Skyforger are arguably Latvia's most successful and well known metal band, here is a Pagan Metal band who have stood against the test of time since their inception back in 1995; previously known as Grindmaster Dead from 1991-1995. Since then many changes have taken place, with vocalist / guitarist Pēteris Kvetkovskis and backing vocalist / bassist Edgars Grabovskis being the only members from the original line-up, both of which also take on duties of playing traditional Latvian instruments; joining them are Alvis Bernāns on guitars and Artūrs Jurjāns on drums.

Their latest album "Senprūsija (Old Prussia)" which saw daylight back in 2015, is their sixth album and provides more evidence that Skyforger are more than just a metal band, they're dedicated at pushing more of their cultural heritage, folklore and history to the fore. This is even more so evident with their new music video 'Nothing Is Forgotten' which was released in celebratory honour of the 100th anniversary of Latvian independence. 

Peter was more than happy to chat to GMA about this momentous occasion, Skyforger's history, the importance of learning about one's national history and folklore, what makes Pagan Metal uniquely separate from the overarching Folk Metal genre and of course what metalheads can do in Latvia's heavily-steeped-in-history capital Riga. 

With your lyrics are you hoping people would pay interest in Latvian history and folklore?


     "Sure we do! That is one of our goals! That is why we have everything translated into English and even more – we always add some explanations and stories for people to understand what it is all about. Just check our website, it is full of explanations about what we sing and what we tell: http://skyforger.lv/en/"


Do you have any favourite songs from the albums you have done?

     "No, they all are like my children, everyone is equal in the eyes of the father ha ha. But honestly, I never listen to my music at home. Probably it is because I hear those songs differently to anyone else from aside or they were in my ears already for so many times when I created, recorded and performed them, so I had enough already. Therefore I can’t name you any specific song I love from Skyforger, sorry."


What is it in your opinion that makes Folk Metal, or in your case Pagan Metal that bit special?

     "Hmm, I can tell you what makes our music special, but if you ask how those (Folk / Pagan) styles stand out, I have a hard time today to tell something original here. So-called Folk Metal of late reminds me more of Power Metal than what it was (Folk) when it all started. Today I see Folk Metal as jolly Power Metal hymns with pathetic pompous choruses and of course bagpipes playing along the band, add here Odin and Vikings ad nauseam and you’ll get the picture. It is funny that even non-Folk Metal bands now sing about Vikings and add that folky stuff in their music. Like when you have Judas Priest and Saxon singing about Valhalla!

It is to the point that we as Skyforger feel a bit shameful to be named as Folk Metal band. I know it will sound like bragging, but here are a few things that makes us stand apart: we sing in our language, we sing about our Baltic heritage and history instead of Vikings, we try to play a more aggressive and grim style of music, we do real research about what we sing. So maybe it is better, in our case, to call it Pagan Metal. I know, I maybe take it all a bit too serious, but then again that is my personal attitude to the music."


For Metalheads visiting Riga, what sights / attractions could you recommend? What venues? Best alcohol drinks?

     "Old Town of course - there is a lot to see, all that medieval style most of metalheads would love. Then there is the Ethnographical Open Air museum on the outskirts of Riga. What else… probably the folk club-pub Ala, with live Latvian folk music and dances and something like 30 kinds of beer. The Folk music shop Upe (you can buy traditional folk instruments there) and ancient jewellery shop “Baltu Rotas”. Some traditional food places, like Lido Dzirnavas. For best alcohol – beer - there is no better stuff here as we have old beer traditions. I can recommend Bauskas, Tērvetes, Valmiermuiža beers as good ones one can buy in shops and then there are countless craft beers in places like Labietis. Two of the best places for Metalheads to hang around with metal music and like-minded people inside is the tavern “Zobens and Lemess” and café Leningrad. If you come in Summer (June) we have our own Pagan Metal festival 'Zobens Un Lemess' or 'Kilkim Žaibu' festival in neighbouring Lithuania. So this is what comes into my mind right now."


What plans does Skyforger have for going into 2019? Are there any greetings you wish to send out to friends, family, fans, etc?

     "We started to work on new songs, but I guess a new album will be out only in 2020 as it still goes slow due to not enough of free time and just one rehearsal in a week. But at least it is started! Then we have some great festivals ahead and few concerts here and there for this year. For example Party.San festival in Germany. Maybe some more opportunities will arouse as the new year is just started!

As always we want to say big thanks to everyone who supports our band, comes to concerts and listens our music – we appreciated it a lot! Thanks Global Metal Apocalypse for this interview and see you all soon around!"

http://www.facebook.com/skyforgerofficial​

Croatia has had it's fair share of rich metal music history, however it has only recently spawned it's first ever Pirate Metal band; the genre itself popularized by Scotland's Alestorm in 2004 although it's antecedents originates back with Germany's Running Wild releasing the album 'Under Jolly Roger' in 1987. GMA caught up with Marko Vučković (drummer and band manager) otherwise known as The Admiral and looked into what makes these scallywags tick, Croatia's pirate history and what the Croatian Metal scene is like.

Could you give us a brief history of Rum Smugglers, how you started out, etc.

     "We started as a duo back in 2011, playing a variety of blackened thrash with pirate themed lyrics. We soon recruited the bassist and the rhythm guitarist, to further explain; we regularly switched those band members due to differences in styles and then not being able to comply to the regime of the band. In 2015 we released our demo, 'Hemp Rope Justice', and later on found the new addition to the band, our keyboardist, thus switching to a more folk / power metal method in our songs. He left in the Autumn of 2017, being with us only for a short time, around 9 months. We re-recorded our single during the time he spent with us, and after his departure we are currently trying to employ two violinists. Hopefully they will prove to be better band members then most of the aforementioned."


