Darkthrone Would Rather Never Play Live Than Be Rich
It’s been 26 years since trve Norwegian black metal pioneers Darkthrone played their last show in Oslo in April 1996 and it doesn’t seem like that’s going to change any time soon. In a new interview with Wall of Sound, Nocturno Culto—one half of the band—said that Darkthrone have received many offers to play live over the years, some of those offers being quite a bit of money, but that they aren’t interested.
The way he puts it, Nocturno Culto and his musical collaborator Fenriz are just friends who enjoy playing music together. Despite the fact that Darkthrone are one of the most iconic black metal bands to ever do the damn thing, Nocturno Culto says that the duo does not want the extra attention that comes with public performances.
“The offers keep on coming, believe me. We have said no to being wealthy for years and years. I believe Darkthrone is kind of isolated in many areas, but we like it that way. We don’t see ourselves as something else other than ordinary men with a passion for music. So stage, touring and personal attention is not what we seek, but what we want to leave behind…..yes you guessed it, full length albums. A Blaze in the Northern Sky was originally meant to be a mini album, but luckily we discussed it, and agreed on taking our time to make an LP.”
Nocturno Culto also discussed the band’s decision to return to Chaka Khan Studio, where they recorded last year’s Eternal Hails…, for their latest album, Astral Fortress.
“The people and the equipment there is what drew us there again. There is so much vintage analogue gear there, so we get ideas along the way. We will record there again, but then, with a different result of course. An album is like a painting (bear with me), the actual painting is the music and the songs, and the frame is the sound. You can always put a straight black plastic frame on a painting, but believe me, it´s better to carve out details in a proper frame to better portray and bring your work to people the way you want them to feel. If you feel nothing….move along. The process of recording is basically the same as it always was. We record live the drums and one guitar, then I add the other guitars and bass.
“This time around, on our 20th album, we have a label on it saying: ‘No Metronome Since 1987’. And that says it all. This is how we work, we play instruments together, not with a computer. This allows our music to breathe and be dynamic.”
You gotta respect the integrity to stand by your beliefs, but, man, wouldn’t it be cool to see Darkthrone live?
