Mustasch is a rock band from Sweden. They were formed in the fall of 1998 by Ralf Gyllenhammar, Hannes Hansson, Mats Hansson and Stam Johansson in Gothenburg.
Mustasch | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Mustasch performing in 2018 | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Gothenburg, Sweden |
| Genres | Stoner rock, heavy metal, hard rock |
| Years active | 1998–present |
| Labels | Regain, EMI, Nuclear Blast |
| Members | Ralf Gyllenhammar Niklas Matsson Markus Harrysson Johan Wendt |
| Past members | Hannes Hansson Mats Hansson Danne McKenzie Jejo Perković Stam Johansson David Johannesson Robban Bäck Pontus Snibb Martin Ekelund |
| Website | mustasch |
Band history
editMustasch was formed in Gothenburg in 1998, and recorded demos at "The Mustasch Farm" on the island Orust which were released through different record labels around the world in small numbers. In 2001 they released their first EP The True Sound of the New West, embarked on a tour, and started to make a name for themselves in the Swedish metal scene. They chose the name Mustasch because many of their musical heroes had moustaches; such as Freddie Mercury from Queen and Tony Iommi from Black Sabbath.[1]
The band went on to release Above All in 2002 and Ratsafari in 2003, both of which were nominated for Swedish Grammies and helped the band to build their reputation. The band continued to tour hard, and released Powerhouse in 2005 before switching record labels. The switch to Regain Records was made to get the proper channels to sell metal records and the fact that the label was based near Gothenburg.[2]
With their new record label, they were given complete creative control[3] and in 2006 they released an EP entitled Parasite! It was soon followed up with their 2007 album, Latest Version of the Truth, which led to their first Swedish Grammy award after being nominated twice in the past. Following the album's release, the band postponed further recordings, instead favoring an extensive touring schedule to promote themselves; this also led to the release of the compilation album Lowlife Highlights.[3]
In June 2008, guitarist Hannes Hansson announced that he would leave the band due to family reasons: "It's been a fantastic period of ten years with the band, but now the band has grown so much with touring all over the world. It takes too much from my family and other things in life which I now want to put all my priority to."[4]
The band continued their scheduled tour with various replacements before David Johannesson from Swedish metal band Sparzanza was chosen as a permanent replacement.[5]
In late-spring 2009, Mustasch started to work on their new album, also announcing that drummer Mats 'Dojan' Hansson had left the band because of arthritis; Danne McKenzie, who had played with the band on numerous occasions, took the spot. In August 2009, the band announced that they had finished recording their new album, entitled Mustasch, and that it will be released on 30 September in Finland and Sweden, 5 October in Denmark and Norway, and the rest of the world in early 2010. The first single from the album is entitled "Mine".
In November 2011, the band made the song "The Challenger", which became a hit. It made a breakthrough in all of Scandinavia, and will go global with their new world-tour.[citation needed]
On 22 December 2015, Mustasch announced Robban Bäck would become a full-time member.[citation needed]
They participated in Melodifestivalen 2021[6] with the song "Contagious", which failed to qualify from the semi-finals.
On 4 February 2023, David, Stam, and Robban decided to leave the band "in order to pursue other career opportunities".[7][8] It was later confirmed that current Bonafide members Pontus Snibb, Martin Ekelund and Niklas Matsson would join the band as replacements.
Mustasch and Mind.se
editIn August 2019, Mustasch teamed up with Mental Illness Charity (Mind.se) to highlight issues of suicide rates among young men. They launched a campaign to help tackle this issue. Talking about their new single "What Is Wrong" (which is also the name of the campaign), singer Ralf Gyllenhammar said, "'What Is Wrong' is our fight song for young men suffering from mental illness. Men are expected to be strong and dare not seek help. We want to change that in Mustache [sic]. That's why we are now starting the #whatiswrong campaign. Our goal is to raise SEK 200,000. That amount allows Mind's volunteers to receive 600 calls from support applicants in the Suicide Line. It is conversation that saves lives."[9]
Band members
edit
Current members
- Ralf Gyllenhammar – vocals, rhythm guitar (1998– )
- Niklas Matsson – drums (2023– )
- Markus Harrysson – lead guitar (2024– )
- Johan Wendt – bass (2024– )
Former members
- Hannes Hansson – rhythm guitar (1998–2008)
- Mats 'Dojan' Hansson – drums, percussion (1998–2009, died 2022)
- Danne Mckenzie – drums (2009–2011)
- Jejo Perković – drums, percussion (2012–2015)
- David Johannesson – lead guitar (2008–2023)
