Interview with Andreas Nilsson / April 2004

Hello Andreas! Thank you very much for taking out some time for such a little Online magazine like ours!
No problem really.

As I know you just came back from a concert in Sundsvall in Sweden! How has it been? I mean, how has it 
been out of the band’s view? Did the crowd react in the way you expected it? (As I heard during the rehearsals it was 
quite cold in the location, almost to cold to play... I hope you didn’t have that problem during the gig anymore?)
The show went ok I guess. It wasn’t one of our best gigs performance wise, but the crowd seemed to 
be into our stuff so all in all we’re satisfied. Fortunately spring is coming closer now so it’s no longer subzero 
degrees in our rehearsal place. Something we’ve had to live with for a couple of months now due to a broken radiator.

What’s your live set- list at the moment, by the way? Do you think, it will change until the gigs at the summer 
festivals? How does it work actually > how does the band decide which songs to take? Or do you sometimes ask the 
fans in your forum, which songs they would prefer, or anything like that?
Our set list tends to change from every gig we do, as we want to vary ourselves. We decide in the rehearsal place about 
a week before the gig which songs to play, and then rehearse it for a couple of times to make it work properly. We’ve 
never used polls in the forum or anything like that, but maybe that’s an idea to use in the future.

By the way, I’m actually asking myself, who organizes the gigs at the moment? Still your old record label? As I 
heard you're thinking about changing to a new one. Is any decision made about it so far? What happens if you 
change your record company in the next weeks or months? Are the confirmed Naglfar gigs in summer in 
danger to be cancelled then?
All gigs outside of Sweden are taken care of by our management Continental concerts. Our old label hasn’t been 
involved in the bands activities for years now, so it will not matter if (when) we sign to a new label. All gigs that 
have been confirmed will still be valid. At the moment no deal has been signed yet, as the negotiations are still in 
progress, but we hope that it all will be sorted out soon.

Are you working on a new album at the moment? If yes, what can your fans expect? Will it be the same style 
like "Sheol" or do you plan to try something totally new? I can hardly imagine what a new album could be like. or 
how it could ever be better than "Sheol" or "Vittra", as those 2 albums were supreme..
Yes we are working on new material that will appear on the forthcoming album. The music is still in the typical 
Naglfar vein, only more brutal and vicious.

As I found out (by asking you. haha), it was always YOU writing the lyrics to those songs that I 
personally like best! Especially of course "As the twilight gave birth to the night" . the very first verse 
of it belongs to my all-time-favorite lyrics. Does the lyric-writing come naturally to you (like suddenly in a 
moment when you don't expect it), or do you sit for hours and think about what you could write? And about the 
grim lyrics, like in "I am vengeance" where do you take your inspiration from to write lyrics like this? Because those
lyrics sound like someone having a lot of wrath in his heart.
It’s cool that you like the lyrics. For me it varies how they are conceived. Sometimes I just get a line in my head and 
from that I develop it into a finished lyric. Other times I sit down and think of stuff to write and other times I can 
get influenced by reading something or watching a movie. The case with for instance “I am vengeance” was that 
when I wrote it I was going through some rough times and was very angry at almost everything around me. 
So I guess being in a foul mood also helps.

You were speaking the male vocals in the song "Vittra". How is it about your singing abilities? Have you ever 
thought about trying it out (in another solo-project.. haha. damn..), or will the guitar stay your favorite?
Haha, my singing abilities are very limited so say the least. And although I might despise people in general I can’t
 find it in my heart to punish the masses so greatly. Therefore my singing will remain unheard.

How often does the band actually come together to rehearse or to write new songs together?
We try to rehearse three times a week. But we also meet up at Marcus place to write and record new material 
for the next album so at the moment it’s almost as a fulltime job.

If you cold chose, without any limits from record- companies, which songs would you like to cover in the future 
(just for fun. not that I expect that on the next album then)?
I’ve never been much for doing covers. I prefer listening to the originals. But I'm certain some covers will be made in 
the future when time allows us to. Not sure if they’ll be released though.

How do you see the future of Naglfar? Aren't you afraid sometimes, that all those other side- and solo- 
projects from the other members (Marcus, Jens,.) could jeopardize the band future of Naglfar? I mean, I 
imagine this very difficult to handle several bands or projects, and probably most of you also have regular 
jobs at the same time, or study or whatever.. Or do you all have a common opinion, that Naglfar is the 
absolute priority for you?
Naglfar is top priority for all of us. It wouldn’t work out otherwise. Many of us have side projects and 
other bands, but that’s how it’s been for years so we see no difficulties continuing. If there would occur a 
situation were a member wouldn’t be able to focus to a 100% then we would have to find a solution. 
Naglfar will be around in one form or another for many years to come. 

I'm asking, because there were some changes in the band-line-up in the past already; but the line-up, like it is 
in the moment > I personally like it a lot! It would be very unfortunate to see it split again!
I agree. The lineup we have today is our strongest up to date. 

