HAIL! Let us begin...the past of In the Woods is a mystery to me. Please tell me a bit about this and the members.
Let it then remain like this mysteri that you always longed for...

In the Woods is among the few bands attempting to revive the Viking spirit in the Northlands. Tell me of your beliefs and who serve.
Among the few bands? I would definitely claim the band as for our concern the"other ones" use it as an image, besides from mortal Quorthon Hail! We do not serve anyone else but ourselves as we do believe in the diviny of mankind. We watch upon the Norse gods as diffirent shapes wich the brave men of the north can idenify themselves with. One can say. The most perfect way for us to learn and to exist.

Tell me of the meaning of the name In the Woods. Do ancient forests hold much significance for you? A source of great unbridled power and energy?
The forces of Mother Nature are just as unknown to us as the rest of humanity. Not only is She the source of energy, but also the symbol for pure heathendom. We do see the forests as the darkest part of nature and therefore, In the Woods is just as well a reflection on the symphonies as it is the "carrier" for our releases

On the In the Woods flyers I have seen a poem is written that tome speaks of a sort of enlightenment. Am I wrong to assume that you have only recently discovered your true self?
"The Wings of my Dreamland", (as on the flyer) is not about discovering your ture self, but rather a new area of yourlf. A rediscovering wich were awake within us several hundred uears ago.

In the vocal stule of In the Woods reminds my a bit of Varg Grishnackh's, yet brought to a higher level of screaming. What do you think of the mighty Burzum and all that the Count has done? (He is dedicated in reviving Viking heathen spirit, also, you know.)
At first we need to inform you that this was not done on a purpose base, but that we were aware of it. As a vocalist within this genre, one does the screams as one has the feel for. Grishnackh and his actions we do ingore, as they indeed seem childish to us. He was never dedicated to anything for our concern. He just go a big "status" because of a decent first album and a big mouth. This mentioned status was, of course, built up by trendy followers with brains like kids.

In the Woods brings to ming a vision of a march battle. Are you true warrior, and are you knowledgeable about you Viking hertitage?
You may call us warriors, as we fight for personal satisfaction. Knowledge concerning our proud past is far too complex to explain in full and I surely don't think you're that much interested either.

Tell us about the themes In the Woods sings of. What drives you to write these lyrics? Are they all sung in Norwegian?
Only one symphony was done in Norwegian. "Tell Ole Dade!" Wich means "count the dead!" We thought the Norwegian words for it fitted the Symphony far better that the English ones. By the way, this song is the only on in the history of In the Woods wich will be done in our mother tongue. I do all the lyrics as I feel the need to immortalize my thoughts and views of diffirent happenings. Even how strange it might seem for indivuaduals "on the other side" I'm indeed inspired by Mighty Nature to write down personal conquests. These words speak for my concern as well as the remains of the In the Woods society." Poems do speak about values, self-overcoming, personal quests and the indeed interesting Laws of Nature.

As for the black/occult scene, a flood of bands has emerged over the past few years, yet it seems that many of the best hhail from Norway. Do you think that Norwegian blood and dark visions are the key t writing the best of this style, or is it merely a trend?
For our concern, we're not too interested in this new wave. But on purpose, I have checked out quite a few Norse acts lately and it really seems that we can come to the conclusion of the fact that it's a mix of both a trend and the mood of the Norwegians in general. One should say (concerning the trend part) that a few bands started out the whole explosion back in '91. Then the second wave came and these are the bands sorting out full-lenght releases these days. Lately there has also been a lot of new demo-bands around. 99% of all the music these bands create together is crap!! The remaining part (the 1%) comes from the Norwegian mood. Lately 99% of the Norwegian music into "Black/occult" can be considered as a boring trend.

Ok, the "inner circle" and its forces have now gained international notice. Your opinions on that group, and what of Euronymous' death. Is the Count doomed in prison?
This Grishnackh type will probaply end a few years in jain in the future. The court of las has not been suttled yet. Euronymous' death didn't effect us in any way, as he was just an ignorant "communist". A lot of bands have gained from this "popularity", though, will definitely have to grab their swords by their own hands now, but I really doubt they even have strength enough to do this as their "fare-pal" withered away. These fake bands all know who they are. Who cares about this so-called "inner circle" anyway. If you're into it, it means that you are also into child's play.

What are the new forces that have arisen from the ashes of the old"inner circle"? Are you involved with these groups? What is the puropse behind them?
New forces? Oh, it's just this Grishnackh type again writing letters from within the concrete ealls. Since all the promotion they gained about 8'9months ago withered away, they probably need more now. So...

