Immortal Interview

Demonaz: Jason, how are you?

The Gauntlet: Just peachy keen, and you?

Demonaz: Busy. Very busy. We leave for North America on Thursday so just getting ready.

The Gauntlet: Why only such a small handful of dates? The US hasn't had a proper Immortal tour.

Demonaz: We did the shows a couple years ago and they went well. When we got the offer again, that was what we wanted to do. We felt this was okay.

The Gauntlet: A lot of fans will miss out on the love, happiness and that warm feeling that Immortal brings to so many of us live.

Demonaz: Yeah, of course. [laughs] That is how the world works. We don't tour much in Europe either. We do the shows we are comfortable with. We just want to do good shows. We don't tour to make money and have food on the table. We have a lot of guys we bring so we need to make sure we can bring them.

The Gauntlet: With the new album out, are there any plans to get around a little more?

Demonaz: : We have these four dates, then Kings of Black Metal in Germany, and a few shows and festivals over the Summer like Metal Camp and Wacken. There is also something in Moscow and Norway. There are like 11 shows planned so far. There are a lot of offers to do things but we aren't a band that goes on tour for three weeks on a bus. We don't want to destroy the band. We want to put on great shows and have a great time ourselves. We don't need to work ourselves to death just because we have a new album. We aren't in this band to get bored of each other. It isn't a eight hour a day routine job. If Immortal was a routine it would destroy itself.

The Gauntlet: Is that what happened previously?

Demonaz: It was a lot of things. You can have success with the band but you need success inside too. I think the people you work with and management have to all fit. If you work with the wrong people and have a lot of deadlines then things become routines. Then it becomes a job. We don't look at Immortal as a job; no matter how big it gets. It isn't an everyday job to us. It is something else that we need to treat with respect. We make money on the big festivals but we don't want to do all these tours and get exhausted. It is better to take less jobs that are bigger than more jobs.

The Gauntlet: I do admire that. When Immortal announces a tour, I know it is going to be something special and if I miss it, I won't be able to see it again.

Demonaz: We don't want to do it just to do it. We don't like those long tours that kill yourself and the band. I don't like playing those shitty clubs with bad sound. This is not work for us. We have this band and it means a lot to us. We do what we feel we need to. The minute we get bored with it, it won't be good anymore. We need a certain amount of freedom. We have that artistically but we also need to have that in terms of what we do. We are coming to France this year for Hellfest. It is our only concert in France and we are going to blow the fucking shit up. To be honest with you we are getting a lot of m