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24 Oct 2009

Interview with Vreth from Finntroll France

Author: Josué, November 9th 2008
From Finntroll France
Original link

Voici une interview, faite rapidement à cause des problèmes avec la Loco, par Josh et Lord USA de Vreth lors du Heidenfest à Paris le 9 Novembre 2008.

Finntroll France : Salut Vreth, nous sommes content de revoir Finntroll faire un concert à Paris pour le Heidenfest Tour. Quelle est ta réaction à chaud après ce concert et sur le Heidenfest depuis le début de la tournée ?

Vreth : C'est toujours un plaisir de jouer en France, car nous aimons beaucoup le public français qui est très chaleureux et très présent lors de nos concerts, ce qui a encore été le cas ce soir. Concernant le Heidenfest, je suis un peu déçu de l'organisation mais également de la salle de concert qui ont du mal à gérer quelques situations, comme tu as pu le voir avant notre show, quand nous avons discuté, j'étais un peu stressé à cause de tout ça. Mais ça ne nous a pas empêchés de prendre plaisir à jouer devant ce très bon public.

Finntroll France : Le 20 septembre 2008, Finntroll a filmé son premier live, comment s'est passée cette expérience et pour quand est prévue la sortie du DVD ?

Vreth : Cette expérience est très enrichissante et nous sommes contents que tout se soit bien passé aussi bien pour nous que pour l'équipe technique ainsi que le public qui était particulièrement énorme pour cette occasion. J'ai hâte de voir le résultat du DVD et l'accueil de nos fans ensuite. Concernant le montage et la sortie du DVD, je n'ai pas plus de renseignement pour le moment car nous sommes très pris par la tournée du Heidenfest, mais je t'informerai par mail quand j'aurai plus d'informations.

Finntroll France : Est-ce qu'un nouvel album est prévu pour 2009 ? Et quelle en sera l'inspiration ?

Vreth : Pour le moment, je n'ai pas d'informations, vu que c'est Katla qui écrit les textes, mais je pense que c'est envisageable oui.

Finntroll France : Un nouveau show en France est-il prévu pour l'année prochaine ?

Vreth : Pour le moment les tournées et festivals ne sont pas en encore prévus pour 2009 avec notre tourneur, mais il y aura des shows je pense.

Finntroll France : Finntroll France fête sa première année d'existence. Quel est ton ressenti par rapport aux soutiens des fans français avec la création de ce site ?

Vreth : Un an, c'est super ça, félicitations les gars j'en suis ravi (en nous serrant la main avec un grand sourire). C'est un énorme plaisir de vous avoir avec nous et de nous promouvoir en France, et je vous en remercie beaucoup, tout le groupe pense de même d'ailleurs. Je suis moi même passé sur le site, c'est très bien fait mais malheureusement je ne comprends pas le français, ça serait cool d'en faire une version anglaise comme ça je pourrais venir regarder tout ce que vous faites pour nous et lire les commentaires de nos fans français.

Finntroll France : Merci beaucoup Vreth, pour cette interview et tes encouragement pour Finntroll.fr.

Vreth : Merci à vous, et on se recontacte très vite par mail pour la prochaine interview et que je te donnes quelques news concernant le DVD.


Interview with Skrymer and Vreth

Author: Simon, May 2nd 2007
From BurnYourEyes Webzine
Original link

Nach einem langem, schönen und anstrengendem Tag hüpften Gitarrist Samuli "Skrymer" Ponsimaa (S), Vokalist Mathias "Vreth" Lillmåns (V) und ich durch das Treppenhaus der Markthalle und machten uns auf den Weg zu einem der drei geräumigen Tourbusse. Offensichtlich erfreut über etwas Abwechslung und bester Dinge - wenn auch etwas ermattet - rauchten die beiden Finnen ein paar Mentholzigaretten oder tranken Weißbier, während sie mir Auskunft gaben und sich die Sonne langsam hinter den Horizont Hamburgs schob.

