If doom metal had a Mount Rushmore, bassist and founding force of Candlemass Leif Edling would surely be one of the anchor tenants.
The Swedish slingers of dread and sweeping riffs the size of tsunamis have, in one form or another these past 35 years, been at the foreground of doom metal, earning considerable praise for landmark genre staples Epicus Doomicus Metallicus, Nightfall and Ancient Dreams, and even picking up a Grammy nomination for 2019s epic The Door to Doom.
Reunited with fan favourite vocalist Johan Längqvist, and fixing to drop a quick followup EP titled The Pendulum on March 27th, Candlemass have conquered lineup shakeups, lengthy hiatuses and personal struggles to remain a force in heavy metal nearly four decades in.
Edling caught up with Metal Injection to talk all things doom, his collaboration with Tony Iommi and the influence of Black Sabbath, his definitive metal records and much more!
On the Importance of a Grammy Nomination
We feel very honoured, actually. Not many Swedish bands have been nominated for a US Grammy award. It was a big thing over there and here as well. And when we won the Swedish equivalence shortly after, we felt like it was the ultimate end of an incredible year! And we’re still in shock!
On Reuniting With Johan
Yes, back to basics, back to the roots of doom! Was great to have him on board and to do all the gigs we did last year. He’s a super guy and an incredible singer. Can’t wait ‘til we make a new album with him from scratch. Now he joined us when The Door to Doom was nearly finished so I know there’s more to squeeze out of him (laughs).
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On Collaborating with Tony Iommi
That one is also amazing! I was looking for a collaboration of some kind for one of the songs on D.T.D. and had Tony Iommi in mind but didn’t really want to say anything to the band. They would just make fun of me ‘ya know.
When I finally said it on a band meeting it was exactly like that. “Yeah, dream on, Leif” etc etc. But our manager emailed his manager and after a while we got a yes from the Tony camp. So cool that he wanted to do it. He liked the song and put a guitar solo on it. Cudos to Tony!
On the Influence of Black Sabbath
They mean everything! But to tell you the truth, when we started C-mass in 85 we were more influenced by Venom, Accept, Angel Witch, Anvil, Manilla Road, Motorhead, Maiden etc etc than Sabbath. But Sabbath was always there, like a piece of gum stuck under your boot. Can’t get rid of it. We were huge fans of Black Sabbath but wanted to mix the heaviness with other newer, “younger” influences. We were teens, had to be the street ya know…
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On the Evolution of Doom
I know there are hundreds of doom bands out there, Blood Ceremony, Runemagick, Procession, etc etc, but no band seems to get big or sell lots of records. Don’t know why this is, maybe the genre is a bit neglected? It is also very hard to sell records these days. When we started, we were pretty much alone doing this. After a while, Cathedral came and Paradise Lost, My Dying Bride. I think all of those bands sold more than we did, but we started the new era of doom, I think. Nobody sounded like us when we did Epicus.
On Go-to Essential Metal Albums
Maybe the first Angel Witch album? Metal doesn’t get any better than that. Or Anvil’s Metal on Metal or Accept Restless and Wild. King of the Dead by Cirith Ungol? Many contenders!
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On New EP The Pendulum
Quick and quick… it is a year between the releases (laughs)… but we all felt that the actual song "The Pendulum" could have been on the album. Maybe also “Porcelain Skull." Those demo tracks, including “Snakes of Goliath," are very cool, so why not make an EP? I like the idea of giving people access to the entire The Door to Doom sessions.
On Current Lineup Chemistry
After 35 years with those guys it is safe to say we know each other rather well. Johan is the “new” guy in, but has also been a part of us (Epicus) for the same amount of years. There’s nobody in the band I can’t have a beer with, but on the other hand, I don’t exactly chase their company when at home in between gigs, (laughs).
On Managing Health and Touring
2019 was craaazy. Loads of gigs, so I’m glad this year is not that hectic. My doctor is also very pleased about that (laughs)! But we have lots of stuff in the pipeline this year; USA, South America, back to Japan and Australia. I don’t know if I can do ‘em all.
My local gp wants me to take it easy since I have this fatigue syndrome now that I’m battling with. But I try to rest as much as I can during our trips. If I can’t do all the touring this year, I have no problem with the band bringing in a substitute for me occasionally. The show must go on!
On Overcoming Ups and Downs
We have never strayed from our sound and style. We have been true to the Epic Doom Metal that we are famous for. It’s so cool to see young kids with our records at the shows wanting to have our autographs on the cover. We’re not super big or anything, but the fans we have are very loyal! And this year we have many more of those fans I think. The shows have been packed, so I’m proud to say that Candlemass are doing pretty good 2020. 35 years after we started as a small young band in Upplands Väsby, just outside Stockholm, Sweden.
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