GroundCast: First of all, thanks for your time Cecilie. Well, everything began when I visited Oslo. There I knew people and they showed me some bands from Norway. Skumring and Omit. I loved since the first time I listened and searched for the CDs, but unfortunately I didn’t find them 🙁
Cecilie Langlie: I hope you had a great time in Oslo! I’m sorry that you were unable to find our CDs in the shops here, but that’s often the way it is. Norwegians don’t really care much about Doom Metal, and therefore we do not see it as important to get our CDs out in the stores here. All our recent releases are available from many websites, however. Our label sells all our releases from its website (www.secretquarters.com) with free shipping.
GroundCast: To warm up, tell us your musical career, how everything began?
Cecilie Langlie: Well, I started out playing the clarinet and taking singing lessons at the local music school when I was around six years old. I soon found out that I enjoyed singing more than playing the clarinet so I started focusing on singing. I continued to take lessons, singing at local concert venues and I also sang a lot in weddings, funerals and such. When I was around thirteen years old I started my first band, and I guess that’s where it all started.
GroundCast: What are your influences?
Cecilie Langlie: I’m influenced by good music, that may be classical, pop, metal, folk or something completely different. I get inspired to make music by the music itself, a certain harmony, a certain chord, a certain melody or a certain atmosphere or sound.
GroundCast: You have two bands of Doom Metal and I have to say that is different see a doom metal band that is sang only by a woman. Was a great and beautiful surprise first time I listened. The question is, why doom metal? Do you feel yourself more connected with this genre of music?
Cecilie Langlie: There have been female lead vocalists in Doom Metal bands before we put together Skumring and Omit. The 3rd and the Mortal is one such great example, and I’ve drawn a lot of inspiration from Kari Rueslåtten’s vocal performances. I listen to, and I’m a part of making various kinds of music, though, and I don’t really want to limit myself to any particular genre. When people ask “Why Doom Metal?” I tend to answer “Why not?”. But first and foremost; Doom Metal allows you to explore musical landscapes that you can’t always allow yourself to explore in other genres. To me Doom Metal is really beautiful music. I always feel joy when listening to or creating music of this sort.
GroundCast: Recently you released an EP with your Neofolk project, Havnatt. This is amazing in many ways. Tell us more about Havnatt’s past. When do you had the idea to make Neofolk?
Cecilie Langlie: Havnatt basically started back in 2006 when we got commissioned by the Skagestad fami
ly to write music to the poems written by the late author Tormod Skagestad. We never intended for it to become a Neofolk sort-of-a project. Actually, we never intended for it to become a project at all. We never thought of Havnatt as being in a certain genre of music, like Neofolk. It’s just the music that felt natural to make when reading Tormod Skagestad’s lyrics. I guess we finally decided to make it “a project” after we worked with Prophecy Productions on Whom The Moon A Nightsong Sings. Then we released our Havdøgn EP in February, and now we’re busy writing music for a full length album that’s going to be released on the Secret Quarters label, some time later…
GroundCast: Keeping talking about Havnatt, for me, is one of most beautiful songs that I ever heard. Everything sounds so naturally, something coming from within (I have to say that sometimes in the song Prammem I feel a strong will to cry hahaha). Where do you seek inspiration to
Havnatt?
Cecilie Langlie: A lot of the inspiration comes from Tormod Skagestad’s lyrics and Tom Simonsen’s instumental arrangements. I guess there’s a kind of tristesse to be found in the Norwegian nature and landscapes that I can easily connect to. The lyrics are often about Norwegian nature and landscapes. In addition, the instrumental arrangements like a certain chord or melody also inspire me.
GroundCast: Backing to metal, I saw at metal-archives that you have a Gothic Metal band called Vagrant God. I searched for something to listen but I didn’t find anything. I’m so curious about it. What can you tell about Vagrant God?
Cecilie Langlie: Vagrant God is a project that I share with Kjetil Ottersen and Tom Simonsen. This project dates back to 2007, when we were asked to write and record a Gothic Metal album for a troubled Norwegian record label. To cut the story short: We never got to release our album, and it’s just been sitting in our archives since then. Kjetil just made a remaster of it for the Secret Quarters label, however, and we’re putting together a plan to release it very soon.
GroundCast: Do you work with music or is just something that you do for fun? I can believe that you can teach the people how to sing 🙂
Cecilie Langlie: I try to make money off my music, so I guess that I have a working relationship to it, in that sense. I’m also a part of running a record label. But it’s all something I do because I enjoy it. I do not teach music. I prefer having an artistic approach to music, instead of an educational one.
GroundCast: We are in the digital era, where lots of people can download songs for free. We have to analyze for example here, that some CDs don’t reach (and in some cases are so expensive for our economic reality) and to buy from foreign stores we need an international credit card.
What do you think about it?
Cecilie Langlie: The digital revolution is a good thing, for the most part. It’s easier and cheaper than ever before to produce and distribute music. In the process, it thankfully also seems like we’re losing some evil record labels and other unnecessary and unwanted elements of the industry. We keep printing CDs because some of our fans still want them. If that wasn’t the case we’d probably be digital distribution only. However, I don’t think that the argument “I cannot afford it so therefore I will steal it” holds much water. If everyone were to think that way, no artists would make any money and probably a lot of wonderful music would never have been written.
GroundCast: Norway has a lot of great bands, I can list some like Ihsahn, Leprous, Emperor, Dimmu Borgir, Borknagar, In Vain, I can stay here the entire day listing and listing, but basically we see lots of Black Metal bands. How is the Norwegian metal scene?
Cecilie Langlie: The Norwegian Doom Metal scene is not as productive and thriving as it was in the early 90s. And I guess you’re right when it comes to the Norwegian metal scene; that it consists mostly of Black Metal bands. It’s not a bad thing, we do have a lot of good Black Metal bands in Norway, but I wouldn’t mind it if the Doom Metal scene was a bit more alive.
GroundCast: If Cecilie wasn’t a singer, what Cecilie would be (probably a great mistake, because you have an angelical voice)?
Cecilie Langlie: Maybe I’d be a veterinarian. I love animals and when I was a little girl I always wanted to be a veterinarian.
GroundCast: Do you have other projects that you would like to spread?
Cecilie Langlie: I have already mentioned the upcoming album from both Havnatt and Vagrant God. Apart from that I have no more news at the moment.
GroundCast: Well Cecilie, thanks for your time. Now you have this space to say something to the GroundCast’s readers. Tusen takk 🙂
Cecilie Langlie: It was a pleasure doing this interview. A huge thank you goes out to all of our fans across the world! Stay tuned for more info on the release of the Vagrant God album and for more news on the upcoming Havnatt album.