Hello, Felix! How are you? Can you please introduce Teamkiller in a few words?
Hi Bastien! Teamkiller is Peter Bastian (vocals), Jan Heinisch (bass) and Michael Dester (drums). My name is Felix Grammer and I play guitar. We started out in 2003 and grew bigger and bigger since with every record and tour. So far we’ve released a demo tape, a split 7", a MCD plus a 7" vinyl and our latest, the "Bad Signs" full length, which is also available on 12". We’ve played shows and festivals with all the big names and besides headlining ourselves we toured with bands like TERROR and KILLING TIME. Right now we're looking forward to our next release and European tour.
TEAMKILLER is our heart and soul and we never give less than one hundred percent to push ourselves to the next level and try to chose the right path!

Tell me, why did you choose to call your band TEAMKILLER? In one of the mails Peter sent me, he clearly exposed his will to gather people together. However, he used tribal terms to designate people that are part of the scene, such as "punks", "skins" and "hardcore kids"? I might have not grasped the real meaning of the name "TEAMKILLER", but as members of the band, isn’t it a bit ironic then to use such labels to describe what I’d call the "scene crowd"?
Yeah, actually your questions were for Peter but sadly he could not answer them in time, because he was right in the middle of his exams. He is very sorry and asked me to answer them. I think you actually did grasp some meaning behind our name. Everyone can come up with their own interpretation, there is no offical doctrine. After all, it's just a name. We chose to call us TEAMKILLER because the name perfectly fits our style of music. In the beginning even people who have never heard us before knew that they could expect a hard show, straight to their faces, just due to the name itself.
We're definitely about bringing people together. I mean that's just what we actually do. I think it´s very important to have an open mind and to be aware what´s going on nowadays. We love to see punks, skins, hardcore kids and everyone else blend at our shows. Not preaching unity, I don't like splitting people up for elitist fashion bullshit. We don't see ourselves as part of a certain fraction but our own. Of course we get labeled, and you have to label yourself when it comes to releasing records and promoting shows etc. but except for fascist fucks everyone's welcome.
Sometimes it's actually important to label yourself to find your direction, your way, to show that you're different then the average citizen and that you've got something to say. But that's the point. It's more what you have to say, what you feel inside, what you embody or how you live your life, than searching for the right interpretation for a term or name. Unfortunately too many people are searching for something to label themselves hoping to find a fulfilled life in this way or even worse just to be hip & trendy and after a little while they're searching again. I think they should better find themselves, not the right label!

Skartnak.com

Several line up changes happened two years ago within your band. Can you tell me more about it? Who plays the bass now?
The original drummer and beside Peter the second founding member of the band was Fabian Kenner. Starting out as a sideproject, Peter was playing bass in ABSIDIA and Fabi was the drummer for SIDEKICK. ABSIDIA called it quits while SIDEKICK had a strong comeback with their last release. Fabi just couldn't make it anymore so we had to find another great drummer, which we definitely did with Michael. In the beginning we were a five-piece with another guitarist: Chris Holt. He quit the band due to job obligations and a long-distance relationship. Similar happened to our old singer Micha Speidel who decided to quit after our tour with TERROR.
But that's old news now. We built a strong new line-up with Peter on vocals and Jan, taking his position on bass. We recruited him from Stuttgart's notorious hardcore hooligans HEARTBREAK RIDGE and he has proven to overtop our expectations. Right now we still try to play as many shows as possible while working on the finishing touches for our next release.

So, Peter is the new singer, after having been the bass player, right? Isn’t it strange for him to sing lyrics he didn’t write? Unless you wrote them all together…Do you think he would actually sing lyrics he isn’t 100% in agreement with?
Since the very beginning of the band Peter and I had written all the lyrics for TEAMKILLER, so I guess the actual question would be if it was strange for him hearing someone else singing his lyrics. That was not a problem, and it's quite the case with many bands. Most people don't know that the ''frontman'' on stage isn't always the one in charge behind the scenes. There are many singers who don't write lyrics, you'd be surprised! But now it's really good to have a situation where singer and lyricist build a personal union. Our lyrics come from heart and mind and you can hear and also very much see that in Peter's performance. Answering your last question, I can definitely say that Peter would never sing lyrics he doesn't agree with. He's a very confident and mindful person and very strict about certain things, especially social awareness, being vegan and straight edge. The same goes for the band. We're all individual people speaking our mind, too, not a one man show but a team, a unit – a band. So everyone has to be cool with what we do.

