“BLACK METAL AS WE APPRECIATE IT STILL LIVES ON AND WILL NEVER BE AFFECTED BY MODERN ANTICS” – AVSKRÄDE

Heeding the ancient call of the cold northern plains of their homeland, AVSKRÄDE evoke the true adversarial spirit of old through crude, nostalgic blasts of death-hailing, vintage Black Metal. As another winter of discontent and dis-ease casts its light- and life-extinguishing shadow across the Arctic Circle, the time was right to explore darkness, death, solitude, suffering and the great burdening sickness that is life with these innately nihilistic newbloods.

AVSKRÄDE’s filthy strain of raw, traditional Black Metal transports the listener back in time and it’s almost as if the last 30 years didn’t happen. No annoying attempts here to reinvent or revolutionise the genre. How or why did you decide that performing vintage Black Metal exclusively with no acknowledgement of modern fads or trends was the only way to go for AVSKRÄDE?
“We listen to all kinds of Rock, Punk and Metal. But the genre that means the most to us is precisely this ‘old’ style of Black Metal. When we started AVSKRÄDE as a duo, we were very much in agreement about the soundscape, lyrical theme and attitude the band should have. Simple and stripped down, with no bullshit. No over-the-top production. Our music will surely, and naturally, evolve, but the old-school sound will always be something AVSKRÄDE holds high.”

Somewhere along the way, Black Metal developed an unbecoming identity crisis and the fact that this music was always intended to be adversarial, antagonistic, dark, death-worshiping, aggressive and offensive (not just to the ears) was either forgotten or ignored. What do you make of developments like post Black Metal, progressive Black Metal, avant-garde Black Metal, religious Black Metal, Anti-Fascist Black Metal and Snowflake Black Metal? I made the last one up but no doubt it’s coming…
“Perhaps this ‘identity crisis’ is rooted in the fact that certain bands want to be accepted by the masses? BM must never become mainstream; it would be the death of the genre. It’s a unique style of music for unique people, and it’s important to keep it that way. We’re personally not big fans of these thousands of different varieties of BM. But everyone must be allowed to do what they want. If anyone wants to do snowflake BM, let them. As long as we don’t get it shoved in our faces… Black Metal as we appreciate it still lives on and will never be affected by modern antics. When you take part in it… well the rest of the modern stuff don’t mean shit.”

Your music is a refreshing foul blast of sonic malevolence, imbued unapologetically with the kind of authentically nasty streak that can’t be faked or imitated. And I certainly wouldn’t describe it as nostalgic or by-the-numbers Black Metal as your own strong personality shines through powerfully. What are the essential qualities or ingredients that you strive to include in every AVSKRÄDE song or album?
“Thank you. We try to bring different elements that we appreciate into every song we make. It can be a little punk loop here and a little classic hard rock there. When we write new riffs, most of it is done separately. Then we sit together and listen to see if it suits AVSKRÄDE. Most of the time it does, but sometimes it can be too melodic, too technical, too much Death Metal, etc… it needs to feel a certain way, and bring forth the vision of the sound we share. We often find ourselves simplifying songs we create.
“We appreciate the making of new material. It’s the most fun part of making music. Ideas coming to life, ideas being scrapped, and ultimately ending up with something that we think sounds cool and bears meaning. Then when you’ve finished creating and it’s time to start recording seriously, it can get tedious…”Both AVSKRÄDE full-lengths thus far were released in mid-December – ‘Det stora tunga sjuka’ in 2021 and ‘Undergång’ two years later (on midwinter’s day). There seems to be a seasonal element to Black Metal. Well, maybe it’s just me, but at this time of year, as the long, dark evenings close in and the sun retreats, enthusiasm is rekindled. Do you find that winter is a better time for listening to, creating, performing and releasing Black Metal and, following on from that, would you agree that living in one of the world’s most northerly (and therefore darkest) terrains influences your approach to creating music?
“We try to bring the cold and darkness into our music. Our nature is absolutely one of many sources of inspiration. We live near the Arctic Circle, meaning during summer it is light 24/7 and during winter it is dark 24/7. We try to create all year round but there is definitely a peak of creativity during the dark and cold months of the year. In the summer, when the sun is shining, it is easy to end up in the garden with a cold one instead of sitting in a cramped and warm home-studio, sweating.”

I could count on the fingers of one hand the number of worthy new Black Metal bands that have appeared in the last five (or maybe even ten) years. The best music is generally being made by comparative veterans who have been around the scene for quite some time, with AVSKRÄDE being an obvious exception to this lack of newcomers keeping alive the flame of old. Is Black Metal dying a death? Do you fear for the future of Black Metal? Without fresh blood, it could all be over in 20 years…
“If you went to a BM concert or festival 20-25 years ago, most of the audience was under 30 years old. Today, the audience is significantly older. Although there is a regrowth. The genre is shrinking, but hopefully it will survive. There are many extremely active bands today, but there needs to be new ‘big’ bands for the genre to peak again. The same applies in all Metal. Who will fill the shoes when the giants can no longer stand on stage? At the big festivals all over the world, the bands that headlined 25 years ago, still headline…
“Metal fans are nostalgic, hell we are nostalgic, but somehow, we must dare to innovate. There are really good bands that can fill the shoes of the giants, but they have to get the chance. The local scene where we live is dead as well. Trying to run a band, traveling for live shows, accessing other musicians and all other stuff that comes with running a band is a bit tougher when you live where nothing happens. However, the extra work makes every step we take forward more worthwhile.”

