MOTÖRHEAD's MIKKEY DEE: 'HAMMERFALL Can Suck My Cock'

MOTÖRHEAD drummer Mikkey Dee has slammed fellow Swedes HAMMERFALL for "acting like rock stars" and "completely ripping off" bands like HELLOWEEN, IRON MAIDEN and KING DIAMOND in order to attain their current level of success.

Speaking to Metal Rules, Dee stated, "Look at a band like HAMMERFALL and shit. They're going through the roof. When kids come up to me and say 'IRON MAIDEN, they're almost as good as HAMMERFALL,' there's something wrong, you know? I saw two kids with IRON MAIDEN shirts in Stockholm when me and Lemmy were there doing press, and I was sitting in the lobby waiting to get to the airport, and I saw two eleven-year-olds with IRON MAIDEN t-shirts and I said, 'Yeah, that's a great band you've got there,' and they said, 'Yeah, they're almost as good as HAMMERFALL, they sound exactly the same.' [laughter] Then you realize there's something wrong here, you know. It's not a shit band, but it's incredible that they can hit the way they did. [HAMMERFALL drummer] Anders [Johansson] is a great friend, and I hope to see [Anders's brother] Jens [Johansson, STRATOVARIUS keyboardist] tonight. Someone told me that the STRATOVARIUS guys are here. And the bass player, Magnus [Rosen], he was the first bass player in [my early band] GEISHA. I fired his ass. [laughter] He's an old friend since 25 years ago. So I'm glad for Magnus, and I'm glad for Anders. And Stefan [Elmgren] is a good guy, the bald guitar player, he's good, but [HAMMERFALL vocalist] Joacim [Cans] and [guitarist] Oscar [Dronjak], they can suck my cock. Because they really think they're god's gift to the planet, and I used to say don't shit on the ladder because you're going to climb on it on the way back. They pissed me off too much, let's say two years ago, by being rock stars. I've done this now for 22 years, around the world, and I'm no fucking rock star, I'm a normal guy, and I have a million friends around the world. They did a couple of fucking club shows and they were being the biggest rock stars you've ever seen in Gothenburg. It pissed me off because they were treating me almost the same way, and I said you should kiss my ass instead of throwing me out of the dressing room, you know? So I was pissed off. And Anders and Magnus, they had a long talk with Joacim and Oscar and said, 'Mikkey is really fucking pissed.' So Oscar called me and he apologized and says he was so scared every time I showed up anywhere, and I said, 'Oh, I'm not going to beat you up but you're still a fucking asshole.' So they're like that when they see me. But I don't agree with that. I have a problem to see these fucking guys when they play one year then they're bigger than Mick Jagger. And the way they became big is by ripping off HELLOWEEN, JUDAS PRIEST, IRON MAIDEN, even KING DIAMOND stuff. I hear a complete rip off of some harmonies that are complete KING DIAMOND stuff … And HELLOWEEN. And ACCEPT. So, I mean, good luck to them, because I'm glad Magnus finally has a band, because he lived in an apartment of 27 square metres, for almost 20 years. He never had any money, he always played bass, he always stuck to his hard rock, and then he got a chance. I remember him calling me and saying, 'Mikkey, I'm playing with a band called HAMMERFALL soon and we're going to do a tour,' and I go, 'Fucking great for you, Magnus.' And then when Anders came into the band, he's a great drummer, that other guy was a fucking joke. So I'm happy for them. But I just can't agree on this rock star image, especially Oscar. Joacim is better, but Oscar, with his fuckin'… When they did the album with Michael Wagener producing, Anders called me from Nashville and said, 'You won't believe this, Mick, Oscar is actually almost going to fire Michael Wagener.' [laughter] "He's going to fire who? Michael Wagener?" I mean, Michael Wagener has been sitting there next to Michael Schenker all through the years, so many good albums, and Oscar was bitching and told him, 'No, this and that…" and he'd never done an album [before]."

To read Mikkey Dee's entire interview with Metal Rules, click here.