Vielen Dank, dass ihr euch die Zeit für das Interview genommen habt. Wie geht es euch?

S: Gut, ein wenig müde, aber das ist normal auf Tour.
V: Gut.

Wie ist das Touren? Mit dir, Mathias, habt ihr ja auch einen neuen Sänger. Ist das Touren entspannter oder noch aufregender?

V: Ich denke, die Frage sollte er dann wohl beantworten. Hehe.
S: Ja, es ist auf jeden Fall entspannter. Wir sind eher wieder bei diesem Band-Geist. Wir kommen alle super gut aus. Es gibt da keine Probleme.

Nun zu den wirklichen Fragen: Welche Themen beeinflussten euch beim Schreiben von "Ur Jordens Djup". Natur, Kunst, Politik…?

S: Musik oder Text?

Beides.

S: Natur ist wohl das zentrale Thema. Welche Inspiration noch, hm? Uns langweilten einfach die alten Stücke.
V: Ja. (lachen)
V: Das ist nicht einfach zu beantworten.
S: Es gibt hier und da Einflüsse, aber die lassen sich nur schwer aufzählen.

Von aktueller Politik oder Ähnlichem lasst ihr euch nicht beeinflussen?

V: Nein, wir halten uns von der Politik fern.

Die nächste Frage hat entfernt mit Politik zu tun. Denn besonders in Deutschland gibt es viele rechte Strömungen und rassistischen Dreck, der mit der Szene in Verbindung gebracht wird. Sorgt ihr euch da nicht, dass Rassisten auf euren Konzerten herumspazieren? Denn immerhin habt ihr ja "You Suffer" von NAPALM DEATH einst gecovert und viel politisch korrekter geht es ja nun kaum. Dennoch gibt es viele Rechte und Rassisten, die FINNTROLL mögen.

S: Das ist seltsam, denn es hat ja nun nichts mit Rassismus oder Rechtsextremismus zu tun. Der Punkt ist, dass irgendjemand irgendwann diese fabelhafte Idee hatte, dass Wikinger und Nordmänner irgendetwas mit dem rechten politischem Flügel zu tun hätten.
V: Aber wenn die zu den Konzerten kommen, ist mir das egal. Ich meine, wenn die wegen der Musik kommen…
S: Wenn sie nur wegen der Musik kommen, ist das okay.
V: Aber wenn sie versuchen, irgendwelche Scheiß-Botschaften zu verbreiten, wird es zu einem Problem.
S: Aber es passiert leider sehr, sehr häufig, dass die Bands missverstanden werden in letzter Zeit. Ich weiß es auch nicht… (seufzt)
V: (lacht)

Gibt es immer noch Bands, die ihr bewundert und mit denen ihr gerne spielen würdet, bisher aber noch nicht die Gelegenheit dazu hattet?

S: Oh, gute Frage. Ich denke, da hat natürlich jeder so seine eigene Auswahl. Aber ich würde zum Beispiel gerne mit DISMEMBER spielen.
V: Ich würde generell eben gerne mit den Bands spielen, zu denen ich aufgesehen habe, seit man klein war. DISMEMBER sind ein gutes Beispiel, ansonsten…
S: Ältere Bands eben, denn eigentlich habe ich lange kein neues Death Metal-Album mehr gekauft. Die Musik hat da ziemlich an Energie verloren. Aber, na ja, das würde nur ein langes Gezeter darüber werden, was heutzutage falsch läuft in der Musik.

Da liegt der Brückenschlag wieder nahe zu "Enemy Of The Music Business"?

S: Ja, genau! Hm… ansonsten an Bands natürlich noch NAPALM DEATH, IMPALED NAZARENE…
V: Norwegischer Black Metal…
S: Oh ja.

Ihr habt einst gesagt, es sei sehr trollish, Schwedisch für die Texte zu verwenden. Klingt denn Finnisch nicht eher exotisch und seltsam?

