Backdraft

Backdraft’s members project the image of a 1970s Southern rock group and could easily pass for associates of Lynyrd Skynyrd, ZZ Top, the Outlaws, or Molly Hatchet. In reality the musicians hail from Sweden rather than Georgia, Alabama, Texas, or Mississippi, and the band itself did not coalesce until the closing years of the 1990s. Although 1970s Southern rock left a deep mark, Backdraft does not replicate that period’s Dixie sound; instead the group delivers post-1980s alternative metal in the vein of Alabama Thunder Pussy, Brand New Sin, and Hammerlock. Distinct from the electronica project that issued recordings on the 3 Lanka label during the 1990s, this Backdraft draws from Lynyrd Skynyrd, ZZ Top, the Outlaws, Molly Hatchet, punk, Black Sabbath, Corrosion of Conformity, and assorted strains of alternative metal, resulting in an amalgam of 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s influences conveyed exclusively through English-language lyrics.

The Stockholm-based outfit originated in 1997 when vocalist Jonas Åhlén, previously of the Swedish thrash metal band Anticipation, began collaborating with guitarist Robert Johansson. Drummer Fredrik Liefvendahl, known as Trizze Trash and later a member of Grand Magus, along with second guitarist David "Snejken" Nordlander, soon completed the early roster. Recording a 1998 demo under the name Morningwood, the musicians subsequently adopted the moniker Backdraft and experienced further personnel shifts. By the time they issued the EP The Goddamn Man EP in 2000, Mats Rydström had joined on bass and Niklas Matsson had taken over the drum chair. The five-piece lineup that tracked the debut album Here to Save You All in early 2001 featured Åhlén on lead vocals and acoustic guitar, Johansson on electric lead and rhythm guitar, Nordlander on electric lead and rhythm guitar, Rydström on electric bass, and Matsson on drums and percussion. Lunasound Recording issued Here to Save You All in Sweden that same year, while American distribution arrived in 2003 through the Philadelphia label Abstract USA.