“We are very much looking forward to perform in Romania, for the first time with KOLDBRANN. We are delighted that Underground for the Masses invited us, and it seems like a truly dedicated festival!”, said Mannevond… As the second edition of Underground for the Masses is just around the corner, we reached out, interviewing our guests.
DinIntunerec: Hello, thank you for getting on board with this interview! First of all, congratulations for the new album, Ingen Skånsel, it’s been a while since the previous full-length, Vertigo. What have you been doing all this time? What took you so long?
Mannevond: Thank you! Yeah, it’s been a while indeed. After the Vertigo-years we went through a period of changes in the band. Our previous drummer Folkedal moved to another part of Norway, eventually leaving the band, as it was hard to make it work with the distance. We had started rehearsing and working on new material around 2014-2015, even recording some stuff in 2015-2016, but that material was mostly laid to rest when Folkedal left. So, we didn’t really have a drummer for some years, except for Renton (JORDSJUK, ex-URGEHAL) filling in on few concerts here and there.
Folkedal had played an important role in shaping the Vertigo album with us, and he was an important part of our songwriting process for a handful of years, so that meant we had to find new ways for that – and rediscover the old ways, so to say.
As for me, I was spending too much time on other bands, as I later came to realize. KOLDBRANN is after all my main musical priority. So, DJEVEL was getting more and more busy, with both recordings and live performances, and we also had NETTLECARRIER, with sort of the same line-up. DJEVEL and NETTLECARRIER released no less than six albums between 2013 and 2019, where I did both bass and vocals on three of them. At the same time, I was also involved in FAUSTCOVEN and FURZE for live performances, as well as some other stuff. So, all of that obviously took time away from KOLDBRANN.
Finally, in 2020, I realized I needed to quit as a recording member of DJEVEL, to fully concentrate on KOLDBRANN again – and that’s when we really started focusing on a new album.
After Vertigo, Kvass didn’t make as much new material as before – which in turn gave me the needed “kick in the butt” to start making my own songs again. Finding time for it, and rediscovering the inspiration and the fulfilment behind it, which has been very rewarding to me. So, now our new material is mostly made by me, but I also have to credit Voidar, who have a few killer songs, as he also had on Vertigo. Then, there’s one song by Kvass, and one song by John Grave and me. Kvass is still writing all our lyrics, though – which obviously is a key element in our music.
By 2021, we had made quite elaborate demos of all the new songs, and the last piece of the puzzle came together shortly after, when the young and talented Leonid Melnikov joined us on drums. Recordings were made in 2021-2022 and the album was mastered spring 2023. Then we had to go through the process of finding a new label, plan the release to the right time etc. etc. But yeah, we finally got it out, August 2024.
DinIntunerec: Some of the riffs have echoes from Vertigo, or at least that’s how I feel it. Is there any connection between the latest release and Vertigo? Or is any of the material created during the recording sessions for Vertigo?
Mannevond: Most of the songs on Ingen Skånsel were made and finished in the period of 2019-2021. There are some riffs and parts that date a longer time back, but nothing in direct relation to Vertigo. I’m glad you feel there are some echoes, though. I’m personally very satisfied with both Vertigo and Ingen Skånsel, and even though they are quite different, with a lot of years between them, you can still hear and feel it’s the same band and attitude.
DinIntunerec: A lot has changed in the musical world during the last ten years. Have any of the changes influenced the way you perceive music or your creation process?
Mannevond: No, not really. You know, we have always done our own thing, without regards to others, and whatever trends that may have come and gone. We have always done this first and foremost for ourselves, and quality always comes first – in every aspect. We’d rather take our time, working properly with the songs, the recording and everything, than just releasing new stuff for the sake of releasing something.
DinIntunerec: People and ideas as well as ideologies change over the years. What is the message behind your music and lyrics? Did the message and ideology change with time?
Mannevond: The lyrical concepts present on Ingen Skånsel could roughly be divided in two categories: the lyrics that deal with standing on the outside of the establishment, for better or worse – either with a flavor of resignation on e.g. Prosesjon under Blyhimmel and the title track Ingen Skånsel. Or with a flavor of finding inner strength in e.g. I Unaturens Vold. The other category of lyrics, is the one that depicts annihilation and well, sheer terror – typically used for the more crushing, aggressive songs such as Maskiner Av Nihil and Fortærer Av Minne Og Form. Threats from artificial super-intelligence and weapons of mass destruction have served as sources of inspiration for those ones. And then there is the odd one out, Et Uomtvistelig Falsum that has lyrics with a more existential/philosophical vibe.
