Emerging from the ranks of legendary extreme metal bands like Dissection and Satyricon, FROM KAOS marks a raw and deeply personal chapter for its creator. In this interview, he dives into chaos, authenticity, and total artistic freedom.
1. You’ve
been part of landmark extreme metal bands
like DISSECTION and SATYRICON. What personal or artistic need
pushed you to finally step forward with your own project, FROM KAOS?
Well, I had
a great time playing with those bands but having my own band is something that
I had in the back of my mind for a while now.
That being
said, I actually don't really know what pushed me to step forward at some point
& start my own project. A succession of things put me on this path I
guess... It was back in 2023 when I first felt the need to express myself
musically & alone. I remember buying a cheap guitar & starting to
compose tracks out of nowhere, really. It felt weird even for me since I didn't
really plan anything, it just happened. I had to get it out of my system &
the more I was doing it, the better it felt so I started to feel I was
doing the right thing. Now it has become such a part of myself that I
couldn't do without it!
2. FROM
KAOS feels raw, direct, and deliberately unpolished. In an era of
hyper-produced metal, why was it important for you to keep the sound so
authentic and organic?
Because I
think that over polished music doesn't serve the music & the
musicians very well. On top of it, as an artist, I don't think it's very honest
towards the listeners.
I believe
that labels, producers, fans & artists all have a
responsibility in why music sounds similar & over polished nowadays.
The way the industry has evolved (if one can still talk about evolution at
this point...) plays a role in it as well. Consciously or unconsciously
people in general have been trying to "fit in" & "be
heard" instead of expressing themselves freely, their own way. Because of
the fear of not being recognized, I guess people & artists have become a
lot less "individualistic" nowadays... I'm trying to go the
opposite way, as it should be!
Back in the
70's, 80's, 90's artists and bands tried very hard not to copy each other &
have their own sound. I believe that is one of the reasons why we
heard so many great new bands back then... They were not afraid of exploring
new concepts & they were assuming them 100%!
On top of
it, as an instrumentalist I wanted a sound that suited & reflected my
playing. I don't really see the point in having the same sound as
everybody else!
With
Synchronicity I, I pushed the raw, authentic element in the production quite
hard since I wanted to have some kind of statement with the production of this
album. And yes, one can play modern extreme music without tons of
fake effects to make it sound good if one focuses on the right things instead
of trying to sound like everybody else. I believe that more & more
listeners are tired of this attitude & are looking for honest &
original music.
That being
said, even though I'm keeping the authentic element in my music, the
second album will be different again. Maybe not as raw as the first one but
very organic, individual sounding nevertheless, both in style & production.
3. Synchronicity
I was entirely self-produced, with you handling guitars, bass, and vocals.
How challenging—and liberating—was it to take full control of every creative
decision?
I think
that having to do everything, bass, guitars, vocals & the production when
you are completely alone can be both, a pain in the but because you can only
count on yourself and everything is on your own shoulders so if something
doesn't sound right, it can only be your fault! On the other end, you have
total artistic freedom to do whatever you like!
To me it's
liberating in the sense that I get to play & record my music, exactly the
way I want it to sound and the way I hear it in my head. Of course, on the
other end, I don't get to share ideas or different artistic visions on things
but you can't have everything but it's a choice.
I think
that as an artist, you just need to find the best way for you to function. An
artist should try to express his music & art the way that suits him
best. It's of course pretty challenging to do everything yourself but can
be very rewarding as well!
I've
learned the hard way that a band is not only 4-5 guys playing together, it's a
lot more complex than it seems to keep the same line up together
for years.
4. The
concept of chaos seems central to FROM KAOS, both musically and
philosophically. What does “chaos” represent for you on a personal and artistic
level?
That's very
true! Chaos is the main element in my music & to some extent, a
continuation of what I did on Reinkaos.
Personally,
I see it as a metaphorical theme where chaos represents nothingness. In
other words, whatever you could think of, art, life or even consciousness
comes from chaos and is destroying, recreating itself eternally in a circle of
rebirth. Like a sort of eternal redemption.
It
could also metaphorically represent a dark unknown place where all music
comes from. It could also mean that you need to destroy, to be able to create!
And I
really like the fact that each one of us could interpret "chaos" in a
very different way & its meaning changes depending on how you
see it... I really don't want to tell people how to think, I'd like them
to think by themselves.
5. You
brought in Janne Jaloma (Dark Funeral) on drums. What did he bring to
the project that helped shape its aggressive identity?
Well, I had
in mind a pretty aggressive drumming to counterbalance the very melodic
aspect of my music. Plus, I always liked contrasts in music. A fast &
aggressive part will be even more aggressive & fast if you have slower
parts in between in my opinion.
