New Borknagar interview at HeavyMetal.no

[Agah]

Heavymetal.no posted a new interview with Jens recently. It is in Norwegian, but I'll probably translate it when I get home if you want me to.
There is also a walkthrough of all the songs by Øystein. Øystein confirmed that Simen is going to sing My Domain. One title was revealed: "Worldwide".

http://heavymetal.no/show.article.as...id=&artid=9512

[Tabletwister]

Thanks a lot for posting this Agah. Wonderful news!!! Now it's confirmed, Simen will be part of the new release. Simen mentioned that song in his interview here at ultimatemetal. Can't wait to listen to it. It would be much appreciated if you could translate the interview.

[Agah]

Okay, I've translated the interview now. I was a bit lazy, so I ran it through Google Translator first, then I just tried to fix the obvious mistakes, a lot of it is still in a pretty weird English, but I hope it is understandable.


Borknagar, update on new album

Øystein Brun & co is in the studio to record yet another chapter in Borknagars history. The question everyone is asking, how to continue the report on one of the most epic metal band? Jens Ryland gives you the answers and more. In addition, a review of the ten track CD, in which Øystein guides, and tells a little about the tracks thats coming (and not) on the still nameless release.

Jens, how is it being back in the studio with Borknagar?

"I can start by saying that Borknagar now work a little in our own way in the studio, it is no longer like when we went to the Wood House in Dortmund, and lived there for a month while we recorded the album. So I must admit that because of technicalities I have not set foot in the studio yet.

I drove the drums to Top Room the day before Øystein and Dave arrived, but it was a blizzard, so I was stuck down the hill 100 meters from the studio. Børge fired up his Volvo (with spiked tires) and came to get the drums, so I could turn around and drive home. A trip that would take 2.5 hours took almost 6, so I canceled my plans to go up one afternoon after work. And there have been quite a snow chaos in Eastern Norway ever since.

So I don't have the feeling of being in the studio again , but when it comes to preprod and preparation, I must say that I have not had such a good gut-feeling in a while. I look forward very much to when Øystein and me are going into the studio in February to record guitar tracks ... "

Can you say a little about the recording so far?

"The first week is done, and then all drum tracks recorded with the pilot guitar. We sit still and wait for a raw mix from Øystein, but when he and Dave visited me in Oslo on Friday, Øystein was in ecstasy with arms flailing and saying words like attitude, prog and power every time he had the opportunity. He was satisfied, one may say. "

Besides Inferno, what did you do in the period when you were on leave from Borknagar?

"Oh, there has been a while, you know, and I have yet to do some things. I burned up all my powder, I was so tired of the shit music that I truncated out completely. I was so tired I almost sold my beloved Les Paul Custom at a time when I needed money, but a good buddy persuaded me to keep it.

So I jumped on an offer to start a company in the construction industry with a good friend. This was fairly well timed as I was on my way to be dad, so I did that for almost 2 years. I do not have much good to say about the construction industry either now, so I gave it up and worked with several ideas until I began to work in a bar owned by a friend. I've been here for 2 years and now I run the place. We have also built a restaurant that I run that has been open for 4 months, and we are building a bar / night club down the road.

The process of becoming adult is also what has made me join Borknagar again. I have a totally different view now of how we can do things, I have a very different ambition of what we will achieve that is more in line with Øystein. Now we're here to have fun, and that has characterized our choices. Music is a part of life, not what dominates your life. "

The concert at Screamfest was - by the way - awesome. Is it good to govern a bit on stage again? Is Borknagar becoming more visible in the concert context from now on , or is the band continued as a curiosity to perform in a concert context?

"Scream was a special concert yes. Concerts have always been my fuel. We are going to play only so many concerts that everyone in the band has the capacity and desire to do, so you will not see us on any 5-week tour in the future. But there will be more than 3 concerts in 6 years. In time we'll come out of Norway for a walk to play a little here and there, Wacken 2009 is already confirmed.

Again, the motivation is to have fun. That means beyond the experience to stand on the stage. I do not think 9 hours of driving between concerts, where you sleep on the floor in a minibus is fun! We are a calm bunch. We've become grownups too, so now we have some other requirements. So yes, there will be some more concerts to come, but we will not find on every saloon on the milk route through central Europe. "

One band, three nationalities. The obvious question is: how does the borders effect the result?

