Descent Volume III, Spring 1996

Originally appeared in Descent Volume III, Spring 1996

Many thanks to Drew for transcribing this interview

I had the pleasure of catching the last three gigs of DISSECTION's first US tour in California this spring. I can tell you that this band is a near perfect hybrid of some of the best elements of metal from the past decade and today. Their impressive performance proved to me that they are among the best metal bands of today. I spoke with vocalist/guitarist Jon a month previous...
I heard about some tours you guys have set up. One is with DARKTHRONE and SATYRICON... how did that come about ?

Well, the thing with DARKTHRONE is not a tour but a gig in Oslo. It will be us, DARKTHRONE and SATYRICON. I guess that will be a once in a lifetime opportunity, especially for those that didn't see them in the old days. And it's a first show with a kind of black metal DARKTHRONE, I guess. So it will be a very unique evening, you know. After that we'll do a European tour with SATYRICON, playing all kinds of places. We were out with DISMEMBER last year and played Germany, Czech Repuvlic, Austria, Switzerland. All kinds of places like that. So what we'll do this tour is play those places again plus new countries: Portugal, Spain, Italy, Holland. The plans we had for the real near future is to go out and do a short English tour with AT THE GATES and it will be six shows at the beginning of February.

Are you pleased with how the new album turned out ?

Yeah, I think so. Even though it's quite a long time since it was recorded now, but we still feel happy about it and like it still. We think it's a great development from the first album.

It seems that with the first album you already started something there in Sweden, because as a zine editor I get tons and tons of demo tapes, and there's a lot of bands in that area that have followed in your foot steps. What do you think about that ?

I think it's great if you influence other bands. It proves that most people appreciate what you do and get into your music, so we take it as a compliment, but as always when it comes to influences. I don't like it when bands try to copy their influences.

So it doesn't bother you ?

No, I think it's great if they are influenced by the musical DISSECTION. If they get inspiration from it then that's great.

You guys were on a few compilation releases and will be on one coming up. Do you want to talk about those a bit ?

Most of them we were releasingbetween the first album and the second "Storm of the Light's Bane." We were on the Nuclear Blast comp "Death is just the Beginning III." We were also on the WAR compilation from Wrong Again Records with the song "Elisabeth Bathori" in a previous version and a cover track from the Hungarian band TORMENTOR. These songs are also on the tribute to Euronymous that is released by Necropolis Records in the states. We also did a SLAYER cover for a SLAYER tribute that is called "Slaytanic Slaughter", which is released by a Swedish label called Black Sun. We play "The Antichrist" from "Show No Mercy". It's a pretty cool album, I guess. We really love SLAYER, so we didn't hesitate for a second to do it and we're also going to do a song "Massacre" by BATHORY for a BATHORY tribute.

Obviously the older thrash bands are a big influence for you. I think it shows really well in your music, too, b/c you don't clone the bands but you can tell you've been into this music for a long time.

Yeah, I totally think so. These old bands have meant a lot to us personally and musically and we are influenced by everything that we listen to and enjoy. Everything that we find dark. Out influences are ranging from early heavy metal to the most extreme, violent kinds of metal, black metal, or whatever. Especially the 80s death metal/thrash scene like KREATOR, POSSESSED, CELTIC FROST, MORBID ANGEL, DESTRUCTION, MERCYFUL FATE, JUDAS PRIEST, IRON MAIDEN, MANOWAR, VENOM. Also the early stuff by METALLICA and EXODUS...SLAYER and so on. I guess these are the bands that we still like because we've been into them for such a long time and they still stand tall to us.

It seems Sweden's always been a real powerhouse for metal music. Ever since I've been into the metal underground I've seen two huge scenes come out of Sweden. can you explain that ?

I can't really explain it. I think that Sweden, ever since BATHORY has had a decent scene for extreme metal. BATHORY made such a great impact on the world, the thrash metal scene and all and ever since then we've had a great interested in that kind of music. Also obscure, underground bands from the 80s have continued to develop their early style- like BATHORY, VENOM, HELLHAMMER and that kind of stuff, and that's maybe why we've got so many well known bands, because that kind of music has been around for such a long time here, and when death metal music starts to get popular we've already had so many bands that hav developed their own styles and we're able and ready to release records right away.

DISSECTION has been round since '89 ?

We started out then and since then have been trying to develop and progress in all ways keeping the same style but always trying to improve and expand in many ways.

What do you think about CANDLEMASS ?

Wow... That's an old favorite of mine. I used to be a member of the CANDLEMASS Cult Disciples Fan Club in the really old days.

What do you think about the direction some of the bands from your early days have taken, like ENTOMBED and DISMEMBER ?

What should I say. I think that the majority of death metal bands that were around then have totally fucked up. I don't like the direction ENTOMBED took even though I used to like NIHILIST and ENTOMBED before. I don't like what they're doing now. It'd not death metal at all. It's sad to see all these once respectable and good bands taking these different ways. Changing their style to get more popular.

There's this black metal explosion over the past three years and they're all pretty much the same age as the ENTOMBED guys were. I think it's kind of strange. I was reading an interview with Uffe recently where he said like he felt he was old, and he's only 24. All the kids are so young unto the scene.

Yeah, you know, you see kinds of bands taking very strange directions during the years and it's not a new thing, but that's how it is. Some people maybe come to a point where they think they can't continue in the same way as they used to and they want to try out something new. That's happened to all kinds of bands, VENOM, CELTIC FROST all did that, METALLICA. So it's normal. I don't like it. I listen to their old stuff instead. Most of the bands release their best albums at the beginning of their career, before they get burnt out.

