Interview with Tchort of Carpathian Forest 2005

By Bradley Smith

I can’t tell you how excited I am.  It seems we will be treated to a new Carpathian Forest album this year.  I hear it is titled “Fuck You all!”  Why such a blatant in your face title?  Where in the recording process are you guys?

The working title is Fuck you all!!!! And it came as a result of the band situation a couple of years ago, when it was decided that this would be our last album as CF. But things have change during the course and I am not sure about the album title as of today, but I`ll leave that to Nattefrost pure and angelic fantasy… We are recording the vocals right now, so that leaves only solos and mix when Nattefrost is done. The album will be out early 2006, as Season of Mist don’t release albums after mid November.

With the new album how will it differ from Defending the Throne of Evil?  What new twists are you guys planning?  What are some of the song titles and how long will the album be?

I think what will be the most different from Defending, is that we are not gonna use any keyboards, not in the extent that we did on Defending any way. In many ways, I would compare the new album to Black Shining Leather, as the new material is a mixture of Black Thrash and Black Rock `n Roll.

Speaking of the new album I assume it is coming out on Season of Mist.  How do you feel about the relationship with them?  When are they planning to release the new album?

SOM seem to give high priority to CF, so that’s cool. That of course led to the Skjend Hans Lik album, that was originally not included in our contract with them. I think they will be releasing the new album in late January 2006.

The were rumours flying like crazy around Skjend Hans Lik’s release that you guys were breaking up and it was going to be your last release.  Was that true and what changed your minds?  I am extremely glad you guys didn’t break up.

No, we were thinking about splitting after doing the Fuck You All!!! Album. Skjend Hans Lik, was meant to be a release for the fans and to be sold for the price of an EP. I understand that someone down the chain decided to charge a full length price for it, and that was not the intention of the band.

I think a lot of people were expecting that with the departure of Nordavind that Carpathian Forest’s music was going to develop more in the punkish vein of Nattefrost’s solo project but were pleasantly surprised at the maturity of the compositions and the atmosphere that was incorporated in the songs.  What do you attribute this progression to?

I didn’t fear that, because he doesn’t need to his punk roots in two bands, I think he exploits his roots with Nattefrost and that leaves his other roots with CF. One of the reasons why we wanted to split up, was because Nattefrost felt CF turned into a solo project too, since no one contributed with music but him. Of course that is not entirely true since Vrangsinn wrote 2 songs for Defending. For the new album we all contributed a lot more.

When you compose riffs what kinds of images do you use to inspire your art?  Do you see your music as an artistic expression or as something else?

Since I haven’t written anything for CF in the past, I have to speak how I feel about writing music in general and I write what I want to listen to. Final.

Some people have said that Carpathian Forest, due to its focus on perversity, is becoming a joke of black metal but in my opinion it is one of the things that makes you guys so true to the ethics of black metal.  You are individuals.  What is your opinion on this?

Black Metal has become more clean than the sheets of a rich man’s hotel bed. Black metal is about provoking and being indivuals and if people feel that we are going a side road compared to the other bands and what is expected, then I am thrilled about that because we do what we want. It’s the art of Provocation! Fuck you all!!!

I saw you guys play live in London earlier this year.  That was a great show.  You guys have such stage presence and your playing is so tight.  One thing that strikes me though is that all the material you guys concentrate on is the faster simpler material.  Why not play some of the darker more complex and moodier material?

Most of the epic material was written by Nordavind and we decided not to perform his songs without him. I am picturing that there will a special event some day where he will join us on stage and we perform some of his CF material.

There seems to a small league of bands that are in the “Anti-Human, Anti-Life TNBM.”  Besides Carpathian Forest and Taake who else can advertise themselves as such?  And what exactly does this represent?

True Norwegian Black Metal is for the few, that’s right. Only a few selected bands will be offered to use this symbol. The future will tell who is worthy and who is not.

Speaking of relationships you seem to have a tight relationship with Darkthrone as you guys even dedicated one of your songs in your performance to them.  What sort of relationship do you guys have with them?  Why is the scene up there so close?

We performed an old school black metal song to the honor of Darkthrone and Nordavind, as contributors to the grimm and cold black metal some bands in Norway still perform.

As one of the founders of the Norwegian scene along with the likes of Immortal, Burzum, Darkthrone, and Mayhem how do you feel about your legacy?  What unique contributions does Carpathian Forest bring to the table?

We are like the drunk Mexicans who come to ruin your college party. We are like a fist up a midget’s ass!!!! We like to stir things up a little.

Being as well known as you guys are within the Norwegian scene do people treat you like Rock Stars?  Do you ever use that kind of status to your advantage with the groupies and such?  I only ask a shallow question like this because I feel it fits with your band’s image.

I don’t hang out with other musicians or metal people at home, besides the band people I am involved with. People treat us like the assholes we are.

It seems that there is about an even split with the people I interview as to whether they follow world events.  It’s a brutal world and I was wondering do you pay attention at all to events in the world or do you basically ignore all things and focus on the images you your self construct?

Sure, just watch the video clip for Hymne to Døden, and you will see that we pay attention to the shit that is happening around in the world. We also like to use it for all its worth in our perversion.

I know you guys have used movie samples in your music such as the theme music to Nekromantik.  What movies do you guys like to watch?  I imagine Japanese bondage porn and b-grade horror movies.  Heh heh.  (Un)Seriously what movies are some of your favorites.

I think Nattefrost would be the right person to talk to about movies, since he got quite a collection of movies that most of us didn’t know existed even hahaha

Finally is there any lasting perversity you want to scar our fragile little minds with?

Open your mouth and suck for your life!!!