I’ve seen you play many times in the German part of Switzerland and I noticed that at every show, Peter likes making spontaneous speeches, even back when he was the bass player. Usually, in a band, the singer’s the one who speaks to the crowd and even monopolizes the speech time, it give the impression that there’s some kind of hierarchy going on. But apparently, it seems to be quite different in TEAMKILLER. So, what do you think of hierarchy in general and then of the one that can arises in a hardcore band? Is that positive or negative? Or both?
It seems like you really made your homework. Yes, he always had a lot say, even back then when playing bass, and when he felt like doing it, you know, he just did it. Not being the singer didn't hold him back and why should it? As I mentioned before a band is a band and not a one man show. True, usually the singer is the bands single spokesman communicating verbally in between songs. In that sense it's another great advantage having Peter on vocals. I think he's not only a singer but a real frontman. On our website we got some pretty energetic pictures you should definitely check out. For us hierarchy is a negative form in the first place. Of course, sometimes it's good and even necessary in a group to have somebody exposed, as too many cooks can spoil the broth. You know, there should be at least somebody directly responsible for this and that so you know there's taking care of business which is a problem with some bands. There should be a contact person or speaker or frontman, but not a fucking leader. On a society-level, the term "hierarchy" just makes me think about the oppression of the ones at the lower end. Fuck that!

To continue on the same topic, when he makes interventions between songs, what does he like talking about? Does he prepare his interventions or is it total improvisation (maybe related to the atmosphere)?
There is no rule about talking on stage. Usually before a show, we think about if there is something we want to announce that night or that requires special care. If there is something important, we try to find the right words before. But for the most part its's spontaneous, like announcing the songs with a little story, what happened on the road on that day, giving props to other bands and present friends, cracking jokes about bands we tour with or even a little speech from time to time. The latter could be about anything, also relating to the atmosphere, as you said. Life, death, worldpeace, relations and frienships, personal topics, (consumer) awareness, body/health conciousness, war, breaking up a fight, VfB Stuttgart soccer patriotism etc. It could be just anything. It's about animating the spirit!

Skartnak.com

What do you think of the current European hardcore scene? Are there bands you’d like to recommend?
The European hardcore scene is in good shape, I think. It's a pity though that except NO TURNING BACK none of the more hc/punk styled bands made their breakthrough. Still it's great to see old friend's metalcore bands getting bigger and bigger crowds like CATARACT, HEAVEN SHALL BURN, BORN FROM PAIN and so on. I think I could not recommend any bands you wouldn't already know. I wish more newjacks would check out older bands, for example from New York City and appreciate their classic albums. You know, the source where it all comes from. Those veterans who are still tourning or are touring again are really worth it. I don't want to overdo, but hearing guys like John Joseph on stage are one of the most precious memories and inspiring moments. Okay I got off the point a little... Well, having said that I think the European scene has made quite some steps forward during the last years. Today European bands like us don't have to just 'support' bands from the U.S. Back then it was the general rule that American bands would always headline concerts, with no exceptions. I think the Euro scene is a little bit more self-confident with people realizing that there are many great bands from their own local areas and not every American band coming over is worth worshipping. But with every time when there's a change of generations within the scene it changes a bit. Kids come and go... Sadly some promoters still don't realize the potential of European bands and take it for granted that they play for very little or no money at all always opening up the shows for American bands. It's great that JUSTICE, RISE AND FALL and NO TURNING BACK tour the States but that should be just normal. It's not coming from the US that makes a band worth hearing, you know.

On "Bad Signs", the latest TEAMKILLER record, Scott Vogel (TERROR) and Federico Carminitana (CATARACT) were the guest vocalists. How did you get in touch with them? Did you know them before the recording?
Already before TEAMKILLER we knew the guys in CATARACT, and early on, when TERROR came over to Europe for the first or second time we played quite a few shows together. So we knew them both way back before we asked them if they want to feature on two of our songs. I'm glad it all worked out perfectly as they're are not only amazing vocalists but friends.

Now I’m going to give you a few words and ask you to make comments for each of these words. I know, it’s not easy at all…but let’s try!
Life: Life's hard. Sometimes it can be really frustrating and depressing, too. That's why you have to grow an attitude where you can accept things you cannot change and appreciate the gift of life itself in order to keep yourself alive. You can change yourself in a positive way, maybe that changes some situations in life and you so can reach a certain level of progression. It's a circle and you have to break out.
Death: Chuck Schuldiner really rocked it with those tight riffs man! Ok seriously, death is something that is indivisibly connected to life and you have to accept it. On a larger scale everything dies and is being born again. You shouldn't be afraid of that, even though nobody can tell if there's some kind of life after death. But one thing's certain: ''you'll leave this world with nothing except yourself''.
Politics: I'm aware of what's going on but I don't believe in politicians nor any kind of -isms.
Girls in hardcore: Should be nothing special, same like guys in hardcore. Gender you know…
Tattoos: Michael and I don't have any whereas the other guys have most parts of their bodies already covered. For example, Peter has a great straight edge tattoo and I love Jan's sailor monkey. The rest is mostly japanese or just really fucked up looking stuff, like crucified ravens or shit like that. Just hit them up if you want to see it.
Wealth: As long as ends meet I honestly don't care much about it.

