We are officially into H2 2025 somehow – what a blur – and in that I want to work in a couple of Profiles for artists that released albums in H1 that absolutely deserve a second look. The good news (good news? does that make sense? whatever.) is that the first such album won’t require us to dig back too far. Bacon Wagon released Trauma Cake, their debut, back on June 6th through Reptilian Records. The Swedish trio have brought forth a gritty, raging display of noise rock that will undoubtedly leave a mark. And lucky us, they also took a few moments to respond to our questions and share a little more about this project and their history. So play it loud. Play it over and over. It will be worth it and then some.

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How and when did you first get into playing music, or metal more specifically, and how did your band get its start? Any pushback from family/those close to you?

There is one band that got me and my brother interested in music and that was Nirvana. I think we were like 12 years old and seeing the video for “Lithium” and it completely blew our minds. No turning back after that. We started playing covers of Nirvana for a couple of years and later doing our own songs. Nirvana was good at mentioning bands that they liked and that got us into the whole punk and hardcore stuff. Not to mention the Melvins, Black Flag and Butthole Surfers that was and still is a great inspiration. Around the same time the whole AMREP thing was blowing up in the underground scene and that got us into all those bands. We started a band called Acid Ape in 98 I think and did that for a couple of years. Recorded an album and toured the states. When that band disbanded me and Kristoffer started Bacon Wagon as a two piece where we took turns on the guitar parts when recording and having trouble finding a third member that felt right. I finally switched from drums (which I played in Acid Ape) to guitar and we got our good friend Peter to join the band. He is an awesome drummer and, yeah, that was the missing piece.

We never experienced any pushback from our mom, she was actually very supportive, other than she thought we always should get a job to get an apartment and pay the bills and so on.

How would you describe your band and what you play to someone who is completely in the dark?

Our band is noisy, loud, zany, kind of weird and heavy with a small portion of melody to it.

Is there anything about your latest album or about your band that no one will find in any interview or review that you care to divulge?

We recorded it in two days, almost every song on the first take. We don’t care much for being in the studio because we get bored very quick. But we are very happy how it turned out.

Any funny stories from playing shows / tours / festivals, etc?

Hmmm….we played at an art school in Gothenburg once. Rigged our gear up in like 5 minutes and started playing the first song. Out of nowhere there was a big behemoth security he-man up on stage like right up in Kristoffers face screaming on top of his lungs “TURN EVERYTHING OFF AND FUCK OFF”. We played one song and that was it. Show was over, we were too loud.

What do you see as some of the great things happening in and around the metal scene (yours or just in general) and what are some of the worst things happening right now?

Really don’t have an answer on this one…..just cool to see many new weird noise rock bands popping up.

Most folks have passions for a cause or causes that are close to them. What, if any, are some of the most important issues (social/political/humorous/etc.) for you / your band and how do you insert those issues into your music?

Well….our music and lyrics don’t really represent any political or social issues. I mean we all are very much against the right wing fascist political climat that are spreading all over the world right now but that isnt anything we put into our lyrics. If I have to pick one thing, I think that we are drawn more to the humorous side of things. We have many inside jokes that we base our lyrics on that I don’t think anyone will get when they read our lyrics.

Do you guys have day jobs or hobbies you want to share?

We all come from the construction business and are craftsmen. Peter is a carpenter and builds interiors for art shows, I worked most my life as a construction painter and are now a teacher in the trade, Kristoffer is a floor layer. All of us had shitloads of dead-end job before that. Besides working and our band we all have hobbies: I´m into doing art like paintings and stuff. I did the artwork for the album which is from a large painting I did. Peter is also creative guy who does art and music in different ways. Kristoffers main hobby is music I guess.

What advice do you have for music critics and outlets out there? How can we all better serve the genre in the eyes of a hard-working musician?

I really don’t have an answer for that question….just be a positive force and push bands that deserves it and make good music.

Any specific long term goal(s) in mind?

It would be nice to make a buck or two from music and doing some cool shows.

When you’re not obsessing over your own material, what are some of your favorite albums to listen to currently?

Band-album:
My Wife´s An Angel – “Yeah, I Bet”
Rapeman – “Two Nuns & a Pack Mule”
Butthole Surfers – “pioughd”
Sham 69 – “The Adventures of the Hersham Boys”

What is the near future outlook for you or your band? Any specific events on the horizon that the masses should be aware of?

Our record hits the street on june 6th so hopefully some people will like it. We are having two release shows at the end of May in Malmö and Gothenburg which should be fun. Also we are working on a smaller European tour in September which I hope we can make it happen. Working on new songs to record soon.

Summarize your band in one word.

Noisy.

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Many thanks to Bacon Wagon for the time!

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Trauma Cake is out now through Reptilian Records. For more information on Bacon Wagon, head over to Instagram.