EMPEROR interview in M magazine issue no. 6, 2001
- Ihsahn interviewed; some translations and photos below
(I used google translate so theres probably a lot of errors)
Who wrote the lyrics for the new album?
Me.
Do you think that your style can be compared with the style of, say, Faust?
I don’t know, I don’t see such a need. Faust and I are very different people and, naturally, the lyrics and the topics they touch on will also be different. He has his own views on life, I have mine, he has his approach, I have mine. Besides, to be honest, I haven't had much opportunity to get acquainted with the lyrics of ZYKLON's latest album (I only have a promo copy, no printout), so it's even more difficult to compare. Let those who have access to both lyrics do it... from the outside, it's clearer in any case.
[...] Will the listener's reaction be, for example, a desire to maim, kill someone?
[...] I will be very sad if someone hears in EMPEROR a call to violence, because my conscience in this regard is completely clear. Of course, I do not deny that there were people who under the flag of black metal were engaged in various kinds of violent reprisals, however, this is not a reason to call the Norwegian scene violent or bloody. [...] Exploring the dark side of humanity and expressing aggression is not the same as stupidly setting a church on fire...
Unfortunately, I haven’t seen your new photo shoot yet, maybe you can tell me how EMPEROR’s image has changed this time?
(smiling) I can say this: we have less and less image left, and the latest photos depict the band members as they are, as we really look. This can be understood in the spirit that visuality is gradually losing its meaning and, if you pay attention to the album booklet, you will probably notice that there are no faces of us there at all
Are there any reasons for this change?
Hmm... At the beginning of EMPEROR's creative path we used the traditional black metal image of paintcorps and all that, but we stopped doing this after the release of the first album. The reason was the desire not to stand still, to develop and try to look so that the external picture was consistent with the musical one. Everything should be harmonious and correspond to each other, so the image of EMPEROR changed along with the music. Now, we have come to the point that we are going to appear as we are externally, and more filled internally
How do you dress/look in everyday life?
Pretty much the same as in the latest promo photos. Spikes and make-up are a thing of the past.
And people on the streets don't get scared?
No, not anymore.
Were there many problems before?
In different ways. We have been attacked by people who did not accept or understand our way of life. It is natural for some layers of society to react sharply to manifestations of individuality, "otherness" from the rest of the gray mass. It does not matter how exactly you dress: there will be problems in any case, if you dress differently.
(that one time ihsahn got beat up in the street for the way he dressed T_T)
Well, can you determine the level of "honesty" of musicians just by listening to their disc?
Hardly, because I don't listen to much at all these days... I'm just not aware of what's going on in the metal scene. That is, I don't want to speak abstractly, and I can't speak specifically, because I really don't listen to much metal.
What then? MTV?
No, MTV doesn't work for me. Most often I listen to classical music, experimental electronic music, just different modern stuff, including rock and pop artists. There are no stylistic restrictions: I listen to everything that I find interesting
So metal is no longer interesting?
Yes, almost. I can't find anything inspiring in the genre that I've been "boiling" over for more than a dozen years. Playing metal is one thing, but I don't want to listen to it anymore. It bothers me. Firstly, I no longer feel the zest that was present (at least for me) in this music before, and secondly, I can't listen to "heavy" albums without thinking about how I would play this or that part, what I would change, remove or add. Such thoughts lose all the fun... and it's impossible to get rid of them.
What are you most afraid of? Not only in relation to what is happening in the world, but also in a purely human, personal way?
Indifference.