Svarti Loghin é principalmente uma banda de depressive black metal, proveniente da Suécia, mas que tem vários predicados que demonstram tratar-se de uma banda incomum e facilmente destacável do resto da cena depressiva.

As suas influências são díspares (Xasthur, Regnum, Isis, Jefferson Airplane and Beatles) e reflectem-se obviamente não só na sonoridade das canções mas também na própria estrutura, que reflecte uma composição cuidada e pensada.

O seu recente álbum de estreia reúne o que de melhor se encontra dentro do espectro do BM depressivo, injectando-o com melodias harmoniosas, um ambiente de satisfação por vezes, sem fugir demasiado ao contexto de BM que o suporta. É um fantástico álbum de estreia, que recentemente recebeu a pontuação de 8,5 na Terrorizer (na mesma edição em que Ars Diavoli recebeu um fabuloso 9) e que promete ser uma das surpresas mais agradáveis do ano.

Há pouco tempo, a Ritualis Metallum Infernalium apercebendo-se da qualidade deste registo de estreia, decidiu fazer uma curta entrevista a esta banda que optou por trilhar caminhos virgens no campo do black metal depressivo. Contactou o baixista Raymond N. e o resultado está exposto mais abaixo:

1 – Hails Raymond N., thanks for accepting our request to interview you as a member of the Swedish band Svarti Loghin, it is truly a pleasure. I think a good way to start the interview would be by talking a bit about yourselves. First of all, tell us when, how and why was Svarti Loghin created. I also think that it would be interesting to know what does “Svarti Loghin” means and why you chose that name. I believe “Svarti” means “dark” or “darkness”, am I correct?

The pleasure is mutual.
Svarti Loghin was created as an idea by our composer, singer and guitarplayer S.L in 2005, and in reality together with drummer Emil in 2006. After some rehearsals I myself joined to play bass. We recorded our demo Rehearsal 2007, and later on our full-length Empty World in 2008.
Svarti Loghin is ancient Swedish for Black Flame, a name we originally took from a Arckanum song. We thought the name suited our music fine.


2 – “Empty World” basically came out of nowhere and immediately became one of the most interesting approaches to black metal I’ve heard. While opening once again the black metal book, is still unravelled an unexplored path on the depressive chapter, delivering hypnotizing melodies in a avalanche of kaleidoscopic contours. How was “Empty World” forged and from where came the inspiration to create it?

The biggest inspiration for us is life, and all the misery aswell as happy moments that comes with it. That is why our music can be suicidal depressive at times, and happy and almost upbeat at times.
Our music influences ranges from black metal to psychedelic rock and 60's pop, such as Xasthur, Regnum, Isis, Jefferson Airplane and Beatles, amongst others.


3 – This debut album from yours was, for me, one of the greatest surprises of the current year. Unfortunately, it didn’t receive half of the attention and of the recognisement it honestly deserves. It is known that before “Empty World” you released a demo called “Rehearsal 2007”, which included the full-length’s two first songs, “Karg Nordisk Vinter” and “Inner Isolation”. Why have you opted to include these two tracks and to re-release it? Are they considerably different from the previous versions?

Yes they are, the demo only contains rehearsal versions (as the title might point out) and Inner Desolation is only half the lenght one the demo. There is only one guitar and no vocals on the demo aswell, so there is a distinct difference on the two versions.


4 – Svarti Loghin are usually labelled as a depressive black metal act, but I find that term to be somewhat reducing, especially when a focused listening discovers such different and original textures and melodies, all so organically crafted. In fact, I would dare saying that sometimes the ambience isn’t as melancholic as one would have thought. Some melodies even sound… I wouldn’t say “happy”, but I would definitely describe them as if they recognised this depressive situation but in a kind of a not too worried/conformist point of view. Also, your album cover isn’t the same old desaturated (black and white) forest picture, but instead a painted forest with some not so dead colours and tones, as if this was an empty world, but not dead, simply a better place without Men presence. Nature still lives on without Mankind. Are any of these interpretations correct or are close to the album concept, if there’s any?

You are spot on with that analysis, I could'nt have said it better myself.
It can be very amusing to read reviews and interpretations of Empty World, some say its as depressive that they want to kill themselves and other call it “happy happy joy joy popsong”. Does it just have to be one thing? Does people’s life just include one state of mind, one mood? Our music is in the end an expression of our own thoughts and feelings, and we, and our music is both happy and depressive from time to time.