DinIntunerec: The title of the new album would roughly translate to “no adornment”. What do you mean? What’s the concept behind the album?
Mannevond: Ingen skånsel means ‘no mercy’. There is no concept, but the sentiment of ‘no mercy’ is an attitude and a feeling that always have had a strong presence in our music and our expression, and perhaps even more so on the new album, so we found it to be a fitting title for the new record.
DinIntunerec: Vertigo is a bit experimental and prog influenced, while Ingen skånsel is somehow more raw. Is this the new direction that Koldbrann aims to explore?
Mannevond: I wanted to reach more back to the primal and primitive on this one, yeah. And as mentioned I’m now serving as the main songwriter myself, for the first time – so this new creative setting of course affected that. You know, Kvass has traditionally been a bit more “sophisticated” and melodic in his music, whereas I have been more straight forward – more old school and primitive. And then, we have Voidar, who’s somewhere in the middle. So, this sort of new/old direction came natural now, in those senses, but that doesn’t mean we might not explore other paths in the future.
DinIntunerec: This time the lyrics are exclusively in Norwegian. What role do lyrics play for you and your process of composing? Also, do you think that the language influences the melodic composition?
Mannevond: Yeah, we’ve always had mostly Norwegian lyrics, but it was a clear decision to return to exclusively Norwegian lyrics, this time. We had a strong feeling that Norwegian lyrics would work best with this material, from early on. Singing in the mother tongue can definitely add a lot to the sound, the attitude and the atmosphere. Just take Master’s Hammer, for instance. It definitely wouldn’t have been the same unique feeling if the singing were in English. But no, the lyrics don’t really play a part during the actual composing. For our part, the lyrics mostly come after the song is written, and Kvass likes to take inspiration from the music, when writing the lyrics. It’s also almost always better to adapt the lyrics to the song, than to adapt the song to the lyrics.
DinIntunerec: Could you explain how all the elements in the music help to build the atmosphere? Also, what does a good atmosphere mean to you?
Mannevond: Variation and dynamics have always been important to us, both within the songs and between the different songs. I don’t want to have the same song twice on an album, you know. And we don’t want to be boring, hehe! We’re inspired by a wide range of Black Metal, and of course other metal genres, as well as punk, prog, rock etc., and I think that resonates within our music. Even though we mainly play quite aggressive Black Metal we’re not limited to only one expression. And it’s the same thing with atmosphere. Atmosphere can be so many things.
DinIntunerec: I’m sure you have been asked various times, but still, tell us how did Koldbrann come about and what were the key moments or the turning points which shaped Koldbrann into what it is today?
Mannevond: Well, I started KOLDBRANN back in 2001. I was 16 and I had briefly been singing in another Black Metal band. The style of that band wasn’t truly for me, and I was set on making a more raw, cold, and harsh output, with Norwegian lyrics and a fiercer attitude – which still is a lot of the same feeling and intention we carry today.
We’ve had some different “constellations” along the way, but the core of the band, with me and Kvass have stayed the same since 2002, and I must of course also mention Voidar, who joined on guitars in 2009. Voidar was also involved at an early stage, behind the scenes so to say, recording both our demo and our debut album, back in 2002 and 2003. He also recorded most of Vertigo (2013) and the new album, Ingen Skånsel, as well as writing three songs on each of those albums. So, Mr. Voidar surely has had a crucial role for KOLDBRANN’s sound, as well. But yeah, Kvass served as our main songwriter for a long time, in addition to writing all our lyrics, of course. On the first couple of albums, he made about 75% of the songs, and I made the rest.
DinIntunerec: Also, how did you come up with the name of the band and what does Koldbrann mean to you?
Mannevond: It was the harsh sound of it, and the grim meaning that appealed to me. It’s a bit old fashioned too. It’s not a word you hear very often. Directly translated Koldbrann means ‘cold fire’, which also fits well with our music. But as some probably know, ‘koldbrann’ is the Norwegian word for ‘gangrene’, which is an infectious and rather ugly disease, causing tissue death and potential risk of sepsis, where the “treatment” often ends with amputation. Necro as fuck, in other words.
DinIntunerec: You signed with Dark Essence Records, for your latest release, how did this come about?
Mannevond: I reached out to Dark Essence shortly after we had the master recordings ready, spring of 2023. We knew we weren’t going to continue working with Season of Mist, and I was mainly looking for a Norwegian label this time. Dark Essence had been on my radar for quite some time, and they seemed like a good fit for our size and style, so we checked around a bit and heard nothing but good words about them. They were really into our new material and offered us a fair deal, so that made it an easy choice, and the co-operation has been very good so far.
