New interview with Per Gessle on Hallandsposten

Swedish newspaper Hallandsposten has interviewed Per Gessle via email while he is touring in South America with Roxette.

Per explains that the they are receiving an incredible response and the sing along with songs like “Spending My Time” or “It Must Have Been Love”, where Roxette has stopped singing to let the audience sing the songs for them, “it’s as loud as during the Joyride tour, who would have imagined this?”.

They are going play in front of approximately 1 million people until the tour is over somewhen next year.

Per tells that the concerts in Russia were incredible, despite the -30 degrees. Then they moved on to Baltic countries and sun started to shine, and South America has been a blast, “I hope all musicians get to experience shows like the ones in Buenos Aires” once in a life time,” he tells.

Per also informs that Marie is doing fine and that the response and respect she gets from the audience all around the world is “the best rehabilitation for her”, and that she keeps on smiling the whole time.

The reporter is interested to know more about the record deal in the USA and possible concerts in USA, Per tells that there is nothing booked yet, but “everything can happen.” He also tells that this year there is not going to be any Halmstad, since the schedule this year is very tight already, “but maybe next [year]..?”

 

New interview in British newspaper

British newspaper “Metro” joins the UK “Charm School” promotion and published an interview with Per Gessle yesterday. Nothing new is been told, besides maybe:

What’s the worst gig you’ve done?
I did a gig with the band I was in before Roxette at a festival in northern Sweden. It turned out the act on stage before us was a stripper.

Read more!

4-minute video documentary on Austrian website!

The Austrian website PULS4 features a 4-minute video about Roxette’s comeback, including new interview snippets with Marie & Per, scenes from the recordings and a look into the past. The video is dubbed in German, but you may translate the attached text version to understand the content.

Interesting detail: They are quoted to stay one year on the road! Per already told in the recent Mix Megapol interview that they’ll stay on tour until November.

Video | Article

Update: It seems like all this footage is a part of “Charm school” elektronic press kit – Marie and Per were interviewed in Swedish and subtitled into English. Another German report – this time with those subtitles to be watched here at Yagaloo.com.

Per Gessle about Roxette: “Marie decided to go on with Roxette after Amsterdam”

German newspaper Aachner Zeitung published an article including some quotes of Per Gessle during the presentation of “Charm School” which took place in Cologne some weeks ago.

Per explains Marie’s illness was a big shock for him, and he took two important decisions after the first schock-phase. He decided he would not go on with Roxette without Marie, because “our interweaved voices had contributed to the big success of our songs.” And that it would be up to Marie to decide if she wanted to go on with Roxette or not.

His view on Roxette is that when they work together, “there is this magic in the air, this idea of easy to recognise but still meaningfull pop.” The new album is released when Roxette turns 25 years, “I think we can really affirm that our carrier has been a joyide.”

Marie didn’t join Per during this visit to Germany, “the reason is that she is unsure,” Per explains. He thinks that the music business can be sometimes merciless and that one has to function (100%), “and this is for such a sensible person as Marie hard to bear.”

Of course, we all agree that it is a miracle that a new studio album is being released next week. Per explained how and when Marie took the decision to go on with Roxette: it was at his Party Crasher Tour concert in Amsterdam, where Marie joined Per on stage to play two Roxette songs, “the audience cried of the emotion,” he adds showing goosebumps on his arm, “we were so touched about this reaction, that she decided that evening to go on with Roxette.”

He also tells that if there is anything they have learnt during the 25 years of Roxette, “then this must have been patience.”