Robert Pehrsson is one of the most talented Swedish rock guitarists and an outstanding songwriter as well. In the past, he has worked with such diverse acts such as Runemagick, Thunder Express, Death Breath, Dundertaget, Imperial State Electric, Slingblade and also Dagger. Robert Pehrsson first picked up his guitar in 1987 and started a professional career in 1994. In 2013, his debut longplayer under the name of Robert Pehrsson's Humbucker was released via High Roller Records. It was a perfect example for a contemporary "classic rock" album, landing the Swedish guitarist extraordinaire the "album of the month" award in Germany's leading independent metal magazine Rock Hard. "Long Way To The Light" followed in 2016 again receiving outstanding reviews in the international rock press. The new album "Out Of The Dark" carries on where "Long Way To The Light" has left off three years earlier. "It's a continuation of the light and dark theme that has been a constant on all three albums," explains the guitarist. "I think "Out Of The Dark" really fits the material of the new album. The title says it all. My name is on seven of the ten songs, so I wrote the majority as always. Joseph Tholl, Tobias Egge and Andreas Axelsson also wrote for the album. I wrote, produced, engineered, recorded and mixed the album myself at my own studio simply called 'Studio Humbucker'. It was a lot of work, but I had a lot of fun, too. The approach is pretty much the same as for the first two records, although I try to step up my game for each album. Write better songs, record them better and play better. I also decided to have more fun, not worry so much and try different things both when writing and recording." "I'm thinking of having 'All I need Is Not To Need You" as the first single," continues Robert Pehrsson to describe "Out Of The Dark". "It's a catchy song that really represents the music and the band. I do believe that many Humbucker songs could be hits, if they got radio play and exposure." Perfectly true. "Surrender" is another extremely catchy number. A cover version by the Electric Light Orchestra: "I always really liked that song and have been wanting to record it since the first album. I did it in a Humbucker way though, and the original sounds way different. Check it out!!" The more up-tempo "Entombed In Time" is remiscient of Joe Lynn Tuner period Rainbow, even sounding a bit like the mighty "Spotlight Kid". "Out Of The Dark" brims with energy and finesse. Although stylistically it's steeped in 1970s hard rock, "Out Of The Dark" does not sound like a copycat retro album. It does sound quite contemporary ... "Thank you, that is a very nice compliment," beams the Swedish guitarist. "I don't try to be retro, and I don't even want to be retro. The thing is, the way I go about making music is old fashioned, at least these days. You could almost say that four people playing instruments and singing is retro today. It's crazy!" Just like the two previous albums, "Out Of The Dark" is once again a very uplifting record, a very positive record. Does this reflect how Robert Pehrsson feels as a human being? Isn't life too short for negative, destructive music? He confirms: "I want to feel positive and I want to be a positive presence in other people's life. I have had many dark periods in my life and one of the ways I deal with that is through my music. I'm glad you say that it feels positive to listen to. A lot of the lyrics deal with heavy topics. But I don't wanna come off as a sad, pretentious songwriter. The songs are about losing love, finding love, death, life, depression, friendship, joy. It's like taking a journey through life and hopefully come out the other side a wiser person." In 2017, Humbucker appeared at the prestigeous Rock Hard festival. Quite a high-profile gig for the band. Robert's recollections of his own performance are mixed though: "I fucked up on that show completely. I make no bones about it. I was so nervous, had too many beers to calm my nerves and I had trouble with my guitar amp all through the show and played like crap. I was totally disappointed with myself afterwards. I felt I let the band, festival and the crowd down. Just to be clear, I only blame myself. There was nothing wrong with the crowd or the festival. I just couldn't get my shit together. I would love to get a second chance!" Matthias Mader
