Torver Interview

1. For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?
We are a three-piece Pagan Black Metal band from the United Kingdom. If you are a fan of early Dimmu Borgir, Satyricon, Ulver and Emperor this band might be to your liking as we have a good mix of 90's style guitars and vocals, synths, violin and even spoken words and clear vocals in parts.


2. So far you have released a demo and have also been a part of a split, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on both of the recordings and also how do they differ from each other?
That's right. We released a demo titled “From Beyond the Abyss” which was punked up, aggressive Black Metal in the vein of Darkthrone and Blodulv. We've also had the same four tracks put on a split cassette with Funeral Path which was released on Mordgrimm Records. But on the latest split release we've done with Arcane North, our material is very different as we've dropped the punked up Black Metal sound and gone in a new direction, creating more atmospheric sounding Black Metal which to me is sounding a lot more mature, fresh and unique compared to our early material.


3. What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?
At first we wrote about anti-religion, occultism and demonology, but with Nicholas taking over lyric duties we've gone over to the more spiritual side of Paganism which is very suiting to this band.


4. Originally the band was called 'Sitri', what was the decision behind the name change?
Sitri didn't feel right as a band, but it also turned out there was also another Black Metal band from the US called Sitri, so I thought I'd re-name the band with something more original sounding and that's when I came across the name Torver.

5. I know that the name 'Torver' means a hamlet in Cumbria, can you tell us a little bit more about why you picked this is a band name?
Well, I was out walking with my friend in the countryside and we were on our way to Coniston, we walked through Torver during our travel and we started to joke about how Torver sounded like a Black Metal name. I decided to look into the name Torver and it turned out Torver was once a resting place where the Norse Vikings would go to settle down after getting tired of pillaging, so this seemed very suiting for the band and that's when I decided on the name change.


6. Has the band done any live shows or has this strictly been a studio project so far?
No, this is strictly a studio project and will most likely stay that way sadly, as myself, Azrael and Nicholas live in very distant parts of the UK, so the chances of us playing live are very slim.

7. Recently you were a part of a split with 'Arcane North', what are your thoughts on the other band that have participated on the split?
I've always been a supporter of Arcane North and I am good friends with William, he's been sending me over rough mixes of the Arcane North material since he spoke to me about putting the project together. I'm a massive fan of his work and it's been a real honour working with him.

8. The split was released on Blackwood Productions, can you tell us a little bit more about this label?
Blackwood Productions is a small DIY label started up by myself and Steven, we originally put the label together just to release this split, but since starting the label we have decided to make something of it and release other bands. We both have great ideas so it's going to be interesting to see what we do next.

9. On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of black metal?
So far the feedback has been great and we've had some really positive comments said about our new songs, so I'm pretty pleased with it.

10. What is going on with some of the other bands or musical projects these days that some of the band members are a part off?
I've currently been recording new material with my other projects Helvellyn and Skiddaw and I've also got a few gigs lined up this year with Ulfarr. Azrael is currently working on his band Heathen Deity and I believe Nicholas has been in the studio with Aklash recording material for their next release, which should be fantastic!

11. When can we expect a full length album and also where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
You can expect a full length album hopefully at some point this year as we're currently working on new material. I haven't really thought that far ahead to be honest, but I'd just be happy if we manage to get all our songs released on vinyl and cassette and keep creating music together for as long as we can. Whatever else comes along will be a bonus I guess.


12. What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
My main influences are Darkthrone, Mare, Mayhem and Gorgoroth as I'm a massive fan of 90's sounding Scandinavian Black Metal. I've been listening to a lot of Taake, early Satyricon, Mysticum, Motorhead and Iron Maiden at the moment and right now I'm listening to UK Black Metal band  Wreodan Healh, check them out if you are a fan of really early Dimmu Borgir, For All Tid era.

13. Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
I'd like to say thank you to everyone who has supported Torver and picked up a copy of our new release “From Moonrise to Moonset” and I'd like to thank your good self for taking the time to talk about Torver.

Dominus.

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