Who is Drain S.T.H.?
What does Drain S.T.H. sound like?
Drain S.T.H. sound clips
Some other things about Drain S.T.H.
Contact with the band
The Latest Drain S.T.H. news
Links
Drain S.T.H. Paraphenaila
Drain S.T.H. concert pix
Sign/view The Guestbook

Drain S.T.H. is an all-female metal band out of Stockholm, Sweden, featuring Martina Axen on drums, Flavia Canel on guitar, Anna Kjellberg on bass, and Maria Sjoholm on vocals. They put out an EP, Serve The Shame, in 1995 (titled after a song of theirs about child abuse) and their debut album, Horror Wrestling, in 1996. I heard about them when they were playing at Ozzfest earlier this year, and I had wanted to see their show, but didn't know what time they would be playing, and missed it. A week later, I got their album and thought it was great!! I loved it from the first time I heard it, something rare for me. Then I saw them live at Frankies in Toledo, OH on 7/3/97 and was just totally blown away. I came home from Toledo with the mission of doing this page.




Heh...it has been said that writing about music is like dancing about architecture...guess I'll go do a ballet interpretation of flying buttresses! Oh but anyway, although they are female, Drain does not play music in the pop metal vein as many of their predecessors, such as Lita Ford and Vixen, do. They have the plodding tempo and drawn-out vocals of Alice in Chains, along with the heavy riffs a la Metallica. However, they are more melodic than either AinC or Metallica, and slightly "lighter" too. Called "Swedish Spice Girls with balls" in one review, Drain has deservedly managed to gain credibility in a genre where few women do. Their lyrics have dark themes and involve a bit of interpretation. Live, Drain's music is more aggressive and picks up in tempo. All the band members are skilled and talented musicians, which makes for an excellent live show.

Sound clips

The best way to understand the music is to hear it for yourself, so here are some RealAudio clips.

I Don't Mind (426 KB)
Serve the Shame (459 KB)
Someone (510 KB)
Crucified (487 KB)
Stench (585 KB)
Crack The Liar's Smile (466 KB)
Klotera (435 KB)
Unreal (561 KB)

If you don't have a Real Audio Player, you can download one or listen to these .wavs:

Klotera (237 KB)
Someone (501 KB)

Drain mp3s are available at the MVG Records site



Drain is also a very fan-friendly band. They engage in a lot of contact with audience members during the show, and also take time to talk to people and sign autographs afterwards.

The STH in their name, differentiating them from the American band Drain, can either stand for Stockholm, the Stockholm Airport Code, or "straight to hell" Check out Drain on tour now with Machinehead and Corrosion of Conformity!! I'll be at the Chicago show on Aug 2 at the Metro, and hope to be at the Aug 3 Milwaukee show...gotta find a way to get to Milwaukee first.




There is a Drain Fan Club, run out of Sweden by Filip Nilsson. You can join by sending an international money order for $21 to: Drain Fan Club, c/o Filip Nilsson, Sunmanv.2p, 222 26 Lund, Sweden or emailhim for more details.

You can also write to the band c/o: MVG Records, Box 19003, 104 32 Stockholm, Sweden.

Or you can email them at Drainrules@aol.com


Drain currently is touring with COC and Machinehead until August 12. On August 15, they'll start their own tour, and so far dates are booked through August 31. They have a new single out, "Serve the Shame", out, and an unplugged version coming soon.
Propaganda, an on-line hard rock magazine, has a feature article on Drain this month.

There is now a Drain mailing list (discussion format). If you'd like to join send an email to majordomo@cyber.citilink.com with the message 'subscribe drain-list' list mail gets sent to drain-list@cyber.citilink.com