by Kenneth Morton

After a four-year absence, Necrophobic from Sweden has returned to unleash another chapter of blackened death metal fury entitled Hrimthursum. We sent the band a few emails questions inquiring about their current activities, and here is what these death metal giants had to say…

What does the album title Hrimthursum mean and what made you decide to call the album that? Is there any concept behind the title or lyrics?
It’s an old Icelandic word that means something like “Frost Giants”. In the northern mythology they roamed the lands with Odin at the dawn of time. It inspired us to do this album but it’s not a concept that goes through all the lyrics.

How frustrating was it to be away from music for four years and why did the new album take so long to record?
We were not away from music. We were playing live and working on songs all the time. We had a lot of material but just before recording we rewrote the whole album. We don’t care if takes long time if the result comes out the way we want.

When you look back on your albums with Black Mark Production, what do you think of them now?
I think they are great. I don’t think we would write them like that if we could do it again but that’s how we sounded back then. We always play a lot of old material live.

Did you know Quorthon of Bathory and how were you affected by his death?
We never met him. He was present at one of our release parties but no one spoke to him. He didn’t socialize much with others. It’s sad that he died but it doesn’t affect us that much. Bathory was never going to be as good as in the beginning.

Has Necrophobic ever played here in the States or do you plan to do so in the future?
We have had some offers but in the end it has been cancelled because of financial problems. We hope to come there but nothing is booked. Also there has been a problem for “satanic” bands to enter the boarder after 9/11.

What does Satanism mean to you, if anything?
There’s two meanings: 1. Think for yourselves; reach your goals without thinking of other people. 2. Being a Christian worshipping the great goat. I don’t personally call myself a “Satanist” in any of the ways. I’m anti-religious.

Are you or any of the other Necrophobic members involved with any other musical projects at the moment?
Me and Johan both play guitar in the Swedish Black Metal act Nifelheim, Tobias has his project Order of Isas and Joakim plays in Souldevourer with ex-Dismember guitarist Robert.

Being around since 1989, is the death/black metal genre and touring still exciting for you after all this time?
Yeah, we are hungry for more. It’s a way of living. If you are a true hard rocker then you can never leave. Some people “like” metal, some people “are” metal...

Do you guys have to keep day jobs or are you rich rock stars at this point? What kind of day jobs do you have? Anything music related?
Yeah... death metal generates huge amounts of money so we spend all day long in our big castles watching Oprah and eating caviar. I recently swapped all my teeth for diamonds...

What advice would you give a new band looking to sign to a record label?
Never give away the right to your songs, only the recording. Don’t sign for a lot of albums, and if you ever see money...take it!

What are the future plans for Necrophobic?
World domination... No actually we have a European tour coming up and a DVD is going to be recorded soon. We have also started to write material to our next album.

Any messages for metal fans here in the States?
Never Surrender!!

The Necrophobic lineup is Tobias Sidegård on vocals and bass, Sebastian Ramstedt on lead guitar, Johan Bergebäck on rhythm guitar, and Joakim Sterner on drums. Hrimthursum is now available from Candlelight/Regain Records!

Necrophbic Links

Necrophobic: Their Official Home Page!
Candlelight Records USA: The Record Label for Necrophobic!
Necrophobic on Myspace: Their Official Myspace Page!
The Highwire Daze Home Page: Return to the Main Page!

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