The full conversation
Dead by April had been up since before dawn when we sat down with them at Reload Festival in Sulingen. They’d flown in that morning and still had a set to play in the heat. Christopher Kristensen was already thinking about the crowd. He’d once been in it himself, watching the band he would later join.
Ruben Elio Molanus spoke with Kristensen and founding guitarist and vocalist Pontus Hjelm for Legends of Metalcore and HeartSupport. The following Q&A is condensed from that conversation and edited for clarity.
Taking the 2009 songs back into the studio
Legends of MetalcoreChristopher, what was it like to join a band you’d watched from the audience?
It was nerve-wracking, but I was super excited. I remember standing in the audience and saying, ‘That’s what I want to do.’ We toured with them in 2014, and I got to know the guys pretty well. We got along, and later they asked if I wanted to try out.
Legends of MetalcoreWhat did you want to hear differently when you went back to the debut for 09|26?
New production. We’re different members now, and we’ve played these songs for so many years. We wanted to redo them with this vibe, with these members. I want to preserve some of it and possibly make it more modern. Our voices sound what they sound like.
For a side-by-side listen, start with ‘What Can I Say’. It’s on the 2009 debut, and the band released its 09|26 recording as a single in June 2026.
What the songs carry
Legends of MetalcoreAfter all these years, do you still feel what you wrote into those early songs when you play them?
There are many emotions packed into pretty much all the songs, and for sure the old ones too. I can feel it especially when I see the crowd singing along or crying. It’s a beautiful moment.
Legends of MetalcoreWhat does it feel like when someone tells you how much the music helped them?
It’s beautiful, but it’s weird to truly understand it. If someone says, ‘You saved my life,’ it’s unreal. It’s like the biggest honour ever. That’s why we kind of do this.
Legends of MetalcoreWas writing a way to deal with your own emotions from the start?
It was an outlet for me. I had so many inner thoughts and emotions, and I was looking for answers. I didn’t really get any at that point in my life, so I just started writing, and it felt so good. I will never stop.
“I just started writing, and it felt so good. I will never stop.”
Pontus Hjelm
Ask Hjelm who made him want to start making music and the answer comes back immediately. Michael Jackson. Kristensen’s path was different. His father sang, and he grew up around rehearsals. He turned to music after a knee injury ended his plans to play football.
Before the algorithm, there was an unsigned chart
Legends of MetalcoreWhere did the band first start to pick up attention?
It was a platform called Myspace. They had a signed chart, an indie chart and an unsigned chart. We topped the unsigned one, so we got pretty much headhunted by labels and publishers. That’s where it all started.
Legends of MetalcoreHow do you reach new people now?
We’re using the tools that are available to everybody, and we’re grateful for the organic reach. It’s harder now. Playing the big festivals means getting new people in front of your show. Festival season is the greatest season to have.
When the guitars stop
Legends of MetalcoreDo the nerves ever go away before a set?
The first times I joined these guys, I was super nervous. I wasn’t used to those big crowds. That’s calmed down a bit. I still get a little bit of butterflies.
Hjelm put a longer number on it. It took him about 16 years to get past his stage fright. He described it as a gradual process of learning how to deal with the voice in his head.
Legends of MetalcoreYou ended up in the mosh pit at one of your own shows. How did that happen?
We had a technical issue with the guitars, so we had to stop the show. I heard people screaming, ‘Get into the mosh pit.’ So I jumped down and had some fun.
Legends of MetalcoreWhat can you say about the new material?
We’re still discussing what we want to sound like. We have this sound, but we’re ready to experiment a little more and see where it takes us. We’re working on that right now.
