2009-11-16
After a handfull of controversies and a long period of longed-for Shining's sixth album “IV – Klagopsalmer” finally arrived at the stores last summer, as Swedish suicidal black metal-pioneers already had stated that a seventh chapter in their discography already is on its way and that it will take another direction from their, then yet still unreleased, precursor. Twist Magazine is bringing that up among more in a exclusive talk to frontman Niklas “Kvarforth” Olsson.
– First of all we went to the studio to record our seventh album, which was supposed to be our sixth album, but me and the other two guitarists sat down and improvised a whole album which turned out as our sixth album “VI – Klagopsalmer”. We thought that instead of releasing “Klagopsalmer” as our seventh album we released it as our last album throughout our former record label Osmose, because at that time we had just signed a new contract with Norwegian label Indie, begins Kvarforth.
– And I wrote our seventh album in a complete intoxication of amphetamine when I lived in Oslo, and when you mix in drugs as you write music it sometimes turns out a lot different – which it did and it’s the best album I’ve ever written. I would say that our sixth album is pale compared to it but you still have to have in mind that it just were something we brought together by improvising.
With the attribute of "Klagopsalmer's" initial and the above mentioned its, more or less, inevitable to not get a little understanding that the sixth album is just a half-measure whose authors is not quite pleased with the result, but according to Kvarforth it’s not the case.
– It never were like that but we’re not that satisfied with the sixth album as we are with for example “V – Halmstad” or “IV – The Eerie Cold” because we worked for a very long time with creating them and the sixth album is just a work of haste. Therefore the pitch you use when you’re talking about the sixth album could be a little more negative but that’s not the case. We think it was a fucking cool way to end our collaboration with Osmose by doing a completely improvised album.
– Actually our seventh album is done, Erik Danielsson from Watain were here last week and did some vocals on it too, Erik's one of many guest-artists on the album together with Nordman (Swedish pop musician), Peter Bjärgö from Arcana and one more that I’m not sure if we going to use, therefore I won’t mention him. But it’s a delighted mix of fucked up souls, Kvarforth laughs, I mean we all know about our beloved mister Håkan Hemlin (Nordman)! I bet all the Swedes is going to laugh about it, but the fact is that he was perfect for the song he’s on that is called “Tillsammans är vi allt” (“Together We Are Everything”) and it’s a declaration of love to heroin. And we both are aware about the fact that Nordman is an old heroin-addict and the fun part is that he sang the chorus that goes: “Utan dig är jag ingenting/Utan mig är du ingenting/Men tillsammans är vi allt” (“Without you I’m nothing/Without me you’re nothing/But together we are everything”) and he hasn’t heard the verses yet which is referring to the incineration, the destroying of your body and so, so he may be a little disappointed when the record comes out, Kvarforth laughs.
– The album hardly got anything to do with black metal, Kvarforth makes clear as the genre is mentioned. Some parts is very mean and may sound like old Mayhem or something but there’s a lot of poppy parties and a lot of acoustic things.
Is there someone who doesn’t remember the dim-like headlines like “Heavy metal band were cutting themselves with razors in front of kids” who came up after a Shining-gig in their hometown in the year of 2007? If you know your Shining right you know what Niklas “Kvarforth” Olsson – the band´s brain and founder – is going out for. Kvarforth uses to cut himself, burn himself and often causes a lot of other damage to himself during the bands shows as songs with matching, self-destructive lyrics is occurring. Niklas has also been treated at mental hospitals due to schizophrenia among other problems, and he also found love and has a wedding planned for the future. Has it got Niklas into some different points of view in life?
– You always develop, both as a musician and in your private life, and I’m going to get married with a woman because I love her – it’s just as simple as that. I went to the mental hospital last time for about three weeks ago but it has begun to go upwards and I’ve got relative okay medication.
– But you can never explore evil enough, there are always new paths to walk. I continuing on with my self-destructive behavior mainly because I want to act like someone who kids can model themselves on, and get kids to think and handle in self-destructives ways such as destroy for themselves, their families and beloved ones – something that has been going pretty good. And when I’ve said that no one wants to feel bad – well, that’s obvious – because people who says that the want to feel bad are either: completely fucked up or they says it because they think it’s cool to feel bad. Of course, I’m trying to prove for our fans that it’s cool to feel like shit because I want them to think so.
To categorize Shining's music Kvarforth came up with, for a couple of years ago, the description “suicidal black metal”. Which was a pretty good way to describe Shining's music but a new wave of bands came and putted themselves in the same category, but according to Kvarforth they have missed the hint of what it's all about.
