By Paul Trainer

Copyright glasgowworld

Few bands can match The Hives for sheer, unfiltered energy. Thirty years into their music career, the Swedish musicians, who got together as a band in their teens, remain a force to be reckoned with. With a new album providing the impetus and an international tour underway, guitarist Nicholaus Arson talked us through it all. You’re back in Glasgow next month. I was looking at your first shows here, at places like King Tut’s and the Cathouse 25 years ago. Do you have fond memories of those early days? “Yeah, well, I mean, I have fond memories of that whole time because it was just driving around in your van, doing shows everywhere. Every day was like—this was the life we always wanted. Even though we weren’t big at the time, it was still the dream: small hotels, crashing on people’s couches, sometimes sleeping at the venue. But just getting to do what you always wanted to do. I remember it very fondly.” With the new album, the theme of the reaction seems to centre on the band’s energy. How have you kept that going after three decades? “We always liked our music to have energy, and you can put energy into it in different ways – you can play fast, play hard, have a groove, or just capture it in the right way. Pelle Gunnerfeldt, who recorded this latest record and has been involved in almost all our records, is probably one of the best in the world at capturing energy on record. And also, we’ve never wanted to wind down or take another route. Even when we’ve tried different approaches, all roads lead to Rome in a way, we always end up where we like it best. When you’ve tried to lay the puzzle a thousand different ways and still come to the same conclusion, you know you’ve made a good album.” Would you say the band feel more at home on stage or in the studio? “I think we’re all suckers for applause—and there’s no applause in the studio. We love playing the songs live, putting on the show the way we want to, and trying to impress people. That’s who we are. The studio is different work. You come home from a studio day and your head is so fried you can barely make a sandwich. On tour, you’re physically tired, but after a show you could make a million sandwiches—you’re full of adrenaline. So yeah, we’re a touring band.” What was it like working with Mike D from Beastie Boys as a producer on this record? “It was great. He’s someone we’ve looked up to for a very long time. What we wanted was someone to come in and pick at the songs a little – say, ‘What about this? Let’s try that.’ And yeah, he did a good job.” You’ve played Glasgow many times, including the Barrowlands, is it a place you enjoy playing? “The Barrowlands is probably one of our favourite venues. The first time we played there – what a memory. You hit the first note and 500 beers go straight up in the air, and then it’s off. It’s like what a World Cup win celebration would look like. It’s scary to even imagine what would happen if Scotland actually won the World Cup!” A Glasgow connection to The Hives story, you were signed by former Creation Records founder Alan McGee, how did that come about? “He saw us on television, maybe a video, and wanted to release something with us. At that point we didn’t have new music, so we put out a sort of greatest hits from our two records and an EP. He was very good for us. He’d had the experience of both making it and messing things up in the business—that’s what you’d call real experience.” Growing up, what kind of music first got you and your brother hooked? “The first band we started listening to was AC/DC. I got a record from an older kid on our street. That was such a great first love – if that had been the only record I ever heard, I probably would’ve been okay with that. After that, it was mostly heavy metal and punk, Iron Maiden, Slayer, Misfits, Dead Kennedys, D.R.I., Gang Green. We had other kids in our street who were deep into the hardcore scene, so we got a lot of that too. Our hometown had a surprisingly strong scene. Bands like Green Day, Rancid, Youth of Today—they all came through. Seeing those shows made us want to do what they were doing.” Music has a self-perpetuating quality, do you like the idea that kids might come to a Hives show and be inspired to start their own band? “Yeah, totally. It’s very flattering, though hard to grasp. I understand it because I’ve looked up to bands that way – but it still baffles me that we could be that for someone else. It’s an honour if someone respects your band like we did Misfits or Bad Brains. It’s pretty cool.” What can fans expect from your Glasgow setlist this time around? “Whenever we release a new record, we put a fair amount from it into the set – probably four to six songs. Then a few from the last record, and the rest are the crowd-pleasers. Tick Tick Boom, Main Offender, that stuff. We don’t change it up too much during a tour, but it’s always a good mix.” You and your brother have been in this band together since you were teenagers. Is it a special kind of pride to be up on stage with him? “I get asked that sometimes, and I’d say yes – but honestly, we don’t think about it too much. We’re still ploughing forward. Later on, when we quit, I probably will. But yeah, it’s been great. Not everyone gets to spend this much time with their brother. For us, sometimes it’s even too much – we come home from touring and then go on vacation together. But it’s awesome to have that connection. We started the band when we were 14 or 15, built this thing together, and it still works. It’s like building a car when you’re 15 and it’s still racing decades later. That’s pretty amazing.” The Hives play the OVO Hydro on Wednesday 26 November, tickets available here.