“There were no frets left on it. I’d never seen anything as horrible!” How a new recruit turned Swedish adventure rockers Hällas into a band of gearheads

It’s six years since Guitar World last spoke to experimental Swedish quintet Hällas, who mutated from the visceral world of black metal into one of modern prog’s quirkiest outfits. Much has changed since then – but, tinted with folky turns and Tony Iommi worship, their storytelling-driven approach to making guitars weep and wail remains steadfast in their fourth album, Panorama.

“When I write riffs I picture them in my head,” says Marcus Pettersson, bandleader and Les Paul loyalist. “I can almost see landscapes. That dictates a lot of how we write.”

“But it can take very different turns,” reports co-guitarist Rickard Swahn, who makes his debut on the record. “There have been times when most of us feel the same vibe about a riff; then somebody’s like, ‘This has such a mountain vibe,’ and everybody else is like, ‘No, this is a dungeon!’”

In that sense the band is prog with a capital ‘P’ – wizards and dragons are vital to their lore, with Panorama once more expanding the narrative and fantastical worlds established on previous outings. And Swahn’s arrival has helped push those boundaries.

Pettersson says his former foil, Alexander Moraitis, “wanted to grow up” and pursue his passion for making video games, paving the way for Hällas superfan Swahn’s arrival. “Rick actually knows music,” says Pettersson. “So now I’m trying to keep up!

“It’s insane how good Rick impersonates Alex on the old parts, then brings very fresh ideas to the table that are also very seamless. He’s way better than I am – which Alex was too. It keeps me inspired.”

Swahn has also taught Pettersson a lot about gear. “When I joined, I had to convince Marcus to get his guitar PLEK-ed. There were no frets left on his Les Paul!” he laughs. “They were ditched out. I’d never seen anything as horrible as his guitar!

“I’d been in a similar position with my Epiphone SG. I’d used it so much. Getting it re-fretted helped me play so much better – it was like an epiphany. I nagged Marcus for years.”

Pettersson admits: “I was like, ‘Hey, this is a Gibson Custom! It’’s very expensive; it’s good.’ But getting it re-fretted was the best decision I’ve ever made. It’s actually fun to play now.

“My perception of gear has changed a lot – Rick knows this. Alex and I played black metal, so my first guitar tone was just a Boss Metal Zone. I realized that wouldn’t work with Hällas so I bought a Marshall JCM 800 and I used the Metal Zone as a boost for a while. It was horrible! I thought pedals were for real musicians, so I was never bothered about gear.”

HÄLLAS - Face of an Angel (Official Video) - YouTube

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Now his pedalboard is growing, with budget picks like a Mooer Green Mile overdrive alongside a Boss CE-1 chorus and a Boss RV-500 delay.

“It’s digital,” he admits. “Don’t tell anyone!” He retired his “crumbling” JCM 900 and got a Fender-style Music Man bass amp combo, finding magic in its “warm undertones.”

Swahn’s rig includes a treble booster, Tube Screamer, an Xotic BB preamp for gain staging, plus a Boss acoustic simulator for their folky moments. Moraitis’ JCM 800 is now in his care.

Across the album Pettersson’s Goldtop Les Paul Custom pairs with Swahn’s custom-built Strat, crafted by Sonnemo Guitars in the Swedish town of Vännäs, which is home to around 9,000 people – including punk legends Refused.

“I had the blend of our guitars in mind,” Swahn says. “My first proper guitar was my Epiphone SG; it was the first guitar I’d drooled over in magazines. Buying it was a big moment. I’ve since bought a Gibson SG Special. But for Hällas, I thought playing a classic-style Strat would allow us to create some distance from each other.”

The pair’s pickup choices are a little peculiar, with Pettersson never deviating from the middle pickup and Swahn almost exclusively playing the neck – but it helps bolster that yin-and-yang mentality between their guitars.

The pair made their writing connection quite fast. Citing standout track Face of an Angel, Pettersson says: “I thought it sounded like Mark Knopfler. It had something, but it didn’t sound like us. Rick came up with something at our first rehearsal together.”

“I’ve been in bands where practice has been very serious,” Swahn explains. “But when Marcus played that riff, I had fun messing around. I thought, ‘I probably shouldn’t mess around too much!’ But the guys really encouraged me to keep going. It helped me feel comfortable contributing ideas.”

It also helped him survive the baptism of fire of their recording sessions – where it was his turn to learn from Pettersson.

“We wrote a lot in the studio,” he says. “I pictured learning my parts, going home to practice, then playing in the studio. But it wasn’t like that – things kept changing and I had no control over what was happening.

“But it was happening. So I learned how to ride along with it, because good, unexpected things can come from that.”

• Panorama is out now via Äventyr Records.