With their new album, ‘A Umbra Omega', arriving eight years after its predecessor, ‘Supervillain Outcast’, and 16 after the band’s most infamous record, ‘666 International’, opportunities to talk to Dødheimsgard about new music are rare.
Thankfully the group’s new record is an artistic triumph, albeit one that is set to be divisive in its dismantling of conventions from across the worlds of black metal and the avant-garde. Stereoboard spoke to their creative lynchpin, guitarist Vicotnik, about 'A Umbra Omega' and the band’s distinct place in the underground music realm.
First of all, how would you say ‘A Umbra Omega’ fits into the Dødheimsgard discography? How do you see it as a progression from ‘Supervillain Outcast’?
I think it sums up our 20-plus years in the metal scene. The album has one foot in the past and one in the future…and maybe another in hell? I like changing the formula a bit for every album, but to still keep the signature intact. There is no doubting the source of any of our albums, yet they sound different. This is a way to ensure that every album is a chapter of their own, and that all albums are special in relation to our discography.
Many bands just develop through streamlining their music and changing the production. I do understand this form of development, especially if your main objective is to further your success. For me personally, however, it would mean abandoning the essence of what art is all about, namely creativity. There is not really any way around it. If your 12th record sounds like an embellishment of you 11th record, you are not really pushing yourself as an artist anymore.
It’s been eight years since ‘Supervillain Outcast’ was released, and there was an eight year gap between ‘666 International’ and that record as well. Why does it take so long to make a Dødheimsgard record?
Cycles of eight…interesting concept. Just kidding! It was never supposed to be an eight year gap, not in 1999 and neither in 2007. I guess that’s just how it all just played out due to circumstances. Another aspect was also finding the right musical footing. Of course I could have made ‘Supervillain’ part two ages ago, but I never had the desire to do so. When you don't depend on the niche aspects of your genre, it can take a lot of time defining your ambition. You know in any established niche you get a lot for free if that’s what you want; the musical and lyrical content, the form, the look etc, its all a given. When ignoring this box of tools, you sort of have to build your album from ground zero, which, I am sorry to say, takes a lot of time.
Yet again ‘A Umbra Omega’ seems to be incorporating a wide variety of influences into the Dødheimsgard sound, from electronica and jazz to classical and progressive rock. Were there any particular artists or musical approaches that had an especially significant influence on the making of this new album?
No, not really. I listened to a lot of classical music, but that was more pertaining to structure than musical content. Classical music has sometimes a more narrative way of presenting music, which means it doesn't rely so much on repetition. Oddly enough, I did not focus on any other artists whilst making this album, but instead on feeling. It was paramount to me that all the themes had the right feeling. I threw a lot of good themes in the garbage bin, just because of lacking this specific quality. The feeling was very important in relation to create a synergy to the all the other parts making up this album.
Can you tell me a little about the writing process for this album? How did you go about putting together lengthy, complicated, multi-section tracks like ‘Aphelion Void’ or ‘Blue Moon Duel’, for example?
I guess I approached more like a narrative in a short story. The songs have a beginning and a body, and that slowly works itself to an ending or crescendo. It’s just another way of thinking about musical rendition. One has to remember that the reason for us to be inclined to decipher conventional song structures is that we are programmed to do so.
Music itself never appeared out of nowhere and said: "From now on, my form is going to be grounded on a repetition based formula". Too much convention detracts from real artistry; therefore one should always be mindful about what you apply and what you bend in relation to rendering your own personal signature. It just feels a lot more honest that way, than to reach into the bag of tricks and just establishing your sound on already existing building blocks. That’s not to say that I will always make albums like this. Who knows what’s in store for you around the, eight year, corner…
Was Aldrahn’s return to the band a crucial part of the creative genesis of this album?
Not musically, no. The album was already made and pretty much recorded on his return. His vocals have a big place on the album though, so regardless of what he contributed musically, he is still a big part of the sonic experience on ‘A Umbra Omega’. I also think he did a good job on tuning into the right frequencies in his vocal renditions, it could have become so wrong, if it was done by a vocalist that didn't understand the album's intent.
