The fact that you have entered the official Norwegian Top 20 at the 18th position demonstrates that Lumsk has received good feedback from the audience. I guess that it's every encouraging, isn't it?

Yes, we are very glad that our sales numbers are increasing, and that more and more people discover Lumsk and our music. We are very happy to see that things are moving forward on all levels. We are getting to play in places we have never played before, and we can see that more and more people who have no background in metal are starting to open their eyes to our music. So we feel that things are going in the right direction, and that is indeed very encouraging.

I guess that the social conditions and structures in Norway support young creativity. The By:Larm scholarship seems that was a good present for you. How significant is to receive this kind of financial support and what kind of responsibilities brings forth?

Although Norway is a pretty wealthy and healthy country money-wise and socially, being a young and ambitious musician is still no walk in the park. The scholarship was a huge surprise for us. We didn't know there existed such a scholarship, and we didn't know we were nominated. In fact, we were thinking about not going there to play at all. But luckily we really enjoy playing live and meeting new people, so we thought we`d go and play a good show and have a good time while down there. Maybe get in touch with some new people in the music business as well. As it turned out, this became our best paid gig yet. When it comes to the significance of the award, I don't think it is the actual money that is worth the most. By:Larm is a pretty big thing in Norway, and there are a lot of eyes and ears paying attention to what goes down there. So when we received this award, it meant that more media got interested in what we are about, and more people noticed the name, more concert-organizers saw our name, etc…So the award has definitely opened a few new doors for us. The money also came in handy of course. We spent them well, tried to invest them in things that will bring good things back to the band. We recorded a new music video, for the track "Trolltind", arranged a special release stunt, where we rented a beautiful old steamboat, and played a concert in the fjord by our town. Plus, we had just finished the recordings of "Troll", so we threw ourselves a nice party.

I think that there are some differences between "Åsmund Frægdegjevar" and "Troll", but I would like to listen to what you think about these two records.

Well. You are absolutely right. There are quite a few differences. Some, more obvious than others. First of all, the line-up is different. There are new vocalists all around, plus one new guitarist. Espen G. has composed most of the music on "Troll", whereas it was Bjornar who now has left the band, who did most of the composing on the first album. So it is quite natural that this new album sounds a bit different. We all knew that if we gave Espen free hands, we would be faced with a bit different direction than the one we were used to with Bjornar on "Åsmund Frægdegjevar". But this would not be a problem, since we are all very open minded, and eager to cross genres in order to create the best music we can. "Åsmund Frægdegjevar" is a pretty straightforward "folk metal" album, with some twists and turns here and there. On "Troll" we have taken all the non metal parts a lot further, and we put more focus on melodies and dynamics. There are parts on "Troll" that have traces of 70s progressive rock, and there are parts that maybe could put a smile on your 60 year old grandma's face. But there are also parts that are heavier, and harsher than the heaviest moments of "Åsmund Frægdegjevar". So "Troll" has become a very broad album. The writing process was also turned upside down this time around, with lyrics provided by Norwegian writer Birger Sivertsen. We used the lyrics to form the music this time, which was a very inspiring way to work. This is partially why we have focused more on the vocal melodies this time.

How would you name your music, because I think that the term "Folk metal" isn't quite representative?

I am having a hard time coming up with a short fitting description for "Troll". There are definitely elements of folk music, and there are parts that are very heavy and very metal. But there are also elements of progressive rock, and at times it is only based on pretty melodies. The one thing that is present through the whole album is the moods created by the lyrics. That is what we have tried to depict in the music at least. I think I will leave it up to journalists to label our music, because I just can't think of a decent description.

I think that in you music there are two aspects, which are contradictious. On the one side there is your folk influences and identity, while on the other side stands your metal face, which tends to be technical and progressive. How difficult is to combine these two aspects?

It is not something that we strive for, it just came naturally. "Åsgårdsreia" for instance, is a story about the dead, riding on horses across the sky, doomed, using glowing metal lances to drive their horses around, while screaming madly, looking for souls to take with them. This was a tune that had to be a bit nasty. While on the other hand, we have parts that are about weddings, and celebration. So in order to do the lyrics justice, we have to make pretty broad music. So it is not really difficult. What we have thought about though, is that it might be a bit risky. Because the music might get too melodic and soft for the metalheads, while those who fall in love with the melodies might get scared of the heavier parts. But this is really what we wanted it to sound like, and we like it, so hopefully there are people out there with equally open minds, and who do appreciate both the brutal and the delicate.

Why did you asked from Birger and Kristin Sivertsen to write the lyrics for "Troll"? What were the challenges regarding the lyrics that pushed you to ask from someone else to write them?

Birger is an expert on the subjects we are dealing with on "Troll", and a very fine writer. We could not have written better lyrics than him, and we did of course want the best lyrics, not the second best.