Presuming one of your influences is Alestorm, what are you aiming to bring to the Pirate Metal movement?

     "One of our influences was Alestorm in the beginning but, we grew out of the cliche that everyone thinks they are the only pirate metal band that exists. We also take influences from Skyclad, Running Wild and Swashbuckle, we are trying to freshen up the scene with our more 'thrashy powery' approach on the subject at hand."


What is the Croatian Metal scene like? Tell us about the festivals, media, venues, bands, etc

      "It's a bit poor at the moment, there are some great bands here, but everyone's focus is mainly on tribute bands and on some weird avant-garde and experimental type of music, thus disregarding the metal scene as it was a few years back. There are some great venues like OKC Palach in Rijeka, and Insomnia in Slavonski Brod, Epic club in Osijek and Kset and Močvara in Zagreb. The Croatian metal scene is still strong though, pushing out bands like Flesh, Frozen Forest, SpeedClaw, Uma Thurman, Decomposing Entity and many others. Just type in Croatia on the Encyclopaedia Metallum website and hope for the best, and check out YouTube links with the same search.-"


You say you combine gypsy melodies, where do you get your influences from?

     "Yea, gypsy melodies, well we are on the crossroads between the Mediterranean and the eastern front, so we get our influences from both sides of folk melodies and folk culture."

Lithuania despite it's relatively well-positioned geographical position, seems to have a metal scene devoid of western attention with the exception of a few metal bands. One band who fits that category is Blackened Thrashers Dissimulation, whilst on the other hand of the spectrum it is arguable that Žalvarinis is another band who has garnered attention outside of Eastern Europe. But what about the new generation?

Well, with the latest news concerning Berserker's signing to Sliptrick Records the future looks bright for the Lithuanian Metal scene. This female-fronted melodic metal outfit have been around since 7th March 2009 and are set to release their latest offering and debut album "Dark Worlds Collide" this year. Having already performed in Latvia, Estonia, Belarus and Poland, it's only a matter of time before they reach British soil.

But before they get that chance, GMA decided it was only fair to give the two ladies and four gents a brush over and interrogate them...

Kristina & Agnieška, what are your thoughts on female musicians playing metal? Would you agree that the stigma towards female musicians in metal is not as oppressive as once was? Would you agree that modern society is more appreciative of having diversity in music be it gender, race, religion, etc., that there is very little oppression towards the mentioned traits?


Agnieška:

I believe that gender does not matter in music nor that it ever did, female musicians can be as good as their male opposites. Although sometimes female musicians do not get a whole lot of respect from some metal fans, there are a lot of strong and respected female-fronted bands out there. I always felt good being a female singer in a metal band, for me it is fascinating to be a part of a band playing strong music.

Krisina:

Metal music lets you express your inner energy, spiritual power, emotions and rebellion – traits, which every person has, regardless of their gender. Of course, not everyone can play this kind of music, but if metal is not only in your ears, and makes your heart beat faster and lets you feel the passion, it means you play the right music – that’s what I feel. Modern society is very diverse, meaning its tolerance to a wider spectrum of music styles, I believe, that we are living and playing in the right time, when people want diversity, when it is pursued to be tolerant in all of aspects, because it gives a freedom of choice and actions. I can’t argue, there is always some disapproval, but without it, it would be harder to improve.


Where has Berserker got lined up to perform in support of the album re-release (via Sliptrick)? Is the UK on the table? (in contention).


We did a "Dark Worlds Collide“ tour in Poland, performed in Latvia, Estonia, Belarus and of course Lithuania with the purpose of promoting the albums digital release. Now the planning stage concerns
how can we support the re-release and find time to work with new material and other projects. Gigs
are being planned in Lithuania, Latvia and Poland and we can say, that the UK is planned for November. With proper support there is a bigger chance we will actually do it!


What would you describe your sound as without using genres in your answer? What sets you apart from other similar bands?

Our music combines epic melodies, apocalyptic lyrics to bring every listener to his own unearthly, magical, fantastic reality.


Finally have you got any hello's, thank you's etc you wish to send out?

We would like to thank all the people that support us, that attend and have fun at our shows. This is the main reason that pushes us to go forward and create music.


"Dark Worlds Collide" is out via Sliptrick Records date tba

https://www.facebook.com/BerserkerOfficial

It's not uncommon for a metal band to fall into a sub-genre that is totally unique, not only in terms of lyrical content or sound, but by the sub-genre name itself. So when Finland's Whispered announced details for their forthcoming album "Metsutan - Songs Of The Void", the slight-head turn became imminent after the first word. Why is a Finnish Metal band using a Japanese word in their album title? Turns out they're a 'Samurai Metal' band, well musically they're Melodic Death / Power Metal tinged with Eastern 'Oriental' Folk music influences, but we prefer the new genre tag as a way to describe them.

They might be fashioning blades, experts at martial arts, or masters at kanji calligraphy, but they're not resistant to our interrogation methods. Sadly no sake came between us or the band....

Vocalist / guitarist Jouni Valjakka and guitarist Mikko Mattila entered the interrogation chamber.

