Obsidian C. Mastermind von KEEP OF KALESSIN, Tour-Gitarrist bei Satyricon und Besitzer eines Plattenlabels führt uns ein in die Welt dieses Black-Metal-Roh-Diamanten. Schließlich hat er (auf englisch) jede Menge zum neuen Album "Armada" zu sagen.InterviewTell us something about the Band!

The band was started back in –95 and since then we’ve released two full-length albums and an EP. We know that’s not alot, but we’ve had quite a few line-up changes and we always focused on quality instead of quantity. And it wasn’t until 2003 or something that I started to really focus to get this band somewhere.
So in 2005 we finally found a lineup that works and Keep Of Kalessin is a band and not a project of mine. Vyl has been with me from the start, but he did not do the drums on our EP for various reasons. Vyl is also doing the drums in Headspin and Chton. Both excellent bands!
On bass we have Wizziac who used to be in a band called Eternal Silence, but they disbanded a couple of years ago. We’ve always found a fucking amazing replacement for Attila in our vocalist Thebon!

What does the name of the band mean? And why do you chose your name Obsidian Claw?

The name is taken from a bookseries called the Earthsea Quartet. It’s a serie of great fantasy books and later we’ve actually found out that these books are extremely popular. It’s a strong and powerful bandname and has a great atmosphere to it.
Obsidian is a black volcanic, glass rock. The name has a spiritual meaning as well as it is a powerful name that fits the concept of the band and the bandname.

Let’Stalk about music. Describe it in your own words. Is it really EPIC EXTREME?

I think the description fits the music well. Although the music is brutal, technical and fierce, you will experience great atmosphere and melody without the use of keyboards to create it. It’s definately extreme and it’s definately epic!

And why does it take again long time to release the new album? It’s something like tradition that KoK needs more time for one album?

There are many different reasons why it has taken so long. One of them being that we needed to get the new lineup together and to get everyone to perform the way they should. We’ve also been busy with alot of other things in between like I’ve been playing with Satyricon alot.
It takes a long time to write songs like these. Listen to the title track "Armada” 20 times for instance. It’s not often you hear songs that are arranged this way. Where riffs melt together like this. The end of one riff can be the beginning of another and all the melodies have a purpose.
We could have thrown 10 riffs together and called it a song and released two albums a year. It would even sound pretty good I think, but we choose to be bigger musically than that! There are hundreds of bands that can write pretty decent riffs and release ok sounding albums, but there are only a handfull that can write good songs! And we’re one of them. Our compositions are more like Metallica on "Master of puppets” or Iron Maiden on "Somewhere in time” or "Seventh Son”. But we do it in an extreme metal form rather than heavy metal.

And what about the progress from you first demo until the new CD?

The development has been huge both technically and when it comes to songwriting. We’ve always been a band that focus on good songs instead of just having great parts that don’t necessarily fit together, but it’s only on the latest releases that we’ve started to get where we want.
Armada will be the first release with this lineup and it will only go upwards from here!

Lyrics? Which "Armada” do you mean?

The lyrics for the album are written after a concept, but not a story that goes from A to B. It’s more lyrics that helps create the instead of telling a story. The name of the album is a powerful one and there are more than one way to interpret this. The lyrics speak of an "Armada” many times and every time it’s not necessarily the same, but basically it’s Armada of the dead. Crowned king of the dead.
Another way to see this is that "Armada” is the concept of "many” and describes the album as a whole with individual members of the band, individual tracks etc. joined under one flag.
As our EP "Reclaim” was about the individual and me standing alone, each song was very different from each other, I created the music alone and doing everything by myself.
”Armada” is the opposite where we’re a full band and all the songs are linked together one way or another.

Something about "Armadas” image?


We wanted to have an album that most of all stands for it’s own atmosphere. Because of this we also wanted the image, photo’s, CD booklet and everything to match the atmosphere in the music more than ever! Since the music is epic and has a feeling of big movies like Troy, Gladiator, Alexander etc. we got our designer to create this awesome booklet! I think it looks fucking amazing! And it’s abit out of the ordinary for a black metal band!

By the way: What means Black Metal for you?


To me Black Metal is primarily a musical genre. I like the aestethics and I really appreciate music that is both emotional and ruthless at the same time. I’m so tired of everyone trying to explain it as something more. It’s not like all norwegian bands put on corpsepaint every fucking day when they get out of bed and hunts a moose for breakfast in the forest.
I used to think that it was more about individualism than anything else, but now the genre is so full of crap that you can’t bare the stench of it if you come close! People who tell you what to think, what bands to like and especially....my favourite....what bands not to like! So the only thing left is the atmosphere in the music.

