Every now and then a young band comes along that makes you stop, turn the volume up and take notice. Stockholm’s Bloodstain are one of those bands.
With their self-titled debut album, Bloodstain aren’t interested in simply fitting neatly into one corner of the heavy music world. There are flashes of classic hard rock, thrash, progressive metal and modern heavy music throughout the record, but what really stands out are the hooks, the melodies and a collection of songs that feel built to be played loud.
Formed by high school friends Benjamin, Oskar, Jonathan and Tobias, Bloodstain’s story began like so many great bands do — getting together, playing covers and discovering a shared obsession with music. Influences ranging from AC/DC and Metallica through to Dream Theater helped shape those early years, but once the band began writing their own material, finding their own identity quickly became far more important than sounding like their heroes.
That attitude runs throughout Bloodstain. Tracks such as “Something Sinister” and “Carved in Stone” showcase a band prepared to explore different sounds without losing sight of what makes a great song: memorable riffs, huge hooks and choruses that stay with you long after the record finishes. And people are beginning to notice.
With an increasingly positive response across Europe and the benefit of growing up within Sweden’s incredibly strong music culture, Bloodstain find themselves at the beginning of what could become a very interesting journey.
Slaids caught up with Benjamin, Oskar, Jonathan and Tobias for 50 Shades Of Slaids to talk about the making of their debut album, going from high school friends playing covers to creating their own music, the influences that shaped them, Sweden’s remarkable ability to continually produce great bands and why Bloodstain have absolutely no intention of allowing themselves to be defined by one genre.
The debut album is coming.
The songs are there. The hooks are there. The ambition is there. Now it’s time to remember the name — Bloodstain.