At Ensiferum's gig at the 02 Islington on 25th March, GMA found a moment to talk to vocalist and bassist Sami Hinkka about their tremendous 20 year career, their latest album "One Man Army", thoughts about Bloodstock, the fabled Eurovision question and of course many other things. The tour was coming to a close on the 25th and so understandably it was going to be a fairly emotional night, the tour was with their friends Metsatöll from Estonia (who we also interview) and was supporting the new album. As Ensiferum have been going over 20 years (as said), Sami gave us an insight into what the high and low points of the band's career have been so far:-


"(laughs), I'd say every show has been a high point of the career, low point? Erm, I guess for Markus the founder of the band, back in 2004 where there were a lot of line-up changes - those were the moments that kind of tested his faith". Since then the line-up has been solid for 10 years, and who knows if it will or wont change again (bands are constantly evolving). Thankfully Sami admitted that "Everything's working better than ever", so the prospect of a line-up change? Virtually zero chance.


Given the fact that "One Man Army" did exceedingly well across Europe having nabbed the coveted top 40 spot in four countries (Finland #1, Germany #15, Austria #37 and Switzerland #24), I asked Sami for his thoughts on whether metal music is or is not being accepted by the mainstream more nowadays or on the other hand is metal breaking newer ground?:-


"I guess so, it's kind of hard to say as a Finnish person because you know, Finland is like a 'metal country', you know if you just go to a normal shopping mall you might hear Amorphis playing from the speakers and that's like "normal". But yes I think in general metal of course is reaching new people, on the other hand all the young metalheads are getting older and they are having kids, and of course you teach them to listen to good music (laughs happily)". So is metal in the Finnish blood? "Yes! For some weird reason, I wish there would be like a really good 'deep' answer why there are so many metal bands coming out from Finland but I still don't have.... I just blame the long winter, nobody has anything better to do than sit in the rehearsal room and make music (laughs)".


Of course after making music, bands generally speaking go on tours and or play festivals to showcase their new stuff on the live half, so with Ensiferum having played Bloodstock last year, Sami shared his thoughts on the festival, question is would they ever contemplate going into Eurovision?


"Well we've played Bloodstock quite a few times already, it's honestly one of the best festivals in Europe, it's always a lot of fun and we have a lot of friends in the UK so it's always cool to see them. It's a professional festival where everything works and some of my friends have been there you know as guests. I've never been there myself, I've always been there just as a musician, but from my festival guests perspectives I've heard that everything works really well so, so keep up the good work!"


Sami gladly shared some tips for those unsigned bands or those new to the festival experience:-

• DON'T get drunk before the show, just do your best and remember when it's your time to get on stage, get THERE on time.

• Do your thing with 110%, because then it's your stage, do not apologise for anything.
• When it's your time to start the show or get off the stage, find the stage manager and respect all people.  Those who talk about your band, buy your CD's, respect those people.

"To be honest I don't really have an opinion about Eurovision (laughs), I haven't really followed anything what goes on in the pop culture in a way. It's OK if you like it, but I can't see Ensiferum doing it, we're.... nah, we trust in our own music so we don't need that kind of exposure"

As said the show that night is the last on the tour, so naturally Sami was happy to reflect on the past few weeks and share his thoughts. Additionally when speaking earlier about their landmark achievement of 20 years activity, has Ensiferum ever contemplated making a band documentary?


"We go home for around a week and then we go to a festival in Sweden, and a few weeks later we're going to hit the road with Fleshgod Apocalypse (IT) to do a European tour which is going to be fantastic! Then it's summer festival season, and for autumn and winter we have some special things coming up sorry I can't reveal anything yet, you know 'politics' about releasing dates and so on (hint there dropped?). All the time we try and work on new songs, we're hoping we can make the studio early next year and start the 'circle of life' again so, release the new album and do some touring around the world.

It looks pretty busy because we also did a few acoustic shows in Finland and they work out really well and is a lot of fun for us and for also fans, some people even said that they were the best shows they've ever seen from Ensiferum; they're like hardcore fans who have seen us like seven times, so maybe we also record some, there will be a lot of stuff that are like acoustic material so maybe we record acoustic things some day and it would be cool to do an acoustic tour actually. Metal Blade also kinda showed the green light for the new DVD's, so we also have to start working with that, so we're pretty busy for the next 20 years (laughs)!


Regarding the documentary:-

"Yes! At one point that was the plan, we actually started working with the new DVD already in 2010 and we shot some material and Markus the frontman of the band, he has LOTS of material of the early days, even from the very first show of Ensiferum when the guys were like 15 years old (chuckles), 'teenagers'. But yeah that would be so cool to do a good package with all kinds of history stuff, interviews with old members, stuff like that you know good material from all the 20 years, and then also have a really good show, some big venue with pyro's well you know a good show. But Spinefarm actually said that these days nobody actually buys DVD's, so let's put that on hold.

Now we changed the label to Metal Blade and I think it was around last Summer we were drinking with the guys, they were actually the ones to ask have you thought about a new DVD? We said yeah but nobody buys DVD's, they were like no no no no! So we talked about it a little bit and they are into making new DVD's so maybe some day, I'm absolutely sure that it's not going to come out this year but maybe when we turn 25 or something like that, but that's something we're working on. It's not the highest priority at the moment and the album will be.... (Sami gets lost in thought)... ah it's lost, I really like Metsatöll (basically Metsatöll were sound-checking downstairs and you could hear it through the double doors separating the stairwell (where we standing) and the auditorium)".

So we changed our conversation to Metsatöll, is it the first time they've played here?


