Haris: Hi Patrik, one thing beforehand: how have you coped with the departure of Thomas (vocals) and Henrik (guitar)? After all, Thomas has left his mark on your sound with his characteristic vocals.
Patrik: We never considered giving up the band due to their departure – our first thought was rather “let’s get replacement members as soon as we can!”. Even though Thomas is a great vocalist and front person, we’ve never seen THYRFING as a band that would fall due to the departure of single members. Naturally, we found it more urgent to find a vocalist than a second guitarist, so we initially put most of our focus on that.

Haris: At that time you released a short statement, which said that you broke up in peace and that both of them couldn’t be bothered recording more albums. But it doesn’t seem that Thomas lacked motivation after he had a vocal guest appearance on Moonsorrow’s Hävitetty album in the middle of 2006. Can you tell us a bit more about the departure of Thomas and Henrik?
Patrik: Honestly, that’s the reason they gave us, and I have no reason to doubt it’s true. Of course there are usually several reason why someone leaves a band, and most likely this was the case for Thomas and Henrik too, but this is the version they gave us, so … Regarding Thomas’ contribution to Hävitetty, I’d say it’s a different thing comparing to writing, rehearsing and recording a whole album as lead vocalist.

Haris: How far has the fact that you are the only guitarist in the band affected the songwriting?
Patrik: Not that much. Of course Henrik brought in some great stuff – both when it comes to actual writing and also inspiration, way of thinking and fresh ideas – but at the end of the day he was not the “musical engine” of the band. Writing music with two guitars always give you some other ideas and opportunities, so the album would not have been exactly the same if he was still in the band, but all tracks were demoed and pre-produced, so in a way you could say it was written for two guitars after all.

Haris: One may be anxious to hear how Jens, who is famous for his Black Metal-typical high screaming compared to Thomas’ more aggressive and deeper vocals, will fit in the overall sound of THYRFING. How far has the new vocal style influenced your songwriting on Hels Vite?
Patrik: I wouldn’t say it has affected the way we wrote the music. Jens’ vocals with THYRFING is not exactly the same as he’s been doing with Naglfar and Profundi, and if you look upon it in a wider perspective than from the Black/Death Metal scene, Thomas’ and Jens’ vocals are quite in the same style after all. So it’s not something we needed to adjust the music by.

Haris: You are miles away from the fast and melodic Black/Death Metal of Jens’ previous band. Anyway, don’t you think that a certain Naglfar influence compulsorily crept into your sound?
Patrik: Not that I’ve noticed. Jens was involved in writing music for the album, but I doubt any of the parts he did would have suited on a Naglfar or Profundi album and vice versa. As he’s having his “baby” Profundi nowadays, he can put his fast stuff there … ;-)

Haris: Hels Vite features two songs in English language (Isolation and Becoming The Eye) again, according to the pre-released song list. Any special reason for that? I mean, you purposely used Swedish-only lyrics on Farsotstider.
Patrik: No, we simply threw consistency out of the window this time, and decided to go with both languages as long as it felt suitable for the current lyrics and song.

Haris: Can you tell us something about the lyrics in advance? Is Hels Vite maybe a concept album?
Patrik: Nah, not a concept album in the sense of word, where the whole album is a linear story (Iron Maiden’s Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son, Bathory’s Blood On Ice or the King Diamond albums etc.). But they are written in the same way when it comes to expressions, metaphors and language, so in that way you could see it as a concept. I’d say the lyrics need to pass a certain “THYRFING filter” to suit the overall feel, artwork and imagery of our albums. Just as with the last albums, the lyrics are rather dark and foreboding reflections or pure stories that come from our mind and thoughts.

Haris: It’s definitely uncommon for you as the only guitarist to enter the stage without your long time companion Henrik. Did you plan to have an additional session guitarist beside you or do you think you can fire up the crowd as quintet as well?
Patrik: Yes, we are currently trying out a session guitarist, which hopefully will make it to the stage. We could probably pull it off with only one guitarist, but as the majority of the songs feature dual guitar parts, it feels better with two guitarists live.

Haris: You will soon be performing some gigs as guests within the tours of Primordial and Finntroll as well as of Marduk and Morbid Angel. I suppose, you’ll soon promote your new album within a European tour. Are there any German dates planned yet?
Patrik: No, there won’t be any extensive touring, but we will do some single gigs and festivals here and there during the winter and onwards. For now there are three gigs in Germany confirmed (Dortmund in November, Bamberg in December and Osnabrueck in January), but there are several offers under negotiation, so keep your eyes open for more dates…

Haris: Why don't you plan to promote Hels Vite with a tour? Is it up to the record company or do you feel tired of touring? I mean, expecting Hels Vite to be a killer, it would be necessary to show the world out there how damn talented you are and to get the attention you deserve.
Patrik: With our current private situations (work, partners etc.), we feel that we cannot make it for longer tours. We are of course aware of that touring and playing more live would increase the awareness of the band and our albums. But, there are other alternative ways to spread the music nowadays with Internet, MySpace etc. Also, when you do fewer shows, the interest for the shows we do will hopefully be even bigger. This is a solution we have talked through and that every member feels comfortable with.

Haris: And that was about it, Patrik! Thanks a lot for the interview and Godspeed with Hels Vite. Lest you exist for a long time!
Patrik: Thank you for the showed interest and support. I hope you and everyone else will enjoy Hels Vite once released. Also keep an eye on our website for upcoming live gigs and events. Cheers!