INTERVIEW: Simon Larsen – Iskald
The spiritual home of black metal, Norway has been a country that has long blessed us with a bountiful crop of brilliant bands. From the infamous second wave in the 1990s to genre-bending heavyweights like ENSLAVED and ULVER, the Norwegian metal scene is often leagues ahead of their neighbours. Since forming in 2005, ISKALD have been building a solid reputation in the underground and this trend has very much continued this year with the release of the excellent Innhøstinga (read our review here). Now a month into release, we spoke with Simon Larsen from the band to get the lowdown on their latest record and what the future holds for the band.
So, your brand new record Innhøstinga has been out for about a month now. How have you found the reception?
Simon: It has been great. We know that hard work pays off, so we felt pretty confident that people would enjoy it. But it’s pretty evident that the most patient listeners are the ones that enjoys it the most. The album is very complex and obviously need some rounds for the listener to understand.
This new record arrived four years after your last record, 2014’s Nedom og Nord, how has the band developed in that time?
Simon: We were touring Europe just after the release of Nedom og Nord, but there was some lack of motivation in the time after the tour. So we focused on a few other bands instead for almost two years. In the end of 2015 I suddenly felt some inspiration to start making a new ISKALD album. So to answer your question, we haven´t developed very much as a band, I guess we just grew as musicians just by doing other stuff.
Can you describe the writing and recording process for this album?
Simon: It’s basically the process as with previous albums. It may be a boring answer for those who think the songs are coming from a dark ritual at our rehearsal room. For those interested, here we go; Every time I start writing a new song, I begin by taking a few notes of what I want the song to be like. If I want it to be an aggressive or epic and atmospheric etc type of song. Then I make riffs that fits this feeling, and as soon as we come up with lyrics the songs begins to shape. I send this “song” to Aage [Krekling, drums/vocals] and he starts arranging drums. Then this goes back and forth, rearranging, making new riffs, adding stuff, for months until we can begin recording it for real. This album is like Nedom og Nord, recorded at home. I can record the guitars, bass and vocals using all the time I want, and this makes the result to come out exactly as we want.
Innhøstinga is your fifth record and yet, I feel that you still pushing your sound forward. Going in to make this record, did you always know you wanted to make this your most complex effort yet?
Simon: Actually we decided before making this album that we wanted to make easier songs, more straight and “in your face”. So actually we’re a bit surprised ourselves that it became our most complex to date. With our next record we’ll try again. [laughs]
Lyrically, what sort of themes and concepts have you addressed with Innhøstinga?
Simon: It’s a little more variety than earlier, and I don’t think Aage has ever been writing as personal lyrics as these ever. The song Lysene Som Forsvant is about all our friends that have committed suicide, and those we have lost on our way. Also there are songs based on Norse mythology, so we keep in the same direction as earlier.
This is your second record with a Norwegian title and half of the lyrics are sung in your mother-tongue. Why have you only decided to do this now over a decade into your career?
Simon: We haven’t given this much thought. It just felt right to move over to Norwegian title on Nedom og Nord as half of the songs were Norwegian.
With you opting to sing in your native tongue, are there any concerns as to the lyrical messages being lost in translation?
Simon: I don’t think this is a problem.
With Innhøstinga being your fifth studio record, how do you feel it compares to your back catalogue?
Simon: There has been a really natural development of our style. We try to make every album vary from the last one, in atmosphere, and as we develop as musicians and as persons with new impulses this isn’t anything we have to force. If I’m going to compare this to previous albums, I think we have mixed the aggressive songstyle from Revelations of Reckoning Day, with the complexity and atmosphere from The Sun I Carried Alone.
And now that the record is out, I imagine the focus will turn to touring. Can you detail what your touring plans are moving forward?
Simon: We will be touring Europe for a couple of weeks in October-November, and we’re planning something early next year.
To close, we’ll offer you the floor. Do you have anything to say to the readers of Distorted Sound?
Simon: Thanks for having me, and thanks to everyone out there supporting us! See you on the road!
Innhøstinga is out now via Indie Recordings.
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