Donald: Hello Kine. Before we get started there are many people who do not even know you by name. Gehenna is still a rather obscure band compared to some others out there, so I think it would be good to give a brief but complete introduction of Gehenna and its history to our readers as many may not know who you are.
Kine: Alright! Gehenna was formed ten years ago by Sanrabb, Dolgar and Sir Vereda. In the beginning they used to rehearse in Sanrabb's room in his father's house. I used to hang out with the guys at that time, and me and my friend Sarcana went to see them on their first show in our hometown Stavanger. They played together with 122 Stab Wounds, and soon after I joined 122 and Sarcana joined Gehenna. Dirge Rep soon replaced Sir Vereda, and there have been quite a couple of people involved after that too. For further information, check out our website: www.gehenna666.cjb.net
D: So you have a new album in store for the world, one that will go back to the older sound of the first three albums. A more melodic sound with the use of keyboards. I think this is a great idea, especially if you take the aggression and complexity of the last two albums and mix it with melody and symphonics of the first three. Why did you decide to do this? Who's idea was it? Any surprises in store for us?
K: Well, I guess we won't necessarily meet people's expectations, so I guess there'll be surprises in store, yes. The new album will not have the influences of death metal, as on Murder and Adimiron Black, it will be a pure black metal album. But it will still be different from the first three, less symphonic and more primitive and aggressive.
K: We're a bunch of lazy people, hehe! No, there have been several reasons for it; it's been hard to find a time where we're all available. I work and study and have also been involved in other bands. Same goes for Sanrabb. And Frost and Blasphemer have of course been busy with Satyricon and Mayhem. Besides this, all of us don't live in the same part of Norway.
D: You are now on Moonfog. Do you like them? How are they compared to Cacophonous and Head Not Found? Did you know that Cacophonous has recently been brought back into business?
K: Yeah, I think Dolgar told me something about that... Moonfog is fine; they're doing a better job than the other two labels it seems.
D: Does anyone in the band have any training in music, like music theory or classical studies? Can any one read and write tablature/sheet music notes? Are any notes used in the songwriting process? When one person writes a song do they write all the parts or just the arrangement and their part?
K: Yes, I've played classical piano since I was a little girl, and Sanrabb has also played lots of different instruments. We both read music notes, but we don't use notes in the songwriting process.
D: What are the current happenings of your past members? I know that Dirge Rep was in Enslaved for a while and Dolgar is, as far as I know, in Forlorn. How about all the other past members? I am especially interested in the whereabouts of Sarcanna loved her synth playing on Second Spell and Malice. I read that she quit the band because she did not like the new sound that they were going for after Malice, but now you are going back to the sound that she liked playing and I was wondering if you had heard from her at all. Does she have a web page or means of contact for any work that she might be doing now?
K: Well, we're not going back to the same style as she played... However, she lives in Denmark now, I talk with her very often and I've been visiting her a couple of times. Dolgar and me went to see her in March. She's doing fine, but not working with music as far as I know. Dolgar plays in Forlorn, that's right. Hehe, Stavanger is quite small, both me, Sarcana, Sanrabb and Blod have played in Forlorn before, and I'm going to do a show with them this summer.
K: Yes, we'll have synthless parts, because we like it and we don't think there should be synth on all the parts of our new songs... A bit boring for me though, but it sounds better :)
D: Gehenna has always looked at monotheistic religions in a rather negative way. Indeed such religions like Christianity and Islam are not being as peaceful as they claim. Do you think that these religions may actually one day wane from society? If you did not perform metal music, would you still look down upon these religions?
K: No, even though most societies are getting more and more secularized (is that the word? My English is far from perfect), I think the big religions will survive, but they'll be more a part of people's private lives than a part of the society itself. People might get less Christian or less Jewish, but I don't think people will become less religious. They'll just have more religious groups to choose from. My views on religion is not affected by my musical career or the other way around, I wouldn't like Christianity more if I didn't play in a metal band.
D: What do you think about the ancient polytheistic pagan/heathen religions of pre-Christian times? One of which, your country's ancient Asatru religion, is coming back strong in the metal scene with many people professing belief. Do you feel that these religions are valid and healthy, and might be what people go for if monotheism fails to answer their questions, and they have doubts?