5 – I am also curious about the band line-up. Usually this genre of black metal bands tend to be composed of a single member, but in your case you actually managed to exist as a trio. My curiosity is stranded to the composition process. Does one of you take the lead role and composes stuff for all the instruments or the composing is shared by the three? Is it difficult to put three people working in the same syntony in order to craft this type of sound?

The guitar riffs and the foundation of the songs are almost exclusively made by S.L, but I and Emil often make our own parts, and the arrangements are done together in the rehearsal room. All three of us share the same vision, but it is S.L that got the lead role.


6 – It is always difficult to judge new bands, given the fact that there isn’t a vast past of releases, but your debut laid some great expectations about your future as a band.
I predict a very bright future for Svarti Loghin because “Empty World” proved to be a sign of your unicity among the depressive black metal(DBM) sphere. About this precise sphere, I wonder how is the depressive black metal scene on Sweden? The first name that crossed my mind when I joined the words “depressive” and “Sweden” was Shining and then Hypothermia. By coincidence the latter released a split with one of the few DBM Portuguese bands, Black Howling. Together with Ars Diavoli and Inverno Eterno (Eternal Winter in Portuguese), they form an excellent set of Portuguese DBM bands. What would you recommend me to listen coming from the Swedish underground in a depressive vein?

The depressive black metal scene is "big", with a growing amount of bands and listeners. Some of the bands are Lifelover, Woods of Infinity, Waning, Silencer, Kyla, Livsnekad etc. There's really a lot of bands, many came in the aftermath of the prosperities of Shining.


7 – I spoke about Ars Diavoli, who was recently awarded with a 9 out of 10 score on the latest Terrorizer, for his fabulous debut. On that same edition, “Empty World” received an excellent 8,5 together with a lot of compliments and praises. How did you react after knowing this? Do you enjoy this type of recognisement for your work or are you more like the kind of people who actually don’t care at all for whatever people say about your works?

We have actually not read that review in Terrorizer, but that sounds nice. We enjoy the good reviews but try to don't care about the bad ones. It's of course flattering when people enjoy your work, but that is not the sole purpose of our work. We mainly play music for our own pleasure.


8 – Well, since I mentioned Terrorizer, I an forced to ask you about a sensitive issue. Recently the Terrorizer magazine had a very unpleasant reaction towards your label, ATMF and especially towards your label companions, the Italians Janvs. Accordingly with an announcement on the ATMF website, Terrorizer congratulated Janvs for their recent third album and were even going to promote the band and its album on a new section on the magazine, but after a few interviewing questions, there was an absurd question about affiliations with extreme right-wing parties, concerning the members of the band. By obvious motives, it was decided that the question would be left unanswered and the interview ended, but Terrorizer didn’t contact the band anymore. After this surreal episode, I wanted to ask your opinion on this matter. What do you think of this happening?

I can't say I know much about Janvs and their supposed right wing beliefs, but I think censorship is wrong, whatever political beliefs it might concern. For me the music speaks for itself, without any image or political agenda.


9 – Yet about your label I still wanted to make a couple of questions about your relation with ATMF. Being an entity that released stuff from Forgotten Woods, Lantlôs, Melencolia Estatica, Beatrik among others and who recently signed Absentia Lunae, I suppose you’re in a pretty decent situation. Is your relation with the label friendly and does ATMF support you where and when you need? Are you satisfied with it?

Yes, we are very satisfied with ATMF. They give us total artistic freedom, good distribution and supports us with as good promotion as they possibly can.


10 – Being such a unique outfit, I bet there are a lot of people who would love to witness you performing live. I couldn’t find any live shows that you have performed, so I suppose you haven’t played any. If that is correct, do you intend to maintain Svarti Loghin a just studio band without live presentations? If so, tell the readers why, if you please.

We have not done so yet, but if the time is right we would sure give it a try. We have played live before with past bands and some of the gigs where good experiences. But we have to find some livemembers, as S.L does all guitars and vocals in studio by himself.
Actually, there might be a gig this upcoming summer together with some other bands in the same genre, but nothing is confirmed yet.


11 – We have ended this interview and I re-affirm, it was a pleasure to talk to you, Raymond N. Do you want to add any last words?

The same to you Pedro.
Nothing other than buy our album, which hopefully also will be available on both casette and LP sometime during 2009 through an underground swedish label.

Oiçam com atenção no MySpace oficial:
http://www.myspace.com/svartiloghin