DIMMU BORGIR Guitarist On Musical Inspiration, Lineup Changes And Songwriting Process

Brandon Marshall of Sonic Excess recently conducted an interview with guitarist Silenoz (real name: Sven Atle Kopperud) of Norwegian symphonic black metallers DIMMU BORGIR. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.

Sonic Excess: How did the second generation of black metal affect you growing up in Norway? Was it bands like MAYHEM and EMPEROR that inspired you when you were first forming DIMMU BORGIR?

Silenoz: Oh, for sure. I was always looking for the most extreme stuff in a musical sense, but also in a more artistic sense. In 1990-1991, when I got into more heavy music, I automatically felt a kinship with that type of music, and I took it from there, basically.

Sonic Excess: When you write, do you have to channel into a certain part of yourself to draw inspiration, or is it more of a natural process?

Silenoz: Well, it all depends. Sometimes, it has been months and months before I write a small part of the lyrics, and other times, it may take me only a few days to have basic song ideas. So, it all depends, inspiration comes and goes. I can get inspired just by seeing something on the news and channel it differently, then use that as a constructive force, I guess you could call it.

Sonic Excess: Over the years, DIMMU BORGIR has had sort of an interchangeable lineup. Do you find it difficult to work with session musicians and temporary band members due to a lack of chemistry and not entirely understanding the habits of one another?

Silenoz: Yeah, it's like you really don't know until you have been on tour for three months, unless you know the person from before. The person could be the best guitarist, drummer, or whatever, and that's cool, but you have to get along on a personal level as well. We have had our fair share of lineup changes over the years. That has been for different reasons, why people have come and gone, but I think it's because people lose focus after a while and take things for granted and become dicks.

Sonic Excess: Has there been any discussion about performing live shows with a full orchestra and choir in selected cities?

Silenoz: Yes. We are actually working on that at the moment, with a one-off show in Norway this spring. I think it's going to happen, but it takes a lot of planning. There is a lot of stuff that needs to be worked out, but it's possible, and it's time for us to do something like that. We have wanted to do it in the past as well, but the timing hasn't been right. Now, with the band as it is now, we are the tightest we have been with any lineup we have had so far. If it goes well, then there is no reason why we can't take it around the world with selected dates, because, let's face it, touring with an orchestra is not really feasible, except for some cities, let's say for example, Los Angeles, Sydney, Tokyo, or whatever (tour dates). It would have to be the bigger cities.

Sonic Excess: So, I'm assuming the show in Norway will be recorded for a CD and DVD?

Silenoz: Oh, for sure. It will be a whole documentary and everything. It will be something really special. It is something a lot of the fans would like to see also.

Sonic Excess: DIMMU BORGIR is a progressive band by nature, never releasing the same album twice. Do you think it is important for a musician to grow and mature musically?

Silenoz: It is very important, but, then again, you look at bands like AC/DC, who still sell out arenas in Europe. I don't know if you can call their music progressive, because, if you have one AC/DC album, in a way you have all of them. For us, it is different, because it is natural. For some bands, it is natural to progress, and, for others, it is natural to stay where they are. For some bands that works and for some bands it does not work. For us, it wouldn't work, because we could easily do another "Enthroned Darkness Triumphant", but what would be the challenge in that? It also wouldn't make "Enthroned Darkness Triumphant" that special of an album, because then you would have two. It doesn't make sense for us from an artistic point of view.

Sonic Excess: I'm glad you brought that to point, because no two DIMMU albums sound the same.

Silenoz: I don't think so either. You can pull out the new record ("Abrahdabra") and still hear it's us. I feel like we kept the trademark, and that, of course, is important, but if you sit down and decide what type of music you are going to make, of course it is going to go wrong. It has to come naturally; it has to flow naturally. When I hear bands say our next album is going to be like this or that, I think, "Don't go there; just to with the flow." We have a formula, if you can even call it a formula. Whatever we think sounds cool, we keep.

Read the entire interview from Sonic Excess.