Interview by Denys, posted on 04/28/2010
Interview with: Danny Rexon (Crazy Lixx) (Vocals)
Myglobalmind: Thank you so much Crazy Lixx for taking the time to rock out to some of our questions for fans of our webzine Danny!!!
Danny Rexon: No problem man, any time.
Myglobalmind: Great job and congratulations on a hell of a record in “New Religion”!!! The buzz has been great so far, are you guys getting the same feedback?
Danny Rexon: First of all thanx! And yes, we’ve felt the positive feedback from almost everywhere, except for Sweden really. I mean the fans seem very happy about it but the music media doesn’t, but then again sometimes it really feels like you can’t make it on home ground and in the end there are only about 9 million people in Sweden so I’d rather have a break in a bigger country in Europe or in the US.
Myglobalmind: Hey guys for readers not familiar with your sound, how would you describe the bands sound in a sentence?
Danny Rexon: 80’s influenced arena rock in the veins of bands like Def Leppard, Guns n’ Roses or Aerosmith.
Myglobalmind: The record is filled killer rock anthems and super melodic and catchy tunes, but most importantly it really ties back the true 80’s sound that dominated the airways in those times. How we’re you able to accomplish this?
Danny Rexon: For us there was never a question about what kind of sound we wanted and the hard rock music of the 80’s and early 90’s is in my opinion one of the best eras of music. Then of course we didn’t have the enormous budgets that perhaps bands like Bon Jovi or Alice Cooper had when they set out to record their albums back then. But it’s amazing what modern technology can do with a recording nowadays. We managed to record it all in a couple of weeks and the album was recorded and mixed in little over a month.
Myglobalmind: The band was put in the category of “The New Wave of Swedish Sleaze” along side country mates like Babylon Bombs, and Crashdiet, how come this style of music has become so popular in Sweden over the years?
Danny Rexon: Don’t know really, suddenly there were just a lot of bands trying to make hard rock music the way it sounded prior to the alternative and grunge wave of the early 90’s. Why this has happened in Sweden is a mystery to me.
Myglobalmind: Danny Rexon, Vic Zino and Joél Cirera all played in a heavy metal band called Blindead before creating Crazy Lixx, what was the deciding factor in changing genre styles from metal to sleaze/hard rock?
Danny Rexon: Simply put we didn’t do it very well and we couldn’t agree on the type of metal we wanted to do. The music that Crazy Lixx stood for was something we could all relate to since many of our rock and metal heroes of our youth were the same, especially bands like Skid Row and Guns n’ Roses.
Myglobalmind: Super producer Chris Laney joined the production once more, we all know about his talents and his work associated with the glam scene, what qualities did he bring to the table when producing the new record?
Danny Rexon: His incredible music ear, no doubt. The way he coaches you how to play a riff or sing a phrase. Where to give it your all and where to stand back a little. All in all he makes the album more dynamic, more interesting to listen to. We would have done the songs basically the same without him but it wouldn’t have sounded even close to what it is now. As a musician it’s easy to just plug in and start playing without thinking twice about how it really sounds. Maybe we shouldn’t do this part with distorted guitars at all? Maybe we should do a keyboard part here instead? All those things are what a great producer helps the band with, and Chris Laney does that all the time.
Myglobalmind: The band formed in 2002 in Malmö, Sweden, can you describe how the local music scene up there must be like with so many bands still playing a style of music that in places like here in the USA may not be as predominant as it once was?
Danny Rexon: Actually when we started back in 2002 we didn’t know of a single other new band that did what we wanted to do, especially not in Malmö. As time went by we found out about the scene that had been starting to grow in Stockholm with bands like Crashdïet and Babylon Bombs. Now there’s tons of bands around and it’s a really competitive scene, but I think that only adds to the quality. We are however up to date still the most successful hard rock band from our parts of Sweden. Over all it seems to be more popular around the capital.
Myglobalmind: What was the first record you ever bought and the first concert you ever attended?
Danny Rexon: The first record must have been Iron Maiden – A Real LIVE One, but before that I used to buy cassettes and the first one I think was Skid Row – Slave to the Grind. But I started buying music late since my older brother always did it instead so I listened to his stuff instead.
The first concert I attended was Bad Religion on their Stranger Than Fiction-tour. They actually had Green Day playing as a warm up act for them back then.
Myglobalmind: What has been the most enjoyable time or the highest point of being in Crazy Lixx so far?
Danny Rexon: For me it’s releasing your albums and playing big outdoor festivals.
Myglobalmind: Where do you see the band in 10 years?
Danny Rexon: Hopefully at the top of the charts. Playing large venues around the world. In 10 years we should have released about 4 or 5 more albums too.
Myglobalmind: What do you guys do on the road for kicks?
Danny Rexon: Bully each other.
Myglobalmind: Hey guys thanks so much for taking the time to answer some questions readers of your webzine, great job on a killer record, any last words or message to your fans before we close things down?
Danny Rexon: If you book us, we will come…
Please visit http://www.crazylixx.com/ and http://www.myspace.com/crazylixxmusic
Myglobalmind Webzine Review for Crazy Lixx – New Religion.
http://myglobalmind.info/2010/05/31/crazy-lixx-new-religion/