THE METAL PIT: Hello Niclas. Engel is currently on tour with Pain. How is the tour going so far? From your video tour diaries it looks as though the crowds are reacting very well to Engel.

Niclas Engelin: Hey there!! All is well and we having a blast on tour with our mates in Pain, The tours been just great and we are gaining more fans and people seems to get into the whole ENGEL thing/music which is GREAT!! Let´s spread the gospel of ENGEL!!

What bands influenced the sound of Engel? Growing up, what bands or guitar players did you listen to?

Nowadays it´s more like being influenced by surroundings and environment you happen to be in which could be both good and bad and that´s the beauty of being a writer/musician to be able to absorb those elements into songs or lyrics, I think I got my own sound and way of playing guitar and don´t have to find that out anymore and that makes it a lot easier to create music in general.Growing up was full on Judas Priest/Defenders Of The Faith, Mercyful Fate/Don´t Break The Oath, Motörhead/No Sleep Till`Hammersmith and such.The first time a saw Jake E Lee shredding on a live appearance with Ozzy made me want to play guitar cus`I thought it looked so cool and sounded awesome!! Hey…I Gotta Do That To!!

How did Engel first come together as a band? There have been a few line up changes since your first album.

I just did some music in my bedroom and thought it would be cool to try it out with some friends and have a proper go at it, so the first intention was not to form a band but it all blended in that good so why not?? We did some recordings and started a buzz around ENGEL and ended up on SPV for the first release.Being in a band and  do what it takes to move ahead it´s pretty tough sometimes and some just fade away  and loose interests or find a real good job which makes it worth leaving the band.We have a steady line-up and have been this way since 2 years back which marks for the fans that this is the line-up that will carry the wings ENGEL.

What are Engel’s plans once the Pain tour ends? Is there another tour planned or will you be going back into the studio to record a new album?

We will get on a tour with Arch Enemy through Sweden like straight after the Pain tour which is going to be a whole lot of fun as well with our mates in Arch Enemy.
    And then I guess it´s time for another slice of ENGEL recording in December/January, we have been writing through the whole year so we are armed and dangerous to say the least.

When listening to your last album Threnody, there is an emphasis on a more melodic approach to the vocals. Was this a conscious decision to differentiate Engel’s music from In Flames? Can you describe how Engel’s music differs from that of In Flames?

The first album lacked of keyboards and loops and maybe we should have sticked to the sound we got on the first recordings but I think it´s still a very good album so on THRENODY we wanted a big full epic sound which would maybe turn some heads but this was our intention from the beginning to have this epic sound combined with keys/loops cus´it´s been important element in our music but without loosing any heaviness or guitar edge. I think that we are more straight ahead and more beat driven and less twin guitar stuff.

Are there any plans for Engel to tour the U.S. on your own or as support on a larger package tour?

That would rule!! And I know for sure that it would have worked out super great!! No…there´s no plans like that as we speak but we are working on get things going in the states for sure.

Aside from Engel, you are also a current member of In Flames. Is there anything going on with In Flames that you can discuss?

Wanna say something important here!! I´m a member of ENGEL even thou I may not be able to tour so much as I wish but I am behind every single tone or note every bissniss move and this is a full on band and ENGEL is very much alive without me on tour with out loosing anything!!

If you could pick one band for Engel to tour with, who would it be and why?

I would love to tour with Rob Zombie cus´ his music meant so much to me when we started ENGEL all the element he put on Hellbilly Deluxe and the groove!! Shit…just AWESOME!!

Would you consider Engel your side project when you are not touring/recording with  In Flames or would you say Engel is your top priority?

ENGEL IS NOT A SIDE PROJECT….IT`S A FULL ON BAND!!

In Flames & ENGEL it´s two different worlds so I can´t compare those and would be unfair to both bands. Both bands are important to me and I have a heart for both the bands…you could say I got my hands full and I really enjoy it!!

In conclusion, is there anything you would like to say to the readers of The Metal Pit?

I would like to say that readers of The Metal Pit should give ENGEL a go cus`I think that we got something for everyone on our albums it´s diverse but still HEAVY.So have a listen and enjoy our gospel!!
     Thank´s for the interview Matt and hope to meet you along the way,

/Niclas