"There are many bands that could not be operated on as we do. We are a volatile bunch of individualists, we do not always march in step. Several of the larger bands are completely dependent on having weekly rehearsals with almost military precision, while we when it is needed. Then we can just as well live on each side of our world. So you have this technology then, he, he. preproduction goes just fine with the transfers, home studios, etc. So no, borders are no obstacle for us. "

How has your involvement been this time?

"Well, I have not started quite yet ..."

Are you satisfied with the new man behind the drums?

"Øystein brags about him. I've only seen a few videos on YouTube in addition to Arsis, say much yet. He's a great guy who is going to fit right into the gang. He is not a novice we may say. "

How long you calculate on the recording. Can you tell a little about the choice of studio and producer? Is it still Toproom and Børge Finstad that apply?

"Yes, Børge is the man! We may well say that we have made Toproom our nest, so any other options was not mentioned this time.

Recordings will be over several periods. The first week we finished drums, so the next session with me and Øystein on guitars in February. Most are made at Børges place, but we have not quite decided for mixing right now. If all goes according to plan it will all be finished 1 May. "

What's on the poster for the future? When is Indie releasing the album?

"If everything goes according to plan the album will be released in August / September, but perhaps it's a little early to confirm anything yet ..."

Are you satisfied with the summary of Borknagars history on Century Media?

"Did not read it. Should I ?..."

At the very least, you can guarantee me that this is the best CD so far?

"This sounds a bit like a 36.9! Questions he-he. Yes, I guarantee ..."

***

Øystein Brun guides us through the songs ...

"Yes, I'll do an ever so slight review of the songs, but there is an little challenging element in the fact that we still have not decided the title for many of the songs. So here we'll mainly do with exciting and cryptic titles like: Song # 1, Song # 2, etc. ..

In other words, there are many things that are not yet in place, and this is a little unsteady walk through a relatively unfinished production. Anyway I hope it gives a small impression of the new CD and what direction it will take. Working titles say nothing about the actual order of songs on the CD, the only thing it suggests is the order in which the songs were written ...

The album will probably not contain all of these songs, when the CD in this case will be far too long. So we'll pick a song, maybe two, at a later date, possibly to put a bonus affair of one kind or another.

Song # 1: Perhaps the most striking hard and fast song on the CD. It was written about 4-5 years ago and in many ways set the standard for further song making to this CD. It begins with an ever so slight intro with clean guitars and flute. The rest of the song is pretty much full speed apart from the chorus and in my opinion a frighteningly catchy middle party. Although it is an up tempo song, perhaps one of our fastest songs ever, the song is very melodious and evocative. I would say that there are few bands that manage to match the song's combination of pace and melody. A moody fist right in the face!

Song # 2: This song was originally intended as an instrumental but developed into a much greater song. This is in many ways the albums ballad. Simple structure, based on acoustic parts (as of Jens described as emotional atmosphere) and so very catchy chorus. There may be a high sing-along vibe to this song. It's not impossible that mom is going to like it too ... he-he ...

Song # 3: This was written around 1997 and was actually intended for The Archaic Course, but we were never completely satisfied with the recording we did in the WoodHouse, and therefore killed song indefinitely. Now, it has thus emerged again and it's much better. Almost as good wine, this is a good vintage. Title of this song is My Domain, and it is no secret that the plan is that Simen (Mr. Vortex) is going to do the vocals on this song. The mood here is very up in the mountains.

Song # 4: There was not anything more than a couple of riffs here. Therefore, we put it to rest, and it will not be recorded.

Song # 5: It begins with ancient-Borkish riffs. This is a midtempo song that is catchy and monumental, and it builds up to a mid-uptempo middle part that culminates in catchy rhythms that will make you tap your foot. A cool song that goes right to the chase, and ends with an ever so slight acoustic bit.

Song # 6: A very epic, and bombastic song. As of today, one of my favorites on the CD, but that may change. It culminates with an acoustic affair that evolves into an end game that will give you the shivers. Many may relive the early Borknagar-feeling here.

