A Fast Five with EMLEE JOHANSSON from THUNDERMOTHER – September 2022

Photo credit: Todd Jolicoeur – Toddstar Photography

According to a recent press release: “With four studio albums to date and countless awesome live shows under their belt – the latter incidentally also during the pandemic, the Swedish all-female band Thundermother has proved its outstanding artistic potential many times over. Their upcoming new release Black And Gold has these exceptionally talented musicians channel their extraordinary qualities even more purposefully and looks set to be a real landmark in their career. Black And Gold is doubtlessly the strongest album release in Thundermother’s career up to now, featuring twelve haunting rock songs that sound as if they were cast from one and the same mold, yet come across multi-layered and varied at the same time. No doubt about it. “In our view, every one of the songs on our new recording is a hit in its own right,” enthuses guitarist and band founder Filippa Nässil. No doubt about it: Nässil and her three bandmates Guernica Mancini (vocals), Emlee Johansson (drums) and Mona Lindgren (bass) have continued to evolve in every respect.” We get drummer Emlee to discuss new music, influences, and more…

1. Tell us a little about your latest release. What might a fan or listener not grab the first or second time they listen through? Are there any hidden nuggets you put in the material or that only diehard fans might find?

Black and Gold is filled with high energy and good vibes covered in a nice classic rock sound! All the songs are so strong, we had a really hard time to chose singles, haha. We are extremely proud of this album. We’ve developed so much as a band, as musicians and as songwriters.

2. What got you into music, and can you tell us about the moment you realized you wanted to be a musician?

My parents are musicians so music has always been a natural part of my life. When I was 9 years old, I started to write songs inspired by a Swedish hiphop artist, and I actually got the chance to meet him and give him a tape with my songs on. Later that day he called me to say that he really liked the songs. That really showed me that nothing is impossible, no dream is too big. From that day, I have always dreamed about being a musician and always believed that it could happen.

3. If you could call in any one collaborator to do a song with, who would it be, and why?

I would love to write something together with John Williams, the composer. He is just a genius, I love his music so much and would love to learn from him and get into his head. Would also love to write something with Ghost singer Tobias Forge.

4. How would you describe your music to someone who’d never listened to you before? What is the one comparison a reviewer or fan has made that made you cringe or you disagreed with?

Our sound is inspired by a lot of 70’s bands like AC/DC, Kiss, Led Zeppelin and Motörhead. But also lots of other bands… we all have different inspirations in the band and when we put all of us together as a band then that’s Thundermother. Our most common comment is that “If AC/DC and Motörhead had a child – that would be Thundermother”

5. What is the best part of being a musician? If you could no longer be a musician for whatever reason, what would be your dream job?

The best thing about being a musician is to play live shows. Nothing can beat that. You have the live audience feeding you with energy and you can really feel the heat, it’s a really nice and intense moment. To play drums is what I live to do the most. If I weren’t a musician I would probably be working with movies, that’s a big passion and interest I have.

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Category: Interviews