Break the chains with Fenriz!

Darkthrone: Fenriz and Nocturno Culto

Metalfan: Hello Fenriz! Welcome to Metalfan! How are things going lately with Darkthrone?
Fenriz: Very busy because of the 2 releases this year. First our demo/live/"Goatlord Without Vocals" cd box called Frostland Tapes and then our new album that follows the same style as The Cult Is Alive and Fuck off and Die, namely Dark Thrones and Black Flags. Also it is tenting season for me now (April-September/October) so i have my hands full as always.

Metalfan: Last year you have released a new full-lenght, "F. O. A. D. ", what is the concept behind this album? Fenriz: After we got our own portable studio Necrohell 2 in 2005, we do not record albums like other people anymore. So there is no concept. Whenever we have  2 songs ready, we go to the studio and record them. When we have enough material recorded for an album, BOOM!, it is an album. So we record always every 2-4 months something, like a long tube of creativity. So there is no concept, we do what we want, we have broken our chains - have all of you out there done it too?

Metalfan: Some of so called fans start to throw with shit, and complain about the latest two Darkthrone albums, "The Cult Is Alive" and "F. O. A. D. ", what is your opinion about this?
Fenriz: No one has said this to my face, only journalists keep telling me this. I don't know why you tell me. But the fact is no matter what we did in the past, always journalists told us "the fans are complaining". Kids tend to approach music like a religious fanatic when they are young bugs, 12-20 years old, they usually only want one thing. These narrow minded fuckers can only hope they grow up some day and see the pattern of the carpet. Everyone except mongoloids MUST change and we as artists must not let people's opinions chain us down. BREAK THE CHAINS!!!

Metalfan: Few years ago you have released "Fenriz Presents... - The Best Of Old School Black Metal", which I've liked a lot, now on the latest issue of Terrorizer is a new compilation "Fenriz Presents The Best Of Classic '80 Metal... And Punk!". Why you don't release compilations like this more often?
Fenriz: Because many people fill my head afterwards with "why didn't you include this or that song?". I make a compilation from my heart and this is what I have to hear? No thanks. So instead I made manycompilations for my own circle of friends. People that have large record collection and care about history of music and metal. I am very glad you liked the compilation, but another reason why I don't make official ones is: the Terrorizer mix was crafted by me having 18 songs. After licensing rules only 11 songs remained. So my painting was only shown from the belly and down. Not the head, for instance. To say it in a picture-kind of way. For an artist, this is very sad.

Metalfan: "Frostland Tapes" will be released this June,, what can you tell us about this box-set?
Fenriz: ALL OUR DEMOS!

Metalfan: I know that you also play guitar and Blasphemer has just left Mayhem, if they would ask you to join, would you accept?
Fenriz: Strange question, since Darkthrone's music has nothing  in common with Mayhem since 1986's "Deathstrike" release. Their last album was godly but has nothing in common with what I have done in Darkthrone since 1996!!!  I am only inspired by their Deathcrush album, and this recording has always inspired me, cuz I like stuff like that... and bands like Slaughter (Canada), Deathstrike, Celtic Frost/Hellhammer/Dream Death and everyone knows this. Also the style of Mayhem has been too complicated and progressive for me to play on guitar since 1994. I like it but I don't play it. Coolest band now is The Devil's Blood from Holland, good 70s 80s occult rock style. Also, Norwegian bands started a process of distancing themselves one from another in 1994-95 already, everyone thinks we are all in contact but I have little in common with any other Norwegian band. We have contact with Enslaved and Aura Noir, Obliteration/Nekromantheon and Deathhammer... Orcustus... We  have many more contacts in the rest of the world, metal is global, break down the walls! KEEP ON BREAKING THE RULES!!! Crush modern metal! (contradictory but correct). A Norwegian band that I could have joined because they play my style is The Batallion.

