INTERVIEW NEKROMANTHEON

Recently I got to know that Nekromantheon release a new album. I like the two predecessors very much, I hereby recommend them again to every lover of thrash metal. The new album "Visions of Trismegistos" takes it up a notch - the band from Kolbotn, Norway never sounded so intense and dark! My questions were answered by Sindre, responsible for bass and backing vocals.

Hey, how are you? What is the situation with the Corona pandemic in Norway at the moment? Has Norway been hit hard, has the economy suffered a lot and have there been harsh cuts in public life such as temporary bans on going out at a certain time or meeting a certain number of people? Here in Germany, the issue has been very politically charged and has also unfortunately divided society somewhat, how is it with you?

Hi. Doing okay. The situation is fucked up, we have been in lockdown for six months, and it’s the second lockdown. The economic situation is terrible, especially for regular people and small businesses who have been affected by the lockdown. I work in the restaurant / bar industry, that have just been thrown overboard by the government. Everything was closed except pharmacies, food-stores etc.  Thanks for nothing. For a long time you were only allowed to have two guests also, but that has chilled out a bit. Looks like we are heading to open up soon, as numbers are much better, and more people are getting vaccinated. Oslo has been hit hardest by the restrictions, which is where I live.  

Congratulations on the new strong album "Visions of Trismegistos". Why did it take nine years to release the new album? How has the new album been received by fans and press so far? It also marks the change from High Roller Records to Indie Recordings. What was the reason for the change, what do you hope for from Indie Recordings ?

Thank you. Why not? Quality over quantity any day. Truth is that is we are not good at being creative when we play a lot live, which we did the years following "Rise Vulcan Spectre", and we were busy with other bands, projects and life in general. And we have not forced it, we’ve let the visions come to us. So far the feedback has been really fucking good, which we appreciate. Glad that when we use nine years, it gets recognised, haha. It doesn't mark a change, Indie Recordings released "Rise Vulcan Spectre" and High Roller did a USA liscense. We had a license deal with High Roller for our first album on LP, "Divinity of death", and later it was a collaboration between Duplicate Records and High Roller. So we haven’t really been on High Roller Records for ten years.

Where do you see the differences between the new album and its predecessors? I think the new album is somehow more mature, but still not less brutal and sounds sometimes really evil. I often find the best moments are those where you take the tempo out, slow it down or vary it. And when I listen to it, I have to think of Slayer and Sadus much more often, with the predecessors, if I had to name influences or references, I would have rather named old Sepultura and Destruction. Is that understandable for you?

I get what you say, yeah. I think also its more mature, darker and more mystic. I also think the song structures are much more worked through (had to use those nine years for something), and are more dynamic. We have focused less on inspiration sources etc, so I think the record has a more personal vibe than before.

Your lyrics are influenced by Greek mythology. What does the album title mean, who or what does Trismegistos refer to?

Among other things, but the base is out of Greek Mythology and other lost wisdoms, myths and traditions. Hermes Trismegistos, the father of Wisdom, is a mix/ of the Greek god Hermes and Egyptian god Thoth. Hermitism and parts of Gnostic tradition arouse from him, his alleged writings, and teachings. The title, or the title track refers to his visions and discoveries dabbling in esotericism and alchemy.

What can you say about the really great cover artwork in terms of idea and design? With everything that's "lying around" there, I also have associations with cover artworks like "Reign in blood" ,"South of heaven", “Seasons in the Abyss“ or “Christ Illusion“.

We got our friend Zbigniew Bielak to do the cover, it was something we had plotted to do a long time ago. The idea was first to make a Doré-esqe Dantes Inferno universe suited our lyrics etc, but as the music and lyrics took form, we wanted something more absurd, so the final thoughts were something inspired by the lyrics, with symbols, formulares, blood and death, Hieronymus Bosch-esqe weirdness done in a classic Doré way, with a heavy dose of Larry Carrol inspiration as well. He did those classical Slayer covers. The composition is somewhat in that vain, just chaos everywhere.

