Halmstad-based band Vikunja opened for Roxette in Halmstad last August and were personally invited by Per Gessle to open for Roxette again, in Stockholm’s Globen (The Globe) on Thursday and in Malmö Arena on Friday.

Martin Larsson from Vikunja, how does this feel?
– It feels great! Per is apparently a big fan and really pushed for having us opening “back home in Sweden” and we were available so here we are… After the concert in Halmstad it felt awesome, and then we had a few setbacks, for instance we wanted Christoffer Lundquist to produce our upcoming promo EP, but he didn’t have time as he’s on the road with Roxette all the time. And we felt that we wanted the EP put together sooner than 2012. These concerts came in the nick of time, It’s now or never, ha ha!

This promo EP, can you describe it?
– We want, or need, to do it a bit like Gyllene Tider did; have a finished product to show the record companies. If and when they say ‘we want this band’ the record is already finished and can be released instantly.

Gyllene Tider you say… is Per Gessle any influence on Vikunja, or who is?
– Our guitars sound a bit like Roxette’s, we also like riffs that stand out. Roxette is a tremendous band I think. Charm School is amazing! I also like Per’s Mazarin. He can do so many styles. Other influences are Oasis, The Who, Coldplay, The Killers, Pink Floyd, you know, that kind.

So who did you get to produce, if Chris didn’t have time?
– We wanted Chris, as I said, and then he couldn’t do it so we looked into the guy who produced Håkan Hellström’s latest album and then Oskar Linnros or Joshua. But then our manager is friends with Mats Valentin who has worked with,  for instance, Kelly Clarkson. He has time to do it, and he really wants to as well. We’ll be recording in Storm Studios in Stockholm, the same studio where Veronica Maggio’s Satan i gatan was recorded. We are stoked!

Any special preparation for the two big concerts?
– Yes, when we played in Halmstad we were four guys playing, this time we’ll still be the four guys, but with backing tracks! It sounds way better with strings, horns, background vocals, effects. We did a concert with Tove Styrke that was very appreciated. It sounded really nice. Oh and our guitarist forgot to tell the audience who we were in Halmstad! He never said it!! So this time we’ll say it between every song and also we have a backdrop!