I feel like this album is very different from ‘666 International’ and ‘Supervillain Outcast’ which, although different, I feel are two quite closely related albums in some ways. There seems to be a lot less focus on electronics here, or at least they are used more subtly. Was that a conscious decision?
Yes, I am not saying it is, but for me at least, the electronic bag, feels a bit dated, maybe because I started using it as a condiment such a long time ago. I also feel that “static” sound is not the best way of conveying melancholic atmosphere, because of the machinelike qualities. I am not saying it can’t be done, I am just saying that natural instruments do this more successfully. I also wanted a lot of ambience for this album, something the listener could drown his emotion into, so it was very important that most instruments present were recorded in a real space and not an emulated one.
There’s a lot to take in when listening to ‘A Umbra Omega’ but one other things I’m really intrigued about is the artwork, which is very striking and rather beautiful I think. Is there any story behind it?
The artwork is of course meant to be evocative, so you feeling its desolate beauty is not by accident. The clean, straight line-dominated approach is a contrast to the apparently chaotic musical structures on one hand, and on the other the artwork and the music correlate in the sense that they emit the same atmosphere. Furthermore, the most colourful point of the artwork shows that there is something within here that just isn't in tune with your conventional mental conceptions. In the synergy of all parts pertaining to this album, we are trying to reach something hidden deep within the human spirit, something that we all have, but is different pertaining to the individual. Therefore the mental journey represented on this album, at some point stops being the sources journey, and slowly shifts into to becoming the listener’s own personal exploration.
What’s the meaning behind the album title?
It means "the shadow omega". Symbolically speaking "Umbra" can mean darkness and "Omega" can mean end/completion/perfection etc. Thus the title means "From the perfect darkness".
Is there any conceptual or coherent lyrical theme behind the album as a whole?
Not coherent, no. As the music has no logical structure, the lyrics have no chronological timeline either. There are very few physical aspects to the lyrics. It’s a mental rendition from a very dark place from a narrator that is going through a transformation. In the course of this transformation, the narrator jumps between the present and the past without giving any notice or reasons for it. Imagine being trapped in space and time, what would your thoughts be?
Would the physical aspects of the time you were born into even matter? How would it change you, if you had no contact outside your own mind? Would jealousy matter? Would all the foolish stuff we seem inclined to doing here on earth matter? What would it say about your own identity? Since all the external notions you based your identity on are now gone. I am not saying this are specifically what the lyrics are about, but these are the tools you need to sort of understand the lyrical framing.
Dødheimsgard originated out of the second wave Norwegian black metal scene. Do you still see the band as a part of that scene?
Yes, how can we not be? Historically our ties with the scene go very deep. I will say that the modern era of black metal is a milieu, and not really a scene in the sense that it was in the past.
More bands within the loose world of black metal seem interested in incorporating experimental and avant-garde ideas into their music, the likes of Liturgy and Sigh for example. Why do you think that is?
The desire to create, I guess. Sigh has been experimenting for years, so that probably just part of their nature. Other than that, I don't really feel comfortable speaking on the behalf of these other bands. You know the avant-garde approach to metal does not by default have a lot in common. It just means that all of us shun the conventional. Outside convention there is really an endless space of possibilities.
How do you feel about the early Dødheimsgard records looking back now?
I am proud of every single one of them. They all paint a true picture of who we were at the time, and in many ways, still are today.
Musically, I feel Norway is one of the most productive nations in terms of experimental and extreme music. There seems to be a huge number of creative artists, especially in the fields of jazz and metal, in the country. As one of the most uncompromising artists in this array of talent, can you speculate on what is behind that?
We don't have a viable commercial market, which means that even the biggest acts from Norway are very small if you compare them to international acts. I guess that is one of the aspects that continues to keep Norwegian music quite honest. Our climate is paramount to some and others just have too much time on their hands due to living in a country where you can easily avoid working. I don't think it has something to do with "Norwegians" in particular, but rather a set of circumstances that enables it to be this way. You know, it’s hard to be creative when you starving, or a bomb just demolished your house. It is a luxury that shouldn't be taken for granted. We have all this time and space to observe and to make art, so we had better make it worthwhile.
‘A Umbra Omega’ is out now via Peaceville Records.
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