00:00People like having a big heart for Satan. I also have a big heart for Satan. Don't get me wrong,
00:04right?
00:11So one of the most f***ed up moments in
00:14airports for us with our weird gear, I think was which airport was it that we had the sword problem
00:20was that in Russia?
00:21That was me in Russia. That was you in Russia? Yeah, because that was a really that was scary. Yeah,
00:26that was scary. Yeah
00:30So
00:31We're we're coming to Russia and we're on the way back home, right? And at that time it was like
00:38that
00:39When you wanted to enter the airport, they already
00:42like x-rayed your luggage and of course like it was
00:47slightly chaotic I don't speak Russian and
00:51We lost our translator because it was several entrances and it was me with it with a case that was
00:58not mine
01:00I think it was Chris's case, right?
01:03So I'm standing there. It's high long gear and like I hand in a couple of cases and suitcases and
01:08everything and then I suddenly see that guy like
01:12Getting like super big eyes. He takes my suitcase to the side looks around ask asking Russian
01:17I know what he wants like he wanted to know like who owns this suitcase so I go up there
01:22and
01:23And he opens it up and of course in there is a sword
01:29Like a full-scale real Viking sword, right?
01:33and
01:34He looks at me and like is speaking Russian and I'm like I don't speak Russian and I can't even
01:38say in Russian that I don't know
01:39Do not speak Russian and it ended up that he
01:42Loses it, you know, and he just he's pointing at the sword and just yells
01:46document document
01:48This is like theater problems man like like we were not intending any harm is all fine. It's it's we
01:54don't do it
01:55document document, you know, like with these like hats and everything
02:00Luckily at that point there was the translator. He was going around and then he realizes okay Kai is in
02:06trouble
02:07Yeah, so the antlers was a huge incident for us in Bangkok when we played there last year because it
02:14turns out that you can bring
02:16Antlers in to Thailand's but you cannot export them again
02:20We had no idea about this rule and so they were stuck at the
02:25Airport in Bangkok. I don't remember the name of it
02:28But I think there was hold there for two months because all they wanted was a stamp on the paper
02:34saying that this
02:35this equipment belongs to to high long and they are are meant to they were coming in and are meant
02:42to be taken out again like but
02:44No authority wanted to mess with this document on our behalf because it was
02:51They saw it as a it became
02:54somehow a legal
02:56Vulnerable situation because we had as a matter of fact like not follow the rules and regulations
03:02So but in the end the Danish music society bless them a small organization in Denmark
03:08Living their lives happily supporting musicians in their country and they don't they're not a huge authority
03:14But they're like yeah, sure
03:15We'll put the stamp on this one for you guys and that was all they needed and they released our
03:19stuff
03:19But yeah going in and out of Australia and New Zealand
03:23We have to make special applications for anything that is a part of an animal or
03:29nature anything of wood skin
03:32first
03:34bones
03:35Any earth materials and if I mean have you seen our show everything we own is made from bones and
03:43first and skins and and woods so yeah, it's a it's
03:48Challenging going through customs in I think that was in Heathrow with the I I had all the spares in
03:54the in the sewer tube
03:55Which is the only sensible way of transporting spares all of the apparently
03:59So I'm walking with this tube on my shoulder and through the beep machine and it's like it's full of
04:05spares
04:05And of course you have to then explain to the customs that yes, this is sharp spares
04:10They are weapons, but they are indeed theater props and in in Europe and they're normally more easy to talk
04:16to than the Russian
04:21Well, what is the warrior choir?
04:23I think the warrior choir is one of the elements that clearly separates us from all the other
04:29modern pagan bands because no one has the energy and the patience to like
04:34To train an army
04:37The warrior choir when we are on stage is nine people but all over
04:43It is around 40 people on the planet who are qualified to do the task and we pick them
04:50Depending on where we go and to get in there. It's of course
04:56Quite hard because it is it is not easy and it's also
05:02We are very consequent with the dress code
05:05So you you will all only wear pants and we are gender-neutral
05:09So it doesn't matter as what you identify you will have pants and you will have night camouflage
05:16body painting and
05:18They are representing something which is called which is described by the Romans
05:24around the first century as
05:28the hard II and back then they were doing exactly what what we were doing so they got painted black
05:34and
05:35They had dark clothes they blackened their weapons and they did something which was very unusual at the time
05:42They attacked in the night and they ran off and never
05:47Yeah, got never really defeated
05:49There's still scientific research and discussion going on what they actually are if they are a proper tribe
05:55Or if it was just some savages that were trying to annoy the Romans
05:59But as a matter of fact they scared the shit out of the Romans because they came they came in
06:04the night out of the dense
06:06Germanic jungle basically, right and that they killed a lot of people and then they went off again, right?
