Having established themselves as one of the most exciting bands in Sweden, Johnossi released their first international album, Blood Jungle, earlier this year and we’re obsessed. The talented duo, made up of John Engelbert and Oskar “Ossi” Bonde, first started playing together in 2004 and have honed their alternative rock sound over the years, sampling elements from a wide variety of genres, including hard rock and post-punk.
The pair are now in the midst of a European tour, bringing their incredible music to audiences all over. We managed to catch up with the duo in between performances to find out all about them.
How would you describe your new album Blood Jungle?
John: It’s always hard to look at your own creation from an outside perspective. So I would prefer not to describe it with words. It’s so convenient nowadays to just go online and have a listen to see if it’s something you dig. But in broad terms, we are a high output energetic rock band with big melodies and lots of catchy tunes.
Do you both have the same input when it comes to creating your music?
J: We compliment each other very well and our roles during the creative process of writing and recording/producing is well rooted now after so many years of working together. I pretty much write all the main parts of the songs, the melodies chords and lyrics and Ossi is there as a constant sounding board and comes with inputs/guidance of what is great and what is not. We then tweak and turn, add and remove for hours/days/weeks sometimes even months until we’re both truly satisfied. It can be a very frustrating process but it’s also great fun.
Where do you hope to be in 5 years?
J: I hope to be in a healthy happy place surrounded by positive loving people.
“Almost all the mainstream music of today is super boring.”
You’re already very successful in Sweden – how are you feeling about your first international release?
Ossi: Well, more work I guess. And more diversity. We have toured a lot out side of Sweden and released albums in different parts of Europe before and it’s always great fun to play new countries but to release an album is one thing, to make it successful is another. We are constantly moving forward and love new territory. To play big halls one day and then a small punk club the next.
What other artists do you admire?
O: I admire any artist who stays true to their vision and works hard. Nowadays I don’t listen to new music as I did in my younger years and even though there is a lot of music and artists to chose from today, I’m not super impressed. Almost all the mainstream music of to day is super boring.
What have you got coming up next?
O: Right now we’re in the middle of a European tour that will end up back in Sweden for a couple of weeks. And before you know it, it’s summer. We love playing the summer festivals after all the sweaty indoor shows and this year we will probably do a lot.