"No they've been here (UK) before and I'm really happy that we got them on board, I can't really remember where we met the guys.... err no we did a few shows in Poland and just talking shit and drinking after the show, where we was telling them 'Oh we're going to the UK' and they were like 'Arrrr we really want to go there also and we're planning to go there, so we were like 'hey come on, let's unite forces' and so here we are. We're old friends and it's so cool to share a bus with them because they're old geezers like we are and then it's really mellow in the bus, most of the time, old men can party (chuckles) also but it's been a really nice tour", and so are Metsatöll realistically the best well-known band from Estonia? "Yes they probably are, well we always called them the 'Metallica of Estonia' (laughs)".

As with a handful bands in the past, I asked Sami a question that has pretty much become a stable household question within the GMA repertoire. Would you say that Metal lyrics (in Ensiferum's case folkloric) can be educational? Could metal lyrics generally demand a certain amount of intellect?


"In a way yes, when I write the lyrics of course I want there to be a point actually in the lyrics, so educational? Yes I hope so but on the other hand I never want to explain my lyrics too much, because like art in general there is no right or wrong and I think it would be really wrong to kind of tell the fans 'this song is about this, this and this', I want everyone to have the freedom of interpretation and if its just like a 'grab a beer and yeaaaaah into battle and just kill your f*cking enemies', but you can also find a deeper level if you want.

However the second part really stumped Sami:

"That's a really tough question because, I don't think art should be an elitist thing, that only this kind of music is for people who like jazz or something like this, it's just for people who really understand the music and all the theory, I have many friends who don't understand anything about music theory but they really like jazz, this was the first thing that came to mind. Even for me when I first heard this stuff I was like 'ah its so like.. artificial', something they're trying to be, something very artistic. But I am really happy that I went the whole circle and I really love the art nowadays, it just took some time for me to open my eyes and find some really good music. There shouldn't be IQ tests to be able to enjoy music, no matter what genre it is".


So how did Sami get into metal music, become a musician and keep himself active outside of playing music?


"I have to blame my big brothers, I grew up with AC/DC, Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath... that was just... those were my lullabies when I was a baby (laughs) and my other big brother he was an excellent guitar player oh when I was like 10 or something, and I just wanted to jam with him because it was so cool seeing him play "Stairway To Heaven", I was like 'awwwh that's so cool' and I really loved Iron Maiden already back then and Steve Harris was my god so, I thought 'hey' maybe I should start playing bass and he (Sami's brother) helped me to pick my first bass, taught me the first songs including 'Iron Man' (Black Sabbath), 'Comfortably Numb' (Pink Floyd) and of course 'Stairway To Heaven', those were the first songs.

Yeah from there on it was really natural to go to Metallica (he also got into some melodic band - could not quite catch the name), later on I got into much more, but also I think it's really good to have a wide horizon and keep your eyes (and ears) open, because the world is full of good music and nobody can be angry all the time you need all the scale, and as a musician it's really good to play different stuff and I think that's one of my strongest points as a musician, as a bass player that I played with so many different peoples, different kinds of music. Even when I started playing metal in my home town, the best musicians of all the guys were older than me and had a metal band. I hadn't heard any of the stuff that they listened to at that time but they were just the best musicians, it was so cool to play like them, it was challenging for me and I got into metal much later."


Sami had this parting message for various peoples:-


"I'd like to thank all the fans who came to the shows and in case you haven't heard the new album, check it out 'One Man Army' and hope to see you all soon and 'vittu perkele saatan' (is assumed what is said), it's cursing in Finnish" - make of it what you wish.

http://www.facebook.com/Ensiferum

Dalriada have been making waves in the Hungarian Metal scene since their inception way back in 1998 when they were known as 'Echo of Dalriada; they changed their name in 2006. Since then they have been gaining considerable attention worldwide despite their songs being sung exclusively in Hungarian.

Having released their eighth studio album 'Áldás' last year, and recently released their latest music video of the same name, it was about time we interrogated the septet to find out what hides behind those fur clothings and the beautiful facade that is Dalriada.

Check out their music video below, this is soon to be followed by a video for the song 'Moldvaggedon', an acoustic album (due May time) and an exclusive concert in Budapest on May 13th which as we have been told, will be part acoustic, part metal. Sounds exciting.

Folk Metal has changed into many different forms since it's birth and over the decades these off-shoots have blossomed into their own being. Celtic Metal, Pagan Metal, Oriental Metal, etc, they all have a story to tell, but what of Crossover-Folk Metal? This rather interesting genre has been wallowing around a fair bit but without any real solid foundation being created. This is probably why Germany's Punch'N'Judy are a bit of an oddity when it comes to the Folk Metal tag, we caught up with accordionist and vocalist Ute, the sole remaining musician from the original line-up, to ask her about the journey the band has made, future plans and information about their home region.


Hey Ute, so please give us a brief history of Punch 'N' Judy, how you formed, member changes, etc?

Well, it all started off as a project at the end of 2012. We had some ideas for Folk songs with complete power and so we began to search for other musicians. In 2003 we had our first gig as Punch'N'Judy and from there on it started growing. Because of jobs or private situations we had some line-up changes, the only position which is still the same from the beginning is the accordion. But until now we are still going our way and we are still here.


Now you play a form of Crossover / Folk Metal, what inspired you to take this music style?

This was really not planned, the only thing we knew when we started, was to make some kind of powerful Folk music. All members brought their own music style to the band and so it just happened that we had metal elements, rock, medieval, hard rock and folk. We liked it that way and tried to find a name for that kind of music style and so our Crossover-Folk style was born.


Why the band name Punch 'N' Judy, apart from it being a well known British puppet show?

