Interview mit Thomas „Sarke“ Berglie von Khold

Your last album took eight years, now you’re back with a new work after two years. What accelerated the process this time?
I guess we are on a good flow. In that period before we did other things and KHOLD was a bit on hold. But when we get started again, we kept on rolling. “Svartsyn” was a very good album and things worked great, so it was natural to start on a new album. Now we have also booked more gigs than in a long time.

You actually worked on the last album for a very long time, you said in our last interview – obviously you did not do so this time. What do you prefer: spontaneous, impulsive songwriting or years of honing the material to perfection?
It sometimes depends on the inspiration and creativity. Sometimes you need longer time to come up with enough material for a full album. I did make a lot of music in the Covid period because I was alot at home. For this new album, a lot of good ideas come up, so it went pretty fast. If you dwell too long on the songs, it’s easy to lose the core idea of the song. You work away from the first idea, and I don’t like that. But sometimes you just need longer to have enough good ideas for a full album. 

Stylistically, you remain very true to yourselves – but the album will of course feel different to you than its predecessor. Where do you see the key differences?
With KHOLD we keep our style of music very strong. But of course each album will sound different. Maybe this new album is even more direct, groovey and in your face.

Do you have a favourite part, a riff, a verse, a drumming?
Maybe the track “Heks”. The verse there is good. The end of “Dølgsmål” is very heavy. And Andy’s guitar part!

“Du Dømmes Til Død” is a concept album about henchmen and various people being condemned to the death penalty throughout Norwegian history. How did you come up with this concept, or what fascinates you about the subject?
We started out by thinking we wanted a concept album this time. We also like to keep things Norwegian. KHOLD also often deals with death and darkness. And if the stories are true also, it’s even more grim. And we like to keep it old. So then it was natural to choose that topic. Hildr did a great job. Awesome lyrics!

How do you feel about the death penalty in general, which is still practiced in many countries around the world today?
In some cases it should be allowed, I think. If the evidence is clear. Instead of sitting in jail for a 100 year and costing millions.

Last year, you even included a TULUS album in between. How do you separate the work on the two bands, which have a lot of overlap in terms of personnel, or do you sometimes write a riff for one band but then use it for the other?
That’s easy: Each of the bands has its period. We focus on one band at the time when it comes to making music. I don’t overlap riffs and ideas. As I said, each band, each period.

Your bassist Crowbel left KHOLD in 2022, but is still in TULUS. What was the reason for this decision?
Crowbel has done a great job for KHOLD, but KHOLD is not the right music for him. And he has also his own band, called Minas. He also plays in Funeral. He can’t have time for everyting. Understanable, KHOLD was the band he quit first. Tulus is black metal, but it’s more „proggy“, playfully and varied. So that fits him better. And he does not need to wear makeup.

Steinar is now with you instead. How did it come about, why was Steinar the perfect choice as a replacement?
Steinar is an old friend of us. He has also been a fan of KHOLD for a long time. After he left Satyricon, he was also available. And of course he is very good and can keep on going where Crowbel left off.

You’ll be playing a few festivals with KHOLD and TULUS this summer. What differences do you make in your live shows, what is particularly important for you with the respective bands?
We don’t think about that. It’s two different bands. KHOLD has a more dark approach and has a more heavy sound. TULUS is more playfull and has a more … lets call it “rock” sound. If you see both bands, you will get two different experiences!

And what happens now, is SARKE next, or what can we look forward to?
Yes. SARKE up next. All is ready to go. The album is in the print and release a bit later this year. The album is fantastic!

Thanks for your time – let’s finish with a short brainstorming:
Judas Priest: Cool band, but I have never listened to it a lot.
Slayer reunion: That was early, but good. I am a Slayer fan.
Ukraine: Let’s hope it ends soon. War is never good.
Articifial Intelligence: Exciting, and good (I hope).
KHOLD in 10 years: To be honest, It’s hard to see KHOLD still making albums in 10 years from now. But you never know.

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Publiziert am 29. April 2024 von Moritz Grütz