Интервю с NETHERBIRD

MH18: In the beginning I want to thank you for your time answering our questions.
J.N.: Thanks for the interview.

MH18: Your band is not unknown for the black metal fans, but would you say something about you for those who will listen and meet to you for a fist time.
J.N.: We are a band with our roots deeply dug into the Scandinavian soil of Black and Death metal. We worship melody but we do it in a very harsh way.

MH18:This is your first time in Bulgaria. What are your expectations about the organization, fans etc. ?
J.N.: We do not really know but we for us every individual is important, so if there is 20 or 200 does not matter much really. We rather play for a small but devoted crowd than a huge pile of people who do not care about good music. We look forward to meeting the Bulgarian metal crowd!

MH18: You have ten years as a band. Did something changed in this style for that time?
J.N.: We are now more true to ourselves and we do play music the way we think it should be, no compromise. It is black/death metal but also with a lot of heavy metal and emotion put into it!

MH18: You have played with musicians such as Adrian Erlandsson and Nils Fjellstrˆm. Tell us more about your collaboration and about them as your colleagues.
J.N.: Yes, when it comes to drums we have been working with some known name with out a doubt. But it is because it is very difficult to find drummers that are good enough that do not already have many bands. I am a close friend with both Adrian and Nils and I am very proud of what they brought into the productions.

MH18: As a big Dark Funeral fan, I am especially curious about Nils. He was with the band until the beginning of the year. Why he didn’t come touring with you?
J.N.: Nils is perhaps the best musician I have ever met, he is a master of his instrument and also a great person. But when it comes to touring we needed someone who could focus on our band and for Nils that simply became to difficult with Dark Funeral and the rest of the bands. So that is why we do not tour together and now we have a new and very talented drummer, so this is the only way it could be really.

MH18: I think „Monument Black Colossal“ is little more melancholic and depressive than the other albums. Do you have a personal preference for a certain album?
J.N.: Ah, glad you like the “blue” album. For me it is harder since I will always think our latest album is the best, else I would quit the band. But there are songs on the blue album we play live so I agree, there are good songs on it. But for me personally the next (unreleased) album is the best, besides that one I must say “Shadow Walkers” is a favorite.

MH18: How does the press and the critics responded about your work? Do you think in years you becoming grow up and start to do things better?
J.N.: We got really good reviews of our latest album and that is of course fine, but we do the music we need to do since it is in our blood. For me the opinion from a everyday fan is more important than what a magazine thinks, but we are of course happy to see most seem to think we progress in the right direction!

MH18: What are the bands that influence your music? Do you have any aping examples or you create your own music?
J.N.: We write the music for ourselves and people like us, the ones that are different and that others find scary/strange/wrong. Inspiration comes from life itself, we play in order to deal with life, simple and impossible as that really.

MH18: How do you look at your colleagues from the genre, which suddenly change their style and dwell into musical experiments? Would you make some Atmospheric, Ambient albums, with usury you use acoustic instruments in your albums?
J.N.: We do not listen to much to bands of “today” but for me personally Netherbird is not about a genre or sound, it is about an emotion. We work with the darkness, and we could use any instrument we need in order to do what we need to do. But I think most bands that do “experiment” do it because they cannot do real music, and for us it is always about writing “that” riff.

MH18: Could you unravel the mystery with the drummers – yours and that of Withershin?
J.N.: No mystery at all, we have the same drummer, since he has what it takes and we are proud to play with him.

MH18: What do you think about your colleagues, who committed suicide?
J.N.: Life is a choice, so I understand some people decide to end it. I think life is important and would never say that is the right way to go, since only by living we can affect things. When we die it is all over. I have friends who ended their existence, I miss them but I also respect the choice.

MH18: Do you think that the lyrics of the band has to have some message in it, or it’s not so important if the music is liked and it has its fans?
J.N.: For me music without a message is not music, it is just noise. I play music to change the world and make every “strange” person feel at home. But that is me and Netherbird. Other bands do it differently, but for me personally I cannot sing about “anything”. I need to believe that we do something for our listeners, else it will be silence from me…

MH18: What do you think about religions at all? Do you think there is a religious philosophy that can make you a nonconformist, or all they have a moment of obedience and limit the thinking and free choice?
J.N.: I have religious friends that are great, and I know atheists that are idiots. Religion is only one piece of who we are. As long as people decide to believe I am fine, I advocate only the privilege of choice. That is all, if it is your choice, you hurt no one, then I am fine. Tell me what to think and I will hate you.

And here is what Johan Nephente share about him impressions from the gig in Sofia.
J.N.: The gig in Sofia was excellent. I really liked the venue, the atmosphere and the crowd was fantastic, such response will make any artist more than proud. We will remember this gig for a long time! We also got the chance to visit the neighboring bar (cannot remember the name) and we all said we wish there was such a brilliant place in Stockholm.

All our albums are available for free download here: www.netherbird.com

//Neph