V: Nein, denn das Schwedisch klingt eigentlich besser mit der Musik.
S: Viel besser als Finnisch…
V: Das R lässt sich zum Beispiel viel besser rollen, und die Worte lassen sich besser ziehen, wohin gegen Finnisch…
S: Tak! Tak! Tak! (klopft dabei mit einem Feuerzeug auf den Tisch)
V: Zudem denke ich, es gibt so viele Bands aus Finnland, die Finnisch singen, und wenn man Finnisch singt, ist man schnell abgestempelt als finnische Band und außerhalb des Landes haben es damit nur wenige weit gebracht.
S: Natürlich ist das nicht die Hauptsache – es weit zu bringen, aber es passt ja eben auch besser zur Musik.
V: Ja, es passt besser zur Musik, zu der Band, und dafür wäre Finnisch einfach zu akzentuiert.

Was seht ihr, wenn ihr einen Blick in die Zukunft werft, für euch als Band?

S: Mehr Kick-Ass-Shows.
V: Neue Musik machen…
S: Hoffentlich mehr Fans zu erreichen, für mehr Kick-Ass-Shows. Eben Leute zu erreichen. Es wäre eben ideal wenn, sagen wir, fünf Leute heute im Publikum losziehen, sich die Alben kaufen, weil wir nachher so gut spielen.

Also ist es wichtig, auch weiterhin als Liveband überzeugend zu sein und nicht durch ein Image?

S: Exakt, denn da sieht man die Band ja so, wie sie wirklich ist. Bevor die Leute eben im Geschäft sehen, wie es auszusehen hat, ist es doch besser, sie live zu überzeugen.

Und was wollt ihr noch in bezug auf FINNTROLL loswerden, was muss noch gesagt werden, oder mit welchem Vorurteil wollt ihr abrechnen?

V: Wir werden oft als eine reine Saufband abgestempelt. Nach dem Schema: "Finntroll? – Die singen über Trolle und Bier…".
S: Ja, das ist nervig, denn so ist es nicht. Von diesem Ruf würden wir uns wirklich gerne trennen. Denn es ist mehr dahinter als dieses dämliche Zuprosten und so…
V: Naja, das ja auch irgendwie, aber da ist eben mehr. Natürlich ist da manchmal ein bisschen Saufen im Spiel, aber zu viele Leute sehen das als das zentrale Thema.
S: Als einziges Thema.

Wenn es nicht darum geht, worum dreht es sich denn dann? Geht es darum, Leute zu erreichen, Leute zu verändern, die Welt zu verändern oder eben einfach ein Künstlerdasein zu führen?

S: Viele Aspekte.
V: Ja, viele Aspekte. (lacht) Folklore, Schmanismus…
S: Dann sind da natürlich noch moderne Themen, die Selbstfindung und natürlich Stücke gegen Religionen. Nicht gegen das Christentum, gegen den Islam oder gegen das Judentum im Speziellen - gegen alle. Es geht um Natur-Religionen… wobei wohl eher natürliches… Benehmen und Verhalten.

Wirklich gesprächig waren die zwei Finnen nicht und machten einen ermüdeten und matten Eindruck - auch wenn sie versicherten, vom Touren nicht genug bekommen zu können. Nach dem Interview plauderten wir noch locker zehn Minuten daher, während Samuli "Skrymer" Ponsimaa, der sich auch für die Cover der Bands verantwortlich zeichnet, auf dem Blatt, das ich ihnen zum Gestalten gereicht habe, ein eindrucksvolles Kunstwerk schuf.

Finntroll - "Samu Ruotsalainen"

Author: Smathers, posted on 07.05.2004
From Uranium Music
Original link

Uranium: You recently went on a European tour with Ensiferum. Were you friends with the band, did you know them before you went out on tour?