To answer
your question, I think Janne brought a lot of "in your face" feeling
to something very emotional & melodic which was something I had
envisioned right from the beginning. And I'm very pleased with the
results.
6. The
new EP Relentless feels like a continuation, but also an escalation.
How does this EP expand or sharpen the vision you introduced
on Synchronicity I?
I always
try to ask myself what elements could be better on the next release... And I'm
very hard on myself so there are always many points
that I can think of.
As I
was mentioning earlier, Synchronicity I was a bit of a statement of rawness
& authenticity in a scene where there are too many clinical productions
& superficial acts.
Relentless
focuses less on this aspect of things, the rawness I mean.... I only tried
to have the "right" sound to my music on Relentless.
On
Synchronicity II, I'm having a similar approach but I'm taking
everything to another level & going deeper into my own style. That
being said, I'm definitely keeping the authenticity & the organic aspect of
things.
7. Having
worked with iconic musicians across your career, how has your perspective on
extreme metal evolved since the early 2000s to now?
Only as a
musician, I evolved a lot since the beginning of the 2000s of course but
working with bands like Dissection or Satyricon helped me a lot to understand
what it takes to play at this level. That being said, both bands worked hard
but very differently.
I see it as
a chance for me to take the best out of both experiences & make my own
band.
As for the
extreme metal scene, as I was saying earlier, the main difference in my opinion
is that back then, bands were trying to sound different to one another. They
tried to find their own sound (Darkthrone, Marduk, Dissection, Mayhem,
Dark Funeral etc...) .
Of course,
some bands are still trying to express themselves in their own way but this
"fit in" thing needs to change if we want to keep
creating quality extreme music in the future. And by creative, I'm not
talking about mixing Hip Hop & Black Metal because this is way too
easy, I'm talking about not fearing to take
unknown music paths.
Nowadays,
most of the new coming bands seem to try to "fit in" fearing to
be put aside because they are different. I feel this is just wrong. Rock &
Roll comes from the blues and it has always been about rebelling against!
Whatever you do, you should keep this rebellious element in your music if you
are playing extreme music imo.
8. FROM
KAOS avoids gimmicks and focuses purely on the music. How important is it for
you that listeners connect with the sound and message rather than an image or
persona?
Especially
when listening to an album at home or on your own, it is very important for me
that the listeners experience the music without too much of the imagery at
first. It's nice to have a good visual, don't get me wrong but an artist
shouldn't use too much of the imagery if he's creating music, the
music should go first.
When your
music is kind of complex, rich in atmospheres or emotions,
it's complicated to feel the right thing if you are too distracted by
the visuals imo. You often find gimmicks with artists that don't have much
to say or express musically. They try to compensate for the lack of musical
talent by entertaining the listeners or spectators with visuals.
Live, it's
another experience where the visuals are more important but they should remain
simple & straight to the point. I learned this from Jon & Dissection as
well u know.
9. You’ve
recently recorded bass for the upcoming KVAEN album, produced
by Jens Bogren, with guest appearances like Chris Amott. How was that
experience, and what can fans expect from that collaboration?
Well, Jacob
& I got to know each other through a mutual friend named Johan Norman
actually.
I asked
Jacob to play a solo on my next album as a guest because I really like Kvaen's
music and I think that Jacob is a very talented musician that creates a very high-quality
Black Metal.
He simply
asked me if I wanted to play on one track on their upcoming album & I said
yes! Long story short, since it felt good after the first track, he asked me
for a second one which I also did quickly. It felt very good for both of us so
I offered to do the entire album since I had the time & said yes right
away.
I think
that Jacob & I matched very well in style and everything went very
smoothly! I'm proud of what I did on bass on this album & expect some very
thrashy, blacky, heavy metal basslines & music of the highest level of
production & playing! I might also do some playthroughs for some of the
tracks as well in the near future as well, we will see.
10. With Relentless set
for release and multiple projects in motion, what lies ahead for FROM KAOS—more
releases, live performances, or further exploration into darker territories?
Many many
things are lying ahead of From Kaos' future!
I'm booking
the drum recording as we speak & the plan is to release the second album
around the summer, probably around September/October. I should be able to
release the first single during the summer if everything goes as planned.
I'm really
taking my time with the composition of this album & I'm doing my best!
All of the tracks for Synchronicity II are already composed & I'm looking
forward to sharing it with the fans!
Depending
on how fast I'll be able to have enough people to listen to From Kaos but I'd
also like to do some live gigs at some point, yes. Not touring so much but
more concert events where I would invite some of my well-known musician friends
to play a unique show in a special location or even playing live in a studio
environment, we will see when time comes!
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