Fusing the brutality and aggression of old school hardcore bands like Agnostic Front, Sick Of It All, and Warzone with the more melodic punk-leanings that are so intrinsic to H20’s signature sound, Sweden’s Misconduct are a breath of fresh air during a time when the music world is being overly saturated by bands who are embracing the screamo/emo-core/faux hardcore (whatever you’d prefer to call it) style. True they’re not a new band by any means, having formed back in 1995 in a town called Kristinehamn, but that’s beside the point.  It’s just nice to see bands staying true to the spirit and sound of the early days of hardcore.

Influenced by the mighty triumvirate of Minor Threat, Youth Of Today, and Gorilla Biscuits, Misconduct have been most affected by the latter, a band whose positive, melodic style left a great impression early on.  The lone founding member remaining is vocalist Fredrik Olsson, who is now joined by guitarist Olle Karlsson, bassist Andreas Wall, and drummer Daniel Ekstrom, who happened to be a friend of the band as well as a stand-in drummer, taking over permanently when old drummer Matt left to be with his family.  This has been the line-up since the end of 2002, and on their latest record ‘United As One’, the band’s third full-length overall, it is clear these guys definitely have some great chemistry going and have what it takes to make an impact on the hardcore scene, not only in Sweden, but all around the world.  The album will be released in the U.S. February 17th on Union 2112.

Fred believes this record is “much more positive…than our previous releases, both musically and lyric-wise.”  The band covers a number of topics on the album, with an inherent sense of hope evident in a majority of the lyrics.  Some themes discussed on the album – as in most hardcore – are unity and friendship, as the title of the record implies.  Fred also says there’s a song dealing with “the environment and how mankind is mistreating mother earth,” another about “separation and the feeling that you don’t belong,” as well as some that pertain to “believing in yourself, keeping your dreams alive, and how anyone can make a difference in this world.”  And this slew of subject matter proves that the band can speak about things on a more personal level, but also delve into more far-reaching topics that deal with all humanity and the world.  On the same note, one song that stands out on ‘United As One’ is the important, politically charged “Stop the Fight”, an offering that “reflects all the terrible things that have been happening in our world the past couple of years.  We’ve been experiencing terror attacks, wars, shootouts in schools, major pollution, [and so on],” explains the vocalist, adding, “Wherever you’ve been turning your head, our world has been bleeding.  I really hope that we as humans will change our values and take our responsibility towards each other and planet earth ‘cause if we go on like this, we will soon have no planet to walk on.”  This progressive attitude is a wonderful aspect of the band.  And Fred hopes that their positive messages will have an impact on listeners as well, perhaps aiding them in becoming aware of what’s going on in the world.

Misconduct released ‘United As One’ as a Limited Edition Digi Pack on their own label called Side By Side Records in Europe, and according to Fred, they all sold out.  He also says that the standard version was recently released in Scandinavia and that on February 23rd, the album will be released on Golf Records on license from Side By Side in the rest of Europe.  So far “one band [is signed to] Side By Side, but,” explains the frontman, “as soon as we are finished with all the work on the new Misconduct album, we are ready to start looking for other bands to join the Side By Side family.”  And just because Misconduct play hardcore doesn’t mean the bands that sign to their label have to be the same style.  They’re open-minded and are looking for any kind of alternative acts to add to the roster.

But back to Misconduct the band.  These guys have toured with some great acts, including Sick Of It All and Youth Of Today.  About playing with these hardcore legends, Fred declares, “[It] was totally amazing.”  They most recently played with SOIA in the summer of 2003 at the Fury Fest in Nantes, France.  As for who they’d absolutely love to play with, it would have to be Bad Religion.  “It would be extra special to tour with a band like them that have been around for such a long time,” Fred asserts.  And he is rather convincing when describing his own band’s live show, declaring, “Live is where you meet the real Misconduct,” continuing, “The energy that we give away live is impossible to put on a record and we always deliver 110 percent.”

If you want to take up Misconduct on their claim, they’ll be touring for the most part of 2004 it seems.  They’ll be hitting Europe, followed by dates in the U.S. and Canada in April and May, and then are booking a summer tour of Scandinavia and Europe, which will include playing some festivals.  Then the guys have their sights set on playing in Australia and Japan after the summer.  Likewise, on the recording front, on their label they will be putting out a “sequel” to ‘Signed in Blood’, a 7” that came out in 1998.  So, it’s safe to say we have much to look forward to from this genuine, hard-working band.