Hellhammer a.k.a Jan Axel Blomberg Interview
by ©Scarlet Metal www.scarletmetal.com
September 17, 2008
 
True to his leonine birth sign, Hellhammer is a raging drumming firestorm from the
land of ice and snow and a fantastic conversationlist! A world traveler, a collector
and a connoisseur of all things beautiful, Hellhammer is a king who lives each day to
the fullest as if it were his last. This powerhouse of a percussionist has drummed
in more bands than there's room to fit in this intro yet he's probably best known for
having kept the first Norwegian black metal band Mayhem alive long after the
notorious events of the nineties. What you are about to read is an in depth talk
with Jan Axel Blomberg transcribed from the telephone interview.

Scarlet: Greetings Jan, how's the multitasking going these days?
 
Jan: Well, I've been taking it easy the past year and I had to turn down alot of drumming
offers due to the healing of a neck injury. The various physical therapies and acupuncture
worked out very well and I'm beginning the intense phase of training and practice now.
My family is my main priority and I have a daughter who is one and a half years old.
 
Scarlet: Congrats on the fatherhood!
 
Jan: Thank-you! Being a father takes up alot of time but it's really important to me
and something I want to fully experience.
 
Scarlet: Sounds like you're equally sharing the responsibility of child care with your
partner and also enjoying yourself.
 
Jan: Yes, absolutely! I'm participating in this by choice and it's the most important
thing in my life at this time. As far as musically..band projects go, Mayhem is in the
forefront and we've been concentrating on auditioning guitarists these past few months.
 
Scarlet: Was Blasphemer's departure at all unexpected or a shock to you?
 
Jan: Sort of but not really because he had in the past expressed on more than one occasion
that he had ideas for other projects and a desire to leave Mayhem. I completely understand
this and I wish him good luck and all the best going forward. Blasphemer wrote the music for
the last release 'Ordo Ad Chao' which has been very successful and won a Spellemannprisen
award, so it was good for him that he left on a high note.
 
Scarlet: Speaking of which, belated congrats on the award!
Do you have any idea of who might be taking Blasphemer's place at this point in time?
 
Hellhammer: I'm really not sure yet. We auditioned Kris from Limbonic Art, Thor (Destructhor)
who was referred to us by David Vincent of Morbid Angel but then they decided to use him on
their tour so we couldn't get him..then Chawki was recommended (a French guitarist) who is
also an excellent musician. Teloch we wanted of course, but he is busy with Gorgoroth until
next year. The guitarist on tour may be different than the one recording, it all depends on
their availability. It's easiest to determine which one is best for Mayhem by having them on
tour with us- this is the best way for us to test the "chemistry". Being able to write music
is also quite necessary.
 
Scarlet: Will the final decision be made by all three of you or is it mainly your decision?
 
Hellhammer: The decision will definitely be made by the three of us- it has to be that way.
In going forward, we are trying our best to avoid the internal conflicts that have plagued
Mayhem since the beginning. We realize that we have the opportunity of a fresh start and we
are looking forward to what the future brings yet we are remaining cautious with who we
bring in.

Scarlet: Regarding the next Mayhem release, do you and the remaining members of Mayhem plan
on staying in the direction of your last release 'Ordo ad Chao'?

Hellhammer: To be honest with you, we have no idea what direction the music will take in the
next album. What I can say for sure is that we have no intention of trying to copy the unique
compositional style of  'Ordo Ad Chao'- that was Blasphemer's creation and he is one-of-a-kind.
What I am sure of is that the next direction will come forth from the new guitarist because
neither Atilla, Necrobutcher nor I are writing any music these days. In the past we never
plotted a course- the sound and style of each Mayhem release has always evolved spontaneously
out of our rehearsals.

Scarlet: Do you keep in touch with Maniac?

Hellhammer: Yes, I do- he's a good friend of mine. Last time I ran into Maniac he was doing very
well- he was like a different person and I feel that he made the right decision by leaving Mayhem
when he did. All the best to him!

Scarlet: What's going on with regard to your involvement in Dimmu Borgir?

Jan: Well, I'm actually meeting up with Sven (Silenoz) later tonight. They've been rehearsing
with the new tour drummer and it's going very well from what I heard. They of course know that
I would make myself available for anything they need from me such as the recording sessions
and that I'll always have an interest in drumming on their future releases.

Scarlet: Of all the releases you've ever worked on, which do you personally consider to be
your crowning achievements?

Jan: Hmm, maybe the new Winds release which is an overall great album. Another is
'In Sortie Diaboli' that I orchestrated the drumming for so I think there's alot of "me" in that
record. It was also a fantastic experience in the recording process although in retrospect I
feel that the drums should have been alot clearer. Also 'Ordo ad Chao' with Mayhem, although I
wasn't completely satisfied with the final production (drum wise) on the last track 'Anti'.

