1. When we look at the history of the band, we can see that the band has been formed in 1989, but the first demo tape was released in 1995. How should your fans understand this?

The CD "Amid It's Hallowed Mirth" was released in 1995. We had several demos out before that. "Her Tears Drop" for one, and a couple others. We were never into the selling of the demos to the public, they were always made for label purposes, looking for our first record deal. We were active all those years, but had a difficult time finding a label to pick us up, as the "doom" scene was not popular at all. It took a european label like Avantgarde to recognize our potential and release the CD through their distribution. It was a huge step for the band.

2. It is understandable that after so many personal changes through the years your band‘s style has changed too. But if you have to talk for yourself, which of the style suits you best? The one from your beginnings or the style you use in your recent creations?

I have progressed as the band has. I am quite pleased with the current state of the band, and I think we're at the top of our game. I could never see myself doing the same style of music I did 20 years ago, and still enjoying myself. If we don't challenge ourselves to become better, and evolve with the music, we would be come stale, and I don't feel we would have had the longevity of the band like we have. We are at the moment, receiving offers that we never would have even 10 years ago, and it's because the quality of our music continues to get better and better.

3. You are releasing your 7th long-playing album this year. How do you feel about it as a musician? Because I believe that each album has been created with some special emotions you were feeling at that time. Is there any period of time that was your favourite?

It's quite an accomplishment to release CD number 7. It's been a long time, and each CD has it's share of memories. I can't really say one has been better then the other. They are all different. We draw inspiration from our personal lives at that time, from the guys writing the music, to my lyrics, and our music is generally pretty dark and depressing, so it's difficult to have a favorite, since we draw from dark times. Tragedy makes great art, and we use it to our advantage, and play with those emotions to create the best music we possibly can.


4. Let's have a look now at the new album "Into Night's Requiem Infernal". How would you introduce it to the fans, what would you point out for them?

"Into Night's Requiem Infernal" is a combination of the darkness from "The Pale Haunt Departure," the aggression of "The Novella Reservoir" and the melody and harmony from "To Welcome the Fade." We set out with this goal, and I feel we accomplished this. It gives the fans a little bit of everything we're about, and in my honest opinion, I feel this could be the best thing we have recorded in our 20 years of existence.

5. Can we speak about some concept behind the album?

"Into Night's Requiem Infernal" is themed. It's not as obvious as the water theme, but the new release it heavily focused on religion and the struggle between faith, fact, and fiction. It's a pretty dark themed release, and it really represents where my head has been at the past year. I wanted to write something that would provoke thoug ht, and make the listener question their own belief systems. Nothing is black and white, and people should question what they are taught, to help them make better decisions for themselves in life. 6. The album has been recorded in Belle City Sound in Wisconsin, but mixing was done in Unisound Studio in Sweden. Nowadays it is not anything strange, but still, why did you do it?

Actually, this is the third CD we've worked with Dan Swano on. He mixed "The Pale Haunt Departure," "The Novella Reservoir" and "Into Night's Requiem Infernal." We've been extremely happy with the work he does for us. Our bassist Chris owns and operates Belle City Sound, and recording studio in Wisconsin, so all the recording takes place with Chris as the engineer. We've used Chris for "The Knowing" back in the day, before he was a part of the band. It's a combination of Chris's recording, and the mi xing by Dan Swano, that gives us that massive sound, and I think each release we continue to use this combination, the sound gets better and better then the last. Hopefully we'll be able to continue using this formula for years to come. It's hard to deny the quality, and that's why we keep using this team.

7. The sound is crucial for this kind of music, and I wonder: were you working with a vision of a concrete sound or was the sound decided during the final composing and recording itself? Are you satisfied with the outcome?

We always have a vision of what we want it to sound like, but things change during the recording. Choosing the correct guitar tone for the CD, trying many different amp and cabinet combinations until we find just the right crunch we're looking for. We want our CDs to sound classic, and massive, while maintaining a modern production. Trial and error, and surrounding ourselves with knowledgea ble people have helped us achieve this over the years, and we are completely satisfied with the outcome.


8. Are you lately trying to compose your music with a regard to live performance? You maybe know what I mean when group plays more and more live, people inside often thinks how the new songs will sound on the stage...

Yes, we started taking that more into consideration starting with "The Pale Haunt Departure." We want to make sure that the majority of the material will translate properly in a live situation. When we play live, we do our best to sound like the recorded CD, and it's certainly something we consider when writing. These days, it's easier to do, with the use of a lap top on stage to fill in the atmosphere, like the back ground keyboards or sound effects we may have used. It gives our live show more of a proper feeling and honest representation of what the fans get on the CD.

9. I have heard that beside music you like to design layouts for various bands. Are you also designing something for NOVEMBERS DOOM?

I used to design for Novembers Doom. I created a lot of the older covers for the band. I stopped doing that, because I am my worst critic with artwork, and whenever I finish a piece, I always see more I could have done to it. I could never fully enjoy the pieces I did for my own band, like the rest of the band could, so I started using outside artists, so when I look at the cover art, I'm not critical of the images, and I can actually enjoy the piece. The artwork is just as important to me as the music itself, as it paints the entire picture, so I do work closely with the artist to get the image just right.

10. Thank you very much for your time, I can only wish you good luck in the future. And of course all the things around...

Thank you for the interview! In closing, The lyrical explanation book I wrote, "The Wayfaring Chronicles" has been turned into an app for the iPhone and iPod Touch. It should be available in the app store in late August / Early September. It includes more photos, and the newest chapter for "Into Night's Requiem Infernal." I'm hoping this favors well with the fans, and if it goes well, I'll look into other formats to release the book on. I'm always looking for ways to uniquely promote the band, and combined with my love of technology, I'm always coming up with new ways to do so.