Kvelertak: "We want to climb the highest top!"

Thirteen years after making a huge mark on the world of hard 'n' heavy music with their self-titled debut, Kvelertak are still going strong. Their trademark mix of old school rock 'n' roll with pentatonic scales, punk, and Scandinavian extreme metal remains as special and fresh as it has been since day one. With "Endling" hitting shelves and streaming platforms, we had the chance to send over our questions, and frontman Ivar Nikolaisen gave us his view on the band's first ballad(ish), drawing inspiration from tradition, performing under pressure, and opening up to mainstream audiences.

One of the things that never fail to amaze me in your music is its energy; how difficult is it to capture that in the studio?

Ah, thank you. This time we recorded the album live, except for some of the vocals and of course some overdubs. I don´t know if that´s the reason, since the albums we have recorded with Kurt (Ballou) has been done step by step, one instrument after the other, and they are pretty energetic too. I think it´s simply because we work with great producers and we are always playing the songs as if it was the last thing we should ever do.

I also adore how at any moment you can go from full on heavy riffs and blast beats to a catchy melody. Would it be safe to assume that there are boundaries when you write?

Honestly I am not the right person to answer this question since I don`t write the music, I only write the lyrics. But I think that BJ (Bjarte Lund Rolland) who`s writing most of the riffs and melodies is just following his instincts. And his instinct's is pretty fucked up.

If you hire producers and don't listen to them, then it's a waste of time

It might just be my impression, but "Endling" gave me more hard rock vibes than your previous works. Was that something you felt or had in mind when creating it?

Again, the instinct! The song "Endling" is actually the closest we have ever been to a hard rock ballad.

If my understanding is correct, Jørgen Træen and Yngve Sætre handled the production this time around. In what ways did they affect your approach?

In many ways; first of all they convinced us to record the songs live, without click, and they even made me sing in ways I didn't know I was able to sing. And also in ways that I thought was stupid, but after a while I started liking it too. They even turned some songs upside down, challenged us to do things in different ways. If you hire producers and don't listen to them, then it's a waste of time, and waste of money.

Through the years you've collaborated with some extremely talented people, like Kurt Ballou and Nick Terry. What was it like working with them, and what would you say is the biggest lesson you've learned from them?

I don’t know about Nick Terry, since I wasn’t in the band at the time, but working with Kurt was amazing. He is extremely talented and has a lot of experience when it comes to working with guitar sounds.

I don't speak Norwegian at all, but from what I've gathered, there are nods to local lore in your lyrics. Does this inspiration extend to the music as well?

Lyrically we are really inspired by local legends and myths, stories and people from the south west of Norway, where we were born and raised. Musically we are inspired by all kinds of music, but i guess it’s hard to tell exactly where it comes from. Probably more inspired by American rock music than fiddle nodding, unfortunately, haha!

What you see will affect what you hear

The visual parts of your releases, from album covers to video clips, have always complimented and went on par with your music. How do you choose which artists to work with?

Visuals have always been important for Kvelertak. What you see will affect what you hear. With Marald, who did both "Splid" and "Endling" album covers, we contacted him because of his earlier works that we had seen. Same with the videos, we do a lot of research.

It has been ten years since the release of Meir. What do you remember the most from that era?

I wasn’t in the band at the time, and if I would have been in the band I would probably not remember anything anyway. I know they were touring like crazy, and they were also fighting like crazy.

Norway is a small country and everyone knows everyone across genres

Given the acclaim the band has had ever since the first LPs came out, was there any point that you felt some kind of pressure?

We always feel pressure! We want to climb the highest top! We never get all the way up, which is good, so we have something to aspire to.

It seems to me like a Kvelertak live album would be a great idea, how come that hasn't happened so far?

I have never even thought about that. Thanks! Would love to do a live album!

The music scene in Norway, as a whole, feels pretty special from an outsider point of view, for example last summer we had the pleasure to see you perform in Øya Festival, in a line-up that included everything from indie pop to heavy metal. What is your view on it?

Yeah, the Øya Festival is the hipster festival where everyone wants to play, and they have all kinds of bands. I guess what you describe is natural for us since Norway is a small country and everyone knows everyone across genres. But we also have festivals like Tons Of Rock, more straight forward rock and metal festivals which are doing really well.

The way the legend Rob Halford treated us was overwhelming

Looking back, you've toured the world with some really huge artists and bands; is there a moment or an interaction that has stuck with you?

We played some shows with Judas Priest last year and the way the legend Rob Halford treated us was overwhelming. I guess we could say the same about Metallica.

Thinking that thrash metal was considered too extreme some decades ago and now it's almost acceptable by most, do you believe that a time will come when the mainstream will party to your music?

In Norway they do!

Thank you very much for your time! The last words are yours.

Thank you! Check out "Endling". We’re really proud of it. We really hope we can come to Greece very soon!