Interview date: 08.11.2006
Already after the first listen on Slovenian stages (I first caught the melodies and the unbeatable live show a few months earlier at Tolmin’s Metal Camp), it became clear to me why these guys have the name they do. Amon Amarth, Swedish death metal hopefuls, took their name from Mount Doom, as penned by the writer and polyglot J.R.R. Tolkien. Doom has never sounded so sweet and easy on the ears, at least to any fan of epic-sounding, primal-energy-soaked, polished-to-the-bone viking-melodic-death metal.
I was more than happy to head off with our crew to record the chat, since I was hoping for a real meeting with some battle-ready Vikings. Around five in the afternoon we pulled up in front of the ‘scene of the crime’, Cvetličarna in VPK Mediapark, right next to the POP TV building. The first hordes of the most eager fans were already gathering at the doors, and two buses with foreign license plates promised that the guys were definitely inside. We’d barely made it through the front door when we got our instructions on who we’d be talking to and for how long. This time we got our carefully measured five minutes of media time with Amon Amarth guitarist Johan Söderberg, who came into the glass-walled room, the space between their backstage room and the hallway, straight from their long-awaited dinner. He looked visibly tired but was still ready to oblige the media, so we dove right into a short chat about life in the band and so on…
Sandi: It’s an honor and a pleasure to host you in our country for the second time this year. It wasn’t long ago that you played the stage at Tolmin’s Metal Camp. What impression did you get of the Slovenian festival crowd?
Johan: As far as I remember, it was phenomenal and inspiring, since we’d never played in Slovenia before, and the reaction we got from the crowd was incredible. They were waving a huge Swedish flag in front of the stage and stuff… And the crowd… That was really something to see.
Sandi: So what are your expectations for tonight’s show?
Johan Söderberg: Expectations are pretty high, since we got such a great, warm reception last time. I expect it’ll be similar today.
Sandi: You’re mainly presenting your latest album, ‘With Oden On Our Side’. Was working on the new album more stressful for you, given that the previous record, ‘The Faith Of Norns’, is selling so incredibly well?
Johan Söderberg: No. There wasn’t any special pressure, since we took our time preparing the record so we could put together the best songs we possibly could. I hope everything else turns out accordingly.
Sandi: What was the main idea you set out with? What’s the concept behind the album? Is there a red thread running through the whole thing?
Johan Söderberg: No, I don’t think so on this album. Before, on previous albums, we had main themes and red threads in some of the songs, but this album is made up of more short stories. There’s no real connection between the individual songs.
Sandi: You get labeled a viking-metal band. I know… Labels get stuck on all sorts of things, but I read in an article that you also follow the traditions of the past in your everyday life. Can you tell us more about that?
Johan Söderberg: I don’t think we live any special kind of lifestyle. We have completely ordinary lives, but every now and then we like to go to a Viking cemetery and stuff like that, because we find it interesting. We definitely don’t live in, I don’t know, Viking communes…
Sandi: And what about ideas, beliefs that you stand for?
Johan Söderberg: I don’t think we have any special beliefs. We don’t have any personal religions. Vikings are just an interesting topic to write about, and it also fits well with the music we make. That doesn’t mean we share similar beliefs…
Sandi: What about plans for the future? What are your plans once you wrap up this tour?
Johan Söderberg: After this tour, I think we’ll do a few more tours in support of this album.
Sandi: And what about preparing new material, new songs? Are you already planning to release a new album in the not-so-distant future?
Johan Söderberg: We haven’t started working on new songs yet. But once we have enough free time and finish this tour, we’ll, I promise, start writing new material soon…
Sandi: You’ve already achieved a lot. What is it that Amon Amarth still strives for, still longs for?
Johan Söderberg: I think we’ve always wanted to be able to live off our music alone. We only recently reached that goal, so we’ll strive to stay at least at this level, and in time to go beyond it. But… Well, for now those are the basic plans of our band.
Sandi: Thanks a lot for your time and for the interview.
Johan Söderberg: Thank you.
