I had the chance to talk to Mr.Danielsson of the Swedish Black Metal band Watain. We discussed the band’s work, his opinions on the latest album Trident Wolf Eclipse and some more things.
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Eastern Eclipse Tour is Watain latest tour.. Is the band involving in any events this year?
Erik
The Eastern Eclipse tour was the last Watain headline tour announced for this year. It was a fascinating ride across the south east of Europe and with shows in some countries we could finally play for the very first time, like Turkey and Israel.
Right now we have just started the festival season which is quite a big project with a huge production, with headline slots on almost all festivals.
So that is where our focus is now, to make those 10 shows as magical and diabolical as possible. Then we will see...
We Are celebrating 20 years of Watain 20 years of The Essence of Black Purity. How were those 20 years for Watain? And will we witness a 20years anniversary release?
Erik
How those 20 years were? Well, how were your last 20 years? Hah.... Quite a hard thing to sum up in an answer like this Abdalrahman. Anyway, it is a great feeling to look back with confidence on all we have done.
Every album, every tour and every decision is still something that resonates seamlessly with the vision in our hearts.
20 years of victory and loss, ecstasy and sorrow, violence and bloodshed, savage chaos and sublime transcendence.
About a 20 year anniversary release, we did a box set for Trident Wolf Eclipse which included a few things pertaining to our 20 year history. On the release date of the album we also made a huge exhibition in Stockholm of memorabilia from our archives.
Mentioning The Essence of Black Purity, what has changed if we want to compare Watain then and Watain Trident Wolf Eclipse?
Erik
Well first of all we are not 17 years old anymore, but nearly 40. Singing about things like the Devil or Death means so much more now than what it did to a inexperienced teenager.
Things have become much more serious, more dark, more sinister...
^ You shall reap what you have sown
There flow the rivers of our being out of sight
Into never ending night^ are taken from A Throne Below off the new album Trident Wolf Eclipse, what is the never ending light and to what do these lines exactly prefer?
Erik
Those lines -which begin with "Down there" which you for some reason have removed and made the whole thing totally useless, which I fucking hate when people do- pertain to the abyss that is hidden deep within ourselves, a microcosmic reflection of the primordial darkness that was before creation and to which creation shall again return.
This sacred bond is shunned and forbidden by most men while the Satanist instead embraces and nourishes it with the blood of sacrifice and the fire of knowledge.
What’s your favourite food? Any special meal you like?
Erik
No.
How would you describe Trident Wolf Eclipse and what’s your favourite song off it?
Erik
I would describe it like a pure Black Metal album in the shape of a nocturnal predatory attack. Beautiful and sublime, yet utterly dangerous and violent.
My favourite song is Towards the Sanctuary.
You have a good Fanbase in the Middle East, do you think that Black Metal can rise in such area where a traditions and religious beliefs are in control?
Erik
Of course it can, even more so there than in the liberal west which is just filled with nonsense secular culture.
It just takes a few seeds planted in the right minds. The Devil's presence in the middle east goes back thousands of years...
Away from Music, my house is 90%IKEA, if you weren’t a musician, what kind of a company/work would have you like to do?
Erik
Something that had to do with any of my ions; books, bombs, magic, death, metal...
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A translation of this interview in Arabic will be published through Metalheads Corporation
More interviews to be published soon..
In the meantime check out some other interviews
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