Norway has always been a hot bed for Black Metal, so much so that anytime the country comes up in conversation, most metalheads automatically think of the genre before anything else. From the early days with bands like MAYHEM and DARK THRONE to more recent bands such as KEEP OF KALESSIN. Having completed two North American tours as a support act for both DIMMU BORGIR and KATAKLYSM and releasing their third album, "Kolossus", on their new label home, Nuclear Blast, 2008 was a busy year for KEEP OF KALESSIN. This seems to be a sign of things to come, as 2009 looks to be even better for these Black Metal stalwarts.

How do you feel "Kolossus" compares to your previous albums?

"I think think that 'Kolossus' is the natural successor to 'Armada' and that it's a bit more epic and it's more melodic than ever before, but I also think it's our strongest album, so I'm very happy with it."

Tell us a little bit about the song-writing and production process.

"Well, I start out with some ideas that I have. If I'm jamming on the guitar, I always make a couple of riffs and for 'Armada' and 'Kolossus', I had a very strong vision of the atmosphere I wanted on each album. So I was working towards that atmosphere when I was writing songs and new kind of changes I wanted throughout the album and stuff - the storyline of the album, basically. But I'm writing the riffs and then I bring it into the rehearsal place and I talk together with the rest of the band and get their input on what I should do next and maybe some parts are chosen and stuff, because you have so many choices in each individual song that, 'okay, what do we do now - do we use this riff or do we use that one? Or do we build these riffs together?' and stuff, so that's where the whole band is coming in and helping out with that process. And then we take it to the studio and we have our own studio, so we are one of those bands who actually start recording without having planned any of the vocals. I've done that for all our albums and because I write... I don't know why, but I write music faster than the rest of the band can write lyrics, (laughter) so I always end up recording the whole album and then I start nagging everyone to bring in some lyrics and then we sit down and arrange all that stuff in the studio after the music is recorded."

What are your hopes for the album in terms of the larger picture? Like, where do you think this will take you?

"I think 'Kolossus' will be... it's definitely the first album here in the States that has some proper distribution. I think that now, people are starting to notice it. I think 'Kolossus' is not your ordinary album, it will take some time to get into that album, it's doesn't have the easiest hooks like many other Metal bands do, but I think that it's an album that in time, together with 'Armada', will stand as two big monuments in our career which was the foundation of what we are going to do next and I think people, in time, will realize the strength of those two albums."

What are your thoughts on the rise of National Socialism within the Metal scene?

"In my music, I never spread any political or religious themes, even though we come from an anti-religious background, but still, I think our music... we have no political agenda and I think that there's too much of that in the Metal scene, as well, and personally, I'm up for the fact that everyone should be entitled to their own opinion, but I can't sympathize with the National Socialists. They are entitled to their own views, but it's nothing I share."

What lyrical theme would you like to tackle with the next album?

"We are going to have more individual lyrics - each song will be a stand alone song, more than 'Armada' and 'Kolossus' were. They were more concept albums, but the next one will be more stand alone songs and I already have the title and the concept for the album. It will still be very much KEEP OF KALESSIN, but I don't want to reveal too much of the lyrics, because then I would have to reveal the title of it and all that shit as well, but it will be very much KEEP OF KALESSIN, but it will be somewhat different than at least our previous albums."

What bands would you like to tour with in the future?

"I would love to tour with any band. I mean, we love touring and we focus a lot on touring now, but bands that I personally like, even though I don't know the people... I think NILE is a great band; wouldn't mind touring with them and also some of the bigger ones. If we really want to go big, touring with SLIPKNOT would probably be a really good thing for us to do."

What are your thoughts on the constant argument of Black Metal elitism - symphonic versus raw Black Metal?

"Actually, I am very much against that narrow minded thought of 'true Black Metal'. I personally like bands like DARKTHRONE and the early Black Metal bands and I've grown up listening to them. But I also know that some of those people who were very early on in the scene now hail to KEEP OF KALESSIN because we are about the same thing because we are not afraid of breaking the rules and that's what it's all about. To me, Black Metal is very much about individualism and doing your own thing and if that means adding keyboards and doing symphonic stuff, then at least you're true to yourself or if it's about doing only the raw, true Black Metal. But my problem with this is that I feel most of the people who hail only to true, underground and raw Black Metal, they are often very much not competent of doing any better. If you listen to DARK THRONE, they are very skilled musicians - their first album, 'Soulside Journey', it's a technical Death Metal album, but then they decided to go raw. The problem is that all the followers can't do any better and then they start talking shit about the bigger bands because they know that they will never get there themselves and they just try to make justice for themselves by talking shit about other bands. I mean, my favorite is that there are a lot of people in the Black Metal scene that are spending more time talking shit about the bands they don't like instead of talking good stuff about the bands they actually like. They are like, in the Black Metal scene, but it's only like, a handful of 'true underground Black Metal'. What the fuck is that? Wake up - the scene has much more to offer and not only the scene, but in the other musical genres as well. You will never get anywhere if you are that narrow-minded and personally, I also wanted to pick a fight with those guys with releasing an album like 'Kolossus', with that kind of imagery and with that kind of music. I think that a lot of the 'true' Black Metal fans really started to be pissed off by KEEP OF KALESSIN (laughter) and I love it because I want to pick a fight with them"

Is there anything else you'd like to add?

"No, I guess that's it. I just hope that people check out the band and buy the albums. It's very much important that people here in the States buy the albums, because our sales are not even close compared to other Norwegian bands in the States, so we hope that people give it some time and pick up the album and hopefully then we will come back." [FIN]