MORTIFERA
ANSWERS BY NOKTU
GEIISTMORTT Early November 2003
Today is strongly visible an increasing sensibility for the depressive side of the blacker Metal, Mortifera have surely something in common with this wave but I know that your roots are before all this…where starts the story?
I would be able to easily recall my intention to create Mortifera, but I was limited by the fact that I was not able to play drums myself. So, that idea was put aside in my head for a long while. I ended to meet Neige in year 2000. We use to have a good relation back at that time and we started to rehearse, him on drums and me for the rest. We composed some songs and we decided to record one MCD. Several demo tapes were also recorded but I didn’t wanted to spread them back at that time, certainly due to a lack of time from my side, I don’t know. I think that we have all put ourselves out of all musical movement. Our interest for what is happening around is quite limited nowadays. For me, it’s natural to create the most obscure and macabre form of Black Metal, maybe that movement is more implanted nowadays, I do not know in fact, but I am sure that we have our own sound and that we are not comparable to any other bands who pretend to play dark music. Most of them are just insects to my eyes who are trying to imitate us. They can continue their path to self humiliation. That doesn’t have any importance for us.
Your music have a dark feeling, some shading depressive and sad melodies but also an anguish background in my mind…what’s the differences between the more necro-romantic mood of Celestia and the more claustrophobic of Mortifera?
Mortifera is indeed different at every levels from my other project Celestia. I don’t even think that I will be able to compare the two projects. Well, I sing in both bands and maybe that will please or displease to some peoples, but it’s like that for now. On our next recording, we are planning to both sing, so maybe, peoples will forget to compare us with Celestia. The Concept of Mortifera is certainly more oriented on that necro fetish side that we developped with the years. The smell of Death bring us the sublime perfume of that forbidden wine. We are obsessed and sick by that. We use to desecrate graveyards to take corpses out of their tomb. That is the world of Mortifera…
Speaking about the meaning of death, Celestia and Mortifera are surely related with that Celestia seem to be a sort of hallucinated sensation of supernatural levels Mortiferia seem to me more terrestrial and suffered by the claws of solitude…what’s your opinion?
Mortifera is more terrestrial, but I think that we are also influenced by supernaturals facts who invaded our lives. So all in all, Death is once again our essence. We are frustrated to live in that human world and we have to unfortunately accept that, that lead us to that somber isolation who lead us to create our music. Most peoples on that black metal scene are just now humans, they likes to listen brutal music and collect lps. We prefer to collect dead corpses and make love with them. That is our terrestrial side certainly.
The cover is very somber, a human that is more a shadow, an image that leaves a stained vision, do you feel sometimes inspired by solitude and can be solitude a way to reach a deeper gate in your idea of music?
An abstract expression of my person was needed to illustrate that MCD. So, that " human " on the cover is maybe my own corpse, thus I cannot recall when that picture was taken, but I do think that it’s my own rotten corpse lost somewhere in these obscure past times I was once victim. Or that’s just a shadow maybe. Solitude is the world where I compose my art. I need that isolation to create these images in my mind. That prismatic result has one side called Mortifera, others sides have names that I have difficulties to name.
Mortifera have something ancient inside, do you feel a connection like I do with desolate landscapes, decayed and solitary places who gave a sign of abandonment and a suffered echo?
Solitude can be felt in every kind of place, but I do admit that I feel more comfortable in an old mansion than in a modern place. Graveyards have their own charms also. Flowers can grow on these forgotten sepultures. I like to smell that when no one can see the decay of my corpse. There I can imitate the dead.
The silence is something unnatural in a world like our…do you agree with me that the masses find it something to fear, because it can be something deadly?
Nowadays humanity is scared by silence, that is something that they dislike. I must admit that silence bring me inner peace. I highly appreciate that. My own house is like a morgue where silence reign supreme. I enjoy that place very much. I can hide myself there for days.
I think that Mortifera have it’s black aesthetic differently from the brutal and "bad taste" ignorance of some faggots around who’ll never reach any visionary goal…it’s obvious that you’re not the normal metalhead only interested in music and aggression but in some more mature forms of art…has it been a progression thought he years?.. are you interested in other expressive forms (visual art, dark poetry and literature)?
Yes, you are right, we have nothing in common with these vulgar grind corers who invaded our dark cult, pretending to play Black Metal. At the very beginning of the movement, the Black Metal was something dark and cold, opposed to that Death metal trendy scum, now, all seems to be the same. Peoples who are into our music do not have to expect any aggression on our side. Mortifera will always brings the most macabre Darkness. Fuck noise " black "metal !
I am very into art in general. I have a certain relation with that. I am also writing a book of dark poetry. I wonder when that project will be finished coz I am facing period where writing is impossible, so these writings are coming like difficult ejaculations of thoughts. I need to be into a certain state of isolation to have that capacity to write.
No matter what technology means so many bands have thought digital sound to be a bad way to represent their underground mood, other have totally left apart the past, in your sound there’s an equilibrium, it’s an instrument and what’s your point about that?
We wish to keep the most cold and macabre sound, I think that we need to have a clear sound for that. I like when it’s possible to feel all the instruments, so, we are forced to enter in studio to get the sound we wish. Our MCD was recorded fastly and we were very satisfied by the result, I think that we have a " live " sound, I mean, it sound like our music sound on rehearsal.