Metalfan: I know that the hungarian band Tormentor had a big impact on you when you were young. If you had to choose between "7th Day of Doom" and "Anno Domini", which would you choose? Why?
Fenriz: Anno Domini. Cuz I only listened to Anno Domini the last 15 years of these two releases. Sorry hehe

Metalfan: If you would release a new album under the name of Isengard or Storm, which of them you would choose? Why?
Fenriz: Isengard cuz I like working alone. But I just had some folk rock metal in me, I don't even like folk metal even though i was one of the first ones making this style. Folk metal is mostly horrible, I didn't even like my predecessors in Skyclad that much. But Isengard did some cool death metal in 1989. I prefer folk ROCK like Folque, Steeleye Span, The Strawbs, Fairport Convention, 60s-70s stuff.

Metalfan: Some people have described your music like norsecore, similar with Marduk or Dark Funeral, do you agree with that? How would you describe Darkthrone's music?
Fenriz: HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA we have nothing  in common with Marduk or Dark Funeral, our music is completely different. We have existed for over 20 years and we have epic thrash, death thrash, death metal, technical death metal, dark metal, black metal, speed metal, nwobhm, punk, heavy metal and doom in our sound. Now we are doing speed/black/heavy/NWOBHM/punk mostly. I say we play the same style as Salute, Bludwulf, Motorhead and so forth, but we have tons of bands inspiring us, from 60s 70s and 80s only.

Metalfan: What does Darkthrone represent for your heart, for your soul, for your mind?
Fenriz: It is the other way 'round: Darkthrone IS my heart and sould and mind.

Metalfan: Now something interactive, please tell us something in few words about the following:
Kvarforth from Shining
Fenriz: Don't know.

Anti Cimex
Fenriz: Hole in my collection right here #blush# I just dissappointed myself alot now haha

Disfear
Fenriz: Yeah, the album they did in the 90s i think it's called Everyday Slaughter is extremely great.

Euronymous from Mayhem
Fenriz: It's too much to write here, but growing up in the same burrow as the mighty Mayhem was awe-inspiring! All the good fanzines in 86 87 88 wrote about this band and it was special you know, they had a great aura. He was also the essence of the underground metal network, both the good and the bad sides... he wasn't exactly a business-samuraihehe, so he didn't have much money but still insisted on starting the legendary Helvete store. It was chaotic and I was a chaosmonger too.

Lemmy from Motörhead
Fenriz: Never met him but it is one of the most inspiring voices and attitudes for me, also more and more as I get older!

Old School Black Metal
Fenriz: OLD SCHOOL BM is when I say black metal was perfect in 89 and in many ways many of us kind of ruined black metal because the trend that came after us was horrible.

Keyboards in Black Metal
Fenriz: Can be used in a great way and horrible way. Beherit was one of the great bands.

Ozzy Osbourne
Fenriz: HAH!! Great question cuz I am just in an Ozzy period in my life now, listening to the solo albums from 80-86. Killer of Giants, Over the Mountains... from 80-86 they're great solo albums!

The Cure
Fenriz: I don't have a single album with them. Women like The Cure a lot, I have noticed.

Gaahl from Gorgoroth
Fenriz: He is great and Infernus is great. The way I see it, it is Infernus' band name. But for me when they have this argument, instead I used last autumn to tattoo big on my arm: SPEED METAL logo

Metalfan: Thank you for your time Fenriz. In the end would you like to send a message to the Metalfan readers?

Fenriz: Yes, thank you for reading, concentrate on REAL metal, Liege Lord, Manilla Road, Attacker, early Queensryche and Fates Warning! WO HOOO!!! Tenting trip nr 3 this season had playlist: Count Raven, Legend (USA) - 79 album From the Fjords, Pagan Altar, Beyond the Gates with Possessed, also some Slayer songs, Hell Awaits, Crionics, Revelation - doom metal demo from 87, and new Darkthrone and Aura Noir songs (I was tenting with Apollyon from Aura Noir among others).