Interview with Mannevond of Koldbrann 2006

by Bradley Smith

Your new masterpiece is upon us in the form of Moribund.  I thought it was a very impressive album and that it seems you guys put a lot of time and effort into it.  Can you tell me how you feel about it now that the burden of its release is over?  How was the waiting for its release date?  Any sort of anticipation from you?
Thank you for the words of praise.  Naturally I am very pleased with the album myself as well, but actually I didn't quite know what to anticipate from the "audience". I knew it was a quality album, but it is hard to say how followers and new listeners will react.  "Moribund" is not so raw and primitive as "Nekrotisk Inkvisition", and maybe not so dark as the "Atomvinter" EP, but I think the songs, and the album in it self, is the strongest we have made.  We have improved on many fields and I feel we have succeeded in taking another step towards an own sound. The waiting for the release was luckily not so long.  Our goal was to have it out before summer, and even though it was recorded and mixed in March/April, and mastered in the beginning of May, it was out in June.  Thanks to the efficient Germans of Twilight Vertrieb.  So when the reviews and comments started coming in it was relieving to see it being received so well.  And I am glad you say it sounds like we have put a lot of time and effort into it, because we sure have, so it would have been a bit disappointing if no one except for us found it interesting, he he.

I have been noticing that the overall impression from the Underground has been really positive towards Moribund.  Have you noticed that trend?  How does that make you feel as an artist to have your work judged in such a favourable light?
Well, yes, we have registered a lot of positive feedback on "Moribund", and that is of course rewarding.  It seems like both old and new fanatics have taken a liking to this album, from people of the deepest underground to the more open-minded ones.  And one of the greatest compliments we have got must be the e-mail from Joakim of CRAFT (I totally worship their works!), stating we were one of the two best Black Metal bands in the world (!).  I don't think this favourable light does anything to us really, but as I've said; it is of course rewarding that people are so into our music, and it is an inspiration to keep on going through the trouble of recording more albums.

You guys had a celebratory Release party/concert for the birth of Moribund.   Can you tell us a little about it and how it all went down?
That's right, we had a release-concert at "Rock In" in Oslo in the end of June, with our comrades in VIDSYN (nor) and REGIN (nor) as support.  The attendance and the atmosphere among the crowd was very good I think, even though this was on a Sunday, but unfortunately we don't feel our concert, or actual playing I should say, was so great though.  It was obviously not the day of our drummer, I don't think I have ever heard him play so bad, so he ended the concert trashing his drum kit in anger...  But, I don't know how much of this the audience noticed, after all we were only playing new songs, and the album had not been released yet.  Never the less, we got a good response from some honest people out there, and most seemed to have enjoyed the concert very much anyway.

You guys have an upcoming tour of Europe.  How did that come together and how come you are not coming to the UK?  Heh heh.  Anyways, what do you feel Koldbrann offers with a live performance?
That's right, we will be doing a small European tour in October, with the German Black Metal band NEGATOR and our allies and label mates of the Norwegian Black Metal band SARKOM.  Unfortunately we will not come by the UK, only Germany, The Netherlands, Switzerland and Austria, and most likely also a mini-tour of the Balkans will be made right after.  But, there are plans of a bigger tour next year, so I hope we get the chance to do some inquisitions in the UK next time around.  Performing live has been important for us from the very beginning, both in terms of spreading the disease of KOLDBRANN and for our own personal outcome.  If the atmosphere and the settings are right it can truly be a special experience.  Some have characterized our songs and our performances as more raw and violent than on recordings, and I would agree on that.  I also think the songs come more to their right when performed live, that is if everything works as it should of course.  There are a lot of things that can go wrong when playing live, but for the most part I am very satisfied with our concerts.

You are having Moribund released on vinyl by a different label.  I am assuming that Twilight wasn't going to be pressing it on LP and you felt it was important for it to be available on that format.  Can you explain the importance of Vinyl to you?
Yes, Twilight does not release vinyl so the "Moribund" LP (double LP actually) was licensed to, and has now released by German underground label Northern Silence, the same label that released the vinyl version of "Nekrotisk Inkvisition."  The DLP has been out since August the 4th and can be ordered at our site, through Twilight Vertrieb or Northern Silence of course, for whom it may concern.  Anyway, vinyl is very important to us yes, although a CD is more practical in all ways it can never beat the feeling and the sound of playing a vinyl, also the cover looks a thousand times better in this format, this is common sense.  So of course it is definite must that all our releases have to be available on vinyl as well.

