Trail Of Tears Interview

Kjetil Nordhus is a busy, busy man. In addition to fronting the highly touted prog outfit Green Carnation and putting together a new project, Chain Collector, Kjetil is also one of the two vocalists for the groundbreaking Norwegian act Trail Of Tears. The evolution of Trail Of Tears has been quite an interesting one, with their new album "Free Fall Into Fear" being their most adventuresome journey into the realm of experimental extreme metal yet. Luckily, Mr. Nordhus was able to find the time in his busy schedule to chat with The Gauntlet's Erin Fox in regard to the latest release.


The Gauntlet: Trail Of Tears continues to evolve musically, do you make specific judgments as to when you will incorporate different textures in your writings or do the varied sounds simply come naturally for the band?

Kjetil Nordhus: That's very much a natural progression for the band. Before writing this last album, there were a few things we had in mind; the most important one was to be totally open to what it was going to sound like. The result was songs that we felt needed the combination of myself and Ronny's voices, and not so much Cathrine. Eventually she left the band, and we did the entire album with no female voices. In the end we ended up with an album that is quite different from the previous Trail of Tears albums, but for people who know us from before it won't take too many seconds to recognize the band.

The Gauntlet: How has public reception been toward the new record thus far?

Kjetil Nordhus: It's been fantastic! We were all extremely happy with the end result, feeling that this was an album that represented the band very well, but that doesn't mean that other people are going to like it. Both press and fans have recieved it greatly though, and the reviews are the best in the history of the band. So of course, we're very happy.

The Gauntlet: Do you feel that "Free Fall Into Fear" is a definitive artistic statement for the group?

Kjetil Nordhus: I think all albums have been definitive artistic statements for the time they have been recorded. Just because this last album is somewhat different from the previous ones, doesn't mean anything else than the band being in constant change. But it's right to say that it represent Trail of Tears in 2004 very well.

The Gauntlet: Does the band aspire to be musical innovators in creating such wildly diverse compositions?

Kjetil Nordhus: We do think we have a special blend of music, done in a special way. But saying that, there are a lot of bands that feel the same. It has always been important for Trail of Tears to make music we enjoy ourselves, and we have never been afraid using influences to our advantage. But saying that, we have never been copying any other bands, just taking influences into the band, and put out the trademark Trail of Tears sound. That way you could well say we aspire to be musical innovators.

The Gauntlet: What do you feel is the most accurate description of the band's sound?

Kjetil Nordhus: The most accurate must also be a quite wide description. I guess Extreme metal could be a suitable one, because we do have elements in our music from a wide range of extreme metal genres. To describe it more accurately than that it will be difficult, I think.

The Gauntlet: With so many band members, it must be difficult to keep from stepping on each other's performances. What steps do you take to avoid this?

Kjetil Nordhus: The great thing about Trail of Tears is that we're all friends from early childhood. We know each other inside out, and also know about each other's strong and week points socially. Therefore there's rarely any trouble between us, for example, when on tour. There will always be the odd difference of mind when it comes to different matters, but we've never had any unsolvable problems. By the way, from being eight on stage, we are now "only" six, something that brings us more space, but on the other hand the challenge of filling the stage.

The Gauntlet: Tell us about the track "Frail Expectations", what were the factors that brought this song together for the group?

Kjetil Nordhus: If I remember correctly, this song came together like most of our songs; one guy bringing a theme or two to the rehearsal room, and every other member filling in with their respective instruments. After working a lot on structure and stuff like that, we recorded a pre-production of it for the vocalists to work on, both with melody and lyrics. And in the end, we started recording the song in the studio with an open mind for eventual changes. That's the way the band normally works, and that's also one of the reasons that, no matter what kind of main theme there is in a song, it all sounds like Trail of Tears in the end, when everybody in the band has had their chance to color it individually.


The Gauntlet: What is the story behind the band's moniker? Why did you feel this was the most appropriate name to be recognized by?

Kjetil Nordhus: By moniker, I presume you mean the band's name, and that name was found more than ten years from now, by former guitarist Terje, which is very much into the Native American history. The name has it's origin from the Native American Trail of Tears, but I guess people that doesn't know about that piece of history can see it as a name connected to our music as well.

The Gauntlet: Tell us about the feeling that you get while performing on stage. Do you find yourself constantly seeking to recreate that feeling?

Kjetil Nordhus: An adrenaline kick on stage is the best feeling in the world, and I have definitively had my share of those while on stage with Trail of Tears. It's certainly a feeling to saviour and to seek for, but it never comes when you want it to, it's just something that happens. That's probably the best thing about it. For me, the great feeling comes when an audience gives us more feedback than we had expected, and sometimes when having built up to my favourite theme, and it's suddenly there.

The Gauntlet: Where did the concept for the art which graces the album originate?

Kjetil Nordhus: We tried out some different stuff before falling for German artist Katja Piolka's ideas. She just seemed to think in the exact same way as we did when it came to ideas for the cover artwork. We wanted something that suited the atmosphere on the album, and with a few adjustments we ended up with it as it is today. We're all extremely happy with it. Katja did a great job!

The Gauntlet: What has been the most challenging aspect of your musical career?

Kjetil Nordhus: I'm in the most challenging aspect right now, and that's trying to get time for all my three bands, Trail of Tears, Green Carnation and Chain Collector, the latter releasing the debut album early this autumn, and the two other ones having released the new albums earlier this year. But it's worked out really well until now, and I hope it's going to last that way. Of course there's not only the organization that's challenging, but also the aspect of being creative with so many people, with three different bands where I'm supposed to offer different qualities to.


The Gauntlet: Please tell us about some of your favorite venues that you have performed at in the past. What are the reasons that you find these locations appealing above others?

Kjetil Nordhus: The Circo Volador in Mexico City was a fantastic venue with a crazy crowd. And we seem to like that, he-he. In Europe I will have to go for the Z7 in Switzerland because of the treatment we get there and the response from the crowd. Trail of Tears has always been good in Holland and Belgium, and the Hof Ter Loo shares the first place in Europe with Z7, also because of great treatment and crazy crowds!!

The Gauntlet: Where do you see the band five years from today?

Kjetil Nordhus: I hope and think we have released a couple of killer albums, done a lot of more touring, and having grown in the direction we all want towards being able to live from the band, playing as much as possible, and have great fun all the time.

The Gauntlet: What do you find to be the most important aspect of being a musician?

Kjetil Nordhus: It's a combination there for me. It's important for me personal to being able to express myself through singing, and of course it gives enormous pleasure that other people values what I do.

The Gauntlet: What is the one thing that you most hope Trail Of Tears fans will discover in the band's music?

Kjetil Nordhus: I hope they recognize the quality in the compositions, the complexness, and I hope it gives them both some beautiful and some uncomfortable moments in the combination between music and lyrics. We're a band that expresses a lot of different feelings, and if the listener can take part in that, I would be very happy.



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Tags:  Trail of tears  , Kjetil Nordhus, interviews

EF    July 14, 2005