K: I don't think the pagan religions are more or less valid than other religions, but the Nordic mythology can seem a bit more modern than Christianity in many ways. The Vikings didn't interpret the religious myths literally at all, they used them as models for morality, how to live and so on. They're also more "politically correct" from a feministic point of view, man and woman were made at the same time, and they were equals. It was also a good thing to search for wisdom; Odin made great sacrifices to gain wisdom. We all know what happened when Adam tried to do the same... Another difference is that the Nordic religion doesn't separate good and evil in the same dualistic way as the Christians do. The Vikings understood the world as an energized chaos, and the point was to control the chaotic powers into a well-functioning cosmos, not to erase the powers of chaos. The point is that religion in earlier times was more used as an ethical standard on how to live; the Christianity in today's Norway is there because people wonder what will happen when they die.
K: Yes, and nature too. Things to be less proud of is for example is that our prime minister is a priest....
D: What do you think of the music from your fellow countrymen Dimmu Borgir, Old Man's Child, and Borknagar? Do you know anyone from these bands personally? What are some other bands from your country that you know and/or like?
K: I'm not very fond of those three bands... The last Dimmu isn't bad though. I know all the guys in those bands, they're nice people. I've toured a lot together with Tyr from Borknagar; we used to play in Satyricon together. Norway is quite small, so I pretty much know everyone from the bigger bands, and I used to live together with Blasphemer from Mayhem. My favorites are: Emperor, Immortal, Darkthrone and Mayhem.
D: I always ask this to all the bands I interview. Many in the more obscure part of the underground often accuse certain bands of "selling out" if they change a bit of their music style or sign to a bigger label. Personally I do not see them making all the fame and fortune they are accused of trying to achieve. But the point is not whether they are "commercial" or not. The point is that if the music is good, does it really matter if they have "sold out" or not? Doesn't the quality of the music matter more than anything else? Where do you stand on this issue?
K: Well, there's an own club for people who just liked the first album of any given band isn't there? I think that people should be able to make exactly the kind of music they want to make, and if it sells and people like it doesn't change a damn shit, the records sounds just the same as it would if it had only sold 50 copies! Sell out is when you find a formula that works and sticks to it instead of developing your music. What's not selling out is if you just don't give a rats ass about what other people think and just make the music you like.
D: It seems that metal and video games are becoming more intertwined with time. Bands on and off the tour bus are starting to take to console games so much now that various metal magazines are starting to write video game reviews as well as music ones. Are there any gamers in Gehenna? If so, what consoles and games are favorites?
K: Playstation 2, Vice city!!! That goes for all of us, hehe
D: Does Gehenna bring you any income, or do you need to work an outside job to pay your bills? Does any one in the band have a spouse or kids?
K: Yeah, we have jobs; I think more or less everybody in the Norwegian scene does. No kids, but I've got a boa and Sanrabb's got a dog...
D: What are some of the bands you have been listening to recently? Do you like any non-metal music types? What are some of your non-musical pastimes?
K: Last played records are El Caco, Quarthon and Tomahawk. I like a lot of music that's not metal too.
D: Do you have any plans to do a US tour? It would rule if you came here to California and I could get the chance to see you live. Have you ever done a US tour? What are some other places you'd like to travel to and play live?
K: Yeah, we'd love to go to the US. I've played there with Satyricon, but Gehenna's never been there. We'd also like to go back to Mexico, and Japan would have been cool.
D: What do you think will be in the future of Gehenna? Any special plans such as a live album, a DVD, possible autobiography book or something? I find it interesting that Sanrabb is the only original member left now, so I can only assume the band revolves largely around him.
K: We don't have any plans of that sort yet; we're busy doing the album...
D: All right Kine that is all I have to ask you now. On behalf of Lunar Hypnosis I want to thank you for your time and interest in doing this interview. I hope you liked answering it, as much I liked making it. Now the floor is yours to say whatever you wish to me, the staff, and our readers all over the world.
K: I'm looking forward to seeing you all on tour!
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