I saw on your Facebook page that you were interviewed by Norway's biggest daily newspaper. Since I don't speak Norwegian, I can't read it. What was it about ? Normally such an interview takes place on a completely different basis than when you talk to the metal press. Is extreme metal now considered a general cultural asset in Norway? And if so, is this also a consequence of the worldwide popularity of Norwegian black metal, which was first feared and then seen as an "export hit"? How was the "Lords of chaos" film received in Norway, was that a big topic and did some things boil up again?

Nope, they did a review of the record and gave it six out of  six points. Several huge newspapers have reviewed the record. Norwegian metal has somewhat of a position, and it’s being recognised in the media here. It’s exotic and interesting that there are so many successful Norwegian bands, even though the population, not to mention the scene is small. I guess you can call it a cultural asset. Norway also have a great jazz, electronica and prog scene, which are also great cultural assets.

Concerning the movie: haha, no. No,no, nope. That movie was not a hit and did not by any means make black metal big. It was bigger before and will continue to be big. The movie was a shitty Hollywood flop, and it was fast forgotten. I know one who really wanted to stop the movie due to his involvements in the early 90s,  he had a lawyer etc. on the case. He didn’t get anywhere, and in the end he said “ very few mentioned it except a few tabloid articles”. It went away faster than it came. The music will live forever.

When you think about the bands Nekromantheon were consciously or unconsciously influenced by, would there be one band that all band members would agree on as the strongest influence?

It’s probably Slayer. But it’s big mashup of a lot of influences, in many, many genres.

Two of you also play in the death metal band Obliteration. Are there priorities, which band is more important and are there sometimes time problems?

Of course you have to prioritize, we were hoping it would go in waves, but sometimes it’s not as easy. Arild and I have prioritized Obliteration in the past, now we have focused more on Nekromantheon. Both are equally important.

Does the “Kolbotn Thrashers Union“ still exist? And was or is this only a name for bands from Kolbotn or who originally came from Kolbotn or was this already a kind of union in which mutual support was focussed?

It’s just a phrase Fenriz came up with, and Arild in Nekro got the idea of a logo. It only included bands from Kolbotn, who were connected with Kolbotn or bands with members from Kolbotn. I guess it was in total six or seven bands or so, haha.

Let's move on to the most prominent band with a Kolbotn connection: Darkthrone. Have you been able to listen to the forthcoming new album "Eternal Hails"? And how do you see the rather varied discography of Darkthrone?

Due to Covid, I have not. But Olav, our live guitarist (also from the mighty Infernö), have. He liked it. They actually went in the same studio as we were because we recorded there, haha. I love Darkthrone, the best band to come out of Norway ever. 

What does the future hold for Nekromantheon? What are the next steps? Do you have some kind of "career planning" or do you let everything come to you in a relaxed way?

We take it as it comes, we are not a professional band à la“ working in the business”. When its allowed we will play live again, and it will be fun. And we are making more music, focusing on that now.

Can you name a few more thrash gems, especially lesser known stuff, maybe from Norway or even from your region?

From Norway : Audiopain, Infernö, Condor, Inculter, Evoke, the early Black Magic stuff. Sovereign also. Diskord, Beyond Man, Execration, One Tail One Head, Mare, Dødsengel, Katechon, Summon the Crows, Dishonourable Discharge, Askeregn, Knokkelklang… Good stuff from Norway, not just thrash metal.

Gobally I recommend Morbid Saint, the demo of Obliveon, the demo of Fantom Warior from New Jersey, Poison from Germany, Corrupt (pre-Enforcer, good thrash), Obscurity from Sweden, Antichrist from Sweden. Vomitor is among my favourite new bands, check them out if you haven’t yet.

I always find it interesting how people see or feel about foreign countries. Three terms that you spontaneously associate with Germany? And will you come back to Germany for gigs or even a tour, if hopefully the Corona situation improves a lot?

I love Berlin, such a cool city. I associate Germany with Kraut Rock ( Can, Amon Düül II, Faust, Neu etc..), a dark style of thrash metal, Drowned - Viscera terræ which is the best release from Germany ever, quite meaty and not great food, cold beer. And I really like some German Spätburgunder, plus good Rieslings.

Yes, we will return as soon its allowed. Always cool to play in Germany, hope to play Chaos Descends, one of my favourite festivals.

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