Black metal fans are going through tough times. Each month there’s a serious attack on their wallet with a barrage of new releases to choose from. And Dutch band HELLEVAERDER is not making it easier for them when they release their sophomore album “Fakkeldragers” on June 19 through Void Wanderer Productions. But what distinguishes them from the crowd is that singer Miranda Visser uses her own language to bring you messages of an unparalleled linguistic beauty, that is, if you speak the language. But even for non-Dutch or Belgian black metal fans there’s much to enjoy on “Fakkeldragers”. We did a little Q&A game with Miranda.
To be honest, being Dutch myself and the fact that HELLEVAERDER’s first demo “Aan de aarde teruggegeven” (given back to Earth) was released in 2018, I had never heard of the band before. So, can you start with a little introduction?
“HELLEVAERDER is a five-piece black metal band from Heerhugowaard, the Netherlands. While influenced by bands like Darkened Nocturn Slaughtercult, Mayhem, Sargeist and Emperor, they bring their own unique taste of metal. High intensity music, filled with darkness. HELLEVAERDER is: myself, Miranda Visser – vocals, Bas Cuperus – guitar, Arjen Kleiss – guitar, Luuk Steemers – bass and Daan Bleumink – drums.”
Was black metal already a part of your life before you started to sing in HELLEVAERDER?
“Yes, it was. I already listened to several black metal bands, like Mayhem, Emperor and Taake. But it developed further the longer I was in HELLEVAERDER.”
The new album “Fakkeldragers” (torchbearers) is your second full-length album. What can you tell us about the debut album, “In de nevel van afgunst” (in the mist of envy)?
“After a demo, some singles and a split-record it was the right time to release our first album. It marked the beginning of the story of the ‘worshippers of nothingness’, it is a tale of the duality of mankind. Stories of our own lives made darker than reality. We were working on those tracks for a very long time, wrote many more than released and when everything felt fitting to the story we wanted to tell we recorded the entire album within a few days. The release opened many doors for us and gave us a chance to play the album in its whole in many great venues.”
Who do you refer to as the ‘fakkeldragers’ or in English ‘torchbearers’ and what is the link to the album cover art?
“The torchbearers are the worshippers of nothingness, the torches symbolize the remaining hope in complete darkness. On the cover you can see the guardian of light in capture of the grip of darkness. The inner struggle between the will to live and the call of the void, to become more than just a single grain of dust in the grand scheme of life and the universe. The guardian of light is being dragged through many towns and villages, to warn of what is to come. In nine chapters we tell stories from her journey in different perspectives, bringing a glimpse of our mind and reality. The backside of the art has a reference to our first demo, “Aan de aarde teruggegeven”. All hope is lost as the defender of life is captured, but even in complete darkness a glimpse of light manages to escape. Can the light escape total darkness?”
On the album there are nine tracks with titles like “Handen geketend in ijzer” (hands chained in iron), “Schaduwen van satijn” (shades of satin) and “In de ban der lusten” (in the grip of lust). Where on earth do you get these beautiful linguistic song titles?
“The greater part of lyrics is written by Daan, but the entire band gets a say in every step of the progress. He usually comes with a work in progress title, and we all get a say in what will be a good name for the track. It almost always is a line from the track itself, something that defines the entire track. I love texts in which people can express their deepest and darkest emotions, feelings and thoughts. The texts I write are very personal and are mainly about the dark times I have experienced. I put my thoughts that I experienced on paper. I think that in this way I also do a bit of grieving.”
HELLEVAERDER play black metal in its purest form, but there are already billions of other black metal bands out there releasing tons of albums each year. Aren’t you afraid that “Fakkeldragers” will get buried in an avalanche of releases?
“No, to be honest, I am not. The Dutch black metal scene is currently growing immensely, and quality-wise everything is getting better, harder and rawer. The Dutch black metal scene is becoming more and more famous all over the world. I feel also very proud of that, I love our Dutch black metal scene and I am glad that we are a part of that. I also see it with HELLEVAERDER, we are growing more and more. I do my best to create an unique sound, I want to intrigue people. That’s also what I am always doing on stage. I do it with a lot of passion.”
Let’s pick out three songs from the new album to get to know them better. First album opener “Een bepantserde kroon” (an armored crown). The title alone needs some explanation and I’m sure many would love to know what or who it’s about.
“The track is about the heavy weight of life. An armored crown, being the king/queen of your own destiny, but being dragged down by dark thoughts. It tells the story partly from the third person perspective of the guardian of light, and partly first person. The burden of life often gets a hold on a person, the heavy feeling on the shoulders, the mind fog that has to be endured daily. It often is our own mind that holds us back, as told in the track: “Ik ben mijn eigen weerstand”, I am my own resistance.”
Second one is “De laatste dageraad” (the last dawn). It sounds like there are clean vocals in the background at some parts, are they yours as well? How did this song start and when will the last dawn happen?
“The opening riff was written by Daan, just in his train of thoughts. But we wrote every track with each other, during multiple writing sessions. We all made riffs and ideas, and during those sessions we compiled them and worked on the inspiration we had in those moments. Everyone pulled their weight, and we all have a piece of our soul in this album. The lyrics from this track is a work of myself, we wanted something different. Something new. On Schavot‘s “Waart oe!” I am also doing some spoken words. It inspired us. We worked on it and managed to incorporate it into this song. The name of the track came from Luuk, it captured the essence of the track. We all fell in love with it.”
And the last one, bonus track “Akelig gefluister” (creepy whispering). Why did you put it on the album as a bonus track and not as a regular track, as there are ‘only’ nine on “Fakkeldragers”? Where/whom is the creepy whispering coming from and what does it lead to?
“We chose to use this as a bonus track because it did not fit our new chapter entirely, but it is a song we deeply connect with. A small passage: “Het wordt minder, maar het zal nooit verdwijnen. Wanhopig rouw ik. Mijn leven verandert. Een gevoel van verlies, een strijd met mezelf verloren.” Roughly it translates to this: The burden becomes easier, but never disappears. Desperately I will mourn, my life changes. A feeling of loss, a battle within myself lost… The whispers are the ones in our minds, the little voice that tells you are not worthy. The light may fade once for all…”
Final question, can we see HELLEVAERDER on the Dutch stages after the release of the album, or perhaps even beyond our national borders?
“At the moment we have three shows on our radar: the first one is with Salacious Gods and Kjeld in the Sound Dog (in the city of Breda) on the 21st of September, where we will play multiple tracks from the new album. The second one is a few days later, but we are not announced yet, so we cannot talk about it for now. More on that soon! The last one is on the 8th of November, but this is a special one. We released “Verloren vertellingen” (split release, October 2023) a while back, and the opportunity has arisen for us to perform the entire shared album as a whole. We will bring our drummer’s solo project Duindwaler and befriended musician Floris Velthuis‘ Schavot for the first time ever live, as well as our own two tracks and Asgrauw with their two tracks. The only downside is that I cannot attend this event due to personal reasons, but we bring our beloved Valentijn van der Poll (from Serotonia) as vocalist for this event.” ■
Henk van Nieuwenhoven