Compiler’s note: taken from Brain Damage # 2, 1985.

I have, myself, painstakingly reproduced

this interview character for character - spacing, font styles, and errors included - to the best of
my abilities from a copy of its original publication in the above.

AEon
______________________________________________________________________________
Cold and icy Sweden is not known for producing many Death Metal
bands, however BATHORY is no doubt one of the world’s deadliest
thrashers. Recently they put out their debut album, to me one of the best
l.p.’s of the year (along with VOI’VOD and C.O.C.). So now for your reading
pleasure we have an interview with the founding member/guitarist, vocalist
of BATHORY—Quorthon...

BD:HOW AND WHEN DID THE BAND FORM?

Q: BATHORY rehearsed for the first time on the 16th of March ’83 in
Stockholm, Sweden. In the beginning we didn’t gave a vocalist, it was me
and 2 other guys (I don’t want more than 3 in a band). We additioned a
lead guitar player, he stayed with us for 3½ minutes(the time it took to
play one of our songs to him). Six months later the other2 guys came with
a vocalist saying he was in, just because they didn’t like my way of
singing. I gave him the kick in the ass 2 hours before we went in the
studio to record our 2 songs for the Scandinavian Metal Attack sampler. So
then I took over on the mic.....

BD:DID YOU EVER HAVE ANY DEMOS?

Q: No, we have never made a demo.

BD:WHAT BANDS ARE YOU INFLUENCED BY?

Q: I have written everything for Bathory so far and I’m not influenced by
any band, I don’t even listen to so called “hardcore”. What I listen to in
private don’t even fit for printing in Brain Damage...

BD:HAVE YOU DONE MANY GIGS IN SWEDEN?

Q: No one have let us play live ‘cause when we come to a hall, the man
who arranges the festival says: “Oh nooo...You’re not allowed to play here
tonight if you are going to have that on stage.”.....silly ha!?

BD:HOW LONG DID THE L.P. TAKE TO RECORD?

Q: Three and a half days, plus one day mixing.

BD:HAVE ANY LABELS OUTSIDE SWEDEN SHOWED ANY INTEREST IN THE

LP?
Q: We have Metal Blade, Banzai, Music for Nations, and SPV who deal, or
want to deal with us.

BD:WHAT ARE THE NAMES OF THE MUSICIANS THAT APPEARED ON THE

LP?

Q: Oh no Vadim, I’ll never make it official who played on the album, that’s
a well kept secret! Maybe someday I’ll tell everyone.......

BD:WHY DID THE OTHER MEMBERS LEAVE BATHORY?

Q: Because the didn’t like my singing and my clothes...And they couldn’t

play as fast as I wanted them to.....

BD:DO YOU PLAN TO KEEP THE BAND ALIVE?

Q: Yes, I plan to keep BATHORY alive, only if I don’t find new members till
summer ’85 I might give up and join an allready big touring band.

BD:WHAT KIND OF MUSICIANS ARE YOU LOOKING FOR?

Q: I’m looking for a very fast, wild and longhaired drummer who’s into
totally hell-paced metal with satanic lyrics and the wildest, most outrageous
live show in the world. And a longhaired wild, maniac bassplayer who likes
to run around on stage, and act like a lunatic and plays fast and heavy.
Both have to love studs, chains, leather and blood!

BD:ARE THE JOBS OPEN FOR PEOPLE IN COUNTRIES OUTSIDE SWEDEN?

Q: Of course I’m very interested in 2 guys from U.S. or England, but if I

find a guy from Guatemala I might take him if there’s no other guys to
choose from.....

BD:I HEAR YOU’VE BEEN WRITING NEW MATERIAL FOR BATHORY, TELL
US ABOUT IT.

Q: Well...the new songs are so fast and violent, I guess we have to record
the next one in Hell itself... I have about 8-9 new tracks, “Total
Destruction” is the fastest so far and sounds like “Fight Fire With Fire” only
five times faster, then I have a track called “The Rite of Darkness” and
that is the slowest one, in the same speed as...say...“To Hell and
Back”(VENOM). The other tracks go in the middle between total hell-paced
and say “War”. I don’t have the lyrics to all of them, but the tunes are all
finished. VR