SATYRICON / IN THIS MOMENT / H09909 / CREEPER
Satyr’s health issues pushed him to explore new artistic depths
AFTER COMMEMORATING nemesis divina’s 20TH ANNIVERSARY, DID IT FEEL GOOD TO RETURN WITH deep calleth Upon deep?
“We had other projects running alongside Deep Calleth Upon Deep: our cover album, Formative Oddities, and the time-consuming release of [2015 live album] Live At The Opera. I decided there were too many projects running alongside, so we shelved the covers album. It’s going to happen somewhere down the road, in a year or two. With Nemesis’s influence, we felt it was important to do something, and I think those other projects were helpful because they highlighted what I wanted to do more and less of. I closed some doors and opened some new ones.”
HOW HAVE YOUR RECENT HEALTH TROUBLES [SATYR WAS DIAGNOSED WITH A BENIGN BRAIN TUMOUR IN 2015] AFFECTED YOU THIS YEAR?
“It’s provided a new perspective, and some sort of sense of urgency – it’s hard to tell how long I could have left doing this. I don’t anticipate the end of Satyricon anytime soon, and I’m doing rather well, but I’ve learned that you always think to yourself that as long as you feel inspired and motivated, then you can keep on doing it, but all of a sudden you realise there could be other things in life that decide for you. You’re young and strong, then shit hits the fan, and you think, ‘What just happened?’”
WHAT LIES AHEAD IN 2018?
“Touring! Speaking with my hand on my heart, I don’t know what I’m going to do with Satyricon in the future, but Deep Calleth Upon Deep is a record I believe in so strongly that I’m willing to tour my ass off, because I know that will contribute to giving the record the position I think it deserves in musical history. On the other hand, if there should be circumstances that make me unable to continue, then I would feel much better knowing that I squeezed every last drop out – knowing we did everything we could before waving goodbye.”