The Hives are rock's true Olympians. About every four years, they unveil a new album before embarking on a victory lap in the form of international tours that have solidified their standing as champions of their genre.
That changed somewhat following the release of 2012's Lex Hives, which sat without a successor for some 11 years before the 2023 unveiling of The Death of Randy Fitzsimmons (named in honor of their fictitious yet legendary founder and mentor, who dominates the band's songwriting credits).
A year on from the critically acclaimed album's release, lead guitarist Nicholaus Arson (birth name Niklas Almqvist)—who, though he won't confirm it, is the real Randy Fitzsimmons—told Newsweek that the long wait for their sixth studio album was simply a matter of "boring math," with the COVID-19 pandemic playing a central factor.
"Also, life happened," added drummer Chris Dangerous (Christian Grahn), who underwent major stomach surgery. "I was hospitalized for a long time, and when I got back into some sort of playing shape, the pandemic hit."
Were there concerns, then, about how fans would receive their latest release after an unexpectedly lengthy gap? Not particularly.
"We make records that we want to listen to. We want to be proud of them forever. Once the record's out, it's never going away," Dangerous explained. "If we think it's good then, chances are, so will other people. Of course, in some ways, you sort of think of what people are going to think or say... The reception for the record has been nothing but fantastic."
They spoke with Newsweek hours before their five-piece band—which includes Arson's brother, frontman Howlin' Pelle Almqvist (Per Almqvist), rhythm guitarist Vigilante Carlstroem (Mikael Karlsson Åström) and The Johan and Only (Johan Gustafsson), who replaced Dr. Matt Destruction (Mattias Bernwall) on bass in 2013—took the stage at San Diego's Petco Park in support of longtime friends Foo Fighters. The August 7 show preceded the band's headline North American tour, which will wind its way from Toronto to Atlanta between September and October, followed by shows in Mexico and Brazil.
"It's been great," Dangerous enthused of hitting the road with the Foos. "The shows are really fun to play, and there's tons of people. The Foo Fighters are a really, really good band and even better guys... We've known them for 20 years. We're mostly just trying to play really good shows... And both bands are really good at doing that. So it's just a very good rock 'n' roll evening—every night."
Stage Presence
The Hives have become known for their matching monochrome tuxedos, deadpan humor and electric performances that showcase the catalog they've steadily built since their 1997 debut studio album, Barely Legal.
"In the beginning, we used to play for sold-out small clubs in Germany or whatever, and we played for like 30 minutes. People got mad," Dangerous recalled. "But nowadays, we play way longer sets. In a lot of ways, I think we're in way better shape than we were back then... I think it's more fun to play bigger shows."
In an industry so consumed with image, The Hives have set themselves apart by embracing a relatively novel approach. "I think there's one important factor—it's that we are not embarrassed," said Arson.
"The only thing we're embarrassed about would be to suck live... Other people might be embarrassed about wearing funny clothes or, you know, giving it their all, to the point of s***ting your pants or something. I think we stand above it. We're not afraid to s*** our pants and wear funny clothes. We're so eager to impress, to be a good band, that you just leave everything out on the mat."
That said, don't mistake this self-professed shamelessness for a cavalier approach to their work. When it comes to being critics of their own projects, Arson explained that it's "how you've got to do it, for it to be good. If you're happy driving around in a rusty car... Sometimes I am, but not in music. With music, I want to be on the jet plane."
Pursuing an Outkast
A part of their commitment to performance has seen the band collaborate with a who's who of the music industry, including Timbaland, N.E.R.D. and Cyndi Lauper. Yet there remains one man with whom they still hope to work. "For a long time, we tried to do something with André 3000," Dangerous revealed. "It almost happened. It didn't happen, but that would have been cool. That's still sort of on the list."
"I think we only got as far as lunch," Arson explained. "We did lunch, and then we talked about working together. And then after that, I guess we were off doing things, and he was off doing things... It would be fun to just get in a room together and see what would [happen]. Let's do this."