– Shining has never ever been about self-pitiness. Obviously I’m taking inspiration from things that has happen in my life or, as is many cases, I have been creating situations in my live that has turned out to something bad. At the same time Shining's goal was to force self-destructivity and suicidal thoughts upon others, not just to be a channel for my inner demons to come out through, it’s rather about to make my inner demons worse – and that’s something I’m doing at stage when I’m re-experience ten of my worst memories. But the bands who has came up after us has, instead of that, been saying: “This is for reflecting my own pain and it makes me feel a whole lot better”, Niklas makes that clear with a ridicule voice. That’s the opposite of what Shining is.
– I could never imagine that Shining could be as big as it has and I couldn’t even imagine in my wildest fantasies that it’s going to be as big as it’s on the way of being right now, but I’m just thanking and receiving it. It just going to be bigger and worse and it will continue that way as long as I am alive, it’s my life’s work and I couldn’t let go of it even if I should want to. I’ve wanted to let go of it many times but I can’t, it keeps haunting me.
Why has Niklas turned out the way he has? Where did it all begin?
– I was at a very young age when I got into morbid fascination of physical, and first of all, psychical pain and how easy it was for me to cause pain for the people I knew, my beloved ones and the wonderful feeling how it all went back on me but then it proved that it was the worst thing I could possibly have done. The more people you harmed, the more it all came back on yourself and that kind of behavior started when I was about ten-eleven years old. I was a classic example for a problem child and then I guess it just has developed.
If you take a look at Shining's line-up you see that it has been a lot of chances of it and Kvarforth is the only member who has lasted for all those thirteen years of Shining.
–I think it's pretty hard to work with me, I remember that Hellhammer (Jan Axel Blomberg, drums for Shining 2001-2004) told me, as we were working on our fourth album, that I was the worst person he had ever worked with and it never had been so much negativity as it was during that studio session, which is pretty funny if you look at Mayhem´s history. So I guess that it is really fucking hard to work with me but on the other hand that’s the reason why I’m getting all the things the way I want them. Most of our members have been totally worthless for Shining, they are being used as tools for me to accomplish all the things I want but can’t do by myself.
– Nobody has ever got anything to say about nothing except when we recorded our sixth album, when I gave Huss (guitars) and Gråby (guitars) a task each of writing a song, and that’s what’s on “IV – Klagopsalmer”. That was the first time ever I allowed someone else to be a creative part of Shining and that’s something that probably would happen again in the future, but not on our seventh album where it’s all again me doing everything. I dictate what the other member shall do when we are in the studio and if they won’t do as I say, they don’t give me any other choice but to find new members. When we were recording our first and second album people did complain about what I told them to do, but now I have explained for all the members how it’s going to be like and if they can’t be in a band where anybody else is taking the lead, then they don’t got anything to do in Shining.
This December Shining will touring Europe as a supporting act for Norwegian black metal-machine Satyricon, which starts in Antwerp, Belgium at the second of December.
– I know Frost (drums, Satyricon) pretty well so it’s going to be fun to tour with somebody you know, but I think that Satyricon is going to experience a lot more negativity than expected and we have just said yes to tour the US with Behemoth, which we will do in January. But you should put us on tour with Watain instead; it should have been an unbeatable combination where we both should be able to stand each other. But we will have to see, I’ve heard that Satyr's (vocals, guitars – Satyricon) not the funniest person in the world, I’ve meet him a few times and I don’t like him so we will see what happens, Kvarforth laughs. Satyr got the ability of thinking that Satyricon is way bigger than Kiss but as long as he don’t do any leadership-shit with me he will get along safe and sound.
Now there’s a couple of years since Shining stated that a DVD crammed with diverse material and with a playtime of about eight hours is on its way, called “Fy fan för livet!”, but yet it hasn’t been released nor any date of release.
– We got hell of a lot of problems with getting our hands on the recordings of the gig in Halmstad, so it will take some time but we actually has been working on another DVD called “En liten film om utanförskap” which is going to be released early next year throughout Indie. We are currently working on the subtitles for it so everybody who doesn’t speak Swedish could understand the bizarre humor which is used a lot on it and of course all the misery. It will contain a lot of interviews taking from different TV-channels, own-made interviews, live gigs and backstage-stuff – it’s like a road movie from hell, beams Kvarforth.
Current line-up:
Niklas Kvarforth – Vocals, guitar
Fredric "Wredhe" Gråby – Guitar
Peter Huss – Guitar
Andreas Larssen – Bass
Rickard "Rille" Schill – Drums
Discography:
2009: IV - Klagopsalmer
2007: V - Halmstad
2005: IV - The Eerie Cold
2002: III - Angst, självdestruktivitetens emissarie
2001: II - Livets ändhållplats
2000: I - Withing Dark Deep Chambers
1998: Submit to Selfdestruction (EP)
Jimmie Karlsson
Photo: myspace.com/khyrian