What about producing of the CD - something interesting/ funny happened in the studio?


We did what every bunch of guys who get together for some good wholesome rock n´roll would do: We got wasted, and it lastet about two weeks. After that we had only two more weeks of studiotime left, and nothing really worked out at is was supposed to. So the music is primarily recorded during what ever spare time the studio offered us during the fall of 2005. hehe. At least we got to blow 4 amps and and smash a couple of guitars.

How do you estimate the reactions concerning your previous albums? And which chances do you see for the future and the new CD? Because there are so many norwegian extreme-metal-bands.

I hope that the record will be warmly received amongst our fans and would ofcourse appreciate it if the critics like it too (that makes it a lot easier to reach a bigger audience). Given our not so easily accessive backcatalogue, old fans wont have any problems diving into this release. It´s not another "Agnen” - it´s a natural, although very delayed, succsession. We´ve grown up a bit, and so has our early fans.
Armada is no typical Norwegian extreme-metal-release and I don´t think it will have any problem standing out on it´s own. Despite our nationality.
I don’t see how a metalband can be a sellout. How is that possible really? You would have to be pretty dumb to try and sell out in the metal genre. I would rather sell out in hip-hop or something. At least you would have better looking chicks. I think the real sellout is the guy working in the local gas-station!

What about Live-Gigs?

We will be doing more liveshows this year than any other year in our carrer. First we’ll be opening the Inferno festival here in Norway. Then we have a European tour with Carpathian Forest, but halph way through we’ll go home to support Satyricon in Norway. Then we’ll be back on the tour and finish it from mid May. We also have a couple of other festivals, but they’re here in Norway as well. We’re hoping to do a proper tour after the summer, but we’re still working on the billing for that.

Are you happy with you business partner? Why did you changed to TABU (and not for example "to your friends” from Trondheim called Morningstar).

TABU is a great label and they gave me a pretty good deal.
As I am one of the partners in Morningstar I fear that the recordcompany guy would destroy the guitarplaying guy if they woud have to share a tourbus.

You come from Trondheim. What about your local scene and the metal scene in Norway in general - out of your sight?

The metalscene in Trondheim is by far Norway’s most interesting right now! It has taken a long time for Trondheim-based bands to get where the rest of our country is, but it’s really all happening now. We have bands like Bloodthorn and Chton which are excellent deathmetal bands. Other bands in Trondheim are Max Midsun, Manifest, Headspin, Manes, Triosphere, Griffin ++. There are alot of quality releases coming from Trondheim this year for sure! I personally think the Oslo and Bergen-scene kinda played they’re role. Not many bands that are to exciting these days.

What means Norway to you? Tell me something about Norway out of sight of a Norwegian
.
Expensive beer, -20 degrees celcius 6 months a year, loads of snow, no latino-ass-shakin’ babes. I personally think at least ten times a year "why the hell am I still living here?!!”. All we have is black metal and good welfare.

Tell me something about your private life.

I’m constantly busy for the time being with Keep Of Kalessin, Satyricon and running Morningstar Records. I quit my daytime job a few years ago and have been focusing on music since then. I started Morningstar Records about six months ago and our first release was Bloodthorn’s album "Genocide”. We have 3-4 more releases coming out in the Autumn so it will be very exciting to see how things turn out.
Wizziac and Vyl are not working at the moment. I don’t think Vyl will ever do anything than play drums in his life. It’s the only thing he cares about and Wizziac used to work as a truckdriver, but I don’t think he does anymore. Thebon is the only guy working, but it’s only 3-4 hours a day. I’m not exactly sure what he’s doing actually.

You worked with one of the most famous BM-musicians called Satyr while touring with Satyricon? What about him and the time playing/touring with them? And also you worked with Attila and Frost. What about this time….? And why do you chose now some more "nameless” musicians?

Touring with Satyricon has been a great experience for me and I’m still looking forward to continuing touring with them. We have alot of big festivals and great shows this year. Satyricon has a very strict form of playing while Keep Of Kalessin is almost like jamming in blastbeats. I like those two different types of playing.
Recording the "Reclaim” EP with Frost and Attila was a great experience! I especially remember the time me and Attila spent in the studio of Schwein in his back yard. We were there for a week or something recording the vocals and mixing the album. Relaxing in the sun, talking bullshit all the time and recording vocals during the night.