The Hellacopters

The Hellacopters are a Swedish garage rock band that was formed in 1994 by Nicke Andersson (vocals and guitar), Andreas Tyrone "Dregen" Svensson (guitar), Kenny Håkansson (bass) and Robert Eriksson (drums). Andersson (sometimes known as Nick Royale) had been the drummer for death metal band Entombed and Dregen was taking a break from his full-time band Backyard Babies. Dregen and Eriksson had been roadies for Entombed, while Håkansson was a childhood friend of Andersson's. The Hellacopters were initially conceived as a side project for Andersson and Dregen, but it eventually became the main songwriting and performance vehicle for Andersson. The band, together with The Hives, is considered one of the most important Swedish bands in the garage rock revival and one of the most influential rock bands in Sweden.

The band released their Swedish Grammi-winning debut album Supershitty to the Max! in 1996. Just before a tour opening for Kiss, the band recruited keyboardist and percussionist Anders Lindström (also known as Boba Fett or Boba) on a part-time basis; he would become a full-time member in 1999. After the album Payin' the Dues in 1998, Dregen left the band to return to Backyard Babies full-time, and Mattias Hellberg and Danne Andersson were recruited to complete the band touring responsibilities. After the release of Grande Rock, which featured additional guitar playing from both Lindström and Hellberg, Robert Dahlqvist was hired as a full-time lead guitarist in 1999. With the lineup now solidified, the band released three more studio albums and a cover album, with many EPs and limited edition releases as well. The Hellacopters disbanded amicably in 2008 so the members could move on to other projects. Eight years later, the band reassembled in 2016, initially for an exclusive performance at Sweden Rock Festival to celebrate the 20 year anniversary of their award-winning debut album Supershitty to the Max!.

In October 2021 the band announced that they had signed with the record label Nuclear Blast to release a new album in the spring of 2022. The album, Eyes of Oblivion, was released on 1 April 2022. The group's latest album, Overdriver, was released on January 31, 2025.

The band name was inspired by a magazine article discovered by Andersson and Dregen while on tour with Entombed in San Francisco. The article was about how the CIA was spying with helicopters on marijuana fields in Mexico and that the Mexicans called them "Hellacopters." The first Hellacopters rehearsal took place on 4 November 1994 as just a jam session, after two more rehearsals the band released their first single "Killing Allan" in January 1995 on their own label Psychout Records.

After releasing their second single "1995," the Hellacopters were signed by White Jazz Records and they released their debut album Supershitty to the Max! in June 1996. The album was recorded all live in only 26 hours. The band won a Swedish Grammy for the album. Anders "Boba Fett" Lindström, guitarist of the Swedish rock band The Diamond Dogs, was then recruited to play keyboards shortly before they supported Kiss on their Scandinavian dates in June 1997.

The band recorded their follow-up album Payin' the Dues in February 1997. The record barely managed to break into the top 20 in Sweden and the top 30s in Finland. Andersson then left Entombed completely to concentrate full-time on the Hellacopters. A Swedish tour included a show at the second largest stage at the Hultsfred Festival, while the band famously played a secret gig backstage on a small makeshift stage. In 1998 the band toured Europe with Gluecifer, with whom they recorded the split album Respect the Rock. Soon after, Dregen left the band and returned to Backyard Babies.

Simply because it was too much hassle playing in two bands at the same time. Fame is not everything y´know... Our time will come. Backyard Babies has been around since 1989. I love bands doing it for life. I sure miss the Hellacopters guys a lot sometimes though..

— Dregen, on his departure from the Hellacopters.