RN:It was started as a side project by S.L (guitars and vocals) and Emil (drums) in 2006 when S.L had some ideas that wouldn’t fit his other band Faustus. I (Raymond N, bass) joined after some rehearsals and we recorded a rehearsal session in 2007 and released it as a tape and spread it to some friends and traded with some distros. Then we started record the debut album in 2008 and got in contact with ATMF and they had an offer that we where satisfied with so they released it later the same year. In 2009 we recorded the follow up, now assisted by Limpan at clean vocals, who then became a permanent member after the recording.

SMP:Where did the band’s name come from and how does it fit with the sound of the music?

RN:It’s stolen from the Arckanum song “Þæn Vredhgadi Svarti Loghin” and is old norse for Black Flame, a name that we thought suited our music when we first started.

SMP:How did you come to sign with A Sad Sadness Song/ATMF?

RN:They contacted us through our myspace and after some negotiation we where happy with the deal that they offered us.

SMP:Your music is an interesting mix of Black Metal, Psychedelic rock and even grungy Alt Rock - who are your main influences and did this sound evolve naturally or was it more of a conscious decision?

RN:The genres you mention are the main influences. The evolution our music has gone through is partly concious of course, when we arrange the songs and produce the album we make deliberate choices, but mostly it’s a natural development for us. We have never claimed to have played in a particular genre, we just take influences from them.

SMP:What has the reaction been to the release of ‘Drifting Through The Void’ so far?

RN:Just as with Empty World it has been met with mixed opinions. Some judge it solely from a black metal perspective and they don’t like it as that is just one of our musical influences. Others listen to it with a somewhat more open mind, and we have also had some very positive reactions to the developments since the last album.

SMP:What feelings and ideas do you as a band try to convey in your music?

RN:Sadness, joy, nostalgia; there is a contrast between our different influences and feelings that is interesting in my opinion. But what ties this together is the dreamish atmosphere; it is best enjoyed with headphones in a dark room.

SMP:How do you feel the album differs to the previous release ‘Empty World’?

RN:The biggest difference is the production, more tender and dreamy and less black metal buzz. Also we have quite lot of background keyboards that adds some depth, and of course the use of clean vocals.

SMP:The use of clean vocals over the sometimes harsher Black Metal bases of the songs is a nice dichotomy - how do you feel this has affected the songs instead of using all Black Metal vocals throughout?

RN:Some parts just did not suit with black metal vocals and the clean vocals felt really natural. We don’t want to limit us by any boundaries to stay within a certain genre and the clean vocal parts add another layer of atmosphere.

SMP:Is Svarti Loghin a studio project or have you played the songs live - if so what was the reaction to the material?

RN:We have performed live once, with live session members (Kim on vocals and Jon on rhythm guitars), at the festival Kvarnriten together with Hypothermia, Ex Nihilo and Ingenting. It was mostly invites and friends of Kim that was there but we are happy with our performance and the impact it had on the crowd and we are open to play at similar events. It’s quite essential that the crowd is in the right mood though, I don’t think we would benefit playing in daylight at a festival with drunk partying people.

SMP:Post-Black Metal has been on the rise in recent years with bands like Ulver, Caina, and Alcest all carving themselves a niche - do you think this is symptomatic of a shift in the Black Metal scene’s “purist” stance in favour of accepting more unconventional styles?

RN:The purists within black metal will probably not accept this unconventional styles, but to limit yourself within strict boundaries leads to stagnation. But I really don’t care if we are accepted by others or not anyway.

SMP:Where do you see Svarti Loghin in regards to the Black Metal scene as it is today, and do you feel that you may be anathema to some traditional extreme metal fans?

RN:We don’t claim to be part of any black metal movement, but even if we were it would not be very black metal to care what others think and to follow the mass.

SMP:Where do you see the band going on the next release musically - will you continue to develop the melodic/progressive side to the music?

RN:I don’t think anyone of us really knows anything about the future, other than that we will finish the new EP we're recording.

SM:I’ve heard that an acoustic EP is in the works - where did the idea for this come from?

RN:It's not completely acoustic, that is a misunderstanding. There is two quite acoustic instrumental tracks, but also three tracks with more of a soft rock approach instead of the usual black metal foundation. If you look at the development curve from Empty World and Drifting Through the Void it's not so unexpected though. But I won't state that we have left the black metal influences behind us, we don't know what the next full-length will sound like yet.

SMP:Are the members of Svarti Loghin involved in other projects of is this your main concern?

RN:S.L have his band Faustus together with some other guys that I think are active with another band called Serpent Chalice today, they might record some songs some day. Me and Emil have Oferd, but we have not rehearsed any material at all since the first and eponymous album that was released in 2008. But who knows?

For more on the band check out http://www.myspace.com/svartiloghin

Interviewed by Sean M. Palfrey

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