06:13That was very unusual at the time because like you were when you went into battle you got dressed into
06:19something super nice
06:20you know and to show respect to your opponent and
06:24especially the Romans they were very proud and showing off stuff and like having having a red dress back then
06:30was like really
06:31Ridiculously expensive, but they did exactly the opponents. They were not claiming a kill even right and
06:39So and the training is very
06:42Very intense because like when you tour the US for example for seven weeks playing every second day that is
06:49really
06:50really really tough, you know, and they need to deliver every day they need to they need to function as
06:55one entity they need to be
06:57In rhythm they need to be able to do throat singing they need to be able to do like death
07:02metal style shouting and
07:04dance and
07:06until the point
07:07Which is not exhaustion anymore which like really goes into trance and
07:12pronunciation of old languages and so on and so forth and then they have to of course stand my critical
07:17eye
07:19And if I can just say two words about the audition process because it's right now we we've closed the
07:25auditions down for now, but
07:28Normally, you can send an email and then you have to send an audition video
07:33And if you part for our father Heidi one of our songs and if you pass that
07:37Then you get another song and if you pass that you get invited to a boot camp if you pass
07:43that you get invited to try a
07:45a
07:46life situation and
07:49if you pass that
07:52Being in beats being able to pronounce being able to perform being like a generally a good skilled person
08:00Then the final tests is the after party
08:07How do this person react after a few beers is it a social?
08:13Person is are we able to function because sometimes you need to sit for 14 hours and an airplane next
08:19to someone
08:20It's important that you can function socially as well as musically and performative
08:25So it's really hard and I think out of maybe 500 additions. It's 40 people who made it
08:30So yeah, it's not an easy task. We we see for instance that from Denmark. We only have one
08:35Like there's just people are maybe too shy or not willing to take that extra step or in the US
08:44We got a lot
08:46People are more maybe like yeah ready to to take the take the challenge
08:52So yeah, and Germany we have a few friends friends and of course Holland is our main
08:58Main core group of warriors because that's where they kind of started and originated from
09:04So yeah, I think the one of the biggest misconception is that
09:10as a pagan you have to oppose Christianity I
09:15Think that is one of the biggest misconception misconception that are out there, especially in the metal scene
09:19You know, there's a lot of people like having a big heart for Satan. I also have a big heart
09:23for Satan. Don't get me wrong, right?
09:27But
09:28But when we look at history
09:30It is actually not like that, you know, like everything that that that it was handed or is handed to
09:37us
09:38From from the old times when Christianity of course was already existing because like before the year zero
09:46Christianity was not a topic, you know, so everything that is from there. It's not really relevant for that
09:52For that talk right now, but people are rambling on like runes and like Vikings and everything
10:00But when we look at the Viking age for example that is in Scandinavia
10:04Also the time when we have the first Christians that that are dying there and being being buried
10:10Alongside pagans in the same grave mount, you know like apparently with total harmony when we have the
10:17When we look at the runes every rune poem that made it to our age
10:22Contains also very very clear Christian hints, you know, so I I think of course I'm not a scientist, right?
10:30I'm just an artist
10:31But I I see it like that that as a pagan you are open
10:37towards
10:39Other people's gods and whatever you are praying to when you are my guest you can do that in my
10:45house in my temple
10:46That is absolutely no problem. I think the disappointing part
10:50Part starts later
10:52When the pagans are thinking that they can do the same thing in a church and they're not allowed in
10:58you know
10:59But I think that the pagans back in the days that they were absolutely
11:04first of all
11:05Welcoming that new belief and they did not judge it as something that you should get rid of that you
11:11have to oppose that you have to fight
11:13That comes later
Comments