With:	Christian Nyquist [drums]
Conducted by:	Unknown user
Published:	02.10.2003
Band profile:	Lost Horizon

Before starting with the interview with Christian Nyquist (drums) I asked him about the bus accident the band have had earlier than a week ago (the 13th of March, exactly) in "Umea", Sweden while they were touring. He (Christian Nyquist) told me that he had injured his shoulder quite seriously, and because of this, they have a new drummer for some concerts, until Christian gets over from his shoulder problem.

- What do you think about the Heavy Metal scene in Sweden?

I think that there are too many bands, and not enough good ones, unfortunately.

- Which are your favorite ones? Maybe In Flames or?

(interrupting me?) In Flames is not a Metal band? and I don't really have any favorite Swedish Metal band, I hear their music but I don't have their albums. I mostly listen to old Metal bands: Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, "old" Metallica?

As Metallica is my favorite band, we keep talking about them (their music, their evolution?) for a couple of minutes?

- I have to admit that your first album (Awakening the world, 2001) was one of my favorites of that year, and I think that with that album you innovate the European Metal scene because most bands sound the same?

We don't copy things. We try to do it in our way, we actually don't see ourselves like a Metal band at all, we understand that people think that we are but we just try to play the music we would like to hear, there are so many bands, and so few good ones? They are mostly very good musicians and everything. The new bands have too many songs, but just have 3-4 good songs in each record. We prefer having 7 full songs which are great, than having 15, not so great. A record which is not good from the beginning to the end, is not a good record. In the 80s the full albums were great, but nowadays just some pieces.

- Which are the main differences between your two albums?

Musically?, the first album songs were composed a very long time ago, they were written between 1991 and 1994, I think. They (the old songs) even have new lyrics, arrangements? so there are almost ten years between the composition of the album and the release of it. Because of that, I think that the new album is more?

- Mature?

Yeah, exactly. That's what I feel.

- What can you tell me about your image? I mean: the body-paintings, all the stuff you wear?

Everything in Lost Horizon is like a concept, it's our concept about how we think about the world and our philosophy about life in general, so we try to take every part of Lost Horizon to a concept and to make our music more powerful, more interesting and more fun to us to perform. It is also an incentive for the audience, you don't only have the music, you also have the image, it's great, we have war-paintings is like ARGGH!. It is our way to present our message because it is also an intellectual thought we want the people to start thinking about the world and themselves.

- And what about your favorite music styles/bands?

The whole band don't just listen to Metal music, we also listen to techno music, classical music, I listen to some rap music, for example. I mean: if a song is good, is good, if it makes you feel good? I'm not that kind of people that say: If it is not Metal I don't like it! Just for being a different style, I think that this is stupid, because you miss so much? because music is huuuge! Bands like Daft Punk gets you in a good mood when you need some party, you know what I mean?

- I'm also a fan of Daft Punk, I also like: Mike Oldfield, movie soundtracks like Alien Saga film's ones.

Oh! Fucking great movies, I also listen to movie soundtracks, my favorites are: The Lord of the Rings - The Fellowship of the Ring, Star Wars? I think that this is why people think that our music is interesting, we have influences from lots of places. This inspires us creating an especial feeling in our music

- I have already seen you in concert once, it was in January?

(interrupting me?) Oh! You were in Barcelona, in Nit de Reis festival!

- Yeah, I was there. I know that it wasn't a good concert of you, the sound was poor, you had problems with your material at the airport, some things were broken? (He was really interested in my opinion, and people's opinion in general, about that Lost Horizon's concert, the festival was an important one, bands like: Blind Guardian, Saxon, Virgin Steele, Dark Moor, Iron Savior? played)

I promise you that tonight's show (after the interview, they were playing in Bilbao) would be much better than Barcelona's one.

So we start talking about their live gigs.

- What can you remember about your concert in "Wacken 2002" festival? I have seen some pictures and it was a really small stage where you played...

Actually it was a tent! A white tent, located outside of the festival, anyway it was important for us playing there. It was a fun gig, but is not fun to stand with our painting in a white tent.

- Where do you prefer playing? I mean: open air gigs, indoor gigs...

I like outside festivals, I don't get so warm! Ha ha ha. I get very very warm when I play drums, but we don't prefer this or that, we just prefer to play as much live as we can. Playing, that's enough for us.

- Are you enjoying your long tour here in Spain?

Yeah! Of course! Spain is great, I'm just sorry because that I can't play, you know? My fucking arm doesn't work, anyway I'm able to see my own band playing from outside, and shout: Hey! Fucking great band! Ha ha ha! It is special to see a show from outside, you have a different feeling.

- To conclude this interview, I want to ask you about a curiosity I have seen. In the back cover of your album, a little thing appears, in this thing is written: "Metal Against Drugs". What can you tell me about this?

It is an obvious thing to say and to put. It doesn't mean that we don't drink beer - Ha ha ha - but I think that hard drugs are really bad, and drugs are a very bad way to waste your life.

I want to thank Lost Horizon for being so kind with me that day, and especially the drummer: Christian Nyquist, and Luis Herrera, from their tour-company, for making this interview possible.