Yes, it is a well known puppet show in Germany as well, over here it is called "Kasperletheater".
We have a song on our first album "Spring!time", called "The Punch and Judy Show". This song was our first one, we made it together with the first band members and so that is how we found our name.


This year Punch 'N' Judy has been going 10 years, how do you plan to celebrate it?

Oh, when we did the first gig back in 2003, we already had our 10 years (2013), but we did not celebrate it. (Editor: to avoid confusion Metal Archives says they formed in 2004 (http://www.metal-archives.com/bands/Punch%27N%27Judy/122459)

Have you performed outside of Germany? Do you plan to play in the UK?

Yes, we sometimes play in the Netherlands and we have played in Austria as well. If someone is going to book us in the UK, we would come over ;-)


If the band owned a plane, who would be: the pilot, the co-pilot, the baggage handler, the steward and the person screaming at the back 'Oh my god, we are gonna die!'

This is a very easy question to answer, nobody is the one screaming 'Oh my god, we are gonna die!' But everyone of us is sometimes the pilot, co-pilot, baggage handler or the steward, otherwise this band would not exist anymore. We are strong together and each of us has several things to do in the band, that is how it works.


What plans does the band have for the rest of the year and into 2015?

Some of us are planning to go on holiday this year and we will play a few club gigs. For 2015 we are planning the festivals now and hopefully we will get some good ones.


Besides Metal festivals, gigs and shops, what attractions / sites should metalheads go to in North Rhine-Westphalia?.

This is really a difficult question, we have a lot of Industrial culture here in the "Ruhrgebiet" where you can do several things from exhibitions to free climbing in an industrial area. We have a lot metal pubs and clubs as well. You should come here and see what`s going on.

What is your favorite song from all 3 albums you have released? (you can pick one song per album, explain why this choice of song)

From the first album 'Spring ! Time' I like "John Maynard", because this is also my favorite poem.
I like "Flibberty Gibbet" from the second album 'Punch On !', this song always gives me a smile on my face. And from the third album 'Cross!ng Over' my favorite song is "Last March", I like the arrangement and the strength of the song.


What other bands should readers check out from the North Rhine-Westphalia region?

I have no special one, there are a lot of small bands which are very interesting.


Finally do you have any greetings, thank you's etc, you wish to send out to fans, friends etc?

We`d like to thank everyone who is interested in music and supports bands, otherwise we and other bands could not exist. Thanks to our fan club and the great "Chaosraben", and thank you for the interview.

punch on!

https://www.punch-n-judy.com
https://www.facebook.com/punchnjudy

First off hi guys, how are you all and what has Gymir been up to within the last year?

Hey Rhys, we're all well thank you! Well the past year has been a busy one for us as a band... we underwent some major changes, one of which was changing our name to Gymir. We were formerly know as Shallow Intentions. The reason for the name change was two things really. The first was with a name like 'Shallow Intentions' it doesn’t really sound like a Folk Metal band name, and we were getting a lot of concerned comments about it and we also found it was hindering us reaching out to a bigger audience.

The second reason was that with the name change we felt like we needed to step it up a gear and take the band a little bit more seriously, obviously still have a great time and a lot of fun with doing it but just start putting in a few more hours here and there with the networking side of things and with more hours practicing etc. even to go as far as making sure we have a great live show, not just the music side of it... but visually too. So we all decided to get ourselves some outfits along with props etc to put on the stage with us.

We also released our début 2 track single last summer 'The Return Of The Raven' which we recorded at the Junkyard studios down in Newport with Jeff Rose leading and recording / producing the whole operation. And its gone down a storm, we really didn’t expect such a response from it. We just want to give ole Jeffers a shout out to say thank you for all his hard work and extra hours he put in, and we'll hopefully see him again in the near future for the full length album and a free downloadable track within the next few months.

Also, we found ourselves in the middle of nowhere in the depths of Wales' countryside to film our first ever video for the track 'The Return of The Raven' which is off our CD. Was a lot of fun, though being surrounded by sheep was slightly off putting when coming into the shot. Alongside all of that, we've been trying to gig up and down the country as much as possible, We did Warhorns festival up in York last September which was an honor to play alongside fellow Folk Metallers, made a pleasant change to play with bands in the same genre to us, and we have a few more dates yet to play up and around the country.

We also entered the BOA Metal to the Masses and got to the final which we never expected, maybe next year is our year? So yeah... been busy bees the past year, and have loads more in the pipeline but don’t want to give too much away ;)


Now could you explain to us how Gymir formed, what enticed you to play Folk Metal and who are your influences?

Gymir formed many years ago, but under the name 'Shallow Intentions' think it must have been about 8 or 9 years ago now, back when we were all fresh faced and still at college. At first it was just a covers band covering bands such as Children Of Bodom, Metallica and Pantera just as a bit of fun really. Then one day we decided to write an original... so we did... and for some unknown reason it had a rather Folk Metal feel to it, and so did our next few songs.. so we went with it.. so for the next 8 years we went under the name Shallow Intentions up until the re-birth last year... which was Gymir. I'd say our main influences are most probably Amon Amarth, Ensiferum, Moonsorrow, Finntroll, although we try not to fall too close to any of their sounds and try to make our own unique style sound.

Do you feel that Folk Metal is not well represented within the British metal scene?