Samu: Yeah, we've actually toured with them in Finland a few years ago. They're old friends of ours, we have many of the same fans. It was excellent, a lot of partying and drinking.

Uranium: Was this the first full-scale European tour that you've been on?

Samu: Actually yeah, this was the first one that made it. We had to cancel like 5 or 6 before for various reasons. So this was actually the first one that happened, so it was fun.

Uranium: You guys play a lot of European festivals on a regular basis, how does the festival experience compare to touring?

Samu: Touring is obviously a lot more work and a lot harder than festivals because it's so easy to do a single, one-off show. We fly in to play the festival, have a party, and then fly back home. To be stuck in Europe for a whole three weeks and having basically a festival every night is very different. But I like them both. Touring is basically better because you get to see more places and play to more people, like playing in front of 15,000 drunk Germans. (laughs)

Uranium: Do you guys have any tour plans coming up, besides festivals?

Samu: We'll be doing another European tour in December for two and a half weeks. I'm not sure if it will be with other bands, we are still negotiating, but our agents have been talking to Obituary about it, which would be great. It should be fun.

Uranium: People here in the U.S. have known about you for a while and I'm sure there are a lot of fans here that would love to see you come over... any plans for a U.S. tour anytime?

Samu: Yeah, hopefully. (laughs) We're still waiting. It's just way too expensive to fly us in for a one-off from Finland, because there's like seven of us with the sound guys. But hopefully, one day we'll come across the Atlantic and play, hopefully.

Uranium: Yeah, I hope so man, you guys would be a big hit here. So, I've never actually seen a Finntroll show before, I'm dying to. What's a typical show like? Do people mosh, do they polka dance, or what do they do?

Samu: There are of course the classic rock fans just standing in the back, drinking and watching, then there is the mosh pit, and then pretty much the rest of the people are just dancing. But it's always a wild party. We actually prefer to play later, the later the better, because more people are drunk then, and they get more into it. (laughs) People usually go wild, it's just a big party, and I like it that way.

Uranium: Have you every played any shows or festivals where people just didn't know what was going on and didn't know how to react to your music? Or do people always get into it?

Samu: If we're playing some kind of weird festival that we shouldn't have played, like when we played at the Sweden Rock festival, where there were mostly 80's heavy metal bands like Whitesnake and Twisted Sister. It took two or three songs for people to figure it out and get into it, but once again it was just a big party. It was kind of odd, watching these old heavy metal guys with huge moustaches and Whitesnake shirts rocking out with us.

Uranium: That's awesome! For your live show, do you have any stage props or decorations or is it usually just the band playing?

Samu: It is the band playing, and we have our usual weird leather, fur, troll costumes you can see in the promo pics. But, nothing like fireworks or shit, just the band playing as many songs as possible. There are no breaks, no talking, just music; it is usually just a full hour of Finntroll music.

Uranium: Congratulations on "Nattfödd", it is an amazing album. I've been listening to you guys since I first heard "Jaktens Tid", but I think you guys outdid yourselves with this one. It's quite a different album than "Visor Om Slutet", which was a lot more folk-ish and epic. What prompted the return to the faster, heavier, more "metal" approach?

Samu: Actually, the "Visor Om Slutet" thing was not supposed to be an album at all. It was supposed to be a b-side release of music we had made that could never make it onto a metal album. It was never going to be a new direction of music; it was something we always wanted to do so we did it, but our main focus has always been to perform metal albums so for that matter, "Nattfödd" is more of a continuation of "Jaktens Tid". So basically, there are 3 Finntroll albums, and one weird thing. (laughs) That's pretty much it.

Uranium: How does the song writing process work for you guys? Do you usually start with a keyboard melody of guitar riff?

Samu: It depends on who's writing, because nowadays it's our bass player and keyboard player who mainly write the songs. Sometimes our guitar player will bring in a new, cool guitar riff, but usually it's a keyboard riff or melody and all that other stuff is tacked onto that. There are a few occaisions where the guitar is the main part of the song, like the first song on the "Jaktens Tid" album was written totally on the guitar. On the new album, it was mostly the keyboard.

