This actually follows on from a conversation I had with Heri Joensen at Hammerfest. He was a bit excited from meeting Doro, and it was particularly kind of him to speak to James (Stuka Squadron singer) and me. It was the first time I had seen Tyr, and they made more of an impression on me than any band I can think of that I have seen without knowing much about their material, so I’m really glad to get the opportunity to ask the questions I couldn’t think of on the night.
GC: Lyrically, a great deal of Tyr’s inspiration is drawn from Norse mythology but you say that this is unrelated to the sagas. How much is preserved of the Faroese oral tradition and what is the difference?
HJ: What I meant was, there are some stories preserved in Faeroes oral tradition that you can't find in the Icelandic sagas, but most of them you do find. There is no difference as such, the same characters only in different stories.
GC: I notice that on (the excellent) ‘By the Light of the Northern Star’ you have moved towards writing more songs in English, but sticking to Viking themes. Is the well of Faroese legend finally running dry?
HJ: Absolutely not. I couldn’t use all of it, even if I only write Faeroes traditional music for the rest of my life.
GC: Sticking with the lyrical theme, there seems to be a connection between two of your best received songs in English ‘Hail to the Hammer’ and ‘Hold the Heathen Hammer High’. Tyr is a mysterious character. What made you go with him rather than, say Thor?
HJ: Týr is the god of warfare, justice and diplomacy. He’s a more complex god, than for example Thor and his roles are sometimes ambiguous.
He’s a more mysterious figure and using his name is less obvious than for example Thor or Odin.
GC: The music seems very unusual in structure and style compared to most Rock and Metal – although at one of the shows I saw you cited Metallica as an inspiration. Is Tyr’s musical style also drawn from the Faroese tradition? If not, where does it derive from?
HJ: Yes, Faeroes music tradition and Scandinavian in general is the conceptual inspiration. The sound and style of playing is of course inspired by contemporary Heavy Metal bands, such as Metallica, Iron Maiden, Dio and Pantera.
GC: Again I noticed that on the new album the songs seemed more straightforward while still retaining the definitive Tyr sound. Is the band aiming to become more commercial?
HJ: Not directly commercial, but more accessible than the last two albums at least.
GC: You’ve been all over everywhere on the ‘Black Sails’ tour with Alestorm. How were you received? Particularly in places Tyr haven’t visited before?
HJ: Generally things were above expectations. UK is a place we haven’t toured that much until "Black Sails over UK" and those shows were probably the best for us on the whole tour.
GC: From what I saw at the Camden Underworld show, the band seemed to get on very well with Alestorm. From some of Heri’s reminiscences about the Battle of Kringen I got the impression the Scots are the natural enemies of Faroe Islanders?
HJ: We got along with Alestorm fantastically well. Scots are not the enemies of the Faeroese. Sinklars Vísa just happens to contain Scots - Scots losing a battle against the Norwegian.
GC: And what exactly is the story with Alestorm’s allegedly alcoholic bass player?
HJ: He’s not an alcoholic. I just take the opportunity to take the piss out of him, in a friendly manner, since he is Irish and we play "The Wild Rover", and I probably apologized to him after every show.
GC: That armour certainly looks fierce, as does Tyr’s arsenal as featured in the ‘Hold the Heathen Hammer High’ video. Are the swords just for show?
HJ: Yes. We don’t do any re-enactment and we are not trained swordfighters, we’re in showbiz.
GC: Thanks in advance for answering my questions. In true interviewer style I close with the obvious, hackneyed and clichéd: What’s next for Tyr?
HJ: Touring!
For more on the band check out http://www.myspace.com/tyr1
Interviewed by Graham Cushway
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