What began as a casual conversation between War//Plague guitarist Andy Lefton and Anti Cimex drummer Charlie Claesson quickly snowballed into one of hardcore's most intriguing international collaborations. Rounded out by Napalm Death vocalist Mark "Barney" Greenway, Skitsystem vocalist Fredrik Wallenberg, and Severed Head of State bassist Kelly Halliburton, Totalis brings together decades of hardcore, crust, and d-beat experience on its debut release, Griefstate.
No Echo caught up with Lefton and Claesson to discuss the project's unlikely origins, how a folder full of discarded riffs became Griefstate, how they collaborated across continents, and whether Totalis has a future beyond its impressive debut.
What was the genesis of this project? Did you have a clear vision of what you wanted stylistically, or did things evolve once Charlie got involved?
Andy Lefton, guitar: The story is a bit convoluted. I was working alongside Tomas Haglund, a Swedish director behind the Anti Cimex documentary Jawbreaker, which is now screening worldwide. I was acting as a North American liaison and reached out to Charlie regarding the documentary to get his blessing on a few things.
Charlie and I started talking about music, and I mentioned that I had countless demo ideas and "throwaway" riffs sitting on my hard drive. During one of those conversations, he asked me to send him a handful... then he asked for a few more. Before I knew it, Charlie had studio time booked to record drums, which completely surprised me, but it was a welcome surprise.
The whole idea was simply to have fun. There wasn't really any direction, and we had no idea where it was going. Things happened so quickly between the two of us that the project eventually ballooned into what it is now.
Everything just fell into place. We're still kind of shaking our heads wondering, "What the fuck just happened?"
Oddly enough, there really wasn't a clear musical direction when we started. We kept asking ourselves, "Who would even want to be part of this?" Once we thought about it, though, the choices became obvious because everything was based on chemistry and camaraderie.
Kelly was the clear choice for bass. I've always thought he's an incredibly accomplished bassist with a really diverse background. We actually shared a stage back in 1994 at the Mercury Café in Denver when Defiance toured, and I was sold the moment I saw him play.
Charlie Claesson, drums: We were chatting, and eventually one of us said, "We should do something together someday."
So I asked Andy if he could write some songs, but he already had a few lying around. He sent them over, and I went to my workmate Marcus Selmosson's rehearsal room studio and recorded the drums. I couldn't resist making a few small changes, just because I could.
Then I waited and started contacting Barney, Fred, Kelly, and Hanna. I honestly had no idea where it would end up, but that's the fun part about projects like this.
Andy, you've been home recording for a while. How did you get into that side of things?
Andy: I know enough to record guitars and program drum loops so I can get ideas down. I'm completely self-taught and have been using Reaper for years to write demos for War//Plague and Fear of the Known, but I leave the serious recording and mixing to Adam Tucker at Signaturetone Recording.
Home recording is mainly a way to capture ideas, and honestly, about 90 percent of them end up in the garbage. It's a constant process of revisiting demos, realizing they're terrible, throwing them away, and learning something in the process.
With Totalis, those songs had already been sitting in the throwaway pile, so I'm really glad they found a second life. I remember sending Charlie the demos thinking, "What's going to happen here?" because they felt incomplete.
In the end, Adam at Signaturetone really helped pull everything together.
Talk to me about each of your connections to Barney and Fredrik. Were they on board before they even heard the music?
Charlie: I've known Barney for years. We've been pen pals, we've run into each other at festivals, and we've exchanged records over the years. He'd always say, "We should do something together someday," and this finally became that opportunity.
I'm really glad he said yes. His voice is not from this Earth.
I've known Fred since the '90s, so asking him was a no-brainer, even though Andy was really pushing for him. Fred's a great guy, and we recorded his vocals one afternoon at Welfare Studios in Gothenburg.
Andy: I've known Barney for several years through podcasts, emails, and whenever Napalm Death came through town. A few years ago I even did some concept artwork for the band that never got used, so I repurposed it for the Totalis album artwork.
As for Fred, I didn't know him personally at the time, but I'm a massive Skitsystem fan, so he felt like the perfect fit for what we were trying to accomplish.
How did the lyrics come together?
Andy: That was actually the most challenging part of the entire project because I was asked to write them.
They went through several revisions because, knowing who would be singing them, I wanted to make sure the material felt right for those vocalists. If Barney and Fred were going to represent these songs, I wanted them to actually have something meaningful to say.
The lyrics can be a little abstract at times, but every song has something it wants to communicate. Given the state of the world, I think people's voices need to be heard.
Charlie: I'm a drummer... the last lyrics I wrote were for the Victims of a Bombraid EP in 1983 [Editor’s Note: fuck].
Do you gentlemen see Totalis continuing beyond this release?
Andy: Personally, nothing makes me happier than writing music and finding a way to express our catharsis in this world that's gone mad. If everyone else wants to keep going, I'm absolutely in.
As for whether Barney and Fred return or if we work with different vocalists, it's too early to say. The response has been really positive, so we'll see where it goes.
Charlie: No concrete plans, but I really like this first release, so I'd gladly do another one. I enjoy making music with people who always said, "We should do something together someday."
Well... that day finally came.
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Griefstate is available now on vinyl, CD, and cassette Organize and Arise, vinyl and cassette via Phobia Records, and Japanese readers can pick up the album through Break the Records in Japan.
Totalis on social media: Instagram
Tagged: anti cimex, napalm death, skitsystem, totalis, warplague