- Mats 'Stam' Johansson – bass (1998-2023)
- Robban Bäck – drums (2015–2023)
- Pontus Snibb – lead guitar (2023)
- Martin Ekelund – bass (2023)
Touring members
- Kristian Laimaa – rhythm guitar (2008)
- Martin Boman – rhythm guitar (2008)
- Leif Larsson – bass (2008)
- Danne McKenzie – drums (2008)
Discography
editAlbums
editStudio albums
| Year | Album | Peak positions | Certification | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SWE [10] |
FIN [11] | |||
| 2002 | Above All | 22 | – | |
| 2003 | Ratsafari | 20 | – | |
| 2005 | Powerhouse | 10 | – | |
| 2007 | Latest Version of the Truth | 3 | – | |
| 2009 | Mustasch | 5 | 35 | |
| 2011 | The New Sound of the True Best (old tracks re-recorded) |
2 | 17 | |
| 2012 | Sounds Like Hell, Looks Like Heaven | 4 | 6 | |
| 2014 | Thank You for the Demon | 5 | 4 | |
| 2015 | Testosterone | 10 | 17[12] | |
| 2018 | Silent Killer | 4 [13] |
9[14] | |
| 2019 | Killing It for Life | 38 [15] |
– | |
EPs
| Year | Album | Peak positions | Certification | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SWE [10] |
FIN [11] | |||
| 2001 | The True Sound of the New West | – | – | |
| 2006 | Parasite! | 22 | – | |
| 2021 | A Final Warning – Chapter One[16] | 21 [17] |
35 [18] |
|
Live recordings
- 2008 In the Night (DVD)
Compilation albums
| Year | Album | Peak positions | Certification | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SWE [10] |
FIN [11] | |||
| 2008 | Lowlife Highlights | 22 | – | |
| 2009 | Singles A's & B's | – | – | |
Singles
edit| Year | Single | Peak positions | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| SWE [10] | |||
| 2002 | "I Hunt Alone" | 57 | Above All |
| "Down in Black" | – | ||
| 2003 | "Black City" | 52 | Ratsafari |
| 2004 | "6:36" | – | |
| 2005 | "Dogwash" | – | Powerhouse |
| "I'm Alright" | – | ||
| 2007 | "Double Nature" | 2 | Latest Version of the Truth |
| "Bring Me Everyone" | 25 | ||
| 2008 | "Spreading the Worst" | – | |
| 2009 | "Mine" | 9 | Mustasch |
| 2012 | "The Challenger" | – | Sounds Like Hell, Looks Like Heaven |
| 2013 | "Feared and Hated" | – | Thank You for the Demon |
| 2016 | "Midnight Runner" | – | Non-album track |
| 2017 | "Änglahund" | 91 [19] | |
| 2017 | "Hound from Hell" | – | |
| 2017 | "Lawbreaker" | – | Silent Killer |
| 2018 | "Fire" | – | |
| 2018 | "Winners" | – | |
| 2021 | "Contagious" | –[A] | A Final Warning – Chapter One |
Demos and other appearances
edit- 1999 Daredevil Magazine / Burn the Streets Vol. 1
- 1999 Molten Universe – Volume One
- 2000 Underdogma – Judge Not ...
- 2000 Daredevil Magazine / Burned Down to Zero
- 2002 All Areas Volume 29
- 2003 All Areas Volume 44
- 2002 The Encyclopedia of Swedish Hard Rock and Heavy Metal, Volume II
- 2003 Music Plato Mania Sampler Volume 1
- 2003 Off Road Tracks Vol. 65
- 2003 P3 Popstad 2003 Växjö
- 2007 Target Roskilde 07
Notes
edit- ^ "Contagious" did not enter the Swedish Singellista Chart, but peaked at number three on the Swedish Heatseeker Chart.[20]
References
edit- ^ YouTube. Youtube.com. Retrieved 19 June 2015.
- ^ "Interview Mustasch 2007". Metal-experience.com. Retrieved 19 June 2015.
- ^ a b Frank D. "Lords of Metal ezine". Lords of Metal. Retrieved 19 June 2015.
- ^ "Featured Content on Myspace". Myspace. Archived from the original on 8 July 2012. Retrieved 19 June 2015.
- ^ "Sparzanza Guitarist Quits To Join Mustasch". Blabbermouth.net. Archived from the original on 9 September 2012. Retrieved 19 June 2015.
- ^ "LISTA: De tävlar i Melodifestivalen 2021". Aftonbladet. December 2020. Retrieved 4 December 2020.
- ^ https://www.facebook.com/Mustaschofficial/photos/a.173234909468116/4709571122501116/ [bare URL]
- ^ Article title[usurped]
- ^ "Swedish rockers Mustasch launch campaign to help young men suffering from mental illness". August 7, 2019. Retrieved August 7, 2019.
- ^ a b c d "Mustasch discography". swedishcharts.com. Retrieved 24 January 2014.
- ^ a b c "Mustasch discography". finnishcharts.com. Retrieved 24 January 2014.
- ^ "Musiikkituottajat – Tilastot – Suomen virallinen lista – Albumit". Ifpi.fi. Retrieved 26 October 2015.
- ^ "Sverigetopplistan – Sveriges Officiella Topplista". Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 13 April 2018. Click on "Veckans albumlista".
- ^ "Musiikkituottajat – Tilastot – Suomen virallinen lista – Albumit". Ifpi.fi. Retrieved 15 April 2018.
- ^ "Veckolista Album, vecka 19". Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 8 May 2020.
- ^ "A Final Warning – Chapter One". Amazon.com. Retrieved 23 April 2021.
- ^ "Veckolista Album, vecka 18". Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 7 May 2021.
- ^ "Albumit 18/2021". Musiikkituottajat. Retrieved 9 May 2021.
- ^ "Sverigetopplistan – Sveriges Officiella Topplista". Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 18 February 2017.
- ^ "Veckolista Heatseeker, vecka 11". Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 20 March 2021.
External links
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