1. Hello my friends, a Big salute from Southamerica, how the things are going in your hometown Östersund?
Kvasth: Hello, thanks. Things are going well, and the spring is on its way, after almost 6 months in darkness, so life is great.
2. Firstly, please tell us how was the energy that inspired you to become formative in Eldfaerd different from other energies you had felt?
Kvasth: I think the feeling is the same when you start a band. You start it to have fun and then you starting to feel more for the band and then you feel that this is the thing, and you start to plan for world domination hehe.
3. Let´s talk about younger ages, when did you first get into music, and what are your memories of what attracted you to it? Also, when did you first hear metal and what did you like about it?
Kvasth: I think the first time I heard heavy metal/rock it was when I was 6 years old and I was given some tapes and vinyl’s from my older sister with KISS, and I loved it. When I was like 11 or 12, I became a huge fan of AC/DC and started to wear jeans jacket with backpatch and such. In the late 80ies I also discovered more heavier bands like Napalm Death, Metallica, and Megadeth. I liked the aggressiveness and heavy drums and guitars; it was so many emotions in the music. But it wasn´t until early 90ies and later I started to play in a band, and I started out in various pun bands. I needed to get out some teenage frustration and anger. In the beginning of 2000, I picked up the guitar and started a black metal band with a friend, and the band became a solo project after a year. I then released one song under the name Vittra.
4. Your first EP “Skymningsland” was released a couple of months ago, so it might be the right time to make conclusions... Are you still satisfied with the whole record? What was the most surprising about the welcoming of this release?
Kvasth: Overall we are very satisfied, it was a DIY record and very hard work, and many hours were put in it. We all felt that the songs and the record were good. All our songs are in our native language Swedish, so it was a bit of a surprise it was so welcomed lyric wise. We have got many great reviews for the record, and we really appreciate that, and we feel that we are on the right track.
5. How do you conceive of a song: do you start with a riff, an abstract idea, an emotion, or a structure?
Kvasth: Often when I write songs I mainly come up with a riff or a melody and then usually it feels natural for the parts around it. So mainly the big parts in a song, the verse and chorus usually come naturally, but it takes time to build the song as you imagine it in your head. It can take time for me, because I need to feel something for the riffs and melodies in a song and I don´t stop until I got goosebumps. Emotions in the music are an important thing for me. Sometimes I come up with a melody in the shower or when I try to sleep and then you work from that.
6. Your music sounds complex, and every structure flows quite well after another, so I guess it took quite some time to build everything! Tell us more about it!
Kvasth: It´s mainly me and Erik who writes the music, and we usually have written song at home and then we present it for the rest of the band. For me it takes time until everything is in place in a song, all the small details is important to me, even if the listener can´t hear it, the details are very important to me and creates certain emotions and feelings. The vocal arrangements take time and I need to try many different variations until I´m satisfied. And of course, the lyrics, we try to create sagas and write small stories that fits the music, so that takes time.
7. The sound of Eldfaerd is very appropriate to the fans of Nordic mythology and Scandinavian weather. If there is one thing you want to come across to the listener when listening to Eldfaerd what is it and why?
Kvasth: I want the listener to just enjoy the adventures and sagas we write and maybe starting to raise an interest in Nordic folklores and mythology, that would be fun. We need to care about our legacy and folklore.
8. Do you follow a certain aesthetic in the way you dress for the band? What does the band mean to you?
Kvasth: Yes, we try to dress like we are a part of the music, we don´t dressed historical correct or something like that, but we want the feel and look from the Viking and Medieval age. For me the band means to have fun and create interesting songs and get on an adventure that´s different from ordinary life.
9. You´ll have your first show ever the 14th of May. The show will be together with the German band Ancst and also Dödsdansen. What's the spirit in the band about this?
Kvasth: We are so eager to play the show, we are planning on giving an awesome show with Vikings and such. A show with Eldfaerd shall be something special and unique. We will also play a couple of new songs. It will be so much fun.
10. How much time do you spend on the band both physically but also mentally each day? Is it worth all the time and effort in the end?
Kvasth: For me Eldfaerd is in my head every day and there is always something to do with the band. Timewise I don´t know, probably to much hehe, but I think it´s totally worth it, because it so fun and hopefully we will get a reward in the end and have shows on the big stages.
11. Give me 5 bands you would love to open up for, live, and why?
Amon Amarth, Insomnium, Månegarm, Heilung and Amorphis, all this bands would be awesome to open up for live, because they are great bands and especially Amon Amarth, Heilung and Månegarm have similar themes as Eldfaerd, so I think their fans would love our music.
12. What do you think is the major difference between first-wave Norwegian black metal and the current crop of worldwide "BM"?
Kvasth: The biggest difference is that nowadays black metal has evolved, and it has broken out in many branches and many different genres within black metal. Of course, there are still bands that sounds like the true Norwegian black metal, but there are so many variants and styles nowadays and I like that. I love black metal, I think it´s in my veins and I listen to everything as long it has that certain feeling and vibe in it, I need to feel something for it.
13. Now that you all are older and more mature, how do you feel you have developed as musicians and do you think you look at music a little differently now that you're older?
Kvasth: For me the biggest thing is that I´m more open to things and I have more patience, and that implies outside the music too. Of course, that has an impact on my music, and I think I can write more interesting music nowadays with more layers, and that comes with experience too.
14. Please tell us what are the bands to keep an eye on in the Swedish underground at the moment. Do you feel a strong connection between the ug bands in Sweden, or is it more like everybody following its own way?
I don´t know so much about the Swedish underground anymore. In my older days I tend to stick to what I already like and know about, I´m maybe lazier now, I don´t know hehe. I´m not that into Swedish music either and I tend to look east to Finland, there I can find many great bands.
I think the underground bands in Sweden following its own ways, of course bands that know each other or have some sorts of connections support each other, but I think in general there is not a good connection between bands. But I can only talk for the bands around here in the north of Sweden, it can be different in the south.
15. Thanks for taking the time out for this and all the best for the future!
Kvasth: Thank you. I wish you and all the people reading this the best for the future. Cheers!
Comments