DinIntunerec: Tell us about the creative process… Is it a joint effort or do you write separately? Does everybody get involved?
Mannevond: The songs were mostly made and arranged by the respective songwriter. This is how we have worked since the beginning, more or less, except for Vertigo.
As mentioned we had made quite elaborate demos for the new material, before we started recordings. Everything concerning instrumentation was pretty much laid out and arranged in advance. All the way down to drumbeats, tempos and a lot of the details on bass, guitar etc. But the drummer is always free to add his signature, of course – with fills, details, special techniques and so on. It’s just impossible for me to not think drums when I come up with new riffs, and when I’m arranging songs. The same goes for the bass and additional guitars. The exception is the vocals, where only a few of the tracks had complete vocal arrangements before we started recordings.
When the demos are ready, we then rehearse the songs, all together as a band, before entering the studio. That’s also an important part of the process. Making sure the songs sound the way they should, and preparing everyone for the recording.
DinIntunerec: What has been your best and your worst experience as a musician?
Mannevond: I don’t think I have any singular best or worst events like that, but whenever I get a demo done for a new song is definitely among the best experiences. As for the worst I would probably say the waste of time while travelling, sometimes. Waiting for flights, lost baggage, long drives et cetera.
DinIntunerec: What’s the best thing for you about performing live?
Mannevond: Performing live is one of most powerful experiences, in my book. It’s one of the ultimate outlets. All senses are sharpened. You’re on your own, while still playing a part of the band, and at the same time connecting with the crowd. It’s all things at once. The pure black energy you channel and give the songs is truly special. I still feel the live performances are as rewarding as ever, and it’s been an important aspect of KOLDBRANN since the beginning.
DinIntunerec: Since we mentioned live performances, soon you’ll play in Bucharest, Romania, at Underground for the Masses festival. What do you know about Romania in general and in terms of underground metal? Naturally, we are glad and honored that you decided to play in Bucharest. Can you tell us more about that?
Mannevond: Thank you! We are very much looking forward to perform in Romania, for the first time with KOLDBRANN. We are delighted that Underground for the Masses invited us, and it seems like a truly dedicated festival. I must admit that I don’t know all too much about Romania, but I’m looking forward to learn more on this trip.
DinIntunerec: Do you have a favorite moment, a very dear memory related to life on the road or live shows?
Mannevond: I’ve had many great experiences “on the road”, through the years, otherwise there would be no point in doing this – obviously. But yeah, only last year alone we had some very memorable trips to Istanbul and Montréal, performing in Turkey and Canada for the first time, as well. Excellent crowds! And we got a great welcome. I could also mention the stellar festivals Cosmic Void in London, and Celebrare Noctem Fest in Austria, and many more, of course.
DinIntunerec: What is the most important life lesson that you have learnt so far?
Mannevond: Well, you never stop learning. Maybe that’s the most important lesson.
DinIntunerec: Almost two and a half decades of activity, what were the main obstacles that you had to overcome during all these years? Also, with the advance of technology, do you think it is easier nowadays to release a new album?
Mannevond: Working through the changes in the band, after the ‘Vertigo-years’, and recording the new album were demanding tasks – as always when making and recording new albums, really. It takes a lot of hard work, time and determination, but of course; you have to invest to get a good result, and I must say that I’m very satisfied with the outcome. Technically, it might be easier to record and release albums now, sure – but we have certainly never taken any shortcuts, to put it like that.
DinIntunerec: Nowadays the underground is kind of overcrowded, I mean there are so many bands emerging everywhere. What is the secret, let’s say, to be relevant?
Mannevond: We have always gone our own ways, and done our own thing. With full passion, and full energy. We are of course not innovators in any way, but we have never stagnated, and we have always aimed to build and maintain our own distinct sound, drawing from a wide range of influences, keeping it varied, dynamic and energetic – and I think that are some of the things that a least makes us stand out in an overcrowded scene, as you say.
DinIntunerec: What’s next for Koldbrann? Any plans for the future that you might share?
Mannevond: We have a string of festivals coming up this year, starting with you guys in Romania, before moving on to Switzerland, Sweden, Denmark, Norway’s Beyond the Gates, and Germany. With more to come. Except for that, we will be working on new material, and maybe even make a small release – we still have some unreleased songs from the album recordings.
DinIntunerec: Thank you for your time, any final words for our readers?
Mannevond: See you at Underground for the Masses!
