MEZZROW

MEZZROW came to be in 1987 in Nykőping, Sweden during the absolute height of the 80’s thrash metal craze. But by that time, they were already an experienced band previously known as NECROMANCY and DARK RIPPER. By the time they released their classic first album “Then Came The Killing” in 1990, Sweden was starting to turn towards a newer and uglier sound that would be the next great trend…Swedish death metal. 

That proved to be ill timing for MEZZROW, as the likes of ENTOMBED, GRAVE and DISMEMBER hit the scene like a 100 megaton atomic bomb. And when the smoke cleared from that explosion, then came grunge and the band just couldn’t get a break.

But the desire to thrash never went away and after decades of dormancy, 2021 saw them return to action…just as Covid hit. But they took advantage of that to polish their act and 2023 saw the release of a fierce new album “Summon Thy Demons”. MEZZROW was back and out for blood. 2025 sees the release of “Embrace The Awakening” and now the band is really starting to cook, as this one should delight all fans of the classic thrash of the 80’s.

No better time for me to hook up with singer Uffe Pettersson and hear first hand about the remarkable rebirth of MEZZROW…

WORMWOOD CHRONICLES: Greetings to MEZZROW! Thanks for talking to us! I’ve always been curious about the band’s name. What’s the meaning behind it...if there is any meaning? 

UFFE PETTERSSON: Thanks, man and thanks for this interview! Cool to be in WC. Well, back in 1987 when we formed the band, we agreed upon a name that didn´t feel cliché. We could have looked at an old tracklist from for example SLAYER and named the band “Chemical Warfare” or something like that. But that felt too easy! I remember that we thought “Deathrow” was sounding cool but that was taken by a German band and also a bit common. So we took the word “Mess”, changed the ss to zz to make it look cooler and added “Row”. So, there you have it! In other words, it doesn't mean anything more than that ha, ha! 

WC: When you released your first album back in 1990, did you have any idea you would still be active in 2025?

UP:  No, not a clue. When you're like twenty, you don't think like that. (At least we didn't.) We just went with the flow and the momentum that we were in at that time. And to be honest, we also had a thirty-year break when the band was officially defunct. 

WC: Does the same passion and ideas influence MEZZROW now as they did back then or have you changed your approach to things? 

UP: I definitely think that we approach things differently nowadays. I mean, we´re in our fifties now and have a totally different perspective on music in general. But to be able to write thrash metal music, you need to have a lot of attitude and love for the genre and nothing has changed there. Also, we have totally different structures in general today. Both when it comes to writing the music, and everything else surrounding the band. 

WC: MEZZROW is kind of unique in that it’s a European thrash band that draws influence from American thrash like the Bay Area variety instead of the Germanic kind. Was it a calculated choice to sound that way or did it just kind of “happen”? 

UP: Already when we started the band, we were heavily influenced by the Bay Area scene and also a bit by the East Coast bands. Especially from NY (ANTHRAX/S.O.D). We also liked Aussie thrashers MORTAL SIN but they were kind of unknown at that time. I think the overall sound from the US was a lot cooler and Thrash has its origin in SF/LA, which you definitely can hear if you compare it to the German bands. For us it was natural to choose the American sound! 

WC: Your new album is “Embrace the Awakening”. That’s a phrase that could have more than one meaning. What does that title mean to you? 

UP:Basically we came up with this title after we got the painting from Pär Olofsson, who did the cover art. It has many depths and has a strong connection to the cover, with Pär's version of Holy Mary holding the child. But personally I feel that the title reflects a bit on the lyrics of this album. There´s a lot going on in the world right now and you have to stay awake and embrace that, to understand the different powers that move in the shadows. It's not easy for common people to do that with the big media flow that feeds us on a daily basis. 

WC:How did you want the band to progress from the previous album “Summon Thy Demons”? What was different this time around? 

UP:When we started the writing process it was important that the new songs would work when we play live. Some of the songs on the previous album sounded great on the album, but didn't work so well in a live situation. We wanted to avoid that this time around, so I think the new songs are a bit more “back to the roots” but still have an updated approach. We are really careful about our roots and we will never let go of them! 

WC: Does the band still compose songs the same way they did years ago? Is it a group effort or are there one or two main songwriters that push things along? 

