Photo: Marcel Karlsson
When you excel in a given niche, it’s important to discover new creative heights to appease your following – while also pleasing yourselves as musicians. That’s been the case throughout the long career of Swedish band H.E.A.T. in their melding of melodic hard rock meets arena-level AOR with slight metallic touches. The newest album Welcome to the Future contains a lot of qualities that put the 80’s movement of this genre on high impact mode – yet there are other songs that straddle a more modern hook angle. We spoke with bassist Jimmy Jay to learn more behind the new album, the importance of relationships amongst the band members, thoughts on their sound being a part of a niche movement, favorite musicians he’s met over the years, critical moments in the band’s career ascension, a little talk about his work in Ginevra, and the game plan for the next year or so.
Dead Rhetoric: Welcome to the Future is the eighth studio album for H.E.A.T.. Where do you see this album sitting in the discography of the group – and how challenging is it for you to keep things fresh and interesting in terms of the songwriting and performances without repeating yourselves too much?
Jimmy Jay: Yeah. Where this fits in the discography… I probably say this before every album we are about to release, but I really like it. We wouldn’t release anything unless we really, really like it. I think it fits right up there with some of our best albums. With that, of course it’s always a challenge to try to top yourselves and do it in a fresh way. We don’t just want to use a formula for making songs. We don’t want to make a new “Living On the Run”, we want to challenge ourselves. We want to enjoy it, our listeners want to enjoy it, that’s also what is fun about it.
Dead Rhetoric: Do you think at this point in the discography you also drill a little deeper into the finer details of the songwriting?
Jay: Yeah, for sure. With every production that we make, we learn. This is the first time that from the beginning of the songwriting right through to the mixing, everything is done within the band. No external producers, no external mixing engineers, and I think that we have gained the confidence to do it by ourselves. We have gained the know-how, and that is definitely to have more control over the details and to dig deeper.
Dead Rhetoric: Can you tell us about the video single choices you made this time around? Is it a difficult process to figure out what to premiere?
Jay: It’s very difficult. It’s not so much about what song is the best, it’s more like the approach. This time we chose to make the visuals and aesthetics of the album kind of 80s-oriented and retro. The single choices had to go hand in hand with that. On the album if you dig deeper, there are some songs that don’t sound as much like the 80s, they are a bit more modern and challenging like “In Disguise” and “We Will Not Forget”.
Dead Rhetoric: How does it feel to have Kenny back in the band now for his fourth album with the group since his first time around for the H.E.A.T. and Freedom Rock albums? Where do you see the major differences in his work ethic and effort that have made things seamless once again for the band?
Jay: I think it’s really, really awesome to have Kenny back. Not just because he’s an awesome singer, but he’s a childhood friend. That’s the dream right – to be able to work with your friends that you have known since being together in school. That’s the first aspect of it that’s really nice. The second aspect of it – he is a creative force. The process of making an album with Kenny I wouldn’t say is smoother or seamless, there is so much creativity that you have to go through, so many ideas. Him and Dave are kind of the same in that aspect, and me and Jona are more like trying to choose what is the best of these thousands of ideas that come out of their brains. We also come up with some stuff, but not to the same magnitude. If Dave and Kenny were in charge of an album, it would take years and years to make it, but it would in the end probably be the best thing you have ever heard. But we have to keep releasing albums.
Dead Rhetoric: In general, do you end up creating more material than what ends up appearing on the record? And how do you decide what makes the final cut?
Jay: Yeah, we write a lot more than what’s necessary on the album. For this album, we had just over 25 song ideas. Some get cut early, some stick around for a bit. We ended up recording 13-14 songs for this. Some we will keep around for maybe an upcoming release. What makes the cut? We try to have it be about the best songs that will make it on the album. We don’t want to show too much love for your own songs that you write – but it’s a democratic process we have in the band. We also take in a lot of feedback from others. We have all the creative freedom we want from our record label earMusic – but we ask them for their opinions because we respect their knowledge and their experience.
Dead Rhetoric: Tell us how to futuristic cover art came about – as it has a lot of throwback 80s elements in terms of the color scheme and design?
Jay: Yeah. It was actually a funny story. We were talking about a totally different cover, and we ended up hiring a few people to make some mockups. To have a few that we could select and go on with. We weren’t happy with any of those suggestions, and we didn’t have a clear vision, so it didn’t make things any easier on the artists. But then, one day, Dave just said he made this, what do you think of this? And that was the first version of what would become the cover. It was just so spot on with how the album sounds. Dave ended up making the entire album art – he had a lot of learning with Photoshop and other skills. He knew what he wanted it to look like, he just had to learn how to get this there. Some months later, he’s great at all kinds of designs.
Dead Rhetoric: What is most special to you about the melodic hard rock/AOR scene that your band is a part of? Do you feel the differences between the first generation of acts who brough this music to arena/stadium level appeal versus where the current crop of bands is at now?
Jay: Good question. I think when the first generation of these bands came about, they were trying to do something fresh. They were trying to do something that was cutting edge, that was provocative. I think the motive of why you are doing something is completely different. And we are today doing it for a genre that we love, and we want to take that further. Naturally it becomes a niche genre, this is for the few that actually have stuck with this (style) and it touches their hearts. Things that are cutting edge, provocative, fresh, and new are always the things that will make the billboards and charts. That is not going to happen with this particular genre anymore. On the other hand, that’s not really where we are trying to get to anymore. We want to make music that we are proud of, we are just trying to be the best we can be within our genre.
Dead Rhetoric: What do you consider some of the challenges that the average fan of the band struggles to understand about certain decisions that are made within the confines of the group – either from the musical or business sides of things?