Folk metal is most defiantly the outcast genre in the UK in our opinion. Everywhere you look nowadays there are Death Metal events, Thrash Metal events and Nu Metal events etc.. yet very rarely you will come across a Folk Metal event here in the UK. It's a shame really... people are missing out! If you want to go somewhere that appreciates Folk Metal then your going to have to go over to either Finland, Sweden, Norway and the likes. Perhaps its down to the simple fact that there really isn't that many folk metal bands out there, or there are and they are struggling with getting shows..? Although saying all this.. we have noticed a gradual increase in interest over the past couple of years which is encouraging, but its still very much an overlooked genre.


You released your debut single 'The Return of the Raven' last year, could you give us the background behind this release?

The background for the CD release.. hmm, well 'The Return of the Raven' is a follow up track of an older one we had called 'The Hammer and the Raven', it's basically about two clans that went to war with each other and the clan of the hammer were victorious.. and the track 'Return of the Raven' is where the clan of the raven return bigger and stronger to go looking to settle the score and succeed. In a way its kind of a representation of the band, changing our name and conquering everything we couldn't under the old one.. sort of a phoenix rising from the ashes kind of thing... that's if you want to look into it that deeply... The other track on the CD 'Valkyrie of Sorrow' was just a cool song that had been written just before the studio and we had to put it on there. We're so glad we did! it most definitely seems to be the most popular track out of the two, with YouTube views rocketing each day! crazy really..


It seems that you guys are dispersed all over, with Ryan from Chelmsford to Ian in Reading, so how do you meet to rehearse?

Well Ryan is now currently living in Weymouth, which is where Martyn and Pete are based.. Ian now lives in North Dorset about 40 miles out of Weymouth and John lives in Bridport which about 15 to 20 miles away. It can most definitely be a challenge to get everyone together to rehearse, not because of the distance, as Ian and John drive, but more due to 'life' we all work full time Jobs and Martyn is the family man with the commitments that come along with having 3 young children and a wife. But when we do get together its usually twice a month.. so we try to make the most of it and either get sets for shows sorted or if we have nothing for a few weeks then what we're doing now is working on the upcoming album.


What plans does Gymir have for the rest of the year and what can fans expect?


For the rest of the year we're planning on continuing our run of shows around the country, we're playing the QQQQ festival in October which is in Manchester, the Almost fatal fest in July which is in Cumbria, a show in Sheffield with the pirate legends that are Red Rum and Gryphfest in Bristol in September. Plus a few local dates coming up, which are yet to be advertised. Also alongside the shows as we've mentioned we shall be working hard to get the full length album ready as soon as possible, but whilst we're doing that we're going to be finishing off a track that will end up on our album to then put up for free download for everyone to download and listen to, as a massive thank you for all the amazing support we've had off of everyone the past year, since the birth of the band and to get them to stop harassing us for a period of time about the album... lol we are working as hard as we can on it, and we're telling ya.. it'll be well worth the wait! Patience is a virtue folks! Also! We are looking to get some t-shirts printed very soon, within the next couple of weeks hopefully we shall have them!

If you could be any mythological god from any following e.g. Norse, Celtic, Egyptian, etc, who would you be and why?

Martyn jumped right in on this.. he wants to be Jesus..? he didn't elaborate on that though haha, Ian would like to be Loki, causing havoc and mischief everywhere... Ryan would like to be Heimdall as he's essentially all seeing, all hearing, is bad-ass enough to be named guardian of the gods, has a cool horse, doesn't need to sleep (would be very handy) and was said to be one of the last to die when him and Loki kill each other at the events of Ragnarok.... sorry Ian....  Pete answered 'Lemme' explanation: Lemme is God... and John would like to be the Ancient Egyptian Jackal-headed god Anubis.. the ruler of the dead. Actually Martyn said instead he would want be Balder as he too is handsome and gentle.... Hah!


Where do you see yourselves within the next 5 years? Stage headliners perhaps?

5 years is a looong way off! But at the very least we'd all still love to be going as a band, as we love doing what we do and we're all excellent friends and it gives us an excuse to hang out and escape from reality for a time which is always welcomed! But what we would all love to be doing in 5 years time would of course be playing at the major festivals, not only in the UK but all over the world, what band wouldn't! Along with a couple more full length albums under our belts and maybe even a record deal to help us out... ahh we can all dream cant we!


What is the Dorset metal scene like, how big is it and what venues are there?

To be honest, the Dorset metal scene has seen better days.. there was a time where it was probably one of the best places to go to watch great bands. But with venues turning into tight asses bands cant afford to travel anymore and so they don't come. For example.. we played a headline show (wont name where) we played for about 80 minutes, and the place was packed out! Was an awesome show, one we wont forget in a long time! Anyway, after the gig we approached the venues owner about our money, and we were offered 43 odd pence or something?!

So we gracefully said to keep such a huge and generous amount and don't worry about it.. but it seems to be the same story in a lot of places these days. Sad state of affairs. There are still some great bands here in Dorset though, and we'd highly recommend everyone to come down to the south coast and witness it first hand and help out the underground metal scene! The best place to play local to us is 'Finns' its a bikers pub that plays metal all day every day! if you get a chance, go down and check out the bands that play down there.


Finally are there any greetings you wish to send out to fans, friends, etc?

Yes! But there are so many people that we have to thank for all their loyal and overwhelming support over the past year it'll be impossible to thank them all. But in all, we'd just like to thank all of our fans for showing us some love and supporting us with what we are doing. We know we haven't been the quickest on the draw with releasing songs etc. But we're trying our hardest and its coming! So make sure you're all ready! so keep an eye on our Facebook page for updates! Peace out folkers!!