Uranium: How big is humpaa in Finland? Is it one of the main types of folk music over there, are there many festivals and that kind of thing?

Samu: Actually there are some humpaa bands that go around and tour 365 days a year in Finland, playing at dance halls and so forth. There's actually only one folk festival here in Finland, they don't have Humpaa there but they have other types of folk. But yeah, it's very popular I think, nobody buys a humpaa album but many people go to the shows to dance and so forth. It's very traditional.

Uranium: Has Finntroll attracted any fans of humpaa that would otherwise never listen to metal?

Samu: I don't know, never met one! Hopefully, yeah, I don't know for sure. (laughs) For some reason a lot of punk rockers like Finntroll a lot; I don't know what it is. I guess there's some punk rock in Finntroll. Definitely a lot of different kinds of Finntroll fans around, though we've definitely pissed off a lot of "true" Norwegian black metal guys, who only listen to bands like Darkthrone and shit, they don't like us. (laughs) They're too "true" to listen to Finntroll.

Uranium: Over the past few years Finland's metal scene has really started to get big, Children Of Bodom are getting big oversees and you have bands like Kalmah and Omnium Gatherum that are starting to put out some really impressive releases. Can you tell that the scene is getting bigger over there, are there more fans coming out for shows and so forth?

Samu: More bands, definitely. More fans, I don't know. The fanbase in Finland is basically the same, but there are definitely more recording bands, which is a good thing. As long as they're original, though, because in the past few years every new Finnish band coming out is either a copy of Stratovarious or Children Of Bodom or whatever. But then there are good, original bands like Omnium Gatherum, so that's good. So yeah, some good, but most of them bad, that's what I think.

Uranium: So how about nu-metal, shit like Limp Bizkit and Linkin Park? Is that big over in Finland?

Samu: I guess they're on the charts and all, but no, it's not that big. I don't know if there are any Finnish nu-metal bands, actually...

Uranium: Well, that's a good thing, those bands tend to spoil a lot of things for the metal scene.

Samu: (laughs) Yeah, I hate nu-metal. I actually bought a Korn album 5-6 years ago, and that's it for my nu-metal. And especially a big fuck-off to bands like Limp Bizkit and Linkin Park, ugh, bullshit. Burn them, kill them.

Uranium: Alright man, that's actually all the questions I had for you, thanks a lot for your time!

Samu: Good talking to you man, thanks a lot for the support. Hopefully we'll see you one day in the states.

Interview with Trollhorn

September 2002
From Rabenkind's Finntroll Fanpage
Original Link



Rabenkind (RK) : What are your (current) favorite albums ??


Trollhorn (TH) : The albums I have been listening most recently and enjoyed them very much in numerous ways are Marduk´s “Dark Endless”,Thyrfing´s “Vansinnesvisor”,Dargaard´s “In Nomine Aeternitatis” and The Nightmare Before Christmas-soundtrack by Danny Elfman. Also some Ultima Thule.

RK : What have been your "first steps" in music ?? Your first band ??

TH : My first steps in music were taken I the day I was born,as my dad was a professional musician and from the day one I had passionate interest on music. However,my parents also noticed that and so just before I had my 4th birthday they put me into classical piano lessons.My first band was formed in the mid/late 80´s with my dad and a couple of his friends and played jazz. My first real metalband was formed in 1991 with my schoolmates. It was called Battery and we played Thrash,heh.

RK : What has been the first album you ever bought ??

TH : Wow…this is a bad one! I think it was an Elvis-tape when I was something like 8 years old. For some reason I used to like Elvis then. :)

RK : What has been your first concert (as a visitor) ??

TH : The same question was asked from me a couple of days ago and I had to confess then that I have no single clue.I think it was some of my dad´s gigs somewhere in Finland when I was a baby.