Does In the Woods wear corpse paint when performing live? What is the significance behind this? Don't you think that it's gone beyond paying hmage to such greats as Celtic Frost to become a "fashion"?
Why the hell should we wear "corpse paint"? First off, it's for sure only the weak followers wich suddenly become "evil" when they reckoned that there was a music style named BM. Second, all these desperate kids believe of the fact that their all other bands use it. Why shouldn't we? Attittudes. When speaking of paint, I need to mention that Cultoculus of Perdition Hearse once said that he started with it several years ago because he was highly fascinated by cannibal movies and such. This is for sure the best "excuse" I ever heard.

Are you glad that black metal is now coming back and getting more popular? Do you thik it will last, or is this just a re-emergence that will happen again in several years?
It is for sure a re-emergence that will return sooner or later. When it once again returns, maybe 1 out of a 1000 bands will still exist. Maybe this Burzum will be "gods" in 10 years because "They started out 12 years ago..." It's stupid, isn't it??? Hah!!!

What do you think of death metal and other bands adopting a satanic/occult image without taking the time discover what it is really about?
Firstly, there is nothing wrong with a band palying death metal with an occult touch!! They are indeed far more interesting that way, since they don't follow the later BM trend. A rock band adopting satanic subjects should anyway be taken much more seriously that one of these "drawn in blasphemy" kids. I have no problem with the fake bands! These will anyway be exposed by those who really believe(!!). And besides this, the particular band will not gain anything personally when they use demon names from the satanic bible without knowing what's beyondd them. On the other hand, religious belief/beliefs do not have anything to do with music in general. Individuals should keep their own beliefs to thehselves. What's the use of "bragging" about something wich is personal?

Okay, Quorthon and Bathory, as well as Johny Hedlund and Unleashed, have been spreading the Viking words for several years now. You opinions on the two bands, and do you have any contact with them?
We did an interview for our fanzine with Johnny and Unleashed. But any contact besides that have by now not taken place. Unleashed's first album kicks fuckin' ass because of its heavy and aggressive sound!!! Album 3 and 3 are okay too, but the first one is pure cult!! Bathory must indeed be taken seriously as one of the ever-mightiest metal legends. Bathory are avant-gardists because of the extreme feel on their (his) 3-4 1st albums and their (his again!!) might (!!!) on the 4-6 albums. To put it nively, like bro Mik Kerthunen did it once: "Quorthon, your works are beyond mortal words..." We await Quorthon's solo (?) release in excitement.

Take your mind to a different setting. Your are sitting in a bar when you meet someone. Things move along and you speak of In the Woods. They ask about the band and wonder what the sound is. What do you say?
I would have answered that if they had time and feel for it, they should lsiten carefully to our symphonies for a while. Then I would add, if you listened carefully enough and had the right interest for it (not for the music, but for curiosity's sake), then you would have found some interesting (melodious/symphonic) parts no matter what kind of music you listen to usually. Actully, we have done this to quite few people. The weirdest thing was that we got an old woman (about 65 years old) to listen to it carefully. First off, she told us to put it off. But we tried again, and after few more trties, she said that the vocals were pretty boring, but that the music was highly inspired by classical music and its structures. We simply cannot wish for more concerning critism!!

Th what lenghts will you go to reinstate the Viking ways of the North? Are there any limits?
In basic, there are no limits before one can feel that things are going out of hand. We go as far as possible, yes...

What can you tell us of the new In the Woods material? When can we expect another release from this migthy band?
Another release depends on ourselves, our aims and, of course, the personal satisfaction. At this point, nothing is sure. The "new" material will have an even more symphonic touch, Some ignorant fools will in two years maybe say that we "wimped out". The answer to those will be something like; "We found ourselves and the atmosphere within..."

Okay, hail, my Northen heathen brother! Thank you for answering this interview. Any final words?
Sure, thank you Stephen for the time you spent on In the Woods!!! Heathenism Regards, and greatest luck with your fanzine further on. Our "Isle of Men" symphies are still avaible for 6$ everywhere, 500 copies now sold in 3 1/2 months. For your $ of the number 6, you'll receive 42 min. of Barbaric Pagan Metal in a quality recording. For those kids still believing that In the Woods is "evil", etc.. stop sending your childish letters! For no matter how you put it, there is both good and evil within mankind. Tolerate that, and become one with this earth.

In the Woods...
PO box 7093, Vestheiene
4628 Kr Sand
Norway