With:	Magnus Kvist, Magnus Haugo, Markus Charras, Christoffer Wig, Alex Stebbing
Conducted by:	Doc G. (e-mail)
Published:	31.12.2011

Doc: So, to start off simple, to those who haven't checked out your music yet, how would you describe it?

Fallen Divine: Something a bit different within metal, progressive, yet inspired by classic riffs and music within black and death metal. The music is very melodic and exciting without any dull moments.

Doc: What is the origin of the band & album name?

Fallen Divine: With the name "The Fallen Divine" we were trying to awaken a contrast. A strong contrast that we wished to be heard in the music as well.

The binding cycle is all about putting two contrasts of music (or within the album concept: different ways of life) up against each other, and seeing what kind of music it could create. A Binding Cycle of different ideas. The story that runs through the album has recurring elements, that form a strange idea throughout the album.

Doc: Listening to your music, it sounds like you've got some Enslaved, Opeth, maybe even a touch of Wintersun. Who are your main influences? Would there be any bands or artists that would seem like an unlikely influence?

Fallen Divine: We have a few different influences in the band, we try to reflect on how a riff or a song can project a certain type of musical idea. Here are some of the musicians we within The Fallen Divine find inspirational:

Alex: Blake Richardson from Between The Buried And Me and their musical structure

Chris: Wintersun, Opeth, Obscura, Bach are bands that I become inspired from

Magnus Kvist: Satyricon is a band I used to do vocal covers of during high school, and I sang "Follow the Reaper" from Children Of Bodom at my high school graduation ceremony.

Magnus Haugo: Summoning, Watain, Red Hot Chili Peppers, etc...

Markus Charras: I am a really big fan of Disney Channel music. The catchiness of the music is an important element in our music. Hit me up on facebook to talk more about it xoxo

Anyways....We are inspired by all kinds of different music. And yes, we're fans of Opeth and Wintersun, like you mentioned, so I guess we get some inspiration there.




Doc: The Binding Cycle is a really slick, professional sounding album, which is surprising for a debut, how long has this been in the works?

Fallen Divine:Thanks. Well, we have been working on it for about a year, between courses at school and long winters in the mountains with composing software.

Doc: As previously stated, this sounds like a very professional album, it sounds like it's been recorded by a band with a lot more years behind them than you guys have. Financially speaking, how difficult was it getting this sound while still being a virtually unknown band?

Fallen Divine: Financially speaking, it wasn't that difficult. Of course, we had to spend a shitload of money from our own pockets. But its all about prioritizing. Recording an album was a dream we all shared and wanted to come true, and you can't put a price on that.

Andy Laroque was a massive help. An extremely talented producer is hard to
find for "virtually unknown bands", but we felt he really understood what
we wanted to accomplish with this album.

Doc: The cover artwork is incredibly well done as well, it seems to appropriately reflect the music; red-hot raging parts blending with the cool, mellow parts. How much consideration was taken into this? Was it just a cool looking picture that I'm reading too much into, or did you give the artist a specific idea?

Fallen Divine: Alex, Christoffer and Magnus Haugo had some very strong ideas about how the concept within The Binding Cycle could be visualized, and upon presenting these ideas to Roberto Toderico, the concept was transformed into a work of art.

http://bobbweiler.deviantart.com/

Doc: How about the lyrics? Can you tell us a bit about what you're singing about here? Is there an overall theme to the album?

Fallen Divine:

"Standing by the windowpane

Fire, rain and hate caress my reflection

In a glass house, observing my past

Such a righteous goal, to change it all"

The Binding Cycle is about a man who tries to oppose society, and what
happens to him when he is met with ignorance and hatred. Lyrics wise, we
feel we created a rather dense environment.

Doc: A lot of artists we've interviewed over the years all seem to build a song from different directions. Some start off with a riff that they build off of, some envision an overall structure they try to build within etc. The music on The Binding Cycle seems like a mix of both an emphasis on strong, natural riffs and intelligent, well thought out structure. How do you guys go about creating a song?

Fallen Divine: We don't have a band leader in the sense that one person decides what riffs to use or what structure we're going for. This makes it easy for anyone to present ideas or suggestions. The structure depends on the song, of course, and is a collaborative process overall. Sometimes, one person would write
large sections of a songs, and other times we would sit in a group and create parts of a song together.

Christoffer Wig and Magnus Haugo are our main composers, For instance, Chris has written "The Northern lights" and Magnus wrote "Patterns Through Eternity". Throughout the album their two musical styles are combined in a cycle.

Doc: The obligatory "new album" question - what song is the song people HAVE to check out if they want the best idea of what The Fallen Divine is all about?

Fallen Divine: "Northern Lights"...definitely one of our most progressive and adventurous songs. Check it out for free on bandcamp

http://fallendivine.bandcamp.com/




Doc: Seeing as you covered a lot of ground with The Binding Cycle, is there any sound(s) you'd like to experiment with for future releases?

Fallen Divine: We are open for different ideas, but we feel as though our next album might focus on more atmospheric elements.

Doc: Black & death metal is obviously an incredibly anger-fuelled type of music, do you ever find it difficult expressing yourselves within the confines of extreme metal?

Fallen Divine: We enjoy different types of music, and therefore we try to express ourselves no matter what the genre may suggest.

Doc: Obligatory "up-and-coming" band type question: What would be your dream tour? What bands would you love to hit the road with?

Fallen Divine: Opeth, Between The Buried And Me, Wintersun, Obscura and Red Hot Chili Peppers.

Doc: Norway is obviously a country renowned for it's metal exports, do you think it makes it easier or harder getting exposure coming from a country producing great bands all the time?

Fallen Divine: It can be hard getting exposure in Norway. There a few Norwegian bands that are really awesome, but have written quite a few albums before achieving the status they deserve.

Doc: Is there any other great underground bands in you guys know about that we should all be listening to right now?

Fallen Divine: There have been a lot of awesome bands that have risen and fell, but right now there isn't much happening in the underground metal scene in Norway.

Doc: Finally, seeing as this is your debut album, taking into account the path the music industry is taking, where do you see yourselves 5, 10, 15 years down the road? Where do you hope to be?

Fallen Divine: The music industry is enduring a transition from being driven by album sales to relying on touring and merchandise. We hope to be able to be on tour, and play concerts every night, no matter how much it takes its toll.

We focus a lot on the quality of single albums, that folk can really enjoy in their entirety, and then hear many of these songs live.

Doc: Thanks for taking the time to answer a few questions! Any last words for the Metal Storm readers?

Fallen Divine: Thanks for checking out our album, remember to buy it and listen the shit out of it.
http://fallendivine.bandcamp.com/