The underground is alive and well.
With artists such as Norwegian based Peccatum, featuring the former frontman of Black Metal legends Emperor and the impressario of one of the more ambitious electronic recordings of 2003, Star of Ash, along with a number of like-minded guest artists, the underground is as fresh and exciting as it has ever been. MusicTAP was fortunate enough to be able to speak with Peccatum recently while they continue to write for upcoming projects.
This husband and wife duo proves that the underground is not only alive and well, but thoroughly fascinating.
MusicTAP (John Dunphy): What’s been the general opinion of Lost in Reverie so far from the critics and fans?
Peccatum: The feedback from both listeners and media has in fact been incredibly good for this release. We initially thought this album would be tough to swallow for the average listener, but we seem to have been proven wrong on that account. Most critics point out that the album is not for the average listener, but it actually seems to be just that – to a certain extent of course :o)
MT: When was the band formed?
P: Peccatum was brought to life in 1998, and released our debut with Candlelight Records in 1999 supported by tours in Europe and
North America
. It was followed up by an EP and new full-length in 2000.
MT: What specific instruments do you both play?
P: Ihriel plays piano/synth and Ihsahn plays guitar, bass and piano/synth.
MT: What is it like as husband and wife to work together on such adventurous musical projects as opposed to working with outside musicians?
P: The musical collaboration between us is a constant process, and something we do almost every day. We are both professional about our work, and know well how to sort out musical differences. What we are conscious about though is trying not to get caught in a monotonous loop, but to keep evolving both musically and in our working methods.
MT: Definitely no monotony on Lost in Reverie. While much of what is presented on the album is definitely rooted in Black Metal, there are a number of other sounds present including jazz, ambient and trip hop. What are some of your major musical influences? What do you think has drawn your band to such varying musical landscapes as opposed to taking a safer route?
P: Peccatum has always been about seeking out musical challenges rather than avoiding them, but when it comes to moving in and out of genres, we’re often more fascinated by the sonic potential of them, rather than the musical expression itself. Further on, it is always a challenge to pinpoint our major influences in general, as some of them are revealed to us while others stay unfocused and unseen. However, we’re both interested in reading, which also includes technical music magazines and theory, experimental and progressive music and visual arts. 
MT: The lyrical content for Lost in Reverie is also quite evocative. What are some of the inspirations for your lyrics? Is it a joint effort on both your parts or does one-person handle more the music end of the band and one handle the lyrical end more?
P: This album has no chronological lyrical concept, but in the making of this album, we’ve been following three guiding stars: the dreamy and ruthless movement of water, Theodor Kittilsen’s “Svartedauen”(The Black Plague) and French Surrealism. Especially for this album, all material is so co-written that most of the time it is hard to sort out who did what part.
MT: A definite melding of both collaborators, the album feels like each piece naturally progresses to the next. Not having any real experience with Peccatum before Lost in Reverie, I wasn’t sure if the exit of [drummer] PZ was incredibly significant within the band’s dynamic. How much effect did his departure have?
P: To some extent his departure has had an impact on our working method. On the other hand he’s never really been a major contributor in the actual song-writing process, so we believe that the direction of the band would have come to this either way.
MT: Ihsahn, was the disbandment of Emperor mutual among all members? What have you been able to pull from your time with that ground breaking black metal band that has been useful for your work with Peccatum? Any plans for other projects?
P: Emperor came to a natural stop, and I believe everyone was quite happy pursuing other musical challenges. I’m very proud of what we achieved with Emperor, and grateful for the experiences and opportunities this band has brought to me in general. I’m actually working on material for a solo-album and if everything goes according to plan it will be out sometime next year.
MT: The underground was pleasantly surprised last year when your ambitious Star of Ash project came seemingly from out of nowhere, Ihriel. Any plans for a second release?
P: At present I’m rather tied up with both Mnemosyne and new Peccatum material, hence Star of Ash will have to wait for a while.
MT: Tell us more about your record label Mnemosyne Productions (www.mnemosyne.no). When was that founded? Will it be handling projects outside of Peccatum and associated artists?
P: Mnemosyne Productions was founded in 2003 and “Lost in Reverie” is our first release. We’ve a deal with the Norwegian company Voices Music & Entertainment (www.vme.no), and they are handling the worldwide distribution for all Mnemosyne releases for now. “Lost in Reverie” is also licensed to The End Records (www.theendrecords.com) in the
US
, and they will handle the North American distribution and promotion. Mnemosyne Productions is not just an outlet for our own projects, so we look forward to try and find new talent and start working with other artists as well.
MT: Any plans on crossing the
Atlantic
for any shows? More specifically, will Peccatum be playing out anywhere?
P: At present we have no plans to follow up this release with live performances. This is merely due to lack of time with building a new label as well as pursuing new musical challenges. However, we’ve already had some offers for concerts, so we might want to follow up on this at a later point. We would be honoured to play in the
US
again if the opportunity should come along somewhere in the future.
MT: What can we expect in the near future for not only Peccatum but for Ihriel and Ihsahn specifically?
P: We’re currently working on a follow-up EP and video for Peccatum, which will hopefully be out sometime this autumn. Ihsahn is working on his forthcoming solo-album, which is set for release in 2005.
MT: Thank you very much for taking the time out for this interview and I wish you a lot of success in your upcoming projects!