RK: What do you think about the German metal-scene?? Do you know any bands from Germany??

TH : You have couple of very good bands like Falkenbach (well is it even German? I think so.), Dew-Scented,Morgoth (well,not the newer stuff…),Sodom,Kreator,Viu Drach and a couple of others. I really don´t keep my attention on the German scene as nowadays most of the “blacker” bands have very precisely ruined the reputation of your entire scene in my mouth. Bands like Mystic Circle or Nargaroth should really consider of changing their little hobbies for photographing or something in my opinion. If you don´t agree, just prove me wrong!

RK : You are using quite many "folkish" elements in your music?? Are you listening to that kind of music, too ?? Any favorite bands from that genre (folk / folk-rock)??

TH : YES WE DO!!! My faves are Garmarna,Nordman,Gjallarhorn,Annbjörg Lien, Battlefield Band, Wimme,Hedningarna,Mari Boine,JPP,Pekka Pohjola (not so traditional stuff) and many others.

RK : Are there any great "Folk-Festivals" in Finland / Scandinavia ??

TH : Actually I haven´t got a single clue about any other festivals in Scandinavia,but at least in Finland we have “Kaustisen Kansanmusiikkijuhlat” in every summer. I have never visited there as I am not into festivals in general so much,but I can warmly recommend it to everyone who likes folkmusic and it´s different forms!

RK : Some of your songs and lyrics seem to be inspired by all those ancient tales about trolls and things like that ... do you believe in the existence of such creatures ??

TH : I really don´t know….sometimes I tend to think there are some creatures of the old tales existing,lurking in the remaining big forests and mountains….but as I haven´t ever seen one how the fuck am I supposed to know any-thing? :) Maybe the industrializing forced them to flee so we haven´t seen them for a couple ofgenerations? In Finland we have very long traditions about those creatures and as our people is still very superstitious (and some kind of “still-Heathen”) I think I have to say “yes” as my final answer.

RK : On your last album with Finntroll you also recorded one traditional folk-song ("Vargtimmen") in a very cool (Black)Metal-version ... could you imagine to use some more traditional songs for your upcoming releases ?? Maybe even record a whole album with traditional folk-songs ??

TH : Actually I don´t think Finntroll is going to do more cover-songs,but there has been certain talk of an acoustic mini cd….we´ll see.

RK : Even though you're using quite many elements from that genre with Finntroll, it seemes that you don't take the whole "evil BlackMetal-thing" too serious ... how important is the image of a band in your opinion ??

TH :It depends. We are not a Black Metal-band in the “traditional” sense of a word,so naturally we don´t take it seriously,but I understand what you mean by the question. We have always had this tongue-in-cheek type of thing with Finntroll,and the music is also done in the same way. (well,of course I don´t say we´re just just farting around in the rehearsals, but we include a bit more “daring” and “out-of-place” things in our music than a normal BM-band,heheh…) The image is very important to my but it strongly depends on the artist.

Like,you really wouldn´t want to see Mayhem playing with chickens or drunken skinheads dancing polka on stage but in Finntroll it would most likely be just funny and entertaining. Like they say in television,Image is nothing - thirst is everything. (well…how the Hel had this to do anything with the question…? :)

RK :Beside your work with Finntroll, you also have your own project ("Moonsorrow") ... where would you see the similarities and differences between both bands ??

TH : We both use eg.eletric guitars,which make us sound similar to each other. Also we have drums. Well,I guess you got my point,heh. Seriously,we use folk elements (including certain instruments) with both bands but basically,this is where the similarities end. You will never find a single polka-part from Moonsorrow,no Swedish language,no cheesy Power Metal parts :) or Joik…While Finntroll is fast,Moonsorrow plays mid-tempo.While Finntroll is brutally “joyous”,Moonsorrow is melancholic. And while Finntroll has Trollhorn, Moonsorrow has Henri Urponpoika Sorvali. And because of that,people find odd parallels between these two bands. Maybe we should hear the editor´s opinion on this matter…?

