Náttligr Interview

 

1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?

Hi! T. K. here, the guitarist/vocalist, answering all the questions. We're a black/doom metal band founded in Trondheim, Norway in 2019 by myself and the bassist, L.-I. S. - later L. L. joined us on drums and I. V. on electric cello. We're aiming to produce old-school sounding, dark, riff-oriented music.

2.In July you also released a new album, can you tell us a little bit about the musical style that you went for on the recording?

As I said before, we mainly consider ourselves a black/doom band but we also have some folk elements - like the instrumental song on Ravatal, Esthajnalcsillag. Rather uniquely for a band from Norway, the songs on the album are either in Hungarian or English. In terms of the music, we wanted to make songs that have long runtimes but are very riff-focused, sort of creating a "riff assault" effect. For some contrast we also have quieter sections but they are not our main focus. We did decide to go for a varied vocal approach as well, ranging from black metal shrieks, some low death metal-like growls and multiple types of clean vocals, but mostly focusing on the lower, baritone range.

3.The band also worked on the album from 2020 to 2023, can you tell us a little bit more about the time and effort you put into the recording?

Indeed! We started rehearsing in 2019 with just me and L.-I. S. We'd already had most of the material by the end of that year that would end up on this album but, well, a pandemic happened so things had to be put on hold. I did record a few song demos and a few acoustic songs in 2020 on my own, one of which ended up on the album as the acoustic section of Esthajnalcsillag.

We were able resume rehearsing only in 2022, but now with the new members. Unfortunately, I. V. with the e-cello came too late in the process so she did not end up on this record. With L. L. on drums now, though, we started re-familiarizing ourselves with the material and once we felt comfortable with a song, we recorded it. I believe we recorded the eponymous track first, in May 2022 and Swansong was the last, around March this year. The album was entirely self-produced, including recording, mixing, etc so we could work on our own schedule but, of course, that also meant we had to do everything ourselves so a lot of effort went into it overall. We used physical amps with microphones, etc and only minor amounts of editing. That is how we got the rather raw, old-school and authentic sound. That did mean that recording songs took a significant amount of time since songs are frequently only a single take so there wasn't a lot of room for mistakes. Everything to get the sound you want, eh?

4.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band has explored so far with the music?

Most of our songs so far have focused on death in one way or another: from personal experiences, Norwegian history and folklore, and also from the self-destructive tendencies of humanity as a whole. Also, a brief journey to hell.

5.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Nattligr'?

It's an Old Norse word and it means "Nocturnal". Both me and L.-I. S. used similar names online even before we had known each other so we thought it would be a neat name. We wanted it to be in Old Norse as an homage to Norwegian history.

6.Can you tell us a little bit more about the artwork that is presented on the new album cover?

It is an original watercolor painting made by K. B., our amazing artist.The band logo is hand-drawn by her as well. The cover art depicts a funeral procession heading towards one of the most famous landmarks of Trondheim, Nidarosdomen cathedral. As I mentioned earlier, most of our songs on the album are about death so that is how it ties into the theme.

7.What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and also how would you describe your stage performance/

We've only played a few small private shows so far. We actually have a recording from one of them. If the sound quality is ok then we might release it one day, especially since it also features I. V.

8.Do you have any touring or show plans for the new album?

No, but we would be keen to play some local shows at one point or maybe one-offs somewhere else, but all of us have full time jobs and other commitments so it's unlikely we'd ever plan a tour.

9.Currently you are unsigned, are you looking for a label or have received any interest?

This was our debut album and we hadn't gone around talking to labels before the release and we also haven't explicitly done it since then. If we got contacted then we would be more than happy to talk, though, especially because we'd like a physical release of the album and maybe some other merch, but in our current situation, we could only really do that with a record label behind us.

10.On a worldwide level how has the reaction been to your music by fans of black and doom metal?

Again, we only very recently released anything for the public (and we'd only played a few private shows before that) so it's a bit hard to judge. However, the feedback we have received has generally been very positive and it seems like we have had a good amount of listeners on streaming services and Bandcamp in the approximately 1 months since the release of Ravatal. We've had listeners from different parts of the world, even including rather far away places like Japan. A lot of work went into the album so I'm glad to hear that people are enjoying it.

11.Where do you see the band heading into  musically during the future?

No clue yet! We'll see. We have some song ideas but we have been on a well-deserved break since the release of Ravatal. We'll get back to rehearsing in due time. Maybe we'll release that live recording I talked about earlier, too.

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?

There is a lot more than I could count. Bethlehem's Dictius Te Necare is a mainstay. Master's Hammer, Misþhyrming, My Dying Bride, Darkthrone, Paradise Lost, Bathory, Forgotten Woods etc etc.

Been listening to Candlemass' Nightfall a lot lately. Of new releases, Thy Catafalque's Alföld is a masterclass in avant-black. Cattle Decapitation's Terrasite is terrific as well. On the black/doom end of things, Mizmor just released a new album, Prosaic, and everyone should just go and listen to it. Not incredibly new, but one of the best black/doom albums of recent times was made by an ex-My Dying Bride member (Many Suffer - The Strangest of Beasts); I could more than heartily recommend it to those who like their black metal with a big dose of doom.

13.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?

Yes! Thank you very much for this interview. It was an honor. Thanks to those who have supported us in any way so far as well.

Tusen takk!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uh6kTYxIMi4&ab_channel=N%C3%A1ttligr-Topic