Konvent a little old band from Copenhagen
Interview conducted on November 24, 2019
by Dan Locke
Could Copenhagen become the new death doom capital? If so, one of the main reasons would be Konvent! Founded in 2015, the collective stoically trudges through the blackest mires – following in the footsteps of Mythic, Paradise Lost, Skepticism and Winter, who all unleashed the bleakest horror on mankind in the early 90s. Rikke Emilie List`s guttural vocals and tenacious riffing combined with menacingly heavy production make the debut by these four Danish women a massive, extreme metal highlight of early 2020 – and it wouldn`t come as a surprise if their upcoming album, Puritan Masochism, conjures up a deserved revival for the whole death doom genre! Set for release on January 24, 2020 via leading rock and metal label Napalm Records, today Konvent are serving up a brutal appetizer with their first single.
Konvent is:
Rikke Emilie List – Vocals
Sara Helena Nørregaard – Guitar
Heidi Withington Brink – Bass
Julie Simonsen – Drums
Dan Locke: How did you come up with the name Konvent?
Konvent: When we were talking about band names, back in 2015 when we were first starting out, we were discussing both English and Danish names. Heidi suggested the Danish word ‘kloster’, which means monastery or convent in Danish. We all loved it but as it is with all good band names, this one was already taken. Rikke suggested translating it into the English word ‘convent’ but replacing the c with a k, cause we had become quite fond of the k. Somehow it seemed heavier. We all liked it but we weren’t 100% sure. So after three months of pitching band names and not agreeing on one, Sara then remembered the Konvent suggestion, and we realized that we all liked the name and agreed on it.
What was it like growing up in Copenhagen?
Sara and Rikke are the only ones who grew up in Copenhagen. Julie grew up in Northern Zealand and Heidi grew up partly in Copenhagen and partly in Northern Zealand.
Growing up in Copenhagen was great. It’s a very safe place. There are a lot of green areas and water and it’s pretty child-friendly. It has always been a very creative city with a ton of cultural options. It’s also very clean and you can actually go swimming in the canals.
What is the live music scene like in Copenhagen?
All four of us live in Copenhagen and there are so many awesome Danish metal bands that we have the opportunity to go see.
Looking at the live music scene in Copenhagen today it seems like it’s only getting better and better. There is a big underground metal scene and loads of great bands to check out! There are a lot of venues putting up metal gigs, with both local and international bands, and our calendars are basically alway full of shows that we want to go to. But it does happen that our favorite bands go on a Europe tour and then don’t visit Copenhagen or Denmark at all 🙁
Rikke- What was the Dark Mental Festival?
Dark Mental Festival is a three-day metal festival held here in Copenhagen every spring. It was established by my good friend Ria Rasmussen and the concept is that it is a mix of all kinds of different genres and the line-up isn’t announced anywhere, so people just have to show up and hopefully see some bands playing genres they normally would never listen to and give them a chance. Pretty cool! I was a volunteer there for three years and we ended up playing there in 2017. The next day I was selling tickets at the door, hungover, haha. Then things started taking off with the band and I just don’t have the time anymore.
Rikke- Do you play any instruments?
I used to play the acoustic and electric guitar but practicing ended up becoming a chore. I haven’t played in years but have been missing it a lot lately, and so recently I acquired a Fender Squier and intend on starting again, but this time no expectations, no pressure.
Heidi- How did you get the icon “She Can Play”?
“She Can Play” is not an icon. It’s an organization that is supporting young women playing music. Recently they started a new project for the future women in the music business, called “She Can Manage”. And I was lucky to be 1 out of 5 women who got a spot. Over a year we will be part of a community, based on inspiration, networking and monthly education classes with some of the most influential people in the music business.
Julie- Why the Walking Dead, American Horror Story, and Robot Chicken?
Well, I’m not very fond of the Walking Dead. I saw the first season, but then it just got to being about people fighting and then a zombie would show up once in awhile.
I really like American Horror Story though. It’s so weird and twisted and scary. And it just keeps getting more and more exciting after the first episode.
And Robot Chicken.. Well, weird and twisted, but in a more funny way. I like it!
Sara- What was your first guitar, how did you get it, do you still have it and what is the name of your favorite guitar?
I got a simple acoustic Spanish guitar for Christmas when I was around 14 years old. My mom bought it after I had been using my older sister’s western guitar – but it totally crushed my fingers, ha ha.. Shortly after, I got my first electric guitar because I was really happy with playing Nirvana songs at that time.
My first electric guitar is actually the one I use now. Pretty funny that I haven’t changed it for another one since. It’s a Squier (Fender’s cheap brand) and the model is ‘Jagmaster’ which is a mixture of a Fender’s Jaguar and Jazzmaster. It’s not the obvious choice for a metal guitar, but I have always loved the sound of it and it’s so nice to play on. Since it’s a Squier it was also really cheap. They don’t make it anymore and it was only made for a limited period. Since then, I have been looking all over the place for the same model to have as a backup. I actually found and bought a used one three weeks ago in a glitter version (cool, right?). My plan is to give it a makeover and change the pickups. I have tried to play on a lot of other and more expensive guitars, but somehow I always end up with my beloved Jagmaster 😉
How was it signing to Napalm Records?
Personally, it was a very big deal. It showed us that others believed in us and what we were doing and that there was potential. It shaped us a lot being given that trust, because at that point we were still very new in the game and sometimes after finishing a song we would still question ourselves, asking if this even qualifies as an actual song, haha.
What were the first gigs together like, that you played as a band, and what was your first gig?
Our first gig was in Denmark’s third biggest city called Odense. We were so nervous! We remember just shaking like crazy before being called to the stage just to do our soundcheck. But we couldn’t have had a better first concert. We played with two other bands and they were so encouraging and helpful. A group of our friends even came all the way from Copenhagen to surprise us and be there for support.
Of course, the concert could have been better. There were some mistakes and a lot of long and awkward pauses in between the songs, haha. But afterwards, people in the audience gave us a lot of constructive feedback which was very useful for our next concerts.
Which video should fans watch to get the best impression of what Konvent really is about?
We have our first real music video out on YouTube for our song Puritan Masochism, which is the first single from our upcoming album. It was filmed by the very talented Rasmus G. Sejersen at our gig at Roskilde Festival this summer, which is the biggest festival in northern Europe. If your readers want to dig deeper into our lyrical universe they should check out the video for Trust, which is all lyrics.
What would be your dream tour?
Everywhere! Haha.
Either a full-blown NOLA tour extending into the rest of the U.S. and then Canada or a tour around Asia! Another dream we have is to play 70,000 Tons of Metal! I mