Interview mit Sebastian Ramstedt von In Aphelion & Necrophobic

Your new album with IN APHELION will be released soon. You’re quite experienced in releasing albums, but are you nevertheless excited? What are your feelings about releasing a new album?
It’s a bit strange because, I’ve been releasing so many albums now and many years ago I was quite nervous about the reception and so on. But nowadays, you put out so many singles before the album and all these singles have gotten excellent reviews, so I feel pretty confident that they will like the album. Actually, we released what I think is one of the worst songs first. Not that it’s a bad song, but my favorite songs are not released yet. But also, as you said, releasing this many albums in a short time, it’s also like you work so hard, so it’s quite nice to finish it. It’s like the last hard day at work, and when it’s finally released, I can move on. I had written these songs already in 2022, so the songs are pretty old by now. I want to close the chapter and move on. So I’m really looking forward to having it out there, to start the next project.

Do you care about what people say or write about those singles or also, when it is released, about an album?
Usually, the first 10 comments on the internet really matter, and if they are bad I can feel like I should have done this or that instead. But then it becomes so much that you cannot really take it in. Especially when releasing videos through the channels of Black Metal Promotion or Central Media – there will always be haters. Some people are just saying stuff to be provocative. I don’t know if they even heard the song. So I don’t take it that seriously anymore. But sometimes people write me or you meet people out there, that tell you that the album really means something to them. That is important! Or when they understand my vision, that is really important. When people just say, oh, brutal, then I feel like maybe you missed a point here. I try to open your eyes, really!

You already mentioned this huge amount of singles released before an album is released, nowadays: Most of the bands are doing a pre-release stream of the entire album and so on. What do you think about that as a fan? Do you like to hear some excerpts of an album, or does that in some way also destroy the atmosphere or your expectation?
I liked getting singles in my youth, when there was an extra song on the back side. And one song … I mean, before Maiden put out an album, you had „Aces High“ before „Powerslave“. That was exciting, of course! You have one song, and then you have a whole album of 50 more minutes. But as it is now, to have half of the album released before, that is not for me. But I think that is how the times are, because people really don’t listen to albums anymore. Of course, we sell a lot of albums, but not compared to how much people listen to Spotify. With Necrophobic, we have nearly a million listeners to „Tsar Bomba“. I don’t know how many thousands of LPs we sold, but it’s not that much. So I think this single thing is probably wise from a commercial perspective these days. But for me, who is old and wants it the old way, it crashes the whole idea of an album.

Do you think it affects also the way music or albums are written, also in metal? So do you maybe focus more on having good songs as single songs and less on the album as an entity?
Not with IN APHELION. I don’t have this expectation of selling a million albums here. IN APHELION is more about my inner journey and my creativity. But with Necrophobic, I actually think when I write that I really need to write a hit song. So that is different and that is because of this. So in Necrophobic, I really try to make at least one song really, really commercial, to go well as a single. IN APHELION don’t have that strive. And that is also why it’s so important for me to have IN APHELION, because I want to step out of this commercial side of the business.

To be honest, it’s kind of shocking that a band like Necrophobic, which is still extreme black metal, also has to bend to those commercial pressures or expectations from the label, isn’t it?
Yeah, I mean, we are not forced to do it. As a lot of people know, I really like ’80s-metal, and I also like really commercial bands like Scorpions, Def Leppard and stuff like that. So I don’t mind trying to actually write the hit. I think that can be a challenge to do that. Just listening to the big bands of the 1980s, I think it would be cool to have a hit like that, to have a radio hit. And then I take the challenge and I know it’s necessary for a band to do that, if you want to grow. But that is for Necrophobic, that we are actually trying to grow. With IN APHELION I don’t have that strive. So that would be more surprising if I was sitting down with IN APHELION, really trying to make some easy listening stuff. And you can also see that on the album, „Reaperdawn“, that they are very lengthy songs. They are not made to be single hits.

You just mentioned the new album, „Reaperdawn“. First, how would you describe the album to someone who doesn’t know your band IN APHELION at all so far?
It’s melodic, aggressive and dark, I would say. It has very little death metal elements left. I think most of them went away after „Moribund“. It has still the heavy metal elements that are very important to me, but also more black metal elements, and a little bit of thrash. That’s what I would say.

When it comes to the trinity of artwork, lyrics and title – is it some kind of concept album? Or is it more a collection of all the different topics you had in mind?
It kind of became a concept of light worship and cults, over all the album. And as I do the artwork myself – I do everything: I do the layout, I do the album cover art and everything. And I tried to get this kind of cult feeling, because I think it’s really a play on the name IN APHELION, that is a planet on its orbit as far away from the sun as possible, the furthest point. Most people seek the light: All these cults that strive for going with God to a brighter place. But it always ends with death. And that is kind of interesting, how those saying they want to spread good, really spreads death. Whilst we, who more strive for something else in the dark, find enlightenment differently. So that is the concept. And the word „Reaperdawn“ came to my mind when I thought about the Heaven’s Gate cult, where they were dead by the morning. When the first rays of light came in, they all lay there and were dead. That is the Reaper that comes at dawn. So, and also it’s a play on the Fields Of The Nephilim album „Dawnracor“. I always like that title, so I some kind of twisted it around. It’s not a concept album, but it has a red line, so to speak.

The name Necrophobic has already been mentioned several times, you also released an album with them this year. How did you manage to write another album for IN APHELION straight after that?
Actually, it was the other way around. „Reaperdawn“ was finished long before I started to write „In The Twilight Grey“. I wrote most of „Reaperdawn“ immediately after „Moribund“ was released. And then we didn’t know what label to release it. We wanted Central Media to release it, but they wanted to think about it. So while waiting to release „Reaperdawn“, I wrote „In The Twilight Grey“.

So that means you only write material for IN APHELION, or before that exclusively for Necrophobic – and you always know where a riff belongs?
For me, it’s very clear what riffs and what music and what lyrical content fits within each band, because I don’t feel that I repeat myself. The listener will recognize my signature style of harmonies. But that is different for me. Maybe if you serve me food, I will think that all your food tastes like you have made it. But you will think: This is really something else! And I would say: Ah, it was almost like yesterday. It’s like that. But that is not important for me. What is important for me is that I actually think that this is a different kind of creativity. Because my goal is to learn something, to grow in life, to be someone today that I was not yesterday. My aim is not to sell a million records. My aim is not to be worshiped by the masses. I don’t write IN APHELION songs to have someone clapping their hands. So for me, the only thing that is important is that I try different ingredients.

But you also admitted that the new album contains much less death metal and is more in the direction of black metal. Where do you see the big differences to Necrophobic?
I play my guitar differently. I have a different drummer to do the ideas with. And maybe most important of all, I sing my own lyrics. Because when I write lyrics for Anders, he does it perfectly … but then he makes the lyrics his. He doesn’t sing the words and the sentences like I mean them. So they get another meaning through his voice. When I sing my words, I can put my blood, tears and soul into every word, just like I think it fits the music best. So I would say more than anything, the vocals are the biggest difference from Necrophobic. And also how Marco is drumming, because he and Joakim are totally different drummers. Both good, but they are on each side of the universe, really. And I think that with my riffs, that can be recognized with both bands, they will be something totally different with my voice and Marco’s drums than with Anders‘ voice and Joakim’s drums. I think that really sets it apart. And now also with a different producer, because „Moribund“ was a little bit like „Dawn Of The Damned. But I think „In The Twilight Grey“ and „Reaperdawn“ are miles apart.

But in the end, this is the only position where the two bands still differ in terms of personnel, since Tobias Christiansen also plays bass in both bands. How did it come that Dennis Holm left?
Dennis was a fantastic bass player and a really nice person to be around, but he had big problems on focusing. What he had going on in his life made him miss deadlines, he didn’t show up in time, and stuff like that. It was too much for him to cope with family, with his band Avslut and IN APHELION. I want to work so intensely with what I do. When I write the song, a window of a week or two is open where I need to finish it. And he could never fit into that time frame. If I send Tobias an excerpt for a song, I will have the bass lines the next day. Anyway, Tobias does not play on „Reaperdawn“, he joined afterward. I play the bass on „Reaperdawn“. But Tobias had already been helping us out because Dennis missed a couple of gigs, and then we were out with Necrophobic. And since Tobias is a professional, he could just step in. So when Dennis left, I felt like we should ask him, because Tobias is the best bass player I know. It’s a perfect fit. The strange thing is that people don’t seem to mind. And I was wondering why? Because if three persons of Iron Maiden did another project, I would start to think there’s conflict, there’s stuff going on here. But I think we are not famous enough … it’s not interesting if Tobias is in two, three or four bands. It’s not interesting if Sebastian is in there. It’s interesting if Bruce Dickinson is also in Saxon. That would be something, right? (laughs) But no one really cares about us. For them, it’s a different logo, different band, different music, and they’re fine with it. I was thinking this is not a good thing, probably. But no one has said anything.

No, I don’t think it’s a bad thing in any way, except maybe for the fact that having a second band is always also a chance to work with other people than you’re used to working with. As you said, with the drummer … wouldn’t that have been interesting for you for the other musicians as well?
You might think so, but Tobias’ musical abilities are so much more than what he shows in Necrophobic. Actually, we are all kind of crammed in a very small place in Necrophobic musicwise, trying to keep the heritage going on. There’s so little we can do without … you know, as we always say, we are Death Metal’s ACDC. There will be no surprises. But that also means that I cannot use everything I know about guitar-playing in Necrophobic. Tobias is a fantastic bass player, and he’s really inspired by the 1980s Swedish scene, bands like Talisman, Europe and those really, really great musicians. And in IN APHELION, I can get that out of him – but in Necrophobic, there’s no room for him to play that stuff. So I feel I can get another side of Tobias by having him in the band. I know him better now, because we play different. And also Johan: He plays differently in IN APHELION. So yes, it would have been interesting to work with other persons, but at least I know I can stand these persons. I know they are professional. I know they will not be late, and they will focus on the music. And they show me that they have different sides that I would never have seen within Necrophobic. So in the end, I think it’s good. And life is quite short. If I was younger, maybe I would have the time, but I need someone now that can work on this, you know?

Looking at it from the other side: If you have now this „IN APHELION crew“ in Necrophobic … doesn’t that lead to problems on a social level, if some of the Necrophobic guys start a new band and some are not invited to play with them?
Yeah, absolutely. IN APHELION is the side chick and no one likes the side chick. (laughs) Of course it is. And there have been tensions about it. But when we have talked about it, that IN APHELION is not something that will take over – IN APHELION can exist as an own entity on the side of Necrophobic. We will still continue to write Necrophobic albums! I have the drive to write many albums, and there’s no one trying to force this Andersen and Joachim away. We can exist on the same level! – so, when these worries were talked about and laid down, then everything was fine. But we had almost a conflict about it in the beginning. I mean, it’s like Metallica and Jason Newsted. You should keep it. But I need to do something more with my creativity, otherwise I will starve to death.

You are with IN APHELION part of the Century Media roster now as well, but you also said that they took some time before handing you a contract. Why did they take some time to think about if IN APHELION fits in? Do you know the reasons?
I can only guess. But it was when they realized I also had a new Necrophobic album: When they realized that „In The Twilight Grey“ was in the pipe, they said, we really want to have IN APHELION. I think maybe they had some concern that I would not focus on what they think is the right thing, which is, of course, Necrophobic, as it sells more albums. But when they heard the songs for „In The Twilight Grey“, I think they did not doubt anymore. I will never release an album that I think is bad. I will never do a bad Necrophobic song to focus on IN APHELION. For me, this is my heritage. I will only do music that I can be proud of, no matter what band it is. I sit here, right where I sit when I write music. And when I write music, I am in no band. I’m alone. That is just me writing songs. The band comes in later. So there are absolutely no conflicts for me. But I think Century Media wanted to see that I could keep focus.

And was it for you a no-brainer to sign with IN APHELION at Central Media? So do you think it’s the perfect fit, or is just the easiest way since you know the people there and so on?
We have been really fucked by record labels all our lives. We have been promised so much. But Century Media has never let us down. They are good. There’s little things that you want them to do: You want them to be professional, but you also want to call them on a friendly level. You want them to be into the music, not just sales. And for me, it’s important to have quick contact. If I have a question, I want the answer back now. And Century Media gives me everything of that. Therefore, I know what I have with them. I also liked being on Edged Circle on the first album, „Moribund“, because it was an underground label where you really had this friendly connection to Stian, who runs it. And he’s also a record collector, a really nice guy … he’s in this for the right reasons, really, because he loves metal. But it was so hard for us to get reach on a small label. You print a couple of thousands copies of an album and that’s it. And it’s really hard to go. We want to have the best opportunities for IN APHELION. And we want to have gigs, of course. We want to have press. We want to have interviews. And then it was necessary to have a label with bigger reach.

