Interviews: Kromheim

On this new occasion, we have had the opportunity to interview the Melodic Death Metal/Viking Metal band, Kromheim from the UK. Check out the interview and follow the band on their FACEBOOK PAGE.

1. Where did you get the idea for the band name, you planned it or came out just like that?

Mikołaj: When I decided that the lyrical themes for Kromheim would be centered around Vikings and broadly Norse culture, I started to fiddle around with some names of places in Scandinavia until I got something I felt had the right impact. I thought that it was important to find a name that is completely unique to the project.

2. Why did you want to play this genre?

Mikołaj: Kromheim to me is a continuation of the Scandinavian Melodic Death Metal scene [Amon Amarth, Hypocrisy, Dark Tranquillity] from the late 90’s/early 00’s back when you could really hear the influence of early death metal in their music. That’s why one of the goals for this project is to focus quite a bit on the ‘death’ part back within the ‘melodic death metal’ genre.

3. Did you know each other before the band was formed?

Mikołaj: Yes, we did! We actually played together before in a band called Gravastar and after it got disbanded, I decided to start Kromheim on the side. Eventually, I saw that people were digging it, so I decided to follow up with a LP and in the process, Sotiris [guitars] and Duncan [bass] joined the band.

4. Each band member's favorite band?

Mikołaj: The cool part is that we all have quite a wide range of influences and we enjoy a variety of genres within metal, so it’s even difficult to name 1 band but my top 3 would probably be: Hypocrisy, Dark Tranquillity, and Dimmu Borgir. 

Duncan: For me, it would be bands like Karnivool, Amorphis, Gojira, and Tesseract.

Sotiris: And mine would be Children Of Bodom, Cradle Of Filth, and Kamelot.

5. Who or what inspires you to write songs?

Mikołaj: Songwriting, in general, is a very personal process and it is probably a reflection of what we do, what we consume [e.g. books, TV, games etc.], and where we are at in our lives. For me, it’s usually related to the seasons (in winter vs summer I will write completely different music) and sometimes it will be a theme set by me that I want to portray to the listeners, e.g. it could be a battle scene or some kind of Norse ritual.

6. Where was your last gig?

Mikołaj: Kromheim actually was a solo project up until a few months ago, so we’re still in the process of finishing the line-up. But before that, it was at the Black Heart in London with Gravastar supporting Wind Rose a few years back.

7. Where would you like to act?

Mikołaj: A UK tour to start with would be fantastic but realistically we will be going around London for quite a while until we’re ready to venture further out.

8. Whom would you like to feature with?

Mikołaj: I think Kromheim naturally will be liked by fans of Amon Amarth and Ensiferum but if I had the freedom to choose any band then probably Hypocrisy. 

9. Whom not?

Mikołaj: I wouldn’t say that there is necessarily a particular band. Still, it’s definitely good when promoters put shows together where different fan bases can enjoy all bands on the roster. We’ve had situations where bands playing before us were playing clean-sung rock and then we went on with growls and ended up basically scaring everyone off.

10. Have any of you ever suffered from stage fright? Any tips for beginners on how to beat that?

Sotiris: Yes, in the first couple of gigs. Experience makes it go away, so just have fun on stage and don't pretend.

Duncan: Some nerves in my first bands for sure... a few hundred shows later? No, never. Tips for beginners re-stage fright: know that you know your shit, these people are here to see you, not the other way round - they clearly think you're worth it already so just try to impress yourself

Mikołaj: Same as Sotiris and Duncan - the first few gigs were definitely an interesting experience. But at the end of the day, it’s all about having fun and if you make a mistake by chance, especially playing death metal, no one will really notice.

11. What bands have inspired you the most?

Mikołaj: For Kromheim in particular I would say it’s bands like Amon Amarth, Hypocrisy, Dark Tranquillity Children Of Bodom, and Insomnium. And if we’re talking specifically about guitar influences then definitely Alexi Laigo, Marty Friedman, and Yngwie Malmsteen.

12. What's the weirdest thing a fan has ever asked you for?

Duncan: Make a metal cover of "Kiss from a Rose".

Sotiris: Back in my first band it was to sign a booklet. I wasn't famous or anything, didn't know why they'd ask that.

Mikołaj: I’ve had a couple of people tell me their whole life stories - while it was super fun and interesting to listen to, I have no idea how or why we ended up on those topics!

13. What do you think of your fans?

Mikołaj: Absolutely love our fans! They are honestly a great bunch of people and the great thing is that somehow most of us have very similar interests, i.e. metal music, instruments, fantasy, games, etc. Sometimes we also get to hear some really fun stories from some of their bands and it always cracks me up how bands are not so different even though we might be 1000 miles apart!

14. What do you think of our site?

Mikołaj: Your site is honestly great - the first thing we noticed is how much coverage you give to underground bands which are just awesome. I’m sure it would be much easier to just write all day about all the industry giants since everyone always wants to know about what’s the latest on their end and yet you give a platform to all the newcomers on the scene!

15. Something to add?

Mikołaj: Thanks so much for taking the time to talk to us! Just wanted to finish off by saying that our album ‘Journey To Divinity’ will be out on the 17th of February which you can get on our Bandcamp page [www.kromheim.bandcamp.com] and if you want to stay up to date on what’s happening with us then you can give us a follow on IG [www.instagram.com/kromheimofficial/].