\m/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZIxYx3lc_bU (Gymir - The Return Of The Raven)
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Gymir/455799637833641

Following the confirmed release date of their upcoming album "Valkyrja", upcoming tour date announcements and a hefty load of activity over the year 2013, Global Metal Apocalypse spoke with Týr's lead vocalist / guitarist Heri Joensen and discussed about the history and current situation with the Faroese Metal scene, Týr's touring and music activity, as well as talking about the Faroese language and how fans can learn how to pronounce the vocabulary in order to sing to their songs.

2013 saw the lads from the Faroe Islands partake in the North American leg of the Paganfest tour with Ensiferum, Heidevolk, and others. Coupled with their upcoming release of "Valkyrja" scheduled for a release date of 13th September in various editions: Fan edition, Limited 2 CD edition, Digi-CD, LP and digital download, it seems to be a good year for Týr, except the sad departure of long-time drummer Kári Streymoy who quit the band on 12th May 2013 owing to a back injury he sustained 5 years ago. Swords at the ready, here we go.



So guys this is Heri Joensen from the Faroe Islands metal band Týr and now that you're considered the Faroe Islands most successful metal export, how does this feel for the band in general?

It feels very good actually, erm and I think we are not only the biggest metal export I think actually we are the biggest music export in the Faroes, I think, but I'm not really keeping up with the scene, but there are some people who play country and western music who do quite ok, I'm not sure how well but I'm 90% sure we are the biggest music export. I take great pride in that of course, erm what else can I say?


As far as the band's concerned, because you sing about the Vikings and Nordic mythology, do you feel that Týr is different from other metal bands in Scandinavia that do similar styles?

There are probably some that are a bit like us, not the same style of music and maybe similar lyrics but also the other way round, well I'm not sure I think our music is fairly unique but the text writing is not all that original, there maybe some bands who do it in the same way but I mean with our combination I think we have set ourselves apart a little bit from everyone else in this genre, so this Viking Metal whatever they call it isn't really a kind of metal it's more of an attitude in the lyrics and I mean the music styles often have nothing to do with it other than that they are types of metal.


You'll be releasing your latest album on September 16th in the UK (September 17th in North America, and September 13th in Europe) "Valkyrja", could you explain the process behind this album?

Yes, we have been working on this album since around the time we finished the last album and we always do it like that because there's always something in the works, some of the songs that were leftovers from the last album that didn't make it onto that album for various reasons, some even older and about two or three months before studio time that was this March we started working very hard to get the material done and even though we have all the basic ideas before that I guess most of the work is done in the period of the few months leading up to the studio, and we work on the internet sending files to each other, I use a programme called Guitar Pro and we also do some scratch recordings on Logic and the last thing to be done is the lyrics, I have the idea for the name of the album and the basic story outline long in advance but the actual lyrics aren't written until the very last moment.


Because you play Folk Metal do you take any influences outside of the Folk Metal genre?

Yeah I guess we do, I mean our sound and our approach is very basic Heavy Metal with some progressive elements in it so erm, I mean there is clearly a cross between some kind of Progressive Metal and Folk, so needless to say I guess we do that and we I think all of us grew up with the New Wave of British Heavy Metal you know especially Iron Maiden, Judas Priest and those bands, some German bands also like Accept, Scorpions and all the American bands like Pantera, Metallica, Manowar, Dio, Motley Crue all that, so that you know growing up listening to metal like that of course has influenced our approach to metal in general, now all we did was add some Folk to that, that's basically how I see it, so you have to say it's something like 50/50 as there's the folk influence and the other 50% is the you know standard good ole Heavy Metal influence.


So how did Metal begin in the Faroes, how did it start?

Well, when I was young I used to watch Headbangers Ball on MTV, that was before the Grunge wave hit and that's how I got to know most of the Heavy Metal I know of, there was some enthusiasts before that who played you know I guess you can call Hard Rock, there was some cover bands on the Faroes I remember even before that who played Deep Purple and Rainbow especially, so I was aware of this Hard Rock thing and I'm not sure if you call Deep Purple Heavy Metal I don't think you do, anyway that's beside the point so there has always been someone there for us to look up to ever since I was young and there was some local metal bands or Hard Rock bands that played a few concerts every year that we used to enjoy a lot and go listen to, it's been there for all my musical life you know as some kind of metal in the Faroes and now we are a part of it.


You originally started off on Tutl Records, you then went onto Napalm and now onto Metal Blade, do you feel that you have made progression in as far as going from and to different labels?

Yeah I clearly have that feeling, of course Tutl is a non-profit musicians owned company so they don't have the international presence, but the good thing about them is if you make music here they will release it almost regardless, so that was a very good way for us to get started and that with a little bit of international attention was enough to get us to Napalm and then that was a great step forwards especially in promotion, I'm talking of when we released on Napalm and as for this one (upcoming album) regarding Metal Blade we haven't released the album yet but it looks very good so far and I hope that it will be an equally big step forward.


And of course regarding Tutl Records, your side project Heljareyga is signed to them.

Yes, I wanted to do something a bit more local with Heljareyga and I didn't even go to any other labels. I called Tutl Records up, got the deal and they made a distribution deal with some company in Germany and I have two more albums in that country I want to make and actually I want to release the next Heljareyga album before doing the next Týr album again.


I noticed that Heljareyga specifically has got Ísak Petersen from Synarchy as your bassist so with all that sort of inter-connectivity do you think that the Faroe Islands metal scene is more tight-knit than any other country or dependency?

Well I don't know any other country that is as small as the Faroes and that has a metal scene so I guess that goes without saying, we all know each other and we all play together sometime, so yeah it is pretty tight-knit.