In the area where I live, a lot of venues are closing down, due to a serious lack of financial resources and support. It makes me sick to witness these closures, whereas in Germanic countries (I don’t really know how it’s happening in Germany, but I’m refering to experiences I had in Eastern Switzerland and in Austria), everything seems to work perfectly! How do you explain this? Am I wrong when I assert that Germans and Germanic people in general are more disposed to attach importance to cultural and artistic activies?
Yes, I think you're wrong here. Germany has just the same problemes, like all the other European countries. Maintaining venues for an underground scene or DIY background is a constant struggle. Fortunately, there are also some new clubs or squats established from time to time. I guess it has always been like that. Sometimes the scene crowd is bigger and sometimes smaller, but as long as there are people willing to join forces there will always be locations for hardcore shows.

Skartnak.com

By the way, let’s talk a bit about Germany! Apparently, this country has a quite arduous past to bear. I was relatively surprised to hear, through some diverse medias, that a lot of Germans dared to reveal their own nationality to the world (by showing the national flag for instance) at the football World Cup that took place in Germany three years ago! Do you think that nazism and maybe even communism keep affecting the newer generations (I’m thinking of yours in particular), although these doctrines aren’t that topical anymore?
Even though the generation of our grandparents is a dying breed that doesn't necessarily mean that the then present attitudes and ''values'' will decease with them. Among young people who were born in the Eastern part there is some kind of nostalgia about the "German Democratic Republic", even despite the fact that it was a dictatorial regime. But that's not a serious issue as it centers around certain brands or symbols of the everyday life back then. The real problem is Nazism. It would be wrong to just say that it still effects even newer generations. Sometimes it seems that neo-Nazis are more numerous, better organized and more cruel than ever. Maybe you have heard of the attempted murder of a German police chief recently. Just some weeks one ago, the slightly leftist clothing store where Jan's working got attacked by more than fifty masked in the presence only two clerks. Luckily, our native Stuttgart has a relatively small Nazi-scene, compared to other cities. The credit definitely belongs to Stuttgart's punks, skins and hardcore kids.

As I read the lyrics of ''Bad Signs'', I found out that they were pretty dark and even depressing. The artwork also included a crude imagery. All this was made to somehow reflect your own lives and the current state of the world, right? So my question is, what do you think we, humans, need to shake off our own troubles and demons, in order to gain some self-satisfaction?
That's a quite philosophical or even psychological question. I guess you can't gain self-satisfaction when you're satisfying your inner demons instead of your very own self. When you can't distinguish betwen your needs and goals and the ones of your demons then you're in really big trouble. Sometimes the problem is not to achieve certain things but to find out what actually will really give you self-satisfaction. I takes many years and experiences to learn more about yourself. Coming back to your question, I think you can lead a fulfilled life without being a totally perfect human being, as no one is, but you have to be aware of what's wrong for you and what's right. You have to work on yourself and try to be a better person.

What are your plans with the band for 2009? When is the new record going to be released?
We're looking forward to our next release. I can't give you an exact date but it won't be long, believe me. We are extremely satisfied with the outcome of the pre-production of our new material and have a really hard time waiting until everything's set and done. You know it's not just writing songs but talking to different labels, creating an artwork or find the right design-artist and stuff like that. But now we're nearly there…

Speaking of the new record, what can we expect of it? Is it going to be way different than "Bad Signs" or is it going to be its logic continuation?
It will be both. The next record will be its logic continuation and therefore way different since our style evolved throughout our whole history. It'll be a huge step forward for us and it’ll definitely stand out among other releases.

We’re finally reaching the end of the interview! So let’s end with the classical fun question: can you give me your Top 5 records of all time and add a short comment for each record?
The ''classical fun question'' is almost impossible to answer. You just can't state your top five records of all time. But I'll try anyway:
CRO-MAGS "The Age Of Quarrel" -Spirit
CRO-MAGS "Best Wishes" – Progression
LEEWAY "Desperate Measures" - Crazyness
METALLICA "Master Of Puppets" - Perfection
AGNOSTIC FRONT "One Voice" - Realness

Do you have anything to add?
I want to thank all the loyal kids moshing and banging along with us. You rule!
Check out www.teamkiller.com for tourdates, give us some feedback, see you on tour soon and watch out for our new release. No More Delusions!

Thank you very much !
The same to you! Your questions were very interesting and a welcome change to other interviews. Keep up the good work!