To me it seems that though you have weaved elements of the more traditional black metal style you certainly have a very modern feel to your music.  Do you agree with this?
Absolutely, so I don't think it is fair to label us old school Black Metal like so many people do, because we are really not that old school.  Anyway, we obviously have our roots / basis in the early nineties vein of Norwegian Black Metal, and we also incorporate some more eighties thrash / rock n' roll parts, but as you say; there is a lot of more modern BM-feel to our music as well.  Like SATYRICON ("Rebel Extravaganza"), THORNS, MYSTICUM and stuff like that, only not industrial of course.

Later this year you are releasing a split 7" with Faustcoven.  What material will that be featuring and why did you choose to do a split 7" and why with Faustcoven?
Hopefully yes, it is now over half a year since I sent the layout and the master to our Greek friend at Cryptia Productions, but no 7-inches have been sent out or even made yet as far as I can understand.  As some of you might have noticed we have announced this split 7" for two or three years now, so I really hope it will be out soon.  But I have to admit we have to take most of the blame for this.  We first talked with Gunnar of FAUSTCOVEN about this split over three years ago, and he has had his song (entitled "Orgy in Sodom," featuring Johnny Tombthrasher from GHOUL-CULT on drums by the way) ready for at least two and a half years, but our song (entitled "Pogrom Pestilent") was not recorded until we did the "Atomvinter" 7" recordings about a year ago.  And then finally it took some time to make the cover finished as well.  But at least we are not the worst case, how long has it taken for the new DHG album? Seriously though, it should be out this year, otherwise we definitely have to find another label releasing it.

Your website features extensive amounts of reviews for your releases.  I guess that means that to you guys reviews are pretty important.  What sort of weight do they hold and how do you generally view the people who are critiquing your art?
Well, it is mostly just for publicity, and of course so that people who might have an interest in us can check what the reviews says about our albums.  But of course we value a good review, like I've said earlier; it has been very satisfying with all these great reviews and notes on "Moribund", likewise it can also be amusing to read the really bad ones.  But this is nothing that makes an impact on us, we would never change anything about us or KOLDBRANN only because of a review or someone else's opinion, that's for sure.

You guys still appear in full corpse paint and spikes and adhere to all the traditional black metal aesthetics.  Is it important to keep these traditions alive with so many of the older bands abandoning them?
We don't use spikes and corpse paint because we want to keep any traditions alive, I don't care much for that, we have seen enough of "true" old school bands lately, but I regard it as an important element of KOLDBRANN, and especially for the live concerts - obviously.  It certainly adds something to the feeling and the atmosphere, both for the audience and us.

I noticed you guys enlisted Kim Solve and Trine Paulsen to do the cover art for Moribund as well as Atomvinter.  Why did you choose to go with Kim and Trine?  They are pretty popular these days amongst the Norwegian musicians?
That's true, they have made quite a few covers now, on everything from small bands like us to DARKTHRONE and ULVER, and even ABSCESS later this year.  But I feel our covers are a bit different from most of the other Trine&Kim covers, as we brought them the material we wanted them to work with, and had quite clear wishes really, or should I say visions.  Anyway, they have certainly added their unique touch and made a brilliant work, both on "Atomvinter" and "Moribund", no doubt about that, and I am extremely satisfied!

Creating art can be quite a mental exercise.  Are there any methods you use for mind expansion such as drugs or rituals or any other Mental exercises?
I am afraid I have to disappoint you here; we don't use any kind of drugs or rituals to create our music, only our twisted minds.  Maybe I will have a few beers, but I have never made, recorded or performed drunk, and I don't think that it would have had a very positive influence on our music / performances.

Though it has nothing to do with metal, the World Cup in Germany got me thinking about how many people into metal are avid sports fans.  Do you follow any sort of sports?  What do you think of the world cup mania that is sweeping Europe right now?
Well, I won't consider my self a sports fan really, but I did watch quite a few of the World Cup matches this summer, and I used to play football quite a lot before music took completely control of me.  I don't think the other guys pay much attention to sports though, well except for our second guitarist who is also a bit into football.

Final Words of hatred and spite are yours!
All right, thanks for the support and a brilliant e-zine! "Moribund" should be out and available in all quality stores across the UK now, so go get / order your copy if you're interested in some quality Norwegian Black Metal!  Ugh!  More fuel to the fire!