Rather than shamelessly pimping yourself online on an hourly basis, AVSKRÄDE is a traditional ‘boots on the (under)ground’ band which likes to get out there in public and perform gigs whenever the opportunity arises, which must be costly in terms of time off work, expenses, etc. Why is taking to the stage so important to you?
“Pimping ourselves online and seeking the spotlight wasn’t, and isn’t, interesting at all. We were even hesitant to put music out on streaming services and such… But as time went by and we understood a few people enjoyed the stuff we were making, it just felt natural to take one step further and make it more accessible. AVSKRÄDE started with no intention of playing live. Actually, the idea was just to record a demo just for fun. We wrote some music and two months later, amazed, we sat down with all the material that became our debut album.
“We had a talk with a few people we know, and they showed interest in joining AVSKRÄDE to play some live shows, so we started rehearsing the material. Financially, we are satisfied if we break even… so far so good. At the time of writing this, we have just done four live shows. First one was at a small local venue, second one at the biggest extreme metal festival in Sweden, and recently we did two gigs in Germany. It feels like quite the escalation from the initial idea of the band. But we enjoy it, blasting AVSKRÄDE directly into people’s faces…”

Black Metal is somewhat unique as a musical genre in that many bands choose to perform in their native tongues, which not only sounds better but also adds to the sense of mystique as well as providing a strong cultural element. Thus far, AVSKRÄDE has been channeled solely in Swedish, even though you clearly have a good grasp of English. Is this done out of respect for your land and heritage, or do you just feel more comfortable retaining your native words and language? There is a pleasing sonic harshness to the sound of the vocal delivery that lends itself very well to Black Metal…
“It’s just natural to write in our native language. It would be harder to express ourselves in English. Swedish is a sharp and harsh language, appropriate for this music. Many of the bands we enjoy sing in their native tongue. Thinking about some of our lyrics delivered in English is not a pleasant thought… However, who knows what the future holds?”

You mentioned nature earlier as one of the influences or inspirations behind your music. Nocturnal darkness (death?) and misanthropy are other themes explored on your releases thus far. Are there other important overarching topics, ideas or feelings that you try to transmit through your music? And – something I’ve wondered about for years – what is the most accurate translation of the album title ‘Det stora tunga sjuka’, and who or what does this refer to?
“Yeah, nature sure plays a part as both a setting for mood and a source of inspiration. As previously mentioned, we live up north. It’s not hard to retreat to complete solitude, surrounded by nothing, deep in the snow-covered land…
“Different views of death, dying, suffering and misanthropy are often explored in AVSKRÄDE’s lyrics… we cannot compare ourselves to any of the masters of writing in this genre. Our lyrics kind of get the job done, there aren’t any hidden messages, the message is quite clear. Nor do we try to portray any certain philosophy. But the lyrics are usually overshadowed by a dark and nihilistic view on things… or realistic, if you call it that.
“‘Det stora tunga sjuka’ is a line from the song ‘Begäret’, from our first album. It’s hard to translate directly, but ‘the great, burdening sickness’ maybe sums it up… The song itself describes, amongst other things, the need and longing to remove a life… but ‘det stora tunga sjuka’ could also be described as a bigger concept of a strenuous ill feeling, and ill-will, regarding life and living in general… It is a concept that AVSKRÄDE bears through most of the music overall.”
Modern-day convenience has led to laziness and a lack of engagement with art and with others. Music and the act of listening to it has changed utterly and quite quickly. While there are arguably merits to streaming / digital music, nothing can compare to a physical product (although these are becoming almost prohibitively expensive). Do you take pleasure from holding a physical AVSKRÄDE record or CD in your hands (or indeed those of other bands you enjoy)? And what do you make of the trend towards collecting bytes, files or subscriptions rather than blasting an album through an amp and speakers?
“Yeah, owning physical records of bands you enjoy and want to support definitely holds a value to us. Everything nowadays is digitalized and streamed, instead of, you know…owning it and playing it by yourself… vinyls sank in popularity not long ago, but they are making a comeback, of course mostly in Metal music. It’s essential to the genre to keep it physical.
“When we did our demo, we printed 99 CDs by hand, all with some signature, and a personal razor blade. Giving this possibility to a listener who chooses to spend money and support our music absolutely felt crucial. The same thought went to our next releases, we wanted it all on vinyl, cd, and cassette, for people to own if they want to. Of course, it’s also fun to hold a physical copy of our own music in our hands, instead of just being out there, somewhere in the internet clouds…”Finally, how much progress – if any – have you made in conceiving or creating a third AVSKRÄDE full-length? What can we expect on the next one? And are you looking forward to another long, dark, cold winter of discontent observing the human cattle in your homeland?
“No, we are not looking forward to it. But we are sure working on more material, alongside with playing a few gigs here and there…  But we are not really rushing it. We learned a lot from the making of the previous albums, and we hope to use this to create an even stronger third album. The albums that are out are good, but we feel that we can do better. As long as that feeling persists, we will continue playing. The day we make an album that is really great, and we feel that we can’t top it, it will be thank you and goodbye…
“We have made some changes in our process of creating, and it will hopefully reflect itself in a more thought through, ugly and foul AVSKRÄDE experience… What you can expect is next level continuation of Swedish Fucking Black Metal!!!!!”