Hailing out of the blackest parts of Sweden,comes a satanic act of coldness and despair.Total Dunkelheit means in complete darkness,and this is exactly what this band is like.It is time to delve into the mind of..... Total Dunkelheit Q: Where did Total Dunkelheit get the name,What does it mean,and Why did you choose that name? A: On the first demoīs the name was only DUNKELHEIT, taken from the BURZUM-track with the same name. But we decided to change our name when we found some other bands with the same name. So it became TOTAL DUNKELHEIT. I donīt know if itīs grammatical right, but I donīt really care. It means Pure Darkness, because thatīs what we stands for. Q: How many people are in Total Dunkelheit currently? A: One, two or three. It changes. I do everything, music, noise, lyrics, artwork etc. Andreas plays drums and percussion and screams sometimes. Tharos has used his majestic lungs on a couple of recordings. Q: Where are you guys from and how old are you guys? A: I live near Gothenburg, Sweden. Andreas lives in the very south of Sweden and Mats in the very north. So we donīt rehears that lot. Actually, we donīt rehears at all! I donīt think the phenomen age play a role at all. But we are all in the mid-twenties. Q: What type of musick do you consider Total Dunkelheit? A: I donīt really know. In the beginning, it was pure noise inspired by bands like ABRUPTUM, BURZUM, MERZBOW and VENOM. But now my main influenses has been stuff like ULVER, BO HANSSON, MORTIIS and BLOOD AXIS. A mess of noise, prog, avant garde maybe? Q: How long has Total Dunkelheit been around A: We recorded our first demo, "Chants from a tortured soul" in early 2001. Q: What is your political and religious beliefs? A: TOTAL DUNKELHEIT is under NO circumstances a political or religious band. I canīt spoke for the rest of the guys, but I believe in every individual is their own so called "God" and that no-one is allowed to make harm to anyone who doesnīt deserve it. Q: What do you think of Christians? A: As a group or as individuals? I know some persons that are Christians and they are very good people and friends of mine. But I despite all kind of religion and I think religious people are weak. Not only Christians, so are even Jews, Muslims, Satanists, Buddists, you name it. Q: What do you think of the occultist,writer Aleister Crowley? A: I havenīt read anything of him actually. I donīt read that much at all. But he definitely was an interesting person! Q: What is behind the songs of Total Dunkelheit? A: Itīs all dark and depressive. I try to make something good with my messy head. So itīs all my feelings and thoughts. Q: How many official releases does Total Dunkelheit have? A: Well, we have only released some demos and a split with Swedish power electronic-project DEI NOSTRI to this day. The releases has been re-mastered and put together on a compilation. But we have recorded a full-lenght CD that will be released in February this year. That will also include a video-clip for the song "Artificial Light". We recorded two tracks for a 7" that was ment to be released on an English label, but it wasnīt. Q: Has Total Dunkelheit played live and if so with who and where? A: No, we have never played live. We have been speaking of it, but I donīt know how we should perform our music live in a interesting way. Q: What is the imagery you are trying to convey thru the media you have chosen? A: Darkness in man and fall of mankind. Q: What types of music are your favorites?Bands and genres? A: As I told you before, I can only speak for myself. We are all into metal in various forms. I love bands like BURZUM, DARKTHRONE, MY DYING BRIDE, (old) TIAMAT, OPHTHALAMIA and EVOKEN. But Iīm also into the Swedish neo-prog scene, with bands like LANDBERK, ANEKDOTEN, ÄNGLAGÅRD and PAATOS. Stuff like THE 3:RD AND THE MORTAL is also good, so are Nick Cave and Björk too. I use to say that I like everything between MOZART and MERZBOW. Q: Could you tell us a little about Pure Satanic Noise? A: Well, thatīs my own record label, where I release my stuff in small editions. A true D.I.Y.- label! As the name tells you, itīs for dark and fucked up music. I have only released TOTAL DUNKELHEIT, the DEI NOSTRI-split and a soundtrack that I made for a no-budget shortmovie that I made. Q: What is the local scene around you like? A: Ehrm, I must admit that Iīm a bit ashamed. But I donīt have a clue! There are some punkbands and stuff. But I havenīt heard that much good from the town I live in expect VALINORS TREE. Q: Are you or any of your members involved in side projects? A: I donīt think Andreas and Tharos is, but I am always making music. I played fast and distorted crust in KOPROFAGIN before. Now I only make my own stuff. I have plans of starting a doom-industrial project with some neofolk-influences. Q: What are your favorite art,books,movies,or TV shows? A: I like New York-photograph Richard Kern. But I donīt have any favorites. I like the Ingmar Bergman-movie "The Seventh Seal". But I donīt watch that much movie/TV or read any books. Q: What do we expect soon from Total Dunkelheit? A: "Disillusion of Senses", an 8-track CD including a video. As PSN is a D.I.Y.-label, you can listen to low-quality MP3īs of all our songs on our website (www.dunkelheit.tk). I am also working on a cover of the BURZUM track "Dunkelheit" for a tribute-thing. Q: Anything else you would like to add? A: Thanks for your interest in TOTAL DUNKELHEIT and PURE SATANIC NOISE. Your work for the underground-scene is brilliant! Total Dunkelheit Web Site Interview with:Total Dunkelheit Interview by:Reverend Samekh Anubis Amoun-Ra 2002 Search term: Case-sensitive - yes exact fuzzy