Sometimes black metal is for the undertakers of humanity, for those who present the true face of masked appearance, do you feel a step over? is there space for a somber evolution after this discovery like creating our metaphorical reign?
Black Metal is something abstract for me. It goes beyond music, I am not even interested by what the others are playing. Of course, I still enjoy to listen some good bands here and here, but that interest is quite limited compared to what it was before. I think that Black Metal must be something individualistic. We are not here to educate peoples and to study these mass media phenomenas and giving our opinions about what some extremists did. Black Metal is a confused scene now, where many peoples try to influence some others in a way to get a kind of recognition. Communication with any kind of humans masses is not our main goal. I don’t even think that it will ever be one of our intention. We are feeling very distant from that immature metal scene. We have nothing in common with these peoples who are looking for decibels agression during these pathetic concerts. I would prefer Black Metal to be a philosophical movement and not an aesthetic movement where peoples are licking boots of each others. The relations I have with peoples from the Black Metal movement are usually very distant. I think that I really enjoy the presence of some close friends who are sharing my points of view, but that is certainly more than enough for my person. I don’t think that I’m misanthrope or something of that kind. I think that I enjoy communication with other forms of intelligence and sensitivity. Our Black Metal interpretation must be something metaphorical for some peoples, but I wonder if they are really able to reach our main expression. A metaphor can be a reflect of one image already reflected in thousand mirrors. Maybe, the reflect can be deformed after several reflections. I don’t know where we will be able to place our characters in comparaison of that decaying scene. Far away from them, that’s an evidence.
In life too many times there’s an anguish research for something that could be never reached, something that always changes…is there a part of this disillusion in the concept of Mortifera?
Life can brings positive things. We are so attracted by Death that it’s maybe because we enjoy maybe life more than others. I don’t know, maybe life is a disiillusion for us who have brings us to that level where our minds where lost during a certain periods of our lifes. I think that I have been lost and I’ve endured a certain degree of personal sufferings. Life is a perpetual evolution, my way of carressing life cannot be compared with my past interpretation. I always keep a certain distance with the definition of words, giving more importance to deep feelings who doesn’t have meanings with words. Everydays, we can discover new manifestation of energies around us. Few peoples are able to define and absorb these forces. Less than few are able to project these energies on another direction who will bring constructive events. With destruction of yourself, you will reach the higher levels of perception. I think that we have to face that. Enduring the worst to enjoy the best. Maybe there’s something else after the best. I don’t know, I don’t think that I ever reached the best anyway. But one thing is sure, I have conscience that my own mind have been damaged by the self reflexion. Maybe leading my person to someone who will appears as someone arrogant to most of the peoples who will be able to read that interview. Difficult to judge anyway, something who cannot be defined.
What I totally wander about bands like yours and others where you’re involved in is the genuine inspiration and freedom in releasing your art, without following any "rule"…do you consider the intuitions an essential things and how can some label talk about extreme music and working like factories to increase the production without caring the quality of their modest products?
The musical black metal business is absolutely disgusting, they forgot the real creativity of real talented artists and they are just looking for bands who will have a certain sale potential. All has to be very fast, these bands mades some tours and they records albums every years. That’s disgusting. But we did what we had to do here on the south of France, all concerts managers have now stopped to manage these concerts coz of violence of some peoples. I think that’s great coz we have to destroy them. Only bands like Watain are now allowed to play in the south of France. Other bands are not without our authorization. If they come, they will face serious problems, them and their fans. They have been warned enough I think. Violence and intolerance is the only solution with them. I encourage violence and acts of humiliations against fakes black Metal bands in these metal concerts, peoples who pretend to follow that cult must throw empty bottles on the faces of bands like Marduk, Gorgoroth, Satyricon, Antaeus… They don’t deserve to play. Another point is also the presence of metal magazine, in France some head office of metal magazines were once burned. It must happens once again. We have to destroy all of them. Other thing that we strongly encourage is these bootlegs things and these mp3s large diffusion. I think it’s great coz there’s one chance to destroy the mediocre metal market. We are conscious that bands like us will not suffer from that. So spread CDRs and MP3s ! ! Labels will sell less cds and they will reach bankerupt ! Do not buy original cds in shops like Soundcave !
Multicultural idiocy reign in our present European situation, satanic metal was a way to express the abhorrence of the Christian god but now the subject seem to be changed or increased…tolerance, foreign monotheisms…isn’t life itself a thing to fight against?
I think that I’ve expressed my tolerance against these scums on the previous answer. Mortifera is not a tolerant and humanist Black Metal bands. We are anti-americanism, homophobe, racist, intolerant and superior. Be it know.
I’ve heard about the forthcoming release of the first Mortifera album…let us know something more about it…
Yes, that album is supposed to be recorded soon at mighty Rozenkrantz studio. We are actually working on that, normally the album will be released before the end of the year by Goatowarex in australia. Seems that 500 digipacks and one limited picture LP to 100 will be pressed as well beside the regular CD version. Nothing is available directly from us, but I guess you can contact Goatowarex to get merchandising of Mortifera. No needs to contact us directly. Thanxs for the interview. Sieg Heil !