Interview with Max Landegren (Less Than 4)

Metal Express Radio had the great opportunity to speak with young sensation Max Landegren, vocalist and guitarist of Sweden’s Less Than 4. He talks about their new debut album By Blood By Heart and being part of the new generation of Punk and Hard Rock music…

MER: For starters, I would like to congratulate you and the band on the debut album By Blood By Heart. This has been a long time coming for you guys. What kind of pride goes into having your first full length album available worldwide?

MAX: Thank you. It feels great, I mean, it’s a very big thing to release a debut album with a great record label. It’s actually now the serious business begins. It feels awesome with the great feedback all over Europe.

MER: Your sound has been described anywhere from Punk to Sleaze Rock to Hair Metal. For our readers and listeners not familiar with Less Than 4, how would you describe your music?

MAX: Our Producer Rikard Löfgren said that our music is like “Rock with the punk attitude”, and that sounds pretty cool. The music we are playing is 80’s influenced music, but it’s still new and fresh.

MER: Who would you say are some of your main influences that drive your creativity?

MAX: I love Guns N’ Roses, D.A.D., and stuff like that, My favorite band right now is Hardcore Superstar. Our creativity comes from the music and the energy that surrounds it.

MER: Tell me a little about how the band got started and how you guys met?

MAX: Me and Steff (bassist) have played together since we were 8-9 years old, In late 2007 we wanted a drummer, so we picked the only guy in our village that actually could play, Ludo is crazy, 16 years old and sick with the drums.

MER: Of course, going by the name, Less Than 4 is obviously a trio. Do you think that you are limiting the band’s creativity by always maintaining that formula of a trio, or do you believe all the elements of a perfect band are fully contained with one guitar, a bass, and drums?

MAX: We’ve created a concept that we are three members in the band. The band name is included in the concept as well. It’s cool and it works damn good, so we will be running this way.

MER: You guys are all very young, under the age of 20. With so many aging rock bands around nowadays, do you view yourself as the next generation of Rock and Metal music?

MAX: Yeah I do. That’s our dream you know, it’s all about hard work, and we are absolutely willing to spend the time it requires. Our young age is good in the sense that we have time to get the dream to come true.

MER: What are some of your favorite songs from By Blood By Heart, and why?

MAX: Shit, that’s a hard question, I think that all songs are great. But “Fucked Up Kid” is one of my favorites. It’s cocky, it’s catchy, and it got great melodies. “The Way We Are” is a favorite too, great song in my opinion, simple as that.

MER: So what is next for Less Than 4? Will there be tour dates and a new album in the works?

MAX: We are booking some dates in the autumn right now. We are also planning some festivals in summer 2013, I am writing music all the time. So I hope that we could start recording a new album in the winter of 2013.

MER: Thank you Max very much for taking the time to talk with us about your success and the great new album By Blood By Heart. We wish you and the band continued success! Do you have any final words to share for your fans out there?

MAX: Thank you, It was a pleasure. I hope to see all of you guys on the road sometime, it would be awesome, Like us on Facebook Love you all!!

Author

  • Sean Meloy

    Sean Meloy was a reviewer, interviewer and DJ here at Metal Express Radio, based out of Iowa , USA. By day he is a straight laced, buttoned up, number crunching accountant; armed with his portable calculator. All other times he is a hard rocking Metal head! He spent many hours listening to records and 8-tracks with his father. Classic bands such as Deep Purple, Pink Floyd, Kansas, Led Zeppelin, and Eric Clapton just to name a few. His father bought him his first record, Kiss Alive II, at age 6. By the time he reached his teens he was discovering all the Classic Metal of the 1980’s; Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Twisted Sister, etc. He became a huge fan of the Thrash Metal of the time as well; Metallica, Megadeth, Anthrax, Exodus, and Overkill. During the 1990’s he experimented with the Grunge and Hard Rock. However, by the time the millennium came he found himself going back to his roots and rebuilt the music collection he started in his teens.

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