Song # 7: Another song that will not be recorded.

Song # 8: Maybe the most magnificent song on CD. It begins with a relatively quiet party that evolves to be a fairly monumental affair. It is a very good flow of the song where it goes up and down like a musical roller coaster. Moreover, I even think it has a climax in the middle of the song that is perhaps one of the best things I have helped with clean composer-atory - if there is something called that. (There is now: (Yj) This is guaranteed to be a song that juts out. The title is no less ambitious rather, it is called Worldwide. It is a bit of fun is that large parts of the song is constructed around a single riff , but in different variations of course.

Song # 9: Maybe the song with the most obvious folk inspired tones. Here, it is much on the mountain spirit and is based around a melody that can put itself firmly in the cerebral. A really nice song if you ask me, with a central space that really shows what a our new drummer is capable of.

Song # 10: Based on some weird acoustic harmonies / themes. The only song that is fairly midtempo all the way. On this song, it is also a little extra room for some awesome bass, so it is exciting to see what Jan Erik get on tape here. A bit progressive at times, and hue for this song differs slightly from the rest of the songs.

Song # 11: A short and pleasant little instrumental. For those who know the band from before, this will remind a bit of the instrumentals the first albums. Wonderful atmosphere and incredibly fun to play on classical guitar. It is based on a theme I made in the 90's, but that has not found its place before now.

Otherwise, it is not impossible that there's an instrumental from Lars. It has in many ways been a tradition for us that Lars contributes some lovely abstract tones. We are only halfway through the recording process, so there are even many pieces that must be in place. We expect to be finished with the CD in late April once, and there is no doubt to be our most thorough and complete albums ever. "

[jamj1974]

Really cool interview, thanks for posting!!! the new album it seems to sound amazing!!!!!!!!!

[Defiance]

Great interview, thanks for posting!

So Simen is going to sing!!!

Horrah!!!

This looks like a great album, I can't wait to hear some samples!!!

[DHG]

Thx 4 posting.

[SiMuLaCrUm]

Øystein was in ecstasy with arms flailing and saying words like attitude, prog and power every time he had the opportunity.

Picturing that is pretty funny.

Great interview, and excited to hear that Vortex will be singing for a track.

Any possibility that some of those "not going to be recorded" songs may end up on some sort of special edition?

[FailingAcension]

Man, I've been out of the loop for a while, but I'll def be looking forward to this!

[karpsmom]

Wow thanks for the translation!!!

[Tabletwister]

A really great and very well informed interview. Thanks a lot for translating for us Agah. Looks like that the new release will be a killer one, can't wait!!!

[Agah]

There is also an older interview some of you may not have seen. Lefay82 posted it at the Vintersorg forum.

You Tube

You Tube

You Tube

And here it is translated:

Originally Posted by Agah

Here is the Screamfest interview translation I promised some time ago. Sorry it took so long.

Hammartid interviews Øystein and Andreas from Borknagar

This is not a word by word translation, I removed parts I saw as unimportant, and changed some of the wording.

Helle = The interviewer
Roy = The cameraman
Ø = Øystein G. Brun
V = Vintersorg ( Andreas Hedlund)

PART 1:
-Øystein and Andreas introduces themselves

-Helle: Why did you quit Molested?
Ø: I was more interested in making melodic music. Molested was in an
extremely intense period where we practised every other day for four years, no matter if it was Christmas
or whatever, and it made the band burn out of energy. Also the relationship with the label wasn't all great
since they went bankrupt. The drummer was headed for the army.

-Helle: How did you gather the all-star team that was the first Borknagar line-up?
Ø: In those times everyone in the metal scene knew each other. The other guys thought the Borknagar concept
was a new angle to view the black metal genre. Infernus picked up the phone and called a guy called
Garred in Malicious Records and got a deal in 3 minutes.

-Helle: How does having changed vocalists so many times affect the band?
Ø: Borknagar has a soul that persists no matter who plays in the band, but every band member is important.
A piece of Borknagars trademark is progression and change.
V: When I joined Borknagar I wanted to be a mix of Garm and Vortex, but I eventually
figured that he shouldn't think about the past. Progression should not just be there for the sake of
progression, but because you feel inspired.
Ø: We have never done this to make money, it's fun to get great response, but the intention has always been to
make great music so.. so.. I've forgotten what the question was.

