In an open and frank conversation, Deathening’s Pål Callmer told us on Metal Addicts that the band decided to mix a political agenda with music because they feel democracy is an endangered species. He told us that:
“When it comes to the lyrics, I’ve always wanted my lyrics to mean something more than just the plain blood-gore-darkness-themed type of songs. And that has over the years become more and more important for me personally, because if your lyrics really mean something to you, that’s an extra driving force both when you write the songs and play them live. We have a clear agenda to fight fascism, racism and homophobia. And we struggle on to best of our ability to do this with the music we make. It’s become increasingly urgent to stand up for human values and the freedoms that define democracy.”
When asked what the hell happened in the world to flirt with so dangerous ideas, he told:
“It’s the old trick of offering easy solutions to difficult problems. When we the most need to work together they just want to turn people against each other. Blaming every problem on the ones not fitting into their nationalist utopia. But we stand our position. Not by giving the fascist the silent treatment suggested by some, nor trying to argue with nazis, which is pointless, but through empowering our listeners with Deathening’s music and lyrics, giving them strength to stand up for what’s decent. Letting them know they’re not alone, because they’re not. We are many across the world who are concerned about the political development. But we all need to speak up in our everyday lives and not let fascist and racist statements stand uncontradicted.”
He was also asked about metalhead’s political agenda:
Metal has always been a scene for serious matters. There’s a massive amount of Metal records made over the years dealing with politics, but I think with the current growing polarisation in society today, there’s also a growing part of the fans not wanting to see what’s happening. I guess they need their musical experiences to be a safe haven where they don’t need to care about the world and not being reminded that they should. If you feel that way you can still listen to Deathening and not focus on the lyrics. It’s quality metal that can give you a kick ass ride even if you don’t want to get political. The lyrics are there, sure, but they shouldn’t bother you if you’re not a fascist. Then of course, there are the ones that totally disagree with us. I mean, if you are a fascist and a racist you will probably get offended by our lyrics. And probably even more so if you like the music. In most cases our audience constitutes of like-minded people who want brutal metal and think fascists are f**ked up. It’s a fantastic crowd!
Read the entire interview here.