Now going back to Týr now you got your UK tour coming up and how are you preparing for that and is this your first tour in the UK?

We have just picked out the songs for the set list and we are rehearsing with Amon Djurhuus these days.

No no no, we have been in the UK many times since 2006, and we have been there a few times since, last time was I think last year or two years ago the York festival, Viking festival.


What was the reception you got the first time round?

It was pretty good we were on tour with Amon Amarth from Sweden and they draw a big crowd so that was of course nice to get to play for them the crowd that Amon Amarth attracted, it was a good UK tour and then the last time was probably the best so far in the UK at the York Viking festival, that was amazing.


So with the tour coming up you're covering a lot of dates in Europe, are there any countries that you are going to be playing in that you haven't played in before?

Oh yeah, yeah! Actually we are very excited about that, we are going to Ireland this time we have never been to Ireland before and I am really excited to get there we have had many requests from people, it just never happened yet and now we finally get to do it, I am really looking forward to that, it's always nice to put another country on our list especially such as one as Ireland and also Romania, we have never been there before either and so we shall see what that is going to be like.


Of course you're touring with Skalmold from Iceland and also Finntroll, now have you toured with Finntroll before? If not this will be a new experience for you guys?

No we haven't, neither of those bands we've toured with before. We played together with them at some festivals here and there, never had a chance to tour with them. This will be a new experience for us, but they're Finnish and they're all the same (laughs) I feel like I know them already.


Going back to your upcoming album, because a lot of your die-hard fans have been following you through the years, but for those that are new to you guys from the upcoming album what song should they check out?

The first two 1. "Blood of Heroes", 2. "Mare of My Night" and the fourth one "The Lay Of Our Love", maybe also the last one "Valkyrja" the title track, that will give you... if you listen to those four songs you will have a pretty broad or whole impression of the band I guess.


Track number nine, "Fánar Burtur Brandaljóð" which looks like is in Icelandic, could you explain what it means?

Nope that's in Faroese and it means 'Fate is the sound of swords' and well it's erm, if you know the storyline of the album there is a Viking warrior (just someone no names mentioned here) who leaves his home and wife, goes off to battle with the intention to die, hero enough to make the Valkyrie carry him off to the realm of the gods in specifically to Freya and her realm Fólkvangr as is described in Norse Mythology, so this is the part where he has to die and is lifted by the Valkyrie from the ground up through the skies and so as he goes up the sound of swords fades away for him. That's the meaning of the title.


Now regarding the releases the band has done, the songs are in English, Faroese and Icelandic, because of the multilingual presence, for the fans that can't sing along because they don't know how to pronounce the words in Faroese or Icelandic, do you have any tips for them?

Well that's not easy because, it's not really pronounced the way it is written especially if you're really used to reading English, so if you are really interested in how to pronounce it you should go to maybe one of the news websites in the Faroes the ones that has video on them, go towww.KVF.fo and listen to some Faroese and how it is pronounced, you can even look up an article and there's a automated play button so you could play and hear how it is pronounced, and I know it's complicated but that's the only thing I can think of.


And is Faroese only really spoken in the Faroe Islands?

Yes, there are maybe 15,000 Faroese people living in Copenhagen or somewhere else in Denmark as a whole, but that's the largest gathering of Faroese people outside of the Faroes and there are 50,000 people in the Faroes, so maybe only 70,000 or 75,000 people in the whole world speak Faroese and it's the national language of the Faroe Islands, and you're not going to find it in many other places except a little bit in Denmark, some in Iceland and a bit in Norway maybe, but that's from immigrants from the Faroes.


Going back to Týr, the band has been going since 1998 and so what would you say has been the highlight of the band's career so far?

There have been a lot of highlights sort of outshining each other along the way, when we went to Iceland it was the first country we really got a hit in, that was a fantastic experience and that was in 2002 I think, and then signing with Napalm and starting to tour on the mainland that was also amazing. Also playing twice at Wacken Open Air Festival in Northern Germany and both times have been mind-blowing fantastic and now I think recording this album and signing a deal with Metal Blade feels like a real milestone and I hope in retrospect it will be as well.


And you toured with Ensiferum and Heidevolk on the North American leg of the Paganfest tour, was this successful for Týr?


Oh yes! Probably our best tour so far in the USA, it was very very well supported with a good attendance and we know both bands well, we've toured many times with Ensiferum so it's a great feeling to be on tour with people you know and you only get to meet them on tour, you know just meeting old friends and having a ball for a month it was a great experience.


Finally are there any hello's, thank you's, greetings you wish to issue to your Týr fans, friends, family, etc?


I'm not sure how far your broadcast goes but I would like to appeal to everyone who has any interest in this kind of music to please buy our albums and come to our shows and that would pay my bills and I hope I can in return provide you with music that you will like.


You can read up about the album, upcoming tour and other bits here.

http://globalmetalapocalypse.weebly.com/12/post/2013/07/tyr-announce-new-album-release-single-and-unveil-tour-dates.html


http://www.tyr.fo/
https://www.facebook.com/tyrband?fref=ts

Global Metal Apocalypse caught up with Eluveitie frontman Chrigel Glanzmann and spoke about what Eluveitie have been upto, the band's past, current affairs in general and what the band plans on doing in 2012 and beyond. Interview is below.

Last year Global Metal Apocalypse caught up with Alestorm and in particular frontman Christopher Bowes, we just found it in the archives and we now present it to the public, interview is below.