Interview for DEATHTHRASHER MAGAZINE by ARMANDO MUTILATOR : 

DT: Why the name of GEHENNA?... who put the name of the band and why?.
Dolgar: The name was chosen by SANRABB and myself. We wanted something fitting to our musical desires.

DT: Who designed the GEHENNA's logo?.
Dolgar: SANRABB drew the first version (used on the Demo only) then he and myself worked on redesigning it as we went along. It has always been based on the first original version, only it looks more professional now than it used to, the original was of course only hand drawn.

DT: What memories do you have about your "Black Seared Heart" (Demo 1993)?.
Dolgar: I think it has stood its time fairly well, it is over 10 years old now..... That being said, I do not listen to it very often of course. What I remember mostly really was the feeling of being in a professional recording studio for the first time, not really knowing how things worked. And of course we did it all in a much shorter time than we do now, back then we had to pay for it ourselves...

DT: Do you think that wearing chains, blood, make-up and all that stuff is important for you image?.
Dolgar: Well, it sure would look rather lame if we worte bathingshorts or the likes..... It is always important that the looks match the mood of the music, be it Metal or Folk music....

DT: How did the idea of "Ancestors Of The Darkly Sky" 7"?
Dolgar: We only printed 100 copies of the BSH Demo, so when we were offered the deal by NGP, we thought it was a great way to further distribute the music. Vinyl is a lot better than shitty tapes. It was NGP who came with the idea.

DT: What do you know about Peruvian Scene?.
Dolgar: Very little

DT: Your fave Norwegian bands?.
Dolgar: There are many great bands up here, but I think I fave the early pioneers (MAYHEM, DARK THRONE etc)

DT: Tell me about the original GEHENNA's line - up, with SIR VEREDA.
Dolgar: It was SANRABB, myself and SIR VEREDA in the first year or so..... We had known each other for a few years already before we formed the band. SIR VEREDA as we all know ran into a prison cell....... He was always a sick, crazy bastard, living on the edge since he was a child.

DT: Which one do you think is the best GEHENNA's album?... of all your productions, which one has given you the most satisfaction?.
Dolgar: I think "Malice", but it varies with my mood.... At the moment I think our new album is by far the best.

DT: Which was your relation with ANN FRESTAD?.
D: Purely professional

DT: Tell me about your work with TWIN OBSCENITY and SHADOW SEASON?
Dolgar: The TWIN OBSCENITY album was halfway recorded when I was asked to do some vocals. They had build a studio at JO-ARILDS home, so it was a very different way of working since we were not in any hurry, and did not have to worry about how much time we spent on the recording. And also we got to learn a lot, since we did it not have an Engineer, but did it ourselves. It is perhaps not as strong as their first album, but some of the songs turned out very good. With SHADOW SEASON, I was only in the studio a couple of hours to do my vocals, but it turned out really cool.

DT: Do you have the recordings from old times like "FIRST SPELL" (MCD, 1994) and "SEEN THROUGH THE VEILS OF DARKNESS availables?.
Dolgar: No, we do not have anything available directly from the band, not new or old...... You have to get them through regular distros/stores. I think at least "Seen through.." should still be available, but I think "First spell" is out of print.

DT: Is HELLHAMMER a friend of yours?.
Dolgar: I personally do not know him very well, have only talked with him a few times.

DT: Do you consider "MALICE" (1996) like a cult gem?.
Dolgar: I think "First Spell" is the closest thing to being cult.

DT: Why SARCANA and DIRGE REP left the band?... do you like ORCUSTUS?.
Dolgar: SARCANA was just fed up with everything, the music and the industry. She did not feel she had anymore to offer, nor did she wish to, so she left. DIRGE REP left because of personal issues. ORCUSTUS sounds very promising, I really look forward to hearing the new album.

DT: Are you satisfied with "DEADLIGHTS" (MOONFOG 1998).
Dolgar: Yes, absolutely! It was great also to get to release the song "Master Satan", which was recorded around the time when we did the "Malice" album. It was intended for a retro 80´s style Thrash compilation that never happened, so the song was just collecting dust on the shelf.

DT: DOLGAR, which one do you consider your best recording with FORLORN?.
Dolgar: Actually I have only done one recording with FORLORN, the "Hybernation" album. The band had a completely different line-up on the first 3 albums, only HENNEX / ALVARIN is left of the original members. We even considered changing the name of the band because of the big change, but decided not to because we wanted to keep some of the old songs for liv purposes. By the way, we plan to record one more album with FORLORN, and then the band will most likely be dissolved.

DT: What can you tell me about "ADIMIRON BLACK" (MOONFOG 1998)?
Dolgar: I think it surprised a lot of people when it was released, since it was a lot less keyboard dominated and more brutal than we had done at that time...... It seems to me people like it a lot better now than they did upon it's release. It needed some time for people to get into it, but now it is one of our most praised albums.

DT: Tell us about "MURDER" (MOONFOG 2000)", is your piece with best sound?...(Thanks for the CD ANN !!!).
Dolgar: You think so? I do not agree, the production really suffered on that album. We had to change studios half way through mixing it, and everything was just chaos. I do not listen to this album today...... But some of the songs are great, spesially "Devout dementia"

DT: Do you prepare a new album?, what is the name of the new album?, name some new song titles?.
Dolgar: Yes, we are currently recording it, so it will be released early this autumn. The title will (most likely) be "PALLBEARER". I think it will surprise people, as it is very different from "Murder", and a lot more back to our early roots...... Definitively our blackest piece so far..... Some song titles are: GRENADE PRAYER , SPLINTEFIELDS , NEW BLOOD

DT: Your future plans?.
Dolgar: Get the album finnished and released is our main objective, then we realy want to do a lot of touring, something we have never done to much of sadly...

DT: Your last growl for DT. Readers.. where can they find your stuff?.
Dolgar: Hail, thanx for your support!!!!! There are many good Distros surfacing on the internet, so things should be easily available I hope!!!! We hope to get on the road, so keep your eyes open!

Allright, that was the interview! Thanx for your support, and please, if possible, send a copy to:
Simenstad/Hult
Randabegveien 26
4025 stavanger
Norway

Hail!!!!