- Helle: Are you afraid that Borknagar gets mixed up with Vintersorg (the band) they have the same vocalist?
Ø: I think Borknagar has a expression that is very unique. But, I can't separate Swedish pop music, so some might think that
our music sounds like the same band. We write music in a quite different way, even though we have a lot in common as well.

-Helle: Why did you choose to sign with Indie Recordings?
Ø: Ever since the '90s everyone was dreaming about having a Norwegian label where you could just walk down the street and
have a meeting with them, instead of using fax and mail and not knowing quite where you have the label.
V: My band is still signed with Napalm Records in Germany, and it is a bit different. There are some misunderstandings now and then.

END OF PART 1.

PART 2:
Ø: Also, the offer from Indie was really good. Century Media was an OK label, but we needed something new.

-Helle: What do you think is positive or negative about Norwegian metal nowadays:
Ø: Today with the internet a band can get itself known very easily. When we started up we had to send demos to the Philippines,
and we really needed to work hard to get heard. Now, you can just put a song on Youtube and if you're lucky you have a label.
Also, the metal industry has become a bit too much of a buisness, and you can draw a few comparisons to the pop industry.
V: Yeah, Borknagar is not a business, it's a work of art that you don't do because of trends. One does it with heart and soul.
Ø: It's all about the music. I don't even care much about tours, I've never felt like an entertainer.


-Helle: Do you think there will come new "icons" to the genre, considering how fast bands seem to fade away these days:
Ø: Not in this genre, not like before, maybe. I've noticed that our popularity goes up and down, but our name is always there.
Even if we sit on our asses and don't do anything for four years, we still get weekly requests to do tours
V: Its like with progrock. I have bands I regard with "icon status" even 40 years after their albums was released, and I have
a hard time imagining that the bands of today will have that kind of status in 40 years.
We'll never get a new Metallica or Iron Maiden, that draws 100 000 to a stadium.
Ø: Dimmu Borgir has kind of made it big, but I think it's really hard to do it in this black metal niche

-Helle: What do you think of Screamfest:
Ø: It's fun. For us it's great to meet the other members, we're spread across Bergen, Oslo and Sweden. The gig today has been a
strange thing. A few hours ago I got an SMS from Lars saying that he was at the hospital getting a son. So today we'll play without
synth, that's going to be exciting. We'll turn up the volume and play a bit faster.

-Helle: What's the new CD, "For the elements"?
V: It has songs from all of Borknagars history.
Ø: It is a "Best of" album, and it is almost a bit embarrassing.

END OF PART 2.

PART 3:
Ø: It does in a way confirm that we've been around a few year.It felt right, and it kind of closed a chapter for us with Century Media.

- Helle: But you're also releasing a new record?
Ø: Yes.

-Helle: Do you manage to practice, when you (Vintersorg) live in northern Sweden?
Ø: We don't really practice. Just before gigs. We work alot online, sending stuff to each other.
V: We have families so, we can't travel around that much.

-Helle: This is the last concert with Asgeir on drums, isn't it? What's up with that?
Ø: Not much, other than that he's quitting?
-Helle: Do you have anyone new in sight?
Ø: Yes, we have a guy named Dave Kinkade from USA. We chose the guy with the most talent. He's been a fan of the band many years.
-Roy: How did you come in contact with him?
Ø: He actually contacted us on MySpace. A lot of guys contacted us when we announced that Asgeir was leaving. Like this typical
German black metal guy, we were like "Ehh, that might have been cool 20 years ago".
V: We're pretty much an internet band.
Ø: Yeah, it is a paradox. We're all about the nature and the four elements, and then we're completely dependent on the web.

-Helle: Yeah, all right, that was pretty much what I had. Unless you have something. (Looks to the guy behind the camera)
-Helle: Okay, then I'd like to ask you to make a jingle for me. Just say the name of the radio show, your name and your bands name.
-Roy: Oh, by the way, what does Borknagar mean?
Ø: I've gotten that question since 1995. It doesn't mean anything. It's made up. I was a bit inspired by a tale about a
mountain called Loch Nagar, then I switched it up a bit. I can go into a long philosophical speech about why, but not now.
We wanted a name that you don't relate to anything. Like Rotting Christ, they have had a serious commercial problem, they have
been denied to do stuff they wanted to do because of their name.
V: With a name like Borknagar, you can play any type of music. If we were called Infernal Curse, it would be weird to play an
album like Origin.

