First of all I want to thank you for accepting to answer my questions for Metal Abyss web

Mikkel: Hi there! First of all I would like to salute this great zine for taking the time and interest in Mercenary. My name is Mikkel Sandager, I am the second vocalist of Mercenary. On a further note I would like to add that today is March 11th and we are pretty exited about the release of Everblack.

1.Congratulations for your new album “Everblack”. Introduce us the band. Tell us the latest news from the band.

Mikkel: Mercenary is one of the top acts to emerge from Denmark ever. We are a kind of metal hybrid with roots in different genres. Both Death Metal and the more melodic genres. Intertwined it creates a perfect symmetry of brutality and softness. The latest news from the band would be that we have recently hired a new drummer who will be touring with us this summer. He is a real powerhouse and he has added a fresh breath to the band I think. His name is Mike by the way!

2.Tell us about the musical background of each of the members of Mercenary.

Mikkel: As I said in question 1 we all come from different musical environments where Kral, Jacob, Mike and Signar are the ones with the brutality in their veins and me and my brother (Morten Sandager) are the soft bodied ones. We have all been playing music for many many many years, and have all had a fair amount of experience in different fields.

3.The title of your new album is “Everblack”. I think that’s a little pessimistic title. Who’s idea was to give such a title to the album. Do you believe that all the things around us are black and there’s no need to try for anything?

Mikkel: Well the title for the album is actually not a reference to everyday life (or death ha! Ha!). It is a reference to the tracks on the album. When they were done we thought that they where all really cool and had a sort of evergreen feel to them. But you cannot call a Brutal album “Evergreen” can you! He he. Hence the title “Everblack”. And to answer the last part of your question; No! we don’t think that things in life are black and pointless. There are a lot of good things in life and there are things that suck!

4.How would you characterize your music style? Do you prefer only the clean vocals, or the brutal ones, or both of them?

Mikkel: I feel that they interact with each other in a very nice way and I feel the contrast between the two types of vocals is what sets Mercenary apart from a lot of other bands. So I wouldn’t prefer just one from the other.

5.Do you think that having two singers in the band makes you different from other bands? Maybe in the future will be only one singer or you will always have brutal vocals in your songs?

Mikkel: I don’t think we will ever be a one singer band. In regards to which type of vocals will be the dominant one is more or less up to the songs we write. We are not locked in a certain direction and are therefore not locked in a certain vocal-style. And yes! I think that this is what sets Mercenary apart from other bands in the genre!

6.What do the lyrics talk about? Can you give me some more informations about the song that you like most from this album?

Mikkel: All of the lyrics are pieces of everyday life, a certain mood or feeling. I am not in a position to discuss the lyrics or to tell directly what they are about. Partly because I didn’t write them (Kral did) and partly because it should be up to the people that listen to our music to discover what they mean to them. There is not a singular point behind one specific lyric so this question is a little hard to answer. Hope you understand my point. My personal favourite varies from time to time but at this exact time I would have to say “Rescue Me”.  

7.And now we go on with the “Weird Questions”!!!…..If you were dating with a very beautiful woman and you knew that she hates extreme music and you were on a loft at evening with a beautiful view …which 5 songs would you choose to play to make her feel comfortable, to break the ice…and why?

Mikkel: Ha ha … nice one! Well I like a lot of different music, but in this particular case I think I would choose something like “Sting” or perhaps some classical music like Mozart or Tschaikowsky…I like those two a lot. But it would never work out because my life is so full of more or less extreme music and she would go mental if she was dating me!

8.Can you remember an album that you have bought and when you heard it you wished you never had bought it and you wanted to play Frisbee with it?

Mikkel: I recently bought the new Dream Theater album and as the long time hardcore fan that I was I bought the thing without listening to it. I would sell the album very cheaply if any one wanted to buy it from me now!

9.If you had to go in a place far beyond civilization and you are allowed to take with you only 5 albums, which ones would you choose and why?

Mikkel: 1.Iron Maiden – Seventh Son of a Seventh Son – I'm a huge Maiden fan. 
2.Iron Maiden – Life after Death – I'm a huge Maiden fan. 
3.Bruce Dickinson – Scream for me Brazil – The coolest live album around. 
4.Fates Warning – Disconnected – These guys rock for real! 
5.Mercenary – Everblack – ha ha ha! I'm on it!

 
10.Thanx very much for the interview I wish the best for Mercenary. Add anything you want for the end.

Mikkel: Thanks very much for your time and I hope to see you sometime soon on tour!!!

by Thanos (Mc)