Interview with Silenoz of Dimmu Borgir
By Ellen Gager

EDITOR'S NOTE: This interview was conducted live and has been edited for content and length.

MWE: In Sorte Diaboli, as a whole is a very interesting album concept, your first concept album. Between the Middle Ages setting of the music, the fact that it’s an epic, the feel of the cover art, even the title being in Latin, it’s so well thought out. What was the process that got all of those little pieces together?

S: It took shape over time, you know? When I started with the idea of the story, I really didn’t have anything specific in mind; it just took shape on its own after a while. And we had decided that the Dark Ages would be a good setting for everything, but symbolically, it’s a story that might as well have happened in current times, definitely so. That’s the good thing about the concept behind it, it’s not a conclusive ending, it’s something that you could describe in these times, too. Very much so.

I mean, over in Norway, the leading Bishop, he doesn’t tolerate, let’s say, other people with…he doesn’t tolerate lesbians and homosexuals. And, I mean, come on, we’re in 2007 now, not 1507. So, it just still shows that still some religious figures are, you know, detached to the real life. So, that’s something that also, the main idea behind the concept is that this person, after working for the church and the local bishop, he suddenly had like a spiritual change, you know? And he kind of reconnects with what he believes is the direct bloodline to the Devil, and of course, he

suffers for that because he is a different person, and he is almost like an outcast and a scapegoat in society. He basically has to suffer because he is different, and it’s still like that in many parts of the world, and it’s most[ly] by religions.

MWE: Is that why you chose Christianity in particular to use as the example for that, is because…

S: Yeah, because if I had chose Islam, I would be looked upon as a racist. So, yeah, people are so intolerant these days.

MWE: Well, some people would argue that in order to believe in the Devil, you must also believe in God, the yin with the yang. What are your thoughts on that?

S: Ummmm. I don’t have the necessity to put a name to everything, but the way we use the word Satan, for instance, is to…I mean, that word just represents adversary, and that’s the only thing it represents for me. I definitely believe in the balance thing, and that’s also why we chose to have the Baphomet on the cover, because that really represents what the balance is all about, and that’s something that religion doesn’t have. Religion is just focused one way, and sees things only from one perspective, and it’s not like that in real life, so, it’s not only about the black and white, we have to go into the gray areas, too, and try to find the balance.

MWE: It seems that the anticipation for the album is very high, and according to your website, the video for “The Serpentine Offering” was the most viewed video on myspace the week that it came out. What are your expectations about the record sales and the album’s reception by fans?

S: Well, of course, I’m not going to deny and say that we don’t care, because we do, just hopefully it will go well. So far, our job is done, because we’re done now, and we’re satisfied now, and it seems like already people that have heard the album agree with us, so I think it’s a good start. And judging by the presales in both Europe and in the States, it’s gonna be good, so…but everything that comes after we’re done in the studio, it’s a bonus, because we have done our job. Now it’s up to other instances to do theirs, so I think it’s gonna be good. We’ll see on this tour, how it goes. But we haven’t been on tour for a while either, so we have to get back into that kind of environment and routine, so we’ll see.

MWE: Do you think the majority of your fans are going to understand the concept behind the album?

S: Once they dive into it, I’m sure they’ll recognize a lot of references from the lyrics and stuff because [of] the way I write lyrics. Obviously, there’s…you have to read between the lines to read the different meanings to one sample, get the double meanings, and the people who are interested in the lyrical aspect, they’ll probably recognize themselves in many of those situations. Of course, the musical aspect is what people hear first anyway, and they judge from that, so we’ll see. It’s always cool to hear people say, “Well, I really liked the lyrics and they made me realize certain stuff. I feel stronger as a person now, so thanks for that.” That’s a really good feeling, that it means something to somebody else.

MWE: A lot of bands just see dollar signs when it comes to a new album, are you guys really hoping that people understand, rather than just buy the album because of the name?

S: Actually, I would rather have people either love the album or hate it, instead of being indifferent. As good as it is to be loved, it’s also great to be hated, because it shows that you’re doing something right. You are still controversial in one way, and you get to piss off some people and there’s not really that many bands coming from our genre still that do that. So, I’m glad that we can still shake some ground.

MWE: Do you think that you will attempt another concept album, or does it kind of depend on how this goes?