From that perspective, it’s a completely logical next step. I don’t want to say a bad word about Century Media either, they really do a great job for their bands. But from an outsider’s perspective, it sometimes seems like side projects automatically get deals with big labels without having to prove anything first. Is the metal scene perhaps held together a little too much by „connections“ – with the long established bands as gatekeepers, snatching away new bands‘ places on major labels, to put it bluntly? Can you understand this point of view and what is your opinion on it?
Yeah, I can. My opinion about it is that if the music holds a great quality, then it’s no issue. If people really like „Reaperdawn“, if they think IN APHELION is a good quality band and Necrophobic is, then both deserve to be there. But if I will start another project which is not so good, but my name sells, then it’s totally shitty. And of course we want new blood into the scene. I mean, that’s what it’s about. It’s the same with festivals nowadays: It’s the same lineup over and over. And I know, we are on D19 with both bands for booking, and they of course push the bands that sell the most. I wouldn’t say gatekeeping, but in the end, people need to eat. They want to pay the rent, even the record labels and so on. So of course big labels put the money where it comes back. If you’re like Stian from Edge Circle, you can sign something because you like it or because you want to be the opposite of this, because this is just something you do for fun anyway. It’s not something that it really makes a living. But with the big corporations, of course they have to make money, they have to pay their salaries. So it’s a natural thing … but it’s not necessarily good. But it can be good: I mean, hopefully both my bands have the quality that actually deserves to be there.

Without question, it’s not specifically about your bands. It’s just a critical thought about the developments in the metal scene. As you say, it’s very similar with festivals and booking agencies: there are only a few big agencies that offer bookers combined deals with several artists from their roster. But then, to put it bluntly, ten slots go to this booking agency, ten to that agency … and so an entire billing ends up being filled with three contracts. What gets lost is the original idea of why you do a festival or set up a label – that you’re the one who chooses the bands and maybe makes them grow. I’m not sure how long this commercial approach will last because, as you said, we also need new names. And I’m not sure we’re going to get it that way. What do you think?
I can tell you exactly how long it will last. Five years. Nothing lasts more than five years. When something reach commercial success, it will be successful for four or five years. Then it will deteriorate. Then people like you are saying it now, will say: This is wrong. Then small festivals that handpick the bands will start to draw the attention. So this kind of thing right now – there are three contracts on a big festival – it will not last forever. The history shows it doesn’t. This is not something from now on. So the smart ones start to think: The era is sewn over. We have one more year, maybe two. We have seen the change with the bookers: It started three or four years ago, somewhere there, and now it’s really intense. But believe me, it will break down – soon.

That’s a very interesting theory. I can imagine that it will happen like that. But I could also imagine that it all will even get worse. I mean, you see Wacken was bought by an investor again. So more money in it, more commercial interest. And probably also an even bigger interest in keeping it cheap to produce it. So maybe big deals are cheaper than doing a contract with single bands, and it’s easier to handle. So I’m not sure if this mechanism you were describing will work here as well, or at least that quick …
But what happens with Wacken, and if you need to earn as much money by putting as little money in it as possible, then probably you will draw attention from the big mass that does not really care. They want to go there, hear brutal music, have a beer or two, but they don’t really care. People like you and me, that are interested in music for real, we are always the minority. Most of the people go where other people go. And they will probably keep on going. But for you and me, we will meet on the smaller arenas, because we will go from there, and then there will be only the tourists left.

I guess that’s happening already now, at least with the very big events. But as you said, I think it’s also a trend that more and more people are picking smaller festivals instead of the big events – and I think that’s absolutely the right way to go to save the scene. I have only one short brainstorming in the end:
The last album you gave a listen to: the first Iron Maiden album, one hour ago.
Slayer reunion: I understand it. They can do whatever they like, but I’m not interested.
Kerry’s solo project: I heard one song which I liked actually, but also not very interested.
Artificial intelligence: That is interesting. It’s a bit scary, but I’m really happy I live in the times to see this development which is not necessarily good, but it’s interesting really.
Joe Biden: I don’t want to comment on politics. He seems like a nice guy, but a bit old.
IN APHELION in 10 years: Hopefully, I dare to do something that will shock the listener.

Sounds like a plan. So, thank you very much. That’s from my side. I appreciate it. Thanks for taking time for this, and have a nice evening.
Same to you. Thanks!

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Publiziert am 9. August 2024 von Moritz Grütz

Fotos von: Afra Gethöffer-Grütz