By the way. I saw that you yourself & also Jens, Marcus etc. have all been members of other bands in the past 
(except Mattias Grahn. I don’t know anything about him, sorry). For instance in "Ancient Wisdom".. and it was 
nearly the same line-up like Naglfar is today (3 of 5 members). How did this happen. I mean, it `s funny, to see 
almost the same people making music together again, just with a different band name (and there was MORE than 
one band before, if I’m not mistaken)! Why didn’t you continue under one of these old band-line-ups and improve 
your musical style in any of THOSE bands instead of just founding a NEW one or constantly switching to 
new bands and leaving there again? Was it somehow, because under the name Naglfar you had most success?
With Ancient Wisdom it was Marcus who made almost all the music. Jens was more of a session member, as he was 
only playing the keyboard live. As a guitar player I felt that I wanted to contribute more than I was with AW, so 
when I was asked by Jens and Kris to join Naglfar I saw this to be a better opportunity for me. Back then Naglfar 
didn’t even have a demo out so it wasn’t because of more success or anything. We just wanted to make faster music I 
guess.

What attributes do you think make Naglfar stand out from the rest of the Death-or black metal scene? 
What’s the unique thing about your band that makes you recognizable and rememberable?
To be honest I don’t know. Maybe that we haven’t changed with the trends of the scene, but instead kept on 
focusing on making brutal music the way we wanted it? Hard question to answer. 

Are there any bands being an influence on Naglfar musically, or any band(s), that have your 
total respect, being a role model or something?
 I have respect for many musicians and bands out there. But I have no role models in the scene. I’m sure we 
draw inspiration from the music we all listen to at home, but it’s not like we try to sound like anyone else.

How did you start to interest for metal and how did you end up in that death metal genre? Do you remember your 
first instrument and where you got it from?
It was an older brother of a friend of mine who got me into metal. When staying over at their house I used to sit in 
his room at night being totally mesmerized by the albums he played for me. I was maybe six years old and 
couldn’t believe what I was hearing. I’ve been hooked on metal since and I doubt I’ll ever find a genre that 
could have such an impact on me that Metal did. My first instrument was a crappy old bass I used when 
playing in a gore band back in 1989. Can’t remember where I got it from, but it was yellow and ugly as fuck.

About going on tour. Isn’t it a very hard life sometimes? I know artists who totally dislike touring 
(not because of the fans, they normally are great, but for the conditions during touring, like lack of sleep, hygiene, etc.)! 
How is it for you? Can you still enjoy all this (knowing it`s for the music in the end) or would you rather not 
like to tour, if you had a choice?
Going on tour means playing live. That’s one of the major reasons why I got into this in the first place. So I really 
enjoy touring. Now we haven’t done that excessive touring with Naglfar so maybe my opinion would be 
different if I had more experience of it, but I doubt it.

Again about your future: in your forum I often read posts from fans, asking you to come to the US or Brazil and so on. 
How is the status at the moment? Do you have information, if your records sell well outside of Europe? I heard, 
you played the Milwaukee Metal Fest once already (I hope I don’t mix that up with any other US festival) > how 
was the reaction of the audience there? Did they know Naglfar, or were you some kind of "Newcomer" there? 
How’s the crowd in the States? I only know that the Brazilian fans welcome each band like Gods, but I’m not 
sure about the Americans. is it hard to get them in a good mood? ........ How would you enjoy it to be known all 
over the world, if your success would increase? Could you imagine a life like Metallica, being on tour for 2 years non-stop 
or something? Really living ONLY for music then? Or would that be the point for you to quit and care a damn 
fuck about all the money?
What I’ve heard the records has sold fairly well. When playing the MMF the reaction was very good. People were totally 
into the music and gave a surprisingly good response, so I wouldn’t mind going back to the states that’s for sure. 
Now, the scenario you put up is very unlikely as black/death metal is a very narrow genre. However if we were 
able to live on the music and be able to tour for 2 years I wouldn’t even hesitate for a second. Count me in!

Okay. Last question: how does it come, that you care for your fans so much, taking out some of your 
precious time? I know, you run the Naglfar forum, answering as many questions as possible, and 
I heared you even chat with the fans in the "Official Naglfar chat" (doesn’t that sound good?). I mean, 
other bands just let it run, they never change a word with any fans and are successful nevertheless! 
Also they have forums, but never a band member writes there personally. So what is it that keeps you so 
"connected" to the fan-base (as I’m sure, you had the same sales-numbers without the contact to your fans!)?
I can’t see why I shouldn’t. If I have the time and people want to know something about my band, then 
of course I have to answer their questions. We’re no rock stars.

Alright then. Thank you very much once again for doing this interview! And I hope Naglfar will 
remain in the metal scene for a veeery long time!
Thank you for the interview.

Interview by Twilightheart