That lunch, Dangerous said, occurred in Atlanta back in 2007, when The Hives were in the midst of recording The Black and White Album, which was released later that year. For elusive Outkast rapper André 3000, any such joining of forces would bring things full circle thanks to one of the early aughts' most enduring hits.
"He wrote 'Hey Ya!' after he saw us. So we're the inspiration for that song," Dangerous said—the Outkast star admitted as much in a 2006 interview with Rolling Stone—before revealing another "collab" he'd entertain.
"And then there's Hawaii. I want to play Hawaii. I've never been to Hawaii. It's not a person, it's an island," Dangerous said with a smile. "So, yeah, Hawaii collaboration."
Shunning Politics
While The Hives hail from Sweden, they have played a plethora of shows across the U.S. over the years. However, don't expect them to back any candidates in the upcoming election.
"We don't really have any political idols," Arson noted, before sharing that he couldn't imagine the band signing off on a candidate ever using their music. "I [would] just find it weird to be a soundtrack to a [political campaign]."
"On the other hand, there are some people that we would hate if they used our music," added Dangerous. When pushed on who, the drummer, perhaps alluding to their 2004 hit "Walk Idiot Walk," stated: "We all know an idiot when we see him."
"We try to keep music and politics very separate," Dangerous went on. "It's not what we're here to do. We're here to give everyone who wishes to come and see us one hell of a good time. That's our mission as a band. It's supposed to be something you go and see to sort of escape from the s*** that's happening. It's supposed to be fun. You're supposed to be entertained, not the other way around."
Further Listening
Barely Legal
(Burning Heart Records, 1997)
The band's debut studio album put them firmly on the road to stardom with a sound that they had worked to establish as their own. As testament to its cool factor, one track, "The Stomp," was later featured on the soundtrack of film director Guy Ritchie's 2008 movie RocknRolla.
Veni Vidi Vicious
(Burning Heart Records/Epitaph, 2000)
The album achieved wide acclaim and included anthemic hit "Hate to Say I Told You So." Arson looks back on the sophomore release, reissued in 2002 via Sire and Gearhead, with fondness because it launched the band on a "bigger scale." He explained: "We toured the world for, I think, three or four years. That was a great time."
Tyrannosaurus Hives
(Polydor/Interscope, 2004)
Now bona fide stars in the U.S., The Hives unveiled a third album in July 2004 that was both raw and refined. Arson said: "A lot of people sort of discovered us on that record, which is kind of weird for us, because we'd already, by that time, been a band for 10 years."
The Black and White Album
(A&M Octone Records/Interscope, 2007)
The album featured an array of unexpected elements—like the piano and handclap-led track "Puppet on a String"—and tracks produced by Pharrell Williams. "People talk about their million-dollar record... I guess that's our version of it," Dangerous said.
Lex Hives
(Disques Hives/Universal Music/Columbia Records, 2012)
The band dialed things down with Lex Hives, which was self-produced and saw a return to the musical stylings that had made them famous. Arson said: "We were back with The Hives again, trying to do The Hives to the best of our abilities."
The Death of Randy Fitzsimmons
(Disques Hives, 2023)
Following an absence of more than a decade, the band's triumphant return gave fans 31 minutes of unabashed fun. Behind the scenes, Arson admitted that there was an element of pressure stemming from "being away for a long time and making a new record [in general]."
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Ryan SmithRyan Smith is a Newsweek Senior Pop Culture and Entertainment Reporter based in London, U.K. His focus is reporting on pop culture and entertainment. He has covered film, TV, music, and Hollywood celebrity news, events, and red carpets for more than a decade. He previously led teams on major Hollywood awards shows and events, including the Oscars, Grammys, Golden Globes, MTV VMAs, MTV Movie Awards, ESPYs, BET Awards, and Cannes Film Festival. He has interviewed scores of A-list celebrities and contributed across numerous U.S. TV networks on coverage of Hollywood breaking news stories. Ryan joined Newsweek in 2021 from the Daily Mail and had previously worked at Vogue Italia and OK! magazine. Languages: English. Some knowledge of German and Russian.
You can get in touch with Ryan by emailing r.smith@newsweek.com.
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