Niklas Almqvist

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Nicholaus Arson
Nicholaus with The Hives at the Eurockéennes of 2007
Background information
Birth name	Niklas Almqvist
Also known as	Nicholaus Arson Randy Fitzsimmons[1]
Born	26 January 1977 (1977-01-26) (age 44) Säter, Dalarna, Sweden
Genres	Alternative rock, garage punk, garage rock revival, post-punk revival
Occupation(s)	Musician, songwriter
Instruments	Guitar, backing vocals
Years active	1989 - present
Labels	A&M/Octone, Interscope, Epitaph Records
Associated acts	The Hives
Website	The Hives Broadcastingservice

Niklas Almqvist (born 26 January 1977), better known by his stage name Nicholaus Arson, is the lead guitarist and backup vocalist of the Swedish garage rock band The Hives, of which his brother Howlin' Pelle is the lead singer.

Career[]

Niklas Almqvist. Made in America. September 2012. Philadelphia.

Arson and his brother Per (Howlin' Pelle, lead singer) formed the band in 1993, and, according to a biography about the band, attracted the attention of promoter/manager/songwriter Randy Fitzsimmons (possibly a fictional character), who propelled the band to fame.

It was revealed in NME that Randy Fitzsimmons is a registered pseudonym belonging to Arson.^[1] This has led many to believe that Randy Fitzsimmons is in fact a myth, and that it is Arson who writes the songs. Arson and the rest of the band deny this and insist on the existence of Randy Fitzsimmons as the band's songwriter.

Arson, as with the rest of The Hives, is known for his onstage antics. In particular, his beady eye stares, spitting, blowing on his finger tips, flicking his guitar picks into the crowd and wild animation in playing the guitar.

Musical equipment[]

Nicholaus uses almost exclusively Fender Telecaster, Esquire or Telecaster Deluxe style guitars (though he is seen playing a Danelectro in the Hate to Say I Told You So video). He also plays "The Arsonette" a custom built guitar by , with tone chambers and a Firebird style midsection to give it a short, dead tone with little to no sustain. His guitars often reflect the outfits of the band with different combos of black and white finishes and pickguards. Along with Vigilante Carlstroem and Dr. Matt Destruction, Arson uses white Hiwatt amplifiers.

Although he doesn't rely on effects, he uses an Electro-Harmonix Micro POG, a Boss AW-3 auto wah, a Boss DD-3 digital delay and a Prunes & Custard Harmonic Generator-Intermodulator for certain songs or sounds.^[2]

Discography[]

• Barely Legal (1997)
• Veni Vidi Vicious (2000)
• Tyrannosaurus Hives (2004)
• The Black and White Album (2007)
• Lex Hives (2012)

References[]

External links[]

• Official Hives website
• Sundberg Guitars