Scarlet: The new Umoral track up on myspace is a work of mad genius, any more to say on this
project? http://www.myspace.com/umoral

Jan: Umoral gives me and the other two members Svein (Zweizz) and Teloch the opportunity to
experiment, improvise and explore musical extremes without any guidelines.
Teloch is writing most of the music..plus it's a blast working with these guys!

Scarlet: Any other side projects you would like to mention?

Jan: Yes, I also recorded drums on Andy Winter's forthcoming album. It's still in the works
and this is going to be another incredible release with alot of complicated rhythms and jazzy
elements within the drummimg and like six or seven vocalists- look out for this one!

Scarlet: Is working with The Kovenant again a possibility?
http://www.myspace.com/thekovenant

Jan: After having heard the Aria Galactica stuff, I have to say yes- absolutely!
They're really back on track with their latest material and I told them that I'd be happy
to work with them again. I drummed on three releases Nexus Polaris, Animatronic and S.E.T.I.
but I felt that the latter was ruined in the final stages of production with overly commercial
elements. However, I feel that The Kovenant has something really great to contribute to
today's music scene and I'm totally 100% optimistic about what will be coming from this band
in the future.

Scarlet: Which music or genre of music was your "first love"?

Jan: Well, going way back I was listening to was my parent's music so I would say Deep Purple
and Black Sabbath at that time. It was then that I decided I wanted to be a musician.


Scarlet: It had been announced that you would be drumming for Gorgoroth,
and then later news indicated that Frost was taking over. What happened
with that and did you have any apprehension about touring with them?

Jan: No apprehension at all, I was just too busy and had schedule
conflicts. I would love to work with Gorgoroth in the future if they
don't find a permanent drummer. I have nothing but the highest respect for
both Gaahl and King. I've been friends with Gaahl for a long time- he's
very intelligent and a great guy.

Scarlet: Does viking metal or traditional Norse themed
music/metal interest you at all?

Jan: Yes, anything of the old Norse interests me. I played in the nordic
black metal band Vidsyn for awhile which I enjoyed alot. Nocturno Culto was
also involved on some guest vox that was great. I have no problems with
any themes including Christian- like the band Antestor I worked with.
I knew going into Antestor that it was going to be controversial- it stirred
up alot of shit in the black metal world and I got a kick out of that!

Scarlet: What kind of music is on some of your current playlists?

Jan: I listen to just about every kind of music- everything from classical
to pop to the very blackest of black metal.

Scarlet: As someone who has been involved in the Norwegian black metal scene
since the very beginning, how do you think the earliest Norwegian black metal
masterworks will be perceived in 50 to 100 years from now? Is it possible
that it will be proclaimed genius? sort of in the way the world perceives
the music of Mozart now?

Jan: Anything is possible but it's hard to say- I was part of it and therefore
one of the creators..so maybe I'm too close to it. When I think back to those days
I remember listening to what we had first recorded and knowing that what I was
hearing was extremely unique and special.
Now it's referred to as "classic Norwegian black metal" so I guess there is
a chance of this. I, of course, hope it is perceived as true genius in 50- 100 years!

Scarlet: Do you ever wish that you were back in the early 90's again?

Jan: Well, I'm going on 40 years old now and I feel like 20 so I would have
to say "no" to that.

Scarlet: That's because you don't smoke and you still have the hair.

Jan: Hehe, yes that's true. I feel great and I have so much more wisdom
and knowledge now that I wouldn't trade for anything- not even youth.
I don't have any fears about aging either, I'm enjoying it!
Besides which, if I met that guy I was at 18, I'd have to beat the fucking
shit out of myself so hard...

Scarlet: Ha ha!

Jan: Exactly!

Scarlet: Going back to the days of Helvete again, do you believe that
Euronymous and Varg were willing to risk their lives for their beliefs?
(In the case of Varg, I'm referring to his beliefs back then, of course)
Or did they maybe not think there was any real risk because they believed
themselves to be superhuman?

Jan: At that time they were both in a strange state.
Euronymous did believe that he had obtained special occult powers through the
black magick he was doing. In Varg's case the media actually helped to reinforce
this probably..by not believing him when he told them he had burned down the
churches. He laughed and said something like "ha! we told them we did it and
they refuse to believe it!". So in a way, it likely did seem to them that they
were "superhuman".

Scarlet: Were you ever interested in developing some "powers" similar to
their's?

Jan: I was very curious and interested in black magick at first but after
some very unpleasant results during the first few experimentations,
I gave up on it.

Scarlet: Do you believe that Euronymous and/or the others may have
had inadvertently conjured up an entity or a force that was capable of
"possession"?

Jan: Yes, I do believe that was the case....





www.myspace.com/officialmayhem