MANIAC
Maniac is surely an artist in need of no introduction. Having been a controversial and defining front figure for black metal legends Mayhem, he has drawn no small amount of media attention over the years, but it’s his post-Mayhem projects that have perhaps given the greatest insight into his creative and enquiring mind. Having spoken to him shortly after the launch of Skitliv, it only seemed fitting to have another round upon the foundation of Sehnsucht, the new venture Maniac has formed with Ingvar and Vivian Slaughter. Prepare yourselves for a journey in lateral thinking…
HN: Hi Maniac, how are you doing?
M: I’m smelling rats and finishing off the Skitliv album. Otherwise I’m fine thank you Ellen.
HN: As a frequent smeller of rats, I offer my sympathies! The primary occasion for this interview is to find out more about Sehnsucht, the band you launched back in Autumn last year. What is the idea behind the project, and how did it come together?
M: The idea is to put forth some backview mirror thesis of odd music that I’ve been carrying around for some years now, maybe since 1996, and to merge it with some of the more literary-based writing I have been doing, as opposed to lyrics.
HN: A few tracks are already available for preview on your MySpace; how far on are you with the creation of your debut album? What can the listener expect?
M: We’ve recorded the basics for four songs now. We need to add a few bits to these and then we’ll record two more songs. Expect the holiness of unholy measurements. The redirection of the flow of black metal put into soundpatterns not familiar with breakneck guitars and blastbeats. A tour of the wasteland.
HN: Patricia describes Sehnsucht as being a more ‘thoughtful’ sibling to the more confrontational Skitliv; is this a fair assessment? What kind of ideas and feelings do Sehnsucht explore?
M: This might be the epistemology of how I feel about most things. The bullet in the Krag-Joergensen that is Skitliv. I explore the feeling of meeting a polar bear without a gun. Meeting life as it is. Skitliv and Sehnsucht are Scandinavian Misanthropy from the left and the right.
HN: You toyed with some other name ideas before settling on ‘Sehnsucht’, which roughly means an uncontrollable, possibly destructive sense of longing; what made you settle on this word over your other ideas?
M: Sehnsucht for me is not any English translations of the word. The best way I can describe it is to look at the painting “Separation” by Edvard Munch. I chose the word because of its journey into nothingness. And because of its description of how most people live their lives, without even being aware.
HN: When the band was announced, it was also revealed that you are engaged to band-mate Vivian Slaughter; does this personal closeness make it easier to work together? Do you share a similar creative outlook?
M: It makes it both easier and harder. We share a lot of the creative outlook but we come at it from very different angles. Sometimes it’s like Paradise working with Vivian; sometimes it’s like Purgatory.
HN: 18 months ago we talked about Skitliv, which is still very much an active project- what is the news from this camp? Will we see your debut full-length in 2009?
M: We’ve just finished recording our debut album. Now we only have to mix it. I’m very satisfied although it was a very narrow birth. The album will be out in 2009.
HN:Is there a danger of becoming distracted by the process of beginning new projects? Is it possible to have multiple areas of focus and still be productive?
M: In my head there are books, albums and journeys all the time. The problem is to give each one the individual thought it merits, but I think I’ve managed this very well now. There is a big difference between Skitliv and Sehnsucht but they are both me and they follow the same freezing moon. The reason I have both bands is that I have different ways of expressing myself.
HN: Your projects seem to mull creative ideas over for some time before releases; do you like to create things on a long timescale to be sure it sounds right?
M: Yes I do. The earliest songs for Skitliv was written maybe 4-5 years ago. But they evolve and change. I like it that way. Maybe I am a bit influenced by Blasphemer in this way of working.
HN: Both bands are signed with UK label Cold Spring, who are no strangers to our pages; how did you come to be involved with Justin and his organization? What particular qualities make this your label of choice?
M: Sehnuscht is signed to Cold Spring, but Skiltiv is not actually signed with them. We released Skitliv’s Amfetamin together as a one-off, spur of the moment, fun thing to do amongst friends. I’d been in contact with Justin on and off for many years, I think since I recorded my demos for Voluspå. He releases a lot of great music and I have immense respect for his work. It is the perfect label for what I am trying to achieve with Sehnsucht’s music.
HN: I spoke with Daniel Jansson of Deadwood a couple of weeks ago about your collaboration on his “Ramblack” album; let’s hear it from the other side- how did you find that experience? What made you decide to work with Daniel?
M: It was a very good experience, because he gave me free reign, to interpret it the way I wanted. He is a very dedicated person in what he does and how he expresses it. I got the track from him and I knew that this was something I wanted to do. I have a lot of respect for his work. There is a feeling of the abyss in his music. I like that.
HN: Those who follow your musical developments and your interests will know that you have tastes that run outside of ‘metal’, for example in your long-standing love of Current 93; do you think there is an increasing interest in experimental and extreme music? What is it that draws you personally to this kind of expression?
M: I think there has always been an interest in extreme music. Ever since Fartein Valen. Or Arne Nordheim – one of my favorite composers, and bands like Comus or X-hol Caravan, and later Suicide. It’s been there for a long time but it might be increasing because hopefully people will open their minds to other forms of expression. And with all the xanax being absorbed every day maybe people need a wake-up call. I think my reason for expressing myself this way is Edvard Munch. The only true hero of the apocalypse.
HN: The past couple of years have seen the return of Maniac to the live arena- have you enjoyed your shows so far? Will we be seeing you this year with either if your projects?
M: Yes. I enjoy it very much. Being on stage is a very special feeling. I have to play live this year.
HN: You mentioned before that you have been exercising your creative talents in writing prose- certainly your Myspace profiles give hint of a passion for words and imagery. Is this something you spend a lot of time on? Is it something you would like to develop further in the future?
M: I write every day. It’s something I want to do more of, and hopefully one day I can find a publisher.
HN: Which of your ambitions remain to be fulfilled? If there was one big goal you could achieve in the coming year, what would it be?
M: To release the Skitliv album. To write a book. To play live in Malyasia.
HN: Thank you very much for your time; if you’ve any further messages for the world, please go ahead:
M: Always a pleasure to speak with you Ellen, and to quote Arthur Rimbaud “I have nothing more to say!”
