Falkenbach, a very rare interview with Vratyas Vakyas for "Ideon Antron" online magazine, issue 2

Dear Vakyas Vratyas, thank you for granting us the pleasure to have this interview with you!


Our interview starts with an ordinary question, 

1. Please tell us a short history about Falkenbach for those who do not know you yet!

The first home recording was made in 1989, followed by several more tapes. The debut album "en þeir með riki fara" 1995, "Magni Blandinn ok Megintiri","Ok Nefna Tysvar Ty", Heralding - The Fireblade" and now "Tiurida" are the official albums Falkenbach released so far.


2. You are about to release a new album in the first months of 2011, tell us a few things that we must know about that! (Title, songs, lyrics, inspiration etc) What does Tiurida means and why you chosen that title for your new album?

The album is called Tiurida, which is old german and can be translated with "Glory".
The tracklist is:


Intro ;
..Where His Ravens Fly... ;
Time Between Dog And Wolf ;
Tanfana ;
Runes Shall You Know ;
In Flames ;
Sunnavend ;
Asaland (Bonustrack)
About the lyrics I prefer people making up their own minds about them.


I am not a person telling people what to think or how exactly to understand things.

3. Falkenbach is a one man band but to the last albums use stable session members, which is the current line up to Tiurida?

For the new new album the same people as on the last two albums contributed to the recordings.The only difference this time is Alboin, who added bass on one track.


4. Each Falkenbach’s album has its own musically identity, what do we have to expect from your new album?

Hard to say, as this is something everyone has to decide for himself. As you said, every album has got an own, unique identity, and same goes for this album. Somehow it might remind of "Ok Nefna Tysvar Ty", as acoustic guitars play an important role, on the other hand it might remind of "Heralding - The Fireblade" due to some rather rough passages and screams. In the end it combines a lot of aspects Falkenbach showed in the past, as well as it adds some very own elements.



5. The thematology of Falkenbach is all about Tradition, its values etc. Do you think that the Traditional path is a shelf directed path? Or it has more to do with society and its course to set about?

To most people, it seems, traditions and culture, own roots, are mainly based on books. They might feel connected to those aspects, but to most people it´s based in the past. Personally I think beliefs and values should be based in the present, ´though of course based on roots you can find in the past. In the end one should make up his / her own mind, not just focusing on what is written in books. Traditions are important, own culture as well, but are not meant to be a dogma given 1000 years ago or even more. We are not those who lived back then, we are offspring, but we are today. To be bound to the past means to follow dead principles, we have to live what we stand for today.

6. Old Faiths are based on several values, of course non follows a dogma; by your opinion you think that Old Faiths have to be up-to-date?

In general: yes, they have to. It´s not about changing the roots of your belief of course, but we´re today, as I said earlier before already. "Up-To-Date" seems to be a problematic description, but we live today, we are today, and with us our beliefs. It´s up to us to build a world for ourselves based up what we belief, our values, traditions, cultures, our roots. On the other hand it´s not just
about copying things written in books.

7. The Old Faiths seems to have a big come back in the European countries and not only, why do you think this is happening? Is it just a reaction to the failure of x-stianity, or it is something beyond, that has to do with a great new beginning?



I am really not the person to answer such a question, simply as I do not follow too much
what´s going on in general. Probably, as nearly always, such things are a trend of our modern world, coming up fast, disappearing fast as well. Truth doesn´t need many...the best ones are rare. I don´t care if people visit "pagan-meetings" on their weekends, living a usual life during the week. They are free to do whatever they want, still I don´t feel any connection with them.





8) Your Lyrics are based on themes of Norse-Germanic Deities and Stories, what is your connection with this Tradition and how do you think these themes effects on people?

I am German, those are the basis of my roots, my culture, my traditions.
Beside that it´s been a part of my education as well. It´s a part of my life,
a part of myself, a part of the world around me.
I really do not know, as probably 99% of the Germans do not even know about their own culture today probably.
They do not know those Goddesses and Gods, the things handed down. People obviously know more about.
Buddah than about those things these days.

9) Do you find any particular connection between the Hellenic and the German Deities and Traditions (Traditions for example the celebrations of Winter Solstice, Summer Solstice etc -this example will not appear in the main question, is just to let you understand my point of view-)? You think that they have the same "roots"?

Well, I am not a follower of pantheistic ideas, therefore I do not think Gods like Wuotan and Ziu are based on the same "character".
In some cases it is nevertheless, western- and northern Germanic Gods (Wuotan / Odin --- Donar / Thor) are the same indeed. And beside that there are also links between different cultures and Gods, for example an Aztec God is described
as having white skin, red beard and blue eyes, and this description was not based by Hispanic influences.
The Aesir and Vanir are also not the same tribe. This shows Gods do have connections to other cultures.
But in the end, to say it again: in my opinion a God cannot be reduced to only "one side" of
a bigger, "all-around-the-world" existing God/character/principle.

Thank you very much for this interview!