metal in the world, and how a lot of them are using metal as a way to insult religions and races?

MK: Here we go again with the “new wave” definition! *laughs* But, if you talk about the bands using Metal to insult religions and races then I can say that they don’t have me by their side.

JZ: Some people were shocked to know that there was a metal scene in the middle east, and that it goes back to the 80s, what do you think about that ?

MK: I can’t say that I know much about your Metal scene so it’s great to be a little more introduced to it now! It’s great to know that you’ve had a scene there since the 80’s and I’m interested to know more about it!

JZ: Metal and music in general is a universal language, who do you think were the most influential country when it comes to metal?

MK: That’s a really hard question! Especially since there are so many different genres in Metal and all genres are pretty much specific to one country or one area. I can’t speak in general here, but for me personally, my most influential bands came from the US in the 80’s, in specific, the bay area.

JZ: Now that you have visited our zine, www.jorzine.com what do you think of it? Any feedbacks?

MK: I enjoyed surfing your site, lots of information and a good layout and easy navigation (yes, I’m studying Computer/System Science so I must notice such things too!) and great support to your local bands and that’s the most important part. It really looks like you’re doing some great work for your scene (as well as to introduce people to new bands cross borders) so you have my respect for that!

JZ: Is there anything you wish to add to the interview?

MK: Thank you for your shown interest in Decadence and the readers for sharing this interview with me. It was long and quite thorough so I hope this will give you all a better introduction to Decadence straight from us. Horns up high from Metallic Kitty!