Fiende's Skaar discusses the band's unique blend of black metal, doom, and crust punk, their nihilistic themes, and what fans can expect from their debut EP, Snart er Alt Glemt.
1.
Fiende brings together elements of black metal, doom, and crust punk. What
inspired you to combine these genres, and how do they complement each other in
your music?
It kinda' just ended up that way, as doom and crust fill in the blanks that I
feel black metal doesn’t cover. Nothing conveys despair and crushing groove
like doom metal, just like nothing gives the finger like crust punk.
2. The
title of your debut EP, Snart er Alt Glemt, translates to
“everything will soon be forgotten.” What message or theme does this title
convey, and how is it reflected in the music and lyrics?
It plays on my nihilistic view on life. Not too long from now most of us will
be completely forgotten, and at some point the universe will collapse and
there’ll be no one left to remember anything, ultimately making everything
completely pointless. None of the lyrics directly references the title, but we
felt it was a fitting title given that two of the lyrics deal with psychology
while the other two has an apocalyptic theme.
3.
You’ve described the band name “Fiende,” meaning “enemy,” as a representation
of your disdain for collective society. Can you elaborate on how this concept
shapes your music and overall artistic vision?
Playing black metal at all is an outlet to me, especially an outlet for the
frustration I feel towards how collective society worships stupidity and in
some cases punishes individuality. The description plays largely on my mindset
when writing music.
4. The
EP was written during the pandemic. How did the circumstances of that time
period influence the writing and production of these songs?
I’d been playing with the idea of starting playing black metal again for
several years when in 2021 all the frustration about the pandemic boiled over
and the first three songs for the EP was written during a week.
5.
Norwegian black metal from the 90s plays a big role in your sound. How
does Fiende build on that legacy while also offering something new to
the genre?
While 90s black metal is the part of what I write that makes it black metal, I
think the fact that I don’t give myself any restrictions gives us a clear
identity. I come from playing prog metal for almost twenty years, so I’m used
to a different approach to making music than most black metal musicians.
6.
Tracks like Eldritch Fire and Ad Nekropolis have
intriguing titles. Could you tell us more about the themes and stories behind
these songs?
They’re the first two songs I wrote for the EP. Me and Jørgen, our old singer
who wrote most of the EP lyrics, are big fans of H.P. Lovecraft so we felt
using the word Eldritch was a good way to show off out interests as well as a
cool title for the song. It’s about eldritch horrors rising from the dead to
topple Christianity.
Ad Nekropolis translates to “towards the city of the dead” and is a highly
personal lyric by Jørgen about being visited by death and being given a tour of
the land of the dead.
7. With
members like Skaar and Audun, who have experience in bands like Vetrarnótt and
Carpathian Forest, what does each member bring to Fiende’s sound?
I, Skaar, write the music with guitars, bass and keys. Then I program drums
just to have something there when I show it to Audun. Then we sometimes make a
few small changes to the arrangement and Audun develops his drums.
8. Your
music is released through Hellstain Productions as a limited jewel case CD.
What role does physical media play in connecting with your audience, especially
in a genre like black metal?
I feel like extreme metal is among the few genres where physical formats never
entirely lost its appeal. Metal people have always bought LP’s and CD’s, and we
even managed to keep cassettes alive, so I really think physical formats are
important to the fans in a genre like this.
9.
Fiende’s music is for fans of bands like Urgehal and Darkthrone. How do you
feel about being compared to these iconic groups, and what
sets Fiende apart from them?
Darkthrone is one of my all time favourite bands, so of course it’s fun being
compared to them. But I had actually never heard Urgehal before the comparison
was a fact. But listening to them now I get why some might think we could be
reminiscent of each other. I think Fiende will stick out because we have a
different approach to black metal than Urgehal, and while our approach might
not differ that much from how Darkthrone is doing things these days, the fact
that they’re 15 years older than us plays a big part in keeping our styles
different from each other.
10. What
kind of journey or experience do you want listeners to have when they
hear Snart er Alt Glemt for the first time?
I hope they get kind of an old school “fuck off and die” feeling, like what I
get from Mayhem’s Deathcrush or Darkthrone’s Hate Them records. Still though,
Skrømt and Ad Nekropolis have a really different atmosphere and other than Ad
Nekropolis being slightly reminiscent of Ulver’s Bergtatt I think people will
have to make their own associations with these.
11.
Looking ahead, what can fans expect from Fiende in the future? Are
there plans for a full-length album or any upcoming live performances?
We already have more than enough material for a full length, and are currently
booking gigs for 2025, so stay tuned.
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