What do you see in the crystal ball for DISSECTION five years from now ?

I'm sorry that I can not see anything because we don't have plans like that. How big we should be or something ? We just take things as they come. We have a new albums out and our focus is on touring and to promote this album, and then to release another album. You go step by step.

That's good you don't get ahead of yourself. You're appreciating it.

Instead of planning so much about what we want to do in five years we try to enjoy what we are doing now instead.

I think the quality of the musicianship in your band is excellent in comparison to most of the underground extreme metal bands, and these people can barely play their instruments. What do you think about that ?

Well, I don't demand perfect musicianship from the bands that I listen to, but I demand great songs and feeling. I listen to quite primitive stuff, from the early albums of VENOM, to a more technical levl, but they are still above most of the releases today, and in quality still because the songs and the feelings were there and I can listen to very technical well played music. But as long as the music is good I can listen to KING CRIMSON and I can listen to VOND.

Do you think there's an oversaturation of black metal bands at the moment ?

Yeah, I don't give it so much thought though because I, well, it's happened with death metal and thrash metal and heavy metal, too. A lot of clones and people that don't know what they are doing that are just in it for the sake of being cool or fashionable or something. But there's a lot of good bands coming out still, like it's always been. When a musical style is becoming popular you get a lot of new shit bands, but also new great bands. And those that are serious about what they do will survive the fall of the trend when the trend dies. I think that death metal and black metal is timeless music. Those who are serious will be able to continue.

How important are the lyrics with the music ?

We take that part (the lyrics) very seriously, even though I would like to say that the music is the most important thing because we are a band. People listen to the music and that's the most important thing but we do take the lyrics very seriously and it's also a very important part of the music as a whole. If you listen to a band and don't have the lyrics you won't be able to go as deep into the music and you can't feel the same feelings as you might have done if you had a lyric sheet.

I heard you say that the best way to experience a DISSECTION album is to listen to the whole thing from beginning to end instead of a certain track. Do you consider your albums more conceptual ?

The new one ? No, not really. But we do have a concept that we always deal with and that concept is death. On this new album I think that we've managed to give the songs more of their own identity and more variation.

You mention one of your underlying concepts in all your songs in death. Can you explain at all why you chose this concept ? Why is it so important that you choose this topic ?

Because I am obsessed by it and even though all the songs aren't exactly about death directly, they're all connected in some way to the concept of death and that's just because it's such a great interest of mine. Occultism, death, evil, darkness - all those subjects that we deal with, and they are all subjects that I take very seriously in my everyday life. That's why the lyrics take that shape, because I am like that as a person. It's not that I think so much about why it is, it just is what it is.

Could you describe if DISSECTION has a philosophy ?

Not as a whole group, but I have my own philosophies and so do the others. The philosophy of the whole band might be to create dark and evil death, black metal the way we want it. Not to do it to satisfy the needs of others but to satisfy ourselves in the first place.

Do you feel alot of bands with similar concepts to yours are on a crusade to return society to the ways of old ? Do you feel any need to do this ?

No. It's also impossible to do it. I'm very fascinated by the past and medieval times and all the things that have happened before my lifetime, but I think that today is the most important day. It's now that you're able to change things, I guess the future is more interesting than the past in some ways.

I wanted to ask you about THE BLACK. Is that still happening ?

No. It's death since three years ago. It was just a project that I was into for a while.
What was the story behind that ?

Well, I was living in a different town for a while and I met a guy who was doing this project and he asked me if I wanted to sing and I did and the guitarist left the band and I picked up the guitar to record it. So that was just a little thing. A great thing for us.
Certainly a lot different than what you've done with DISSECTION.

And DISSECTION has always been my main band, so to say, but I would like to concentrate on other things at the same time.

It also seems that there are a group of musicians in Sweden who have been referred to as "the true Satanist horde".

As a Satanist myself I respect all kinds of serious practice of Satanism. I can honestly say that it's too bad that a lot of poeple in the black metal scene here that claim to be so serious about what they do are just talking shit. They are just trying to fool the world I guess. It's a lot of loud mouth talking. But those who are really serious will get my respect.

How do you feel about the black metal community in Norway at the moment ?

I don't know. I don't think the black metal bands of today have the same standard as the early bands. Of course there are some bands that are really excellent, but there are too many clones worth any kind of attention. The whole thing with Norway is just pathetic in many ways because as Norwegian black metal became so popular with MAYHEM and so on the world had it's eye on Norway and so many bands popped out of there that the only qualities are are that they are from Norway, not that they play good music. Where is the originality and innovation and feeling ? All the bands today are looking exactly the same and are sounding exactly the same. When black metal was a new thing all the bands sounded different. VENOM was the first. They had their own style. Then we had BATHORY, but faster and with rawer vocals. Then we had MERCYFUL FATE who were very melodic and so on. Bands had their own identity which I miss today. Of course there are a lot of great bands around today but I'm talking about a massive amount of bands that exist now. But I can not say I'm a big of the Norwegian scene because I'm just tired of it all. I wouldn't say that the Norwegian scene is all that strong today.

Any conclusions ?

I hope the scene will get strong again with many original bands trying to do their own thing instead of trying to do what was already done, like the scene was in the late 80s with death metal music. Hail to all the people that really are dedicated and devoted to what they do, and all black metal and death metal people who are into what they are doing and fuck off to everyone else.