Valfreyja is more than music—it’s an immersive journey blending mythology, prog metal, and raw emotion. In this interview, we explore the inspirations, techniques, and visions shaping this unique project.
1.
Valfreyja is described as not just a musical project but an experience. How do
you personally define what makes music more than just sound, and into something
immersive?
Music is
more often than not meant to evoke certain emotions in the audience and music
is often used as a complement to other types of media, such as movies. With
Valfreyja I want the music to be in and of itself the entire experience and
the
thing that evokes these emotions in the audience. This requires that the music
conjures images and feelings in people all on its own, that a person is able to
make a real connection to the audio waves that their ears perceive.
2. Your music draws inspiration from sources as diverse as classical music,
jazz fusion, paintings, historical texts, and raw emotions. Can you walk us
through your creative process when blending such wide influences into a single
composition?
I look at other progressive bands that defy genres as a sort of ”cheat sheet”
for how different styles of music can be blended together, bands such as Opeth
and Haken come to mind. These artists have songs that move seamlessly between a
diverse set of styles and I try to understand how they manage to cover so much
ground in a single song. As for other sources of inspiration, I sometimes have
moments when I for example look at a painting, or a landscape scene, and I feel
something stir within me, a crystal clear emotion without a name. I can
remember these feelings and I will try to channel them through music, as a way
of expressing myself and to evoke these same emotions in my audience.
3. The
name Valfreyja carries deep meaning, tied to the Nordic goddess Freja and the
idea of beauty intertwined with primal strength. How does this mythology
influence the themes and energy of your music?
The name Valfreyja was chosen when I started seriously writing music in my late
teens, probably around 2015-2016, and I was really into black metal, fantasy
and different mythologies. When I later on started writing more progressive
metal I didn’t really have lyrics in mind and just focused on the music itself,
but there’s a certain quality to ancient pagan mythologies that I often come
back to as a source of inspiration. I draw parallells between gods of strength,
forests and beauty to metal music that incorporates heavy riffs, beautiful
melodies and complex song structures. There’s a certain ”pagan” quality that I
enjoy when it’s tied into music, a good example would be the first album by In
The Woods…
4.
Progressive metal often pushes musical boundaries, and critics describe
Valfreyja’s work as “musical magic.” What techniques or approaches do you use
to keep your music fresh and innovative?
I remember when I first started listening to Animals As Leaders. Their unique
guitar techniques have always been pushing the envelope of what is possible in
music, and it completely changed how I viewed music and more importantly how I
play music. I wrote a lot of riffs based on techniques such as thumping,
selective picking and two-hand tapping. Also, Allan Holdsworths way of playing
both lead melodies and intricate guitar chords have influenced how I approach
both of these concepts in my own songs. What I’m looking out for now is
techniques from different schools of music and other instruments, like ”can I
make my guitar sound like a violin, or a synth?”, I want to find totally new
sounds and really be innovative.
5. Your
live-improvised guitar solos bring a very raw and human element into a genre
that can be highly technical. How do you balance precision with spontaneity in
your performances?
Prog metal
riffs tend to be very technical and fast, which means they have to be played
exactly as written to fit into the rest of the music. I also enjoy the ”real”
feeling of improvised music because there’s a spontaneity to it, it feels
alive. So I usually write sections where I can improvise a guitar solo over a
fixed chord progression, then do a live improvised solo during recording. I can
still do as many takes as I need until it sounds good (and with as few mistakes
as possible) but I feel that it really brings another dimension to the music
when you can hear that I just make it up as I go along.
6.
Having released both a full-length debut album and a story-driven EP, how do
you approach storytelling differently in each format?
The first album that I put out is very different from how I view my music now.
I was thinking that I was going to focus on really technical instrumental
music, basically like a different version of Animals As Leaders, but I now feel
that I’m able to bring a whole other level to the music with vocals and a story
in the lyrics. So instead of trying to convey very specific emotions through
instrumental tracks that don’t really differ too much from each other, I now
try to write songs that convey an intricate story and it doesn’t matter if this
requires the tracks to be really different from each other.
7. The
visual and thematic aspects of Valfreyja—snowy forests, vials of red liquid,
fields of flowers—play a strong role in your artistic identity. How important
are visuals and symbolism in complementing your sound?
Well, I usually have very specific emotions that I want to convey through my
music, and sometimes I manage to have images or photos that I feel serve to
amplify or at least clarify what I’m going for. So the visuals in and of
themselves aren’t that important but they’re a very good complement to the
music and I feel that they come together to create a strong and clear artist
identity.
8. As a
one-piece band, you have complete creative control. What are the biggest
challenges and freedoms of being a solo creator in a genre that often relies on
collaboration?
Being a solo act I call all the shots. If I want a calm fusion track on a
record that mostly consists of heavy metal tracks I don’t have to justify it to
anyone. I don’t have to compromise my creative visions. That said, I also have
to work a lot harder on things beyond the music and can’t really split the work
load with anyone. Maybe I could hire other musicians to help out but that
requires a budget beyond my limits right now. In other bands you usually share
duties such as social media and outreach, but I mostly do all of this myself.
So there’s a higher degree of freedom but also more responsibility and work to
do.
9.
Progressive metal has giants like Allan Holdsworth, Tosin Abasi, and Fredrik
Åkesson as inspirations. How do you draw from their influence while still
carving out your own unique voice?
I try to listen to the heavyweights of the genre and understand their music,
like ”how high is the ceiling for how technical the current music is, what
artists did they listen to for inspiration” and learn what I can from this.
This sort of serves as a library of inspiration for things that I can do with
music. But what I feel is really important is that I use my own voice and write
music that resonates with me. Although I draw inspiration from other artists, I
don’t want to just copy them, I feel I have to make my own music and for my own
reasons.
10.
Looking ahead, what direction do you see Valfreyja’s music evolving toward? Are
there any new experiments or concepts you’re excited to explore in future
releases?
I have a
clear idea for the music that I want to write going forward. There’s three
songs for a future EP written that are like a blend of modern Opeth-style prog
metal, Meshuggah and jazz fusion. After that I will be looking to experiment
with blending in folk music to the Valfreyja concept. I’ve been fascinated with
old Swedish folk tunes, with a lot of violins and mandolins, and have also been
listening to Celtic folk music. I feel that there’s a unique opening to blend
these styles together with elements of prog metal and the free-form
improvisation of jazz fusion that would result in really groundbreaking music.
But first I have to get myself some mandolins I think!
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