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Hello Andreas, how are you doing at the moment? De Arma's new EP "Nightcall" will be released soon. Tell me something about it, what I immediately notice is the emphasis on gothic rock, the metal parts have disappeared completely. Was that a natural process or were the metal parts supposed to disappear deliberately?
Hi – all good here, thanks. I'd say that "Nightcall" is the result of a natural process, during which we manifested music of a kind we've wanted to play for many years now. After our 2013 debut album "Lost, Alien & Forlorn" we started toying with the idea of writing songs which were more synth-driven, thereby making metal a smaller part of the totality. I think I can say with some confidence that the "Nightcall" EP reflects this approach. Since both of our albums were written in close succession, it feels great to now release music which is fully representative of De Arma of today.
My personal favorite on "Nightcall" is the third track "Sunset dreams", which features great synth elements and female vocals. This track as a conclusion also contains less darkness and exudes something like hope, after the darkness dominated before. Was this track deliberately placed at the end in its orientation?
Good to hear you liked it. This piece is a bit different from the remaining two, but I believe that comes down to it having a slightly different arrangement. Actually, I'd like to think that there’s is some kind of hope present in all our songs. However, considering the general atmosphere of the three "Nightcall"- tracks, I suppose I can see what you mean. In some ways, "Sunset Dreams" is about solid friendships in moments where the beauty of the natural world meets its man-made equivalent.
De Arma is mostly cold, urban music for me. Dark streets, alcohol, maybe the feeling of self-alienation, the cover of "Nightcall" captures that well. Armagedda was also cold music for me, even if it was quite different, of course, things like Lönndom are almost emotionally opposite. How do you classify De Arma in your work, the aspect "nature" doesn't play any role with De Arma.
De Arma could absolutely be regarded as a reflection of the aspects you mention. But for me, the drive to create such atmospheres through music stems from something festering deep inside of me – difficult life experiences, for example. In many ways, De Arma has grown into a kind of vessel through which we process challenges we’ve faced during our time on this earth. Depending on what kind of hardships one undergoes, trying to navigate mortal life can often be problematic and difficult – especially in terms of emotions.
To give you a straight answer to your question, I'd say that De Arma is about the simple but oh-so-complicated life. Of course, “life” is a broad term, so we can narrow it down into the mundane, everyday existence: no hocus pocus, religion, and so forth.
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"Diverging arts needs different vehicles."
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"Nightcall" is now released on Silent Future Recordings, a partner label of Nordvis. What was the reason to do this yourself, the two previous releases were released by the German label Trollmusic.
Silent Future is a medium that I’ve been planning and working on for quite a while. The reason being that I’ve long been interested in working with quality music that doesn’t fit into the Nordvis framework. I wanted a conduit where the boundaries are more flexible and the possibilities greater. The path of Nordvis is already staked out; its underlying vision has been clear for well over a decade. Nordvis must remain Nordvis, so diverging arts needs different vehicles.
For many years, our plan was to make Silent Future the home of De Arma as soon as we’d fulfilled our contract with Trollmusic/SPKR – which is now the case.
I haven't found anything directly on the internet, so here's the question: have there been any live performances by De Arma, are there any planned, or do you think the type of music isn't particularly suited to live situations?
I think De Arma would work very well live, but there are a lot of logistical challenges to overcome for this to happen. Our living situation – with vast distances to everything – is not exactly ideal for heading out on the road. Then, of course, a general lack of time is another aspect, since I’m a small business owner. It all comes down to priorities, and live activity is simply not something we prioritise at this stage.
Do you still live so far out in the wilderness and run Nordvis from there? And to come back to the connection to nature as a unifying element of the Nordvis artists: how do you judge the political situation regarding climate change, what do you think about groups such as Extinction Rebellion? In general, I think that environmental and climate protection are not that relevant for many people because they have no connection to nature and prefer to spend their free time in a crowded shopping mall instead of in the forest (that a broken environment takes revenge on a completely different, more comprehensive level than just broken trees is another matter). Here in Germany, many people have indeed discovered hiking as a hobby due to a lack of alternatives through Corona; the question is, of course, how sustainable such interests are. Your thoughts on this?
Yes, I live on the same remote property I’ve spent the past eight years on. I’ll leave the politicking to those who are qualified. As long as the world's biggest nations make no relevant changes, it doesn’t really matter what small countries do.
I see no value in commenting on the living situations of others. The same goes for their connection, or lack thereof, with nature. However, I do think it's important to maintain a strong connection with – and if not, at least an interest in – mother nature if one wants to understand the changes she undergoes and gain insight into how one can live in harmony with her. When everything comes around, we are but insignificant particles in comparison. But unless humanity changes its ways, our transgressions on the natural world will undoubtedly be the end of us. Assuming it’s not too late already.
Perhaps spending more time in nature has become a trend among urbanites as a result of the pandemic? What do I know? Mankind has an obvious tendency to blindly follow the herd. As for the organisation you mention, I’m not aware of them. My belief is that the decisions made by lone individuals are more important than contrived half-measures performed in group settings.
In an older interview with you I read that you wanted to lay Armaggeda to rest because you had changed a lot as a person, now in 2020 the very strong Armagedda album "Svindeljup Ättestup" appeared out of nowhere. What was the reason for that? And will there be another Armagedda album?
My intentions and desires were always to let Armagedda remain buried and forgotten; for my own sake, as well as that of man in general. There are powers beyond this mortal life which are stronger than one’s own will – therefore, certain events will come to pass whether you want them to or not. That said, the goal is of course to not produce any more such work.
What are your future plans, hopes and wishes for De Arma? The last words belong to you...
Thanks for your time – we will let our music do the rest of the talking.
