You may, if you like, compare listening to Satyricon’s latest album, The Age of Nero, to reading a classic novel. It is densely layered but ultimately rewarding. So it is no surprise drummer, Frost, has no objections to his music being labeled ‘thinking man’s metal’. “I can see the point in calling it that, there is a certain depth to our music. It is much more about an artful approach to an extreme kind of music. We make music we want to hear, music with substance. It takes the mind and heart of the listener to understand. We feel too many metal bands are sticking to a simple formula. We don’t want to do that.”
There is no weakness in their resolve for individual and artful metal. Frost answers each question with a practiced grace that is nothing short of infallible. Satyricon’s very purpose is to make music one has to listen to many times before they truly appreciate its carefully constructed layers. Considering singer and lead guitarist, Satyr, wrote the album isolated in an forrest cabin in Norway, Frost’s drums are worked in seamlessly. More proof of the bands painstaking and timely pursuit of their musical beliefs. “We spent quite a lot of time just playing around and rehearsing. You have to work very closely with a composer to complete his visions. He will always have a better idea of the complete vision while I can only see one small part. In the end it has to be functional. I have to bring the track up and take it down where the composer wants.”
The Age of Nero is Satyricon’s seventh album and after working together for some 17 years, Satyr and Frost have continued to redefine their form to satisfy their ideals. “It is progressive no doubt about it, we are progressive and unpredictable. You always have to try and focus on what makes the music as good as possible. There is a wildness and rawness there that we didn’t have on previous albums. Along with grand and epic elements. This combination is unique to this album.”
The Age of Nero is musically stripped down to metal’s most simple but calculated form. This minimal and brooding mood influenced, in Satyr’s view, entirely by the deteriorating state of the planet and human culture. “The album is a reflection of an entire mind. Obviously Satyr as been very influenced by experiences that have had a strong impact on him. At the moment we can see the end of an empire, things happening around us. Take global warming, a very new issue a very destructive phenomenon. There is nothing we can do about it except the best we can. We are doomed in a sense. That whole feeling is reflected in the apocalyptic title that sums up the essence of the album.”
Satyricon have currently been promoting The Age of Nero by touring the Americas and come late March they will begin a tour of Australia. One that Frost predicts may be Satyrcon’s best to date. “First of all they [Australian fans] will see Satyricon touring their the best album ever. If I may say so. That’s how we feel about it. It brings an enthusiasm and energy that will take us to the next level. Plus the songs from the album work really well live.”
To match their well honed philosophies fans are bound to see a band completely and utterly devoted to their performance and their crowd. Frost describes his favourite performances with a pseudo-religious fervor seeking an energy and ‘fire inside’ that help to make a gig great. “It has a lot to do with energy. Before each gig I bring up a lot of raw energy. Energy that drives you almost to the brink of madness. When I feel this it creates a connection with the audience. We get a strong feeling that we are sharing something.”
In a perfect world we would see many more musicians like Satyr and Frost. But until that time, even if extreme metal isn’t your thing, one can’t help but respect Satyricon’s views and conviction.
Published @ www.fasterlouder.com.au
Link: http://www.fasterlouder.com.au/features/17579/Satyricon.htm
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