Interview with Kristoffer Oustad of V:28 2005

By Bradley Smith

The new album seems to have a more focused musical vision.  Also the industrial elements seem to be more numerous and stand out better this time around.  Can you explain how you approached writing and constructing SoulSaviour?

Writing the “SoulSaviour” album has been a long process with a lot of hard work and tons of thinking. After we recorded the “NonAnthropogenic” album I learned a few tricks that I helped me understand what sounds good and what I should try to avoid. This being most electronic and programmed stuff, as LRZ who produced both albums is a genius with that stuff. I also bought enough equipment for us to record the album ourselves this time, and I guess that has affected the outcome quite a bit. We used 2 months on the recording this time, and the first album was recorded in just a couple of days. So obviously we’ve had much more time to try out different stuff, especially the electronic stuff. I’ve also gotten more into industrial music over the years, and I guess that shows in my music.  When I make music I basically compose the basic stuff on guitar, and then I start to work with the programming part. Things often change many times during this process, and that’s why I’m so glad I have the opportunity to make use of a studio that doesn’t charge anything at all, hehe!

I am not sure I grasp the album cover’s meaning.  What is the concept behind the “sexy nurse?”   How does that fit into your overall artistic message?  Where did you come across the model you used?

Well, first of all I think the cover is pure genius! There are many ways to interpret the cover, but one of the meanings behind that nurse is that she’s a symbol of hope and salvation, therefore the title “SoulSaviour... providing a bright future...”. In times of war and despair people need something believe in, and something to look forward to. This can be both religious and materialistic. I guess many people don’t get the point of the cover, but there’s been a lot of work and thought put into it, and I think it fits the concept quite well. We didn’t want to do a standard apocalyptic end of the world cover, as at the moment the scene is drowning in cheesy warlike album covers.

The model is a professional model here in Norway, and I got in touch with her via the photographer. I think the pictures turned out great, and they have a bit of that fifties and sixties pin-up look, which was our goal all the way. And when we’re first talking about those days, take a look at those old military vehicles and planes, and you’ll see that most of them have a pin-up of some sort on them... something for the soldiers to live for.

I guess I get the concept now.  Would you prefer that message to be pretty obvious or that it requires some explanation? 

I think some of the messages should be pretty obvious, so that the listener gets an idea of the concept we’re working with. However I don’t think its necessary to reveal all of its content. We prefer when people make up their own mind about how the world came to an end, because I think that’s way more effectful than us describing it all to them.

Vendlus Records seems to have gone all out by their standards for your new album.  They must really believe in you.  How does that make you feel?  I heard they even hired a manager to help with your promotion.

Yeah, I’m extremely happy with the work Vendlus has done for V:28, and it seems like Joseph (the Chief Executive Officer of Vendlus Records) really like the work we’ve done! This is why I’m so happy why we chose to go for Vendlus, and not some bigger label with tons of bands, even though that has its advantages too. On Vendlus I know that we’re getting the attention we deserve, and now that Vendlus got Earsplit PR to help us out to promote our music, I really see things start to happen.

With the wider publicity you have been receiving for SoulSaviour I have noticed a lot more reviews for your album in more mainstream metal mags.  How has the response been?  Do you feel you are reaching out to a larger audience now?

So far the response has been very positive, and yeah, like you say we’ve got a lot more reviews in bigger metal magazines. We’ve also noticed a much higher interest from both fans and the press this time, and the interviews keep coming in! I think hiring Earsplit PR was a very smart move from Vendlus, so now he can focus more on label stuff, and leave much of the promotion to them. This results in more publicity, and I guess we’re reaching to a much larger audience this time.

I notice there are 9 songs on Soulsavior.  This is a continuance of the concept for 28 songs.  So I take it that the next album will have 9 songs?  And what will happen after that? 

Yeah, you got that right mister! The third and final albumin the concept about the destruction and transformation of the planet Earth will have 9 tracks, track 20 to 28. What happens after the third album isn’t settles yet, as we don’t like to think that far into the future. We’ll see how things are then, but I guess there will be another year and a half or so before the third album is out, and much can happen in that time space...

One thing that amazes me about you guys is your great use of samples.  How do you find samples so appropriate to your music?  And where did you get the sample you use during the song deConstructor?

Thanks! I think the use of samples can really give a great result, but one has to be careful what samples to use, and try to incorporate them into the music and theme of the tracks. As for the samples we’ve used on the “SoulSaviour” album I’ve found them at different places... some are excerpts of documentaries and some are from films. When I see a film and hear some dialogue or monologue that could fit into the concept of V:28, I make a sample of it. But I’m aware that many bands do the same things, so I try to avoid using the most obvious sample sources, and rather find more obscure stuff. It would be a bit comic with a V:28 track featuring Ben Affleck, right? Hehe!

As for the song “deConstructor” the opening sample is from some old computer game which I cannot remember the name of at the moment, and the samples in the middle of the track is taken form the most genius doomsday film ever, namely “Dr. Strangelove – Or: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love The Bomb”, a film that is highly recommended!

There were a lot of guest appearances this time around with members of Deutsch Nepal, When, and Raison D’Etre making contributions. Can you tell me how some of them came about and what sort of impact they had on your musical output?

