Our interview with Agent Bulldogg!

In some months the new Agent Bulldogg release will be out (a split 7" with Close Shave), and so we decided to offer you the interview we make with them some months ago and, that until now has remained hidden in our servers! So here you go!

The artwork of the debut album, dated 1991

Q: How Agent Bulldogg were born? What bringed you together almost 25 years ago and what made you are still together now?

A: We actually started 1986, so we are turning 30 next year… Well, I’m (Thomas) the only original member although Jens who plays bass from 2008 until now was also in the band between 1988-1991. I can only speak for myself, but the band has always been very important to me on many different levels. And also it’s fun being in a band and be able to play for, and meet so many great persons everywhere we go. Of course there are also parts that are not so rewarding, but let’s not get into that right now.

Q: How was the Stockholm skinhead scene back in the 90's? And the Swedish scene?

A: When I became a Skinhead early ‘84 the initial boom of Skins was fading rapidly. There were some small Skinhead crews still lurking around but they mostly kept to themselves in the different suburbs they originated from. I was from one of them suburbs but rather than hanging out there I preferred to go into central Stockholm, as did some others from both our area and other areas as well.

By that time most of the older generation Skins was growing their hair and had left the scene. There were still a few older faces around, but to be accepted as member within their ranks there were all sorts of rites de passages who usually meant a beating or being thrown into the sea, as the hangout then was a helicopter landing platform (helipad) located in the water by the Gamla Stan (Old Town) tube station. It was not a place to go for the fainthearted or for anyone not being a Skinhead. Some of the older boys however were really friendly and I and our little crew (or firm, as we called ourselves Norra Firman - Northern Firm) soon got accepted without any major incident. 

Although we were quite few in numbers in Stockholm altogether, we had a fearsome reputation as some kind of folk devils. We were getting blamed for everything you can possible imagine; from cutting off peoples ears to beating up priests and so on. It was also a “well known fact” that we used to carry weapons ranging from axes to guns. Most of all these rumours were not true of course. Then there were headlines of all sorts of vicious politically motivated attacks. One that was actually true was the storming of the Soviet embassy. I wasn’t there, but I know that the politics behind it was of the kind you find in beer bottles, cheap wine and having nothing to do. Anyway, they soon sobered up when the KGB officers came running and aiming with guns at the Skinheads...  

Agent Bulldogg in action on the stage

Today it seems like being a Skinhead these days is not as stigmatized as it used to be in the early 80’s, at least not in Sweden. Back then the police were constantly on our backs. Nicking us for anything they could come up with or stopped us for searching once an hour (I don’t think they found too many axes or guns though). On a few occasions the police even banned all Skins from being in Gamla Stan (Old Town). And if it was not the police giving you grief it was some other gangs who attacked you whenever or wherever they could, well as long as they had the numbers anyway. I even got attacked when I was on a field trip with my class in school for instance. A weekend passed without being nicked or in a fight was unheard of. Nowadays the media don’t boast out horrendous stories about skinhead related crime, true or (more often) false as much as they used to. 

Before we’d reach the age so that we could drink legally at bars we either stole beer, or had someone older buying it for us and we used to hang around in the street corners or at The Helicopter place (which I mentioned earlier), which was our meeting place and kind of HQ. However just by turning 18 was in no way a guarantee that you’d get served at a bar. These days it’s quite easy to get into pubs and so, but that was pretty scarce back then. Normally you’d spend more than half of Friday night finding a place that’d serve you and when you found one you hung onto it for as long as possible. It normally took about two weeks before you got banned and the search team was on its feet again.

So in some aspects I guess it’s better now as it’s easier getting into pubs, arrange gigs and clubs, not being in the focal point of police and media. Less trouble over all so to speak. Then on the downside there are fewer people passionate about the cult, less unity and more talk about political differences and general backstabbing than actually trying to work together. Also I’m no big fan of the cross-over tendencies when it comes down to style, but who am I to complain about that when I hardly ever dress up anymore. Still, there you go…

Q: What does means to be skinhead for you? Do you think it got still a sense to be a skinhead right now?

A: Skinhead to me stands for being part of the greatest subculture the world has seen. We are still not accepted by the so called normal people. It’s also about being proud of your heritage – whatever heritage you got – being proud of being working class, not afraid to speak up for yourself and your mates, and not taking any shit from no-one. Skinheads is a way of life – don’t let anyone tell you how to live yours!

Q: Now you see differences between the scene where you started and the scene today? What do you think about the new kids that are trying to carry on a scene and the new mentality?