Besides the participation of Birger and Kristin Sivertsen in the writing of the lyrics, there are also some other friends that helped you in "Troll". Can you name them, as well as to tell us their contribution?

For the male vocals, we sought help from the only guy we thought could give us exactly what we wanted for the male vocal parts: Andreas Elvenes, who also can be heard on The 3rd and the Mortal's latest offerings. He did an excellent job, and did also come with us to a couple of gigs right after the release. Other than that, we used a choir, called Embla. We have also used some of them on various concerts with great success. We have a string quartet, who also sounds good, and who we also used live at the release concert. And there is even a trumpet and a trombone. We could have recorded all of this by ourselves using synths and computers, but Espen G. was very clear from the beginning, that he was not interested in using any computerized sound effects. And we did in fact compare the result we ended up with, with the same lines played on a synthesizer. The difference is huge. Real instruments is where its at, no doubt about it.

Given the fact that English language is a kind of international language, how risky do you think that is to sing in your native language, in Norwegian?

It is risky, but when singing about the things we do, it sounds a lot more authentic when sung in Norwegian. All the stories and words have a feel in them that makes one think of old Nordic tradition and nature. It would seem improper to sing these texts in English. It would take away a lot of the feelings, which the music is based on.

You have produced a wonderful video for "Trolltind", which is disseminated though your website. Can you give us some information about the way it was produced?

We were contacted by a great guy called Haavard Arnstad, who said he was blown away by our music at a concert we did, and he really wanted to make a video with us. We saw some of his work, and talked some more with him, and we were soon convinced that this was the right man for the job. There were some different opinions on what song we were going to shoot the video for, but Arnstad helped us convince the record label to go for "Trolltind". And we, the band, are very happy about this choice. The shooting of the video was incredible amounts of hard work, but still a truly great experience. It took place at a beautiful old castle that has a lot of great history to it. The setting was great, the weather was awesome, and the crew, actors, musicians and locals were all great people to be around. We had a blast, and I think the result is very good.

Do you think that the Internet can support a band much more effective than a video clip? What is your opinion about the Internet?

If we can get the video to get some solid airplay on various TV-stations, I think that would help us a lot. So far we have only got a couple of shows here in Norway to play it on a regular basis, but hopefully more will follow. The Internet is of course another source that can be useful to spread videos, music and all kinds of other information about the band and our songs. My personal opinion on the Internet is that it is very good for spreading, and reading news, staying updated on what's happening in all kinds of music-scenes, seeing what your favorite bands are up to, and maybe discovering new bands. But when it comes to downloading music and videos, I am a bit old-fashioned. I love it when I can hear brand new stuff from a band that interests me, on their website. But I don't like downloading complete albums at all, and I hate when other people than the band or the record label put out whole albums on the Internet. So, my conclusion is: I love the Internet as a source of news of all kinds. But I dislike a lot of the file sharing that goes on, and the ways it is done. People, who have no relationship to the music, get popular by screwing people who have worked hard as hell for their songs or whatever.

You are a seven members band. How easy is to have a good atmosphere among all members and to decide on several subjects?

Mostly it is inspiring to be so many different persons in the band. We have our feuds and disputes of course, but I think we are getting pretty good at doing our thing. People know their place, and we try to be very open to each other. It helps a lot that we all like to hang out with each other. We always have a good time when we are out on the road playing gigs. At times it can get difficult to make plans though, as it is pretty difficult to make everything fit into everyone` s schedule.

Do you plan any touring in Norway and abroad?

We have a lot of festivals booked in Norway. So we are busy every weekend for a while now, playing all kinds of festivals. In November we are heading over to Germany, where we will kick off a small tour, which will see us playing in Austria, Belgium, and some other places as well, in addition to the German dates. I think the full tour will be posted on our website as soon as it is booked. We also want to do shows in Denmark and Sweden soon; maybe they will be put in along with the trip to Germany. We are constantly working on these matters though, and we want to play all over the place, but the only thing that seems set now, is a lot of festivals in Norway, and the tour in November. Keep watching the website for information on the subject [www.lumsk.com]

Finally… what comes next for Lumsk? Are there any plans or is it too early?

The theme for our next record is ready, and we are really looking forward to take on this challenge. I can't reveal what it will be about, but these lyrics will take us to so many different places musically, and I think it will be really exciting putting music to these words. We have, like I said, a lot of festival appearances coming up, and, maybe we will find room for a little surprise sometime in between concerts later this year. Plans are constantly being made, and we are a hardworking bunch, so there will probably be regular news updates on the website. Check it out. [www.lumsk.com]

Thank you very much for the interview. I wish you all the best with "Troll".

Thank you. Hopefully we can come and play some gigs over there in the not too distant future.