Jay: Very often it can be hard for someone who is on the outside to understand the personal relationships within a band or corporation, and how those things work. We are lucky, we don’t really have any burnt bridges with our relationships over the years, although we have changed singers and things like that. Like to take Erik joining Skid Row, it can be very hard for fans to understand the personal aspects of certain decisions that are made. Everybody is just trying to have a nice life.
Dead Rhetoric: What has been a pivotal or critical moment or two in the career of H.E.A.T., when you knew you were making a significant impact with your music?
Jay: There have been several. The first one in Sweden, it was kind of a controversial thing to be a hard rock band in a very big tv thing with the Melody Festival that is a part of Eurovision. That was not for hard rock bands at that point, but that was a controversial thing that gave us a big hit in Sweden, put us on the radar all over Europe. So that was the first thing. The second thing – having a singer like Kenny, losing that singer and building from that. Taking in Erik was of course a very big thing – Erik had come from winning the Swedish version of American Idol, and also had his own career going on with that. A lot of expectations were placed upon us, on Erik, on everybody. And also, to stick with it, and we have been a band for almost twenty years now. We are showing that we are real band to be reckoned with even if we had the Eurovison thing, and with Erik being a product of Idol, he has now fronted Skid Row, and we made some of the best albums with H.E.A.T. We have proven that we are the real deal.
Dead Rhetoric: Can you tell us about some of your fan interaction stories regarding H.E.A.T. that have happened to you over the years?
Jay: There are a few. There are some people that follow us and come to so many shows, they come from so far away, I don’t get how it is possible. I’m very honored that they would even spend that sort of cash to see us on every corner of the planet. There have been several of those, and we try to be very welcoming to them and show our appreciation of course. I can’t come up with any specific (situation) to tell. We have very nice fans all the time, and there are some very dedicated ones, and we love them.
Dead Rhetoric: Have you been able to meet and interact with some of your musical heroes through your work with H.E.A.T.?
Jay: Oh, absolutely. Like, me and Jona we were both selected to be a part of Jimi Jamison’s band when he played Firefest in 2010 and 2011. I still can’t believe that happened, as he was a very big hero of mine. Even back then, now of course even more so. Also, Winger – I ended up not even approaching Kip, on a Monsters of Rock Cruise. He was walking into a room, and he said, ‘hey Jimmy – I’m a big fan!’. Well, that’s what I’m supposed to say! (laughs). We grew up listening to Winger. And also, I met Ace Frehley on the last Monsters of Rock cruise. And had a really nice interaction with him. I got to show him my tattoo of Dimebag Darrell playing his guitar, and he was like ‘me and Dime were very good friends.’ There have been several of those (interactions). It’s like being accepted into a world of heroes.
Dead Rhetoric: What’s it like being a part of the Swedish project Ginevra, as you also will be releasing your second album Beyond Tomorrow around the same period as the latest H.E.A.T. record?
Jay: Ginevra, we don’t see each other very often. We have some group chats where we talk very often, and discuss songs. It’s more like a long-distance relationship, but I love putting down the bass on those (songs). For me, it’s complete creative freedom as a bass player, where I can do more. I can do a little bit more of what I want. In H.E.A.T. I leave a lot of space for the song, for Dave’s guitar playing, Jona’s keyboard playing, and Kenny’s vocals. There is a lot going on for this band that requires a solid foundation from the rhythm section. Ginevra doesn’t really have that, and it leaves a bit more room for me to do some other stuff. With that said, I became a bass player because I love the songs – if the song sounds good. I’m not a bass player because I want to do slap solos and stuff like that. I really love the aspects of both worlds.
Dead Rhetoric: Who would you consider some essential bass players that have informed your technique or your approach to the instrument?
Jay: Well, Nalle Pahlsson of Treat is a big inspiration for me. I think he’s just a fantastic bass player; he really makes the song… you hear something happening in the song. It gives the energy and the drive that takes things to the next level. But you may not even notice what the bass is doing, you are just grooving along. I think Kip Winger is also fantastic. I really love Phil Lynott. There are so many good bass players out there.
Dead Rhetoric: Where do you think you’ve seen the biggest changes in yourself as a person from when you started your journey as a musician to where you are today?
Jay: I don’t know. Possibly, it’s a bit of a weird answer but having kids just five years ago changed the aspect of how I have to arrange my life to be a musician with some parts of my life. To make space for that and also space for other things to be organized. To make everything count – its like recording albums and writing songs mean more when you have limited time and different motivation to be successful. Apart from that, I don’t think I’ve changed much musically through the years.
Dead Rhetoric: What concerns do you have about the current state of the world today? If you had unlimited resources, energy, power, and finances to work on one or two of the major problems that would benefit people the most, what do you think needs to be tackled first and foremost?
Jay: That’s a big one. Not my area of expertise, to be honest. I do think there’s a lot of threats in the world. There is so much going on within the political things in the world. You have Israel and Gaza, you have US, Russia, Europe and NATO. There are so many aspects, things are a bit loose right now. That can be a bit scary. That’s the biggest concern on the global scale; it feels like things are up in the air and who knows where the chips are going to fall. I don’t know how money would fix this, or resources. People are still working it out. I’m not an expert enough to say how this should be done.
Dead Rhetoric: What’s on the agenda for all things related to H.E.A.T. and your other activities for the rest of 2025 heading into next year?
Jay: It’s going to be a lot of gigs. A lot of touring. We hope that everyone will enjoy Welcome to the Future – we certainly do. We really tried to take it up a notch with our live show. There will be fun stage props that we have, and a new stage set up. We are trying to give the audience the best show that they can get. It’s all about the live shows, we hope that people would dig the album and come to the shows.