BLODTRU – …is more about a specific set of thoughts
- Posted on 03-04-2009
For noen uker siden mottok vi en promo CD fra våre venner i Det Germanske Folket som gjorde at vi straks fikk lyst til å prøve et intervju. CD-en var med et dansk enmannsband som kalte seg Blóðtrú og Trúa, mannen bak prosjektet, var ikke vanskelig å be. Blóðtrú ble startet opp i 2007 og "The Death of the Spirit" er hans debutalbum. Hva Blóðtrú handler om, hva det står for og hvor han henter inspirasjoner fra, er blant det du finner du ut ved å bli med oss inn i Trúas verden.
What separates Blóðtrú from other black metal bands? Do you have a feature in your music that makes you special or extraordinary?
Well, first of all Blóðtrú is not really a black metal project. The Death of the Spirit (TDOTS) happens to be a black metal record, but I don't think the next Blóðtrú record will necessarily be that.
Right now I am working on getting a collaboration release with the Danish doom act Sol out. This record is roughly a mix of doom and drone elements. Blóðtrú is more about a specific set of thoughts, than a specific music genre.
I use whatever musical elements I find necessary at a given time to express my ideas and thoughts. TDOTS is musically a straight forward old-school thrashy black metal record (many reviewers have called it an outright rip off of Darkthrone, which actually just confirms to me, that I have reached exactly the sound I wanted for this record), but I think the lyrics are extraordinary. And exactly the lyrics (or at least the ulterior motives) are what will be the common denominator for all Blóðtrú recordings.
They are philosophical, political and spiritual.
What are you hoping to achieve with this album?
I hope some people will find interest in my record. How many is not that important – if I can start some new thoughts (or take existing thoughts further) in a couple of people's heads, I will be happy. And I know I already have, so I'm very content.
I know TDOTS does not set any new standards musically at all, but I really see it as a kind of "opening act" for my forthcoming recordings.
Records are always seen in a certain light, depending on what kind of music the artist has put out before, and I want my forthcoming records to be seen in a black metal-ish light, though perhaps they will be something completely different.
Why did you structure the album the way you did? Was it ever a possibility to have the songs in a different order, for instance open with "The Wrath of Tiwaz"?
TDOTS doesn't have any storyline as such; I simply swapped the songs around until I found the most meaningful combination.
Transcendence of the Fimbulwinter is of course written to be the closing track, and Chr Chr Leave My People Alone is written to be the opener.
The structure of the album is very Burzum-like, which is fully intended.
Is there a political statement in the song "Christus Christus leave my people" in regards to religion in society?
Well, I never had anything against religion as such, as long as people keep it to themselves.
People can live their lives however they want to, and believe in whatever they want.
But the moment they start to force it upon others, I hate it.
Christianity has some good elements and some stupid elements, but no matter what it has nothing to do with the European tribes.
A religion is very different from a mythology (though many people compare them or even confuse them); the most important difference is that religion is based on dogmas.
I don't know what sorts of masochistic madness they are into in the areas where Christianity hails from, but WE are not meant to live like this.
Scandinavians are mostly still pagan at heart (even though they may not even know it), but the poison of Christianity pollutes our minds. I think those sickly dogmas have a great part of the responsibility for the vast number of people with mental disorders, along with many other types of diseases.
Where do you get inspiration to write your music and lyrics?
I draw my inspiration mostly from writings on psychology, society, science and pagan spirituality. Musically I draw inspiration from a vast variety of other artists.
I listen to practically all genres of music…
Why are you a black metal band? Why did you decide to become a black metal? What were you inspirations and/or reasons to start a black metal band?
Black metal has meant a lot to me over the years. It really changed how I look at things.
I remember the first time I listened to Darkthrone's "Under a Funeral Moon" – I was devastated! I'd never heard anything like it. That record will always be the ultimate definition of black metal to me. Later I learned about Burzum, and started getting into the writings of Varg Vikernes. To me what makes black metal so much different than anything else, is the very defined position it takes.
The term "true" has become so stupid, because it's usually about who is wearing the heaviest corpsepaint – but to me a "true" black metal band has those very defined ideas about life in general, and are not afraid to utter them. I don't buy that "true black metal bands are misanthropes" bullshit. Black metal is pure energy, the very essence of life!
As I said earlier, I don't see myself as a black metal act as such, my first recording just happens to be black metal. With it I both want to pay great homage to the artists that have inspired me so much, but also define Blóðtrú from the philosophical ideas of black metal, even though not all my future recordings will be of this genre.
How did you come up with your name, Blóðtrú? Is there a special and/or interesting story behind that?
I've been using the name Trúa for some years now. For those who don't know Old Norse, I can say it translates to something like "faith", but also has the values of the word "true".
This is a word that means a lot to me, as it both describes the spiritual faith, but also being faithful (true) to yourself and those you hold dear. It's a very beautiful word.
Earlier I made some recordings under this name (Trúa), which were all sorts of music and sound. I started Blóðtrú with the intention of doing only black metal. That is the original reason why I chose this name. Blóð of course means "blood", so Blóðtrú translates to Bloodfaith, which to me describes the pagan spirit very well.
But as time passed I realised that Blóðtrú was really present in everything I do, black metal or not, so there was no longer any reason to separate my works in this way.
Paganism is not something you practice, it's something you are.
What is "The Death of the spirit"? Why did you call your album that?
The Death of the Spirit is all around us. It actually happened a long time ago, but it is also happening all the time everywhere. It describes the obscurity from our original pagan ways.
Universally the European tribes very spiritually murdered the moment that our lands officially embraced Christianity. To lead a Christian life is to oppress your own spirit and vitality.
Paganism is what you are; religion is a set of ideas that come from the outside. A spiritual infection.
So you aren't really a Christian even though your people have embraced Christianity for ages – because Christianity is a set of dogmas that are acquired. If a "Christian" child was adopted to a non-Christian family, it would never feel the urge to worship Christ.
Paganism on the contrast runs in our blood. I believe everybody has a yearning to be one with the Earth, even though they may not even know it consciously themselves.
An easy way to prove this, is to look at the great joy and sense, the European peoples still find in celebrating the pagan feasts. Easter for example is celebrated with Easter eggs and daffodils. The eggs are clearly a pagan celebration of fertility. Even the word "Easter" refers to the Sun rising from the East.
In Scandinavia we still call Christmas "Jul" (Yule). Jul is an older version of the word "hjul", which means "wheel" – referring to the Sunwheel. Furthermore the tradition of Yule presents does not spring from the doings of Santa Claus. It is said in the old stories that Heimdallr delivers gifts to us from the spirits on Yule Eve.
The Death of the Spirit describes the obscurity from all this vitality and life force that is actually right before us, but so many people chooses to follow the dark path instead.
If Blóðtrú could go on tour with three bands, still together or not, which three bands would that be?
That is a very strange question. Blóðtrú has never played live, and probably never will.
I don't have much affection for concerts; usually I much prefer to listen to music in peaceful privacy. If the meaning of the question is to uncover which bands have meant the most to me, I would probably say Burzum, Current 93, Darkthrone and Coil. That was four, I'm sorry.
Could I just ask a bit strange but still intriguing question: is there any particular reason for why every song is longer than the one before? (Except with The Wrath of Tiwaz and Sol is dead, but those are also pretty close)
To be honest I didn't even realise that.
But now that I am aware, it's a funny thing really.
Perhaps it has some meaning, I'm not yet consciously aware of…