RK : What are your thoughts about religion, christianity and paganism ??

TH :I really could write a book concerning this topic,but as there is only a limited space here I try to shorten things. So,here we go.I think every religion is ok as long as they don´t oppress people to act unnaturally. Which is something eg. Pestianity and Islam do. All that women-stomping bullshit and denying of people´s natural urges,be it sexual or anything else is complete waste of time. Period. For me,the Semitic God (Jahve,Allah,whatever you want to call him) reminds of a certain Austrian/German fellow who used to be pretty popular during the 1930s and early 40s. Later he ended up himself and a couple of other guys in the process,if you know of whom I am talking about ;) I oppose fascism and thus I oppose also the Semitic God and all its likes. Besides, the moral of the abovementioned is nothing I would ever even consider to adopt. Anyway,I think that Gods are supposed to be like us-they all have their good and bad sides. This is something Christianity and other monotheistic religions can never understand. We are not some inferior creatures who have to worship their master in fear,but “friends” of the Gods and Mother Nature. Mutual respect between the race of Gods and the race of men,harmony and balance are the keywords if you ask me. Slave-morality is definitely not something I am used to.Christianity has bloody roots in Scandinavian history,which is very sad and totally unacceptable,and I will never turn to an imported Jewish fascist if I need spiritual guidance. Hell Tor! Hell Oden! Hell Freija!

RK : What are the three most important things in your life ??

TH : My beloved ones,music and my health.

RK : Describe yourself in five (or less) words.

TH :Ambitious,unyielding and short-tempered,I guess.

RK : Who has been the "hero" of your childhood ??

TH : I remember thinking that Paul Stanley must be the toughest guy in the universe,heh. My school books were always full of KISS logos and pictures. Also McGyver was really cool. Yes,and He-Man. (Here we are….it seems that basically my childhood idols have more or less been fictional.I guess that tells a lot of me :)

RK : Your favorite book ??

TH : I don´t know…maybe some David Eddings (yes,I read fantasy every now and then… *blushes*) or Dean R. Koontz. Mostly history and music- related stuff.

RK : If you would get the chance to live your whole life a second time -- are there any "wrong decisions" or "bad mistakes" which you wouldn't do again ??

TH : I think I wouldn´t take so much shit from different persons.You know,in school etc. (yes,I was the “picked” guy for years) Nowadays I have the self-esteem I didn´t have when I was younger and if I could go back in time and give it to “earlier” me,I would most likely to do it. But then again…everything that has happed during my 23 years of living in this planet affects me in one way or another. So,as I am quite comfortable right now,I think I wouldn´t change anything after all.

RK : Name a person (living or dead) which you would like to meet.

TH : My father,absolutely! He died whan I was 10 years old and there is so much I wish I could have learnt from him,both as father and musician. Also Quorthon would be nice to meet…. ;)

RK : Name a musician (living or dead) with whom you would like to play in a band / project.

TH: Well,I suppose it would be fun to thrash some good old stuff with Chris Barnes or Nicke Andersson but as they are both so wasted or just completely into different musicstyles I think it would never happen even if I had the opportunity to do it someday. It would also cool to do something together with Jens Johansson,Johnny Maudling or let´s say……..Nordman,for fuck´s sake!

RK : Do you have any piece of jewellery which has some kind of "special meaning" to you ??

TH : Soon will be one more,as we are right now looking for engagement-rings with my girlfriend.
I also carry Mjöllnir as a sign of my personal faith and heritage.

RK : What is (in your opinion) the "best song" you have ever written ??

TH: Hopefully I haven´t done that one yet! But the musical achievements I consider to be the best I´ve made (until this day) have nothing to do with metal at the end. My deepest ambitions lay in classical music although metal is something I´m known of…..now. The future may change some things.