I can’t say I like the music of TULUS. But I can say the same about the whole modern Black Metal genre. I really can’t understand why the classic GORGOROTH’s “Pentagram” or “Hvis Lyseth Tar Oss” by BURZUM are sold in less copies than that commercial shit released by today’s “stars,” who care more about making digipacks than good songs. May be you have an answer? However, people do buy all those new albums and I hope they do enjoy them as I did four-five years ago. TULUS is one of those bands that appeared during the latest tree years, and it originates from mighty Norway, as you all may guess. I don’t know where they find all these Norwegian bands, but it seems there is no chance for all of us to see the end of the line of Norwegians in Black Metal scene. Hail, Norway! I introduce to you another Viking called Salke. He is among those who stay behind the name TULUS. The name without meaning...


The past of TULUS is a mystery to me. Please tell a bit about this and about members of the band.
Well, Blodstrup and me started rehearsing back in 1991. In 1993 we recruited Gottskalk, and we recorded our first demo “Samlerens Kammer” (Collector’s Chamber) in ’94 and followed up with “Midtvintermane”(Midvintermoon) in December ’95. In October 1996 we released “Pure Black Energy” on our own, but Hot Recs. re-released it early ’97. Hot Recs. is responsible for the release of “Mysterion,” our second album , in march ’98. This is our complete story, cause we’ve never played any gigs.

Ads in magazines say TULUS got a member of OLD MAN’S CHILD. Please tell me about this stuff...
As the only fulltime members of OLD MAN’S CHILD are the two guitarists, they needed a drummer and a bass-player for their European tour last September. So Blodstrup and I stepped in. Our departure isn’t more dramatic than we were just hired for this tour. I also played with them for five dates in November together with DIMMU BORGIR and WITHERING SURFACE.

I know that you have just released your second album. What can you say about the new TULUS material? Any changes, experiments? So, what-where-and-when?
Sorry, no big changes, except for the waltz. Better songs and better production sound like a bad cliche, don't they? Cliche or not – it’s better anyway!

You gave your debut album “Pure Black Energy” a trendy name! Such a description may be found in many mailorders for the most pathetic Black Metal acts from the countries like Sweden, Poland (N: Sorry guys but it’s my opinion) or the States. What was the reason for such name? Yeah, and do you have any story behind the band’s name TULUS?
Well, actually “Pure Black Energy” is what our debut album contains. It’s a description of our music. So far we’ve got only positive reactions on this title. If this is a description of some Polish bands they maybe play pure black energy, or maybe they are covering TULUS tunes. As for the “word” TULUS, it’s our name. Do all names mean anything? What is the meaning of Nazgul (an author of the interview)?

Who creates music and who writes lyrics for the band? What are your lyrics about?
That’s an easy question. The music is written by Salke and Blodstrup, and the lyrics by Hilde. Poor Hilde had a lonely period in her life, and some poems reflect her dark and sinister thoughts of that time. Other poems deal with old Norwegian myths.

What kinds of music do you listen? Name your top five albums of the latest time?
We like music best described as “Pure Black Energy”. In 1997 EMPEROR and MAYHEM delivered such albums. Oh yeah, I had to listen to the OLD MAN’S CHILD’s new album before this touring. At last I really started to like it!

You don’t have corpse paint. I saw your photos on some flyers, you looked like really morbid people there. Is this a sort of make up or you just have such a sick looking faces in the real life?
Corpse paint is for black metal! Do we look morbid? That wasn’t nice said. I may understand the morbid look of Blodstrup. Those who understand Hilde’s lyrics may also understand that living with this woman can’t be healthy.

This is the end of the interview. End it your own way…
Thanx for your interest. I hope you, the Poles, will check out “Mysterion”.