EMPEROR's IHSAHN Laments Oversaturation Of Artists On Streaming Music Services: 'It's Very Unfortunate'

In a new interview with Jorge Botas of Portugal's Metal Global, EMPEROR frontman Ihsahn (real name: Vegard Sverre Tveitan) was asked if it surprises him to see a black metal group like his band have so much success nearly three and a half decades after EMPEROR's formation. He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Yeah, totally. I'm always surprised. I'm also very grateful for that fact. But I think it's also a matter of the times we live in.

"We came in a time where there was time spent where you got to develop a relationship to a band or an artist. And prior to that, of course there were a lot of musicians and a lot of bands, but, say in '60s, most people, young people would choose either BEATLES or ROLLING STONES. There was not that much to pick from. But these days with social media and having access to any album…

"I'm sure you're probably younger than me, but I'm sure you can appreciate the feeling of when you're a kid and you save up money to buy that album on vinyl. And sometimes you don't know. You only had the money for that album and not the second one, and you had to choose. You didn't have access to everything, so it was a priority. You developed a relationship [with the artists]. At least I would read all the lyrics, all the liner notes. And we didn't have any information about who these people were, so you tried to grab on to… There was a big part of imagination involved. And you create a very special relationship, I think, to artists and albums that way. These days, that whole thing, unfortunately, I feel is devalued, because there's so many people who, they don't have a relationship to artists; they have their relationship to playlists, whatever. It's just whatever is popular music at the time. And perhaps within the metal community, rock and metal people are still more dedicated to that. But it changes so fast, it's really hard for younger bands to have the time to develop that relationship, where there is myself, who started out in the early '90s, it was still that time where you could develop that relationship over a longer period."

Ihsahn went on to say that the "very saturated" markets of popular music streaming platforms like Spotify and Apple Music make it challenging for newer bands to break through.

"It's very unfortunate because, of course there's amazing music made still, but most of it will probably never be heard or reach the people who might like it," he explained.

"I love having access to all the music digitally — I can find all stuff that I don't have on physical anymore, and getting recommendations and new music that I probably would never have heard in the first place," he continued. "I think that's amazing. And the same thing with earlier on, there was a record company that would be like a gateway, that people couldn't release [just] anything. But, of course, now it takes nothing, and everybody can release.. You could spend an hour tapping your belly and you could release it on Spotify, or on all streaming platforms for, like, $19 or something. So it's very saturated. But I've gotta say it is what it's. And prior to maybe '60s and '70s and '80s, where records were a big deal, all of music history before that was live music. And even in the '60s, I think, or '50s at least, the people didn't have money to buy records. Maybe one of your friends had the small single player. And then you listen to that, you listen to the radio. So, instead of being too frustrated about, 'Oh, things were so much better in the past,' I think, okay, we had this amazing period where we attached ourselves to records and everything. And now we're kind of back to a place where it's the live experience and that connection, which is the exclusive things. And hopefully it'll be a long time until A.I. takes over that too. [Laughs]"

Ihsahn went on to talk about how the transparency and interaction with fans in the social media age is different from the pre-Internet days when not knowing so much created a certain mystique that is lost on full exposure.

"You had KISS and Alice Cooper [back in the 1980s], and it was mythical," he said. "I remember when I went to my first IRON MAIDEN show, I couldn't believe I was breathing the same air as the actual people in IRON MAIDEN, because we didn't have social media. We didn't know what they had for lunch before they came on stage. And all of that takes a bit of the mystery away. And I think especially in the metal of things, I would argue that much of the success for bands like GHOST or SLEEP TOKEN or SLIPKNOT, because you have the masks and everything. And, of course, they haven't all managed to keep the anonymity, but people want that sense of theater and excitement. They don't want to just see — I've used this example. I've been very fortunate to get to know someone like Rob Halford [of JUDAS PRIEST] during my career, and he's, as I'm sure everybody who's ever met him [will attest], is the sweetest, most humble human being. But when he gets up on stage, he's the Metal God. You don't want humble — on stage you want the Metal God. And you want the drama and the ritual of the whole thing. And the band on stage gives you and the audience permission to let all inhibitions go and let the music drive you to that experience. So, I think with, with all this kind of private interconnections [on social media], yeah, you lose a bit of that."

Ihsahn released his latest, self-titled album in February 2024 via Candlelight. Joining Ihsahn on the LP were Tobias Ørnes Andersen and Tobias Solbakk on drums and percussion, with Ihsahn's son Angell Solberg Tveitan adding additional percussion and violins by Chris Baum. Artwork for the album was created by Ritxi Ostariz, with all promotional photography by Andy Ford.

Photo credit: Andy Ford