S: I mean, never say never, because we’re really happy about how this album turned out anyway, and maybe in the future we’ll do something close to this. The previous albums weren’t really pure concept albums, but they all shared the same thought and sense, and this is straight to the point, but around the same story, so we’ll see in the future. It all depends. Maybe on the next album, we’ll include more of the regional lyrics again, so you never know.

MWE: That was one thing I was going to ask, is how the decision comes about when you’re deciding whether to do English lyrics or Norwegian lyrics.

S: It all depends on the situation, because on Death Cult when we had those two [with] Norwegian lyrics, it was just something that happened, actually. To me, I was just writing sentences and before I knew it, I had enough for a lyric story, and the other guys just thought it was cool to include it, and that’s how it happens. We don’t analyze too much when we do stuff. I think it’s good to keep some part of spontaneity in both the music and what we do, so that’s the way this album came out great, because we were less prepared. This album, compared to the previous one, we didn’t make any demos or anything for this one, we just basically had most of the material ready, and went to the studio, and just nailed it out. So, I think the album sounds more direct, you know? And with a good production team this time, it’s a good sounding record.

MWE: You’re up for a Metal Hammer Golden God award this year, is that anything that gets you going, or at this point, its “Eh, just another award”?

S: No, it’s always cool because it shows that, in many ways, it shows that you’re appreciated, so of course that’s cool. It doesn’t make a difference if we win or not, it doesn’t make a difference on how we are as persons or how we make music, but it’s always good to have those kind of things happen because it just shows people appreciate what we do.

MWE: Beside yourselves, who do you think is worthy who’s been nominated so far?

S: Actually, I haven’t seen all the nominees, but I’m sure there’s a few really awesome nominees, for sure.

MWE: It seems that you guys make an extra effort to be over-the-top dark, and frankly, downright scary. What are you more like in real life? Are you really that angry, or what do you wear to the grocery store, is this what the not onstage you is like?

S: This is what I wear. I mean, it’s the persona we portray, like in album covers and onstage, is the continuation of ourselves in many ways. That’s how I see it, anyway. Some of the other guys, they probably would give you a different answer, I don’t know, but that’s how it is with me. It’s just…there’s a difference between me offstage and onstage obviously, but at the same time, it’s the same person. It’s just a different part of me. It’s always been like that. We don’t try to be scary or anything, it just shows that side of the band. Darkness is something that’s totally normal to me, and that’s okay. I feel extremely comfortable, and I’m really glad because I get to see things from different perspectives. Instead of being in the light and being afraid of the dark, looking into the dark, I see a vision of the darkness looking into the light. That was very fucking stupid, but yeah, you get the point. You have to dive into all the parts of yourself to be able to find that balance, so that’s how we do the music.

MWE: You’ve had a lot of ins and outs with band members, what is this lineup like?

S: This is the most stable lineup. Since, apart from the drum position, we’ve have had the same lineup now for seven years, so it’s the longest running we’ve had so far. Yeah, I think it just shows that we all come from the same background, the lineup we have now, and it gives more stability, I guess. We’ve always had, not all the previous members, but some of them, had kind of been taking things for granted after a while. And if you don’t share the workload, then it’s not going to work in the end. But this lineup is generally the one that works best together. I mean, we’re not the best musicians or anything, but once we get together and make music together, that’s what matters, and what comes out in the end, that’s what really matters. I still believe that we have something special, and that’s what is kind of the main motivation.

MWE: Is there anything else you would like to add about the album, or about this tour?

S: I think you pretty much have it all; it’s finally really good to be back in the States because personally, I like touring here very much. The first show was yesterday, so it’s too early to say how people react to the set list and everything, but I feel it’s just good to be back finally, ‘cuz it been too long, you know? Yeah, I think it’s gong to be good.

MWE: Do you prefer touring in the states, then?

S: Both yes and no, because here everything is more easy. I mean, for us, our guys. I think it’s still a growing market for this type of music, so every time you’re here you can see that the fan base increased each time, and I guess that shows a different way of enthusiasm than they do in Europe, and many countries, because in Europe there’s bands coming in and playing all the time, so they’re kind of maybe a bit spoiled, you know? And being a European band touring in Europe is maybe not that much exciting anymore as it used to be, so maybe that has something to do with it, too. But, we’re really looking to have a huge fan base all over the world, so it doesn’t really matter where we play, to me.