UP: Nowadays it´s really a group effort where each member contributes, except for maybe our drummer who isn't involved in the songwriting so much. 

WC:  “Embrace The Awakening” has a great, classic cover image. Tell us about this cover and what it means. 

UP: Well, we are of course really pleased with the cover. Pär Olofsson (EXODUS, ABORTED, TRAITOR et al) is a really great Swedish artist who we discovered when he did “Persona Non Grata” with EXODUS. And since he did “Summon Thy Demons” it was a natural thing for us to contact him again for the new cover. But he's kind of expensive and the budget said “no”. So I asked him if he had any old paintings that we could use instead of creating a new one. So, he showed us this one among a few others. When we saw it the first time around it was a bit “boring”, so we asked Pär to add some more details to get more action. After that it became perfect! The cover itself has a lot of depths and details, which creates a curiosity for the beholder. It also stands out I think and catches the eye which is very important from a marketing point of view. 

WC: Do you have any particular favorite track from the new album? 

UP:Yeah, the last two songs that we wrote are the best I think. “Architects of the Silent War” and “Foreshadowing” stand out a bit from my point of view. But we really chose the eight songs on the album carefully so I think all of them are good! We have another four songs though, sort of “left-overs”, which we will release during the Spring of 2026. 

WC: What are some of the live plans for MEZZROW? Any chance of playing in the States? 

UP: We have a few plans actually. We´re going to Germany in April and we also have some festivals in the loop, which we really hope will land. Also in the near future we have a release party for ETA in a few weeks, as well as a cool gig at the end of November. We really hope for a trip to the US. That would be awesome! We have big hopes for this album and hopefully it will open some doors to the world outside Europe. 

WC: Sweden has always been known for its death metal and classic metal scenes. Is there a growing thrash metal scene there and who would you recommend? I’d guess you are one of the “fathers” of that particular music there. 

UP: Since we were one of the first thrash bands to come out of Sweden, we have sort of made a mark in thrash history here. We do have a growing thrash metal scene here. Definitely! Young bands like HOSTILIA, BLOODSTAIN, ERADIKATED, SARCATOR, ETERNAL EVIL and XION are really pushing forward and there are more bands on the rise. Many of them have an American sound as well, which is perfect! Of course we also have the older “militia” like us, THE HAUNTED, F.K.Ü, WITCHERY, METHANE and KAZJUROL who are still around. So there's a very good mix between old and young bands here right now! 

WC: I can hear bands like METALLICA, TESTAMENT, HEATHEN in the MEZZROW sound. Are there any other influences that are not as obvious? 

WC: Yeah, maybe SLAYER, VIO-LENCE and FORBIDDEN as well. They've always been a source of inspiration! But I also think that we have begun creating a bit of our own sound by adding the Swedish melodic touch in all this American sounding thrash. That makes the whole thing really interesting!

WC: I know you have a live album out that came from your “Keep It True” gig. Will this get a wider release? And how great was that particular show for you? 

UP: Yeah, we will actually release this with the new album. So the CD-version will also contain this recording and is by that a double-CD! We do this because that particular show was the first live performance by the band since the restart, so it means a lot to us. It´s also cool to have a couple of the old songs in there as well. KIT was a great experience for us! 

WC: If you could have dinner with any three people from history, who would they be?

UP:  Winston Churchill, W.A. Mozart and Ronnie James Dio would be a good mix, I think! 

WC: Has MEZZROW ever had a “Spinal Tap” moment where things went crazy that you could share with us?

UP:  Well, probably when we went to a small town in Sweden called Sandviken for the first time, back in 1989. It was a festival in one of the big parks there and it was pouring rain. We discovered that we were the only metal band, as far as I remember, and the repertoire at the festival was extremely mixed. The whole event took place in a large tent so it really was wet. The performance before we played, was a strange guy who stood there banging a big gong-gong and shouting "McDonald's" for some reason and he was at the same time showing strange images on a big screen. We sat in the rented minibus and waited in the rain, wondering where we had ended up! Everything felt really weird that time ha, ha! 

WC:Any last words for the fans out there? 

UP: Stay true to your roots, people! And remember: Once a thrasher - Always a thrasher!

MEZZROW