Interview | Michael Sosinski (Mental Hippie Blood)

Impressive return after more than 30 years

They came, they saw…and disappeared. For a while they seemed to have everything going for them, but after two well received albums and some impressive tours and festival shows it all came to a stop. For over thirty years all that was left were the memories. Until recently when Mental Hippie Blood, the Swedish answer to the whole nineties grunge movement, returned with an explosive new album. ‘Web Of Lies’ saw the return of singer Michael Sosinski and guitarist Mikael Jansson. Time for an update.

In the early 1990s, Mental Hippie Blood released two great albums (‘Mental Hippie Blood’-1993 and ‘Pounds’– 1994), played many high profile shows, like Dynamo Open Air (1995), did tour after tour and suddenly it was all over. We asked Michael Sosinski about what went wrong. ,,To be honest I had some personal and social problems which I found hard to cope with. With the lifestyle I was living back then it was all a little too much so we took a break on my initiative I guess. I thought it would be for two or three years but it turned out to be much longer than that.’’

AMERICA

Not long after that Sosinski moved to America for a different reason. ,,I am a photographer and I started to work with some denim brands that had their headquarters in the US. At one trip in the beginning I met my wife. I took her to Sweden for the first time in the winter but she didn’t really wanted to live there, away from her family. I had no problem moving here so I did.’’

He didn’t completely leave his musical career aside. ,,I did join a stoner kind of rock band called Albatross. But I’m pretty ambitious and it’s either I want to be in the top, or I don’t want to be part of it. Because in the top, you can express yourself 200%. And you can share your music with as many people as you would hope to. I have also been doing some crooner stuff but it was not where my heart was. I was drawn back to hard rock but couldn’t find the right people.’’

BACK IN THE SADDLE AGAIN

And suddenly the timing was right. ,,When Mikael and I started talking we discovered we had still so much to say and we started writing. We started from scratch and it was like jumping back on a bicycle again. After I think four or five songs it started to sound like we wanted. I was hoping that we could still make good music so we had a chance to share it live maybe, and also be able to be proud of it. I think that was our main goal.”

About the recording process. ,,We just started, and Mikael’s son helped him with the programming, drums and stuff. And then I borrowed my wife’s very well-isolated closet to start singing. So no neighbours were complaining. We did send files back and forth during that process. Whenever I had some work or was in Sweden, we made sure that I could go into the studio and record some songs. We could have done it a lot faster but we didn’t want to stress it. All in all it took us some three and a half years. We wanted to make an album that people would like to listen to in a year or five years from now or 10 years from now. We didn’t want to just do something and then after a few months we were gone again.’’

NOW THE HYPE IS OVER

In the early 1990s there was a real grunge hype going on and Mental Hippie Blood could be seen as the European part of that. Now the hype is over and the band sounds like a breath of fresh air. Meaning old school with a modern sound. A mix between Alice In Chains, Soundgarden, The Doors and even some David Bowie. ,,Absolutely true. I think that what we came up with is a mix of what I listen to on my playlist. I don’t really think about it when I write or do anything, but definitely it’s an influence. It feels better for me than to listen to for example Poison or Ratt. Lyric wise I draw inspiration from my family, friends and the changing situation in the world. I just felt like I wanted to express some of that vibe, it mirrors the time somehow.’’

REALISTIC EXPECTATIONS

The expectations about the album are realistic. ,,It also depends on if we get some help. Streams are okay, reviews are good but most importantly we are proud of the music and to be able to listen to it ourselves. I have one more album in my playlist and I feel good about that. We wanted to make ourselves happy, and now we want to share the stage again. That would be amazing. I mean, Mikael even has his son playing on two or three songs, I think to bring him up would be cool, too. I want to share the album and the music with as many people as possible.’’

If it is up to Sosinski it’s not limited to one album, it tastes like more. ,,We have been writing non stop. We have enough material for another one, it’s just that we don’t want to rush it. We take it step by step but will continue for sure.’’

WELCOME BACK

Over the last 30 years, the music business has changed dramatically. People have a different way of listening to music through all the streaming platforms. But Sosinski thinks Mental Hippie Blood still fits in. ,,I think we do and also that we somehow can fill the gap. I feel we have still a lot to contribute to our genre. The new generation might be a bit more difficult but people of our generation already ask for CDs and vinyl. They want the physical product and not so much the streams and downloads, they welcome us back which is cool.’’

Although there is a lot of publicity around ‘Web Of Lies’ already, people need to have a little patience. ,,I think that it will be mid January that we’re going to start selling the CD because printing and shipping takes longer than expected.’’

To wrap up this conversation there is the question of the different last names. On the first two Mental Hippie Blood albums Michael was named Michael Oran, on ‘Web Of Lies’ it is Michael Sosinski.

,,I grew up without my dad and I was wondering why I was carrying his name, you know. I grew up with my mom so I said ‘listen I want to carry your name’ and that’s what happened. In Sweden you can change your last name so I chose her maiden name which made more sense.’’

And with that mystery solved we say goodbye for now.