A: I answered this partly in question 2. Also I think it’s great that youngsters still carry the torch so to speak. Skinheads will never die!

from left to right: Torbjorn, Thomas, Johan, Robert, Jens

That said one have to either accept or realize that everything changes over time and each new generation have their own way of expressing themselves for good or bad. Youngsters like yourself can never recreate what skinheads were as well as we couldn’t recreate the spirit of ’69 or ’79. We can’t even recreate what we were ourselves 5, 10, 20 or 30 years ago, and trying to do that is pointless. Some people today say that they are “Spirit of ‘69” others want to be “early 80’s RAC” but sorry boys and girls, if you want to live like that you will be nothing more than piss-poor replicas of a thing you can never fully understand, as well as I can never understand how it feels to be a young skinhead today. In most aspects we are all kindred spirits, but in some parts we are - and always will be - worlds apart.

I’m not really sure what new mentality you are referring to, but all I can say is that you have to look to the future rather than living in the past. The past, or the “tradition” of the skinhead scene is so filled with both contradictions and self-appointed spokesmen that you can’t really refer to it as “a” scene. There are so many fractions all saying that they are “the real” skinheads, and that they are the ones who knows “the truth”, but why listen to them? I said it before; Skinheads is a way of life – don’t let anyone tell you how to live yours!

Q: Do you have projects for the future? Your latest releases are of 2013, and the last one "Vi ar tillbaks" ("We are back") is also self released, without a label, so people are pretty curious about your plans, especially also after the split with Templars that was amazing, how did you decided to made it? (PS: obviusly this question was made before we know about their split)

A: We have always preferred to do everything on our own in the true d-i-y style of punk. We have been ripped off by both so called friends and others within the scene before so by doing it ourselves we try to at least minimize the risk of being it again. That said we have only good things to say about the labels we have been lucky enough to work with lately such as: Kjell Hell, Pretty Shitty Town and Randale for instance. And we will most likely work with all of them in the future, but we also like to feel that we are independent so to speak.

Right now we have started to record some 15-20 songs to release either as an album, or a couple of singles and such. Hopefully some of it will be out by the end of the year, but we don’t rush anything, as you might have noticed ha-ha-ha…

- The split with Templars was something Carl asked us to do in the mid/late 90's but it never happened for some reason or the other. Well since Diana from Randale wanted to do something with us I suggested the split with them, and it worked out fine.

Q: What were the bands that ispired you back in the 90's? I think you are the first swedish band that has anaged to become famous internationally, there were other, maybe underrated, bands in Sweden, other than you? And why you decided to sing in swedish? Other bands like Perkele made this but together with some english songs. It hasn't been a problem for your popularity?

A: When we started in 1986 we were the only band I know of who did what we did back then. There had of course been both skinhead bands and Oi!-bands before us, but most bands never released anything or played that much. That was one of the reasons we started actually. 

We Always wanted to sing in Swedish as we Always prefered bands who sang in their native language. We (especially I) was into French punk and oi! quite early and I liked that they sang in french even though I couldn't understand a word. Also when bands say it's easier to write in English than their native tounge I Think it's bollocks because normally they don't even use correct grammar or words so how can that be easier?

The band back in the days

Q: What do you think about new oi! bands? There are new bands you like?

A: There are many great bands out there, but the definition of “new” is a bit tricky. For example, both Lion’s Law and Bishops Green who are quiet popular right now are in a way “new” but they’ve been involved in the scene for years so can they really be regarded as new?

We played with Grade 2 in Brighton last year and they were great

Q: In you career what's your favorite EP or LP of Agent Bulldogg and why?

A: The answer to a question always has to be “the next release” otherwise we wouldn’t continue. Apart from that it has to be the LP Livsstil as we (mostly me and the ex-drummer Magnus) did everything by ourselves in the true spirit of Punk. Magnus found the dog, I took the front picture and did the back-cover, we financed it ourselves and released ourselves.

Discography:
Agent Bulldogg - "Livstill" (LP, 1991, Coitus Productions)
Agent Bulldogg - "Et tusen glass" (LP, 1995, Coitus Productions)
Agent Bulldogg/Antipati/Contemptuous - "Sons of Sweden" (EP, 2012, Olifant Rec.)AA/VV- "Oi! The superheroes" (EP, 2012, Bad Look Rec.)
Agent Bulldogg/Templars - s/t split (EP, 2013. Randale Rec./Templecombe)
Agent Bulldogg - "Vi arr tillbaks..." (EP, 2013, selfreleased)
AA/VV - "Chaos in Sweden vol 2" (LP, 2015, Snail Trail Rec.)