The Norwegian band Cor Scorpii recently released a fantastic debut with ‘Monument’. The band is able to create, within the boundaries of black metal, an extremely melodic and melancholic listening experience while aggression and speed are also present at the same time. A impressive accomplishment. Keyboard player and (clean) vocalist Gaute Refsnes explains how things came into existence.
Hello and greetings! First of all, how are you doing? Hello Roel, and thanks for the interview. All is well and it’s good to finally have the album out.
I want to congratulate you with your excellent first full-length album ‘Monument’. How has been the general response this far? Is it what you expected? The feedback so far has been brilliant. Reviews are top of the line, and also the response from the fans has been fantastic. To be honest, I expected the general response to be very good. The feedback on our demo was overwhelming, and I think we have taken a few steps forward since then, without loosing track of the original idea of the band. I get the impression that people think the album stands out in today’s metal scene, which is largely dominated by retro-trends and copycats. What surprises me a little bit is the huge focus on the similarities with Windir. Yes, there are a lot of the same elements in the music, and yes, our lead guitarist has a certain style that is very recognizable, but at the same time there are so many elements that differ. I think these aspects become clearer when the listener gives the album more time.
What happened with the band since ‘Attergangar’? Soon after the release of ‘Attergangar’, we started negotiating a contract with labels. We signed a deal with Dutch label Descent Productions, and because we had a lot of material ready at the time, we planned to release a full-length album fairly quickly. The idea was to rerecord one or two songs from the demo, in addition to the new material. As you know, this plan was abandoned. We decided to leave the demo songs behind, and create more fresh material for the album. Back to the drawing board so to speak. During this period, we also had to find a replacement drummer, as Jørn had more than enough to do with Vreid, and we wanted to make the band a priority for everyone involved. As our “band base” is in Sogndal, a small town in the middle of nowhere, this was not the easiest of tasks. In the end, Ole “Vargon” Nordsve joined the band, and we could finally start rehearsing for the album. In july/august of 2007, the band entered Børge Finstad’s Toproom Studio, where ‘Monument’ was recorded and mixed. It’s been a long journey to get the album out, but we are very satisfied with the final result.
’Monument’ is a very diverse album but still sounds very coherent in its style. What defines a Cor Scorpii song, what is it you want in and from a song you write? We try to make songs with identity, variation and progression. In other words, we want every song to be interesting on its own, as well as a natural part of the album. In order to achieve this, a lot of layers and new elements are added throughout the songs, instead of using a lot of repetition. During the creative process, we worked pretty much without any boundaries, and allowed ourselves to experiment with different ideas. This lead to a lot of diversity in the songs, but they are all connected by a strong sense of melody, harmonies and atmosphere.
Compared to ‘Attergangar’, ‘Monument’ is even more melodic but less grim. How would you compare ‘Monument’ to its predecessor? I think ‘Monument’ is a natural progression from the demo. The approach to writing music is still the same, but ‘Monument’ stretches the limit in every direction. The melodic parts are more melodic, and the grim parts are faster and more aggressive. I like the atmospheres created by mixing the beautiful and the brutal parts, and this contrast is used to an even larger extent this time around. The song structures are more complex, and every band member has contributed more with songs and ideas, rather than one person presenting a ”finished” album. Still, the biggest difference is probably in the sound department. Recording in a professional studio really added the necessary finishing touches to the songs.
The classical influences have been somewhat downplayed on ‘Monument‘ or at least are less obvious. That is striking since that was something very unique about you, why was this done? The classical influence is as strong as ever, but as you say, maybe not as obvious as before. This time, a lot of the classical influence can be found in the guitar work. If you listen closely, there are chords and melodies that are more often used by classical composers such as Grieg, Satie and so on, than in the metal genres. These parts are usually made on a keyboard, but instead of using a lot of symphonic keyboard sounds, they are turned into riffs and guitar lines. This basically means that there are loads of unusual chords which the guitarists would never dream of making themselves (a source of much frustration). Some of them were in fact physically impossible to play, so we either had to simplify them a bit, or split them into several guitar lines. The opening track, ‘Ei Fane Svart’ is one example of this, ‘Our Fate, Our Curse’ is another.
The production is killer! Powerful and clear as a bell! How did the recording process go? Is it the sound you aimed for when you started recording? We chose to record and mix the album in Børge Finstad’s Toproom Studio. He has worked with loads of great bands such as Borknagar, Arcturus and Mayhem, and we where familiar with his ability to create a similar sound to what we were looking for. It was important for us to get a clear sound, without loosing the raw edge. We have worked a lot with details in the music, and we paid strong attention to finding the right place for every element in our soundscape. After spending all this time composing, it would be a shame if the songs were spoiled by a bad “wrapping”. We spent two hectic weeks there, working day and night in order to finish in time. I’m pleased to say that our expectations were exceeded. The album was mastered in the renowned Tailor Maid Studio, and once again, we couldn’t ask for a better contribution.
Why did you choose ‘Monument’ as the title? How does it relate to the music and cover-art? The main reason for choosing the title is our feelings connected to the album. It stands as a monument for the band, and defines our musical and lyrical direction. The title should not be looked upon as a reflection of the cover-art, or vice versa. It is more closely linked with the lyrical themes and the overall epic feel of the album.
You’re on the Dutch label Descent Productions, how has been the collaboration so far? The collaboration has been very good. It’s still a small label, but the communication is very good and the releases coming out on the label are impressive. We had total creative control in the recording process, and the studio budget was good for a debut album. I think the label has a lot of potential for the future.
I’m really forward to see you guys play live in The Netherlands! Will you embark on a tour to support ‘Monument’? At the moment, we have no concrete plans of a tour. Due to the delays of the album, it’s been a bit hard to plan ahead, but now that it’s out, we’re really anxious to get on the road. So far we’ve only played some festivals in Norway, including the Inferno Festival, and the feedback has been very good. At the moment, we’re organising some gigs in Norway, and hopefully we’ll have the chance to play in The Netherlands and Europe soon.
Like all bands, your eyes are probably already focussed on your future activities, can you enlighten somewhat about what to expect from Cor Scorpii? The main priority right now is to get this show on the road, play live, meet the fans and promote the album. Next, we’ll start to focus on making a new album. I’ve had a fairly long break from writing music now, but new ideas are starting to take shape. Still, I don’t think you can expect a new album for quite some time yet. This kind of music takes time to create, and I’ll take quality over quantity any day.
Thank you for the interview and I grant you the honour to end it with a final statement. Thanks again for the interview. Check out the album, and join our monumental exploration of beauty and aggression.
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