Like on the first album there’s also some guest appearances this time. I think it’s a great way to work, and for me it’s inspiring to work with other people that can affect the output. I’m a huge fan of the Swedish industrial and dark ambient scene, so this time I asked Deutsch Nepal if he could help us out with the intro. I’ve been in contact with him a couple of years, and I never stop being amazed by the things he releases. The intro turned out way different than I expected, but that’s what makes it so exciting with this kind of collaboration. Lars Pedersen of When used to spend the summer in Arendal, where we live. He was involved in another “one time concert project” that Atle and I were involved in as well, so we did some rehearsals in our rehearsal room. I presented the “Dead Men’s Choir” track to him, and we both agreed it could use some more organic percussion, and he offered to help us out. Raison D’Être also helped out on that track with the outro part. I made the opening part and send it to him, and he composed the last part. I really think the output of all the guest appearances turned out better that expected, also the clean vocals by Kim W. Isaksen on the track “Solid Structure Unknown”.

Speaking of “contributions,” that is a crazy picture on your website.  Does GGFH really like V:28?  Heh heh.

Yeah, I got in touch with Ghost of GGFH some time ago and I told him I played in an industrial death metal band. He was eager to hear it, so finally he got his hands on the albums and he said he really liked it, which is extremely cool, as GGFH is a band that had had a great impact on me. That picture on the V:28 website (www.v28.com) is priceless so to speak!

Now that one of your heroes has come forward claiming he likes your album how does that make you feel?  Have any more of your idols said they like your albums too?

I consider it a big honour to get that kind of feedback from people like that. People like Ghost has been in the underground scene for many years, and I guess he’s heard tons of albums over the years, so it’s cool that he seems to like our stuff. The all over feedback has been tremendous so far, from other artists, fans and the press. I also have a lot of contacts in the industrial/dark ambient scene, and they seem to enjoy what we’re doing as well… Bands like MZ.412, Beyond Sensory Experience, Negru Voda, Raison D’Être etc. 

I know you guys have played several live shows in between the release of your last album and today?  How have those concerts gone?  Which one stands out the most in your mind?

I think our concerts have gone quite well. Of course there are some people that cannot stand the fact that we use a drum machine, but I guess our music doesn’t appeal to them anyway... Over the years we’ve become much better performers, and now we handle the live situation way better than we did in the beginning. Of the gigs we’ve done so far I think the one at the Mölla Festival 2004 and the “SoulSaviour” release concert in our hometown, Arendal, May 2005 stand out as the best. The feedback from the audience at these concerts was just over the top amazing, which naturally gives us an extra kick!

One thing that I really enjoy about V:28 is that I can sit there in the dark and listen to the music and those deep-space epic riffs and it conjures Cyclopean landscapes on distant planets and drifting vessels in the void.  What images do you see while listening to your own music?

Thanks! That’s a very cool “picture” you describe there! I myself think of desolate places such as the Chernobyl sites and similar abandoned places. I also see fragments of battlefields and the expression on peoples’ face, both soldiers and their next to kin, as they prepare for the war, with the knowledge of a total loss. At the same time I get a kind of the same feeling as you mention, due to all the eerie cold and dark atmospheres.

I know last time we talked a bit about the human need to understand the universe and I was wondering what sorts of personal revelations you have had since that time.  What is your perspective on the human condition?

Hehe! I cannot say I’ve had any huge personal revelations since then, but I’m still fascinated, yet almost scared, of the human need to understand the universe. At the same time I think knowledge is a great weapon for fighting superstition and religious propaganda. Stuff like that is what fucks up people and lead to war and misery... I guess everyone has seen what this conflict has resulted in the last years. Still human are predators, so it might be our instinct to fight? Anyway, the conflicts don’t seem to decrease over the years either, so I guess conflicts of interest will always be around as long as we’re around...

I know you spent some time in the army based on our last interview.  With me being in the military as well I was wondering how it affected your view of the world and what it was like being in the Norwegian military. What branch were you in?

Being almost a year in the Norwegian army isn’t the most exciting way to spend a year of ones life, but I learned quite a few things. I think many people need to spend some time away from their daily life to get a bigger perspective of things, not necessarily the army, but in some public entity... I was in the heavy weapons company, and we had Mortars as our main weapon. What was kind of funny to see when I was in the army was that the officers seemed to have a pretty different view of reality from most “common” people. Their behaviour was almost kind of paranoic whenever something happened out in the big world! But the again, I guess that’s their job... to always be ready to go to war, hehe!

How would you have felt if you had to go to war?  I know Norway has some troops in Afghanistan and you could have ended up there. 

Wow, that’s a tough one! I’m not sure how I would feel in that kind of situation. I guess it would depend a lot on whether or not I believed in the cause of the war. I think it’s important to try out all other options before going to war. One thing is the war in itself, but all the aftermaths are also a frightening thing. In Iraq there seems to be more soldiers being killed now than during the fights. Like you say, Norway has some troops in Afghanistan, but I think most of them are there for peaceful purposes…

Any last comments before the coming apocalypse?

Again, thanks for the interview and the interest in V:28! I really hope people take some time to check out our stuff, as I think it will appeal to a lot of people in the metal scene. For further info and samples, check out www.v28.com and www.vendlus.com. Beware the rising army of the apocalypse!