Then they do the jingle:
"Hello, this is Øystein Brun from Borknagar, you're listening to Hammartid."
"This is Vintersorg from Borknagar, you're listening to Hammartid"

[jamj1974]

Another cool interview, thanks for sharing with us.

[Eindride]

Just a question: Can someone identify the band behind the intro music to the interview? Sounds like great stuff...

[Agah]

Originally Posted by Eindride

Just a question: Can someone identify the band behind the intro music to the interview? Sounds like great stuff...

Origin - Anthitesis

[Defiance]

Originally Posted by SiMuLaCrUm

Picturing that is pretty funny.

Great interview, and excited to hear that Vortex will be singing for a track.

Any possibility that some of those "not going to be recorded" songs may end up on some sort of special edition?

Haha yeah agreed .

I am especially intrigued by the word "power" .

I'm sure there'll be a limited edition since Øystein said so in my interview hehe. But I really hope there'll be an LP release too.

[SiMuLaCrUm]

Yea, an LP would be awesome. I'd end up getting both the CD and LP

[Qu Appelle]

These are great interviews, thank you!

[Defiance]

Originally Posted by SiMuLaCrUm

Yea, an LP would be awesome. I'd end up getting both the CD and LP

Certainly!

[Azzor1911]

hm, haven't been on these forums for a week or so, and I've missed so much great news! :-)

[~Derek~]

I liked the interview, it was very informative and it gives us a possible date of finish and release.

[Allfader]

I just hope some heavy production this time. I love Empiricism and Epic but I can't deny the lack of heaviness on the sound (not on the songs themselves).

[SiMuLaCrUm]

Yes, they did lack heaviness although I would say Epic had a bit more of a heavy sound to me.

Speaking of which, has anyone else notice that the colour of the album art kind of describes the overall sound of the most recent albums? (Q through origin)

Quintessence's sound makes me think of that vibrant red, Empiricism's reminds me of the subtle greens and blues, Epic's reminds me of that orange and Origin's acoustic sound reminds me of that brown...

[Allfader]

Originally Posted by SiMuLaCrUm

Yes, they did lack heaviness although I would say Epic had a bit more of a heavy sound to me.

Speaking of which, has anyone else notice that the colour of the album art kind of describes the overall sound of the most recent albums? (Q through origin)

I agree; Since Q the art has been kinda abstract but it somehow reflects the ' general vibe'...On Origin was very simple but effective. I would say Borknagar has chosen great front images/art on all albums. S/t has that kind of old and misty feeling. TOD and TAC are very well represented (TOD cd is beautiful and very 'viking' IMO) - in fact, the first 3 albums had an 'old' feeling on the music/vocals).

[Eindride]

Originally Posted by Allfader

I agree; Since Q the art has been kinda abstract but it somehow reflects the ' general vibe'...On Origin was very simple but effective. I would say Borknagar has chosen great front images/art on all albums. S/t has that kind of old and misty feeling. TOD and TAC are very well represented (TOD cd is beautiful and very 'viking' IMO) - in fact, the first 3 albums had an 'old' feeling on the music/vocals).

The colour on the cover is in fact very important. Read an interview with Jimmy Page where he said that he almost had regrets for the colours they did choose for some of their albums (brown, orange etc.) since especielly these colurs tend to "colour" the music. The "brown" album really sounds "brown", and so on. He had a hard time "thinking away" these colours when listening to the albums, almost like the album cover contaminated the colours of each of the songs.

That beings sad, I think the artwork for Q and Epic are the worst in the borknagar history. Red and orange....bbbbrrrrrrrr.......

The Olden Domain is easily the most beautiful.

Mixed colours is propably best, so that each song may breath its own colour.

[SiMuLaCrUm]

I agree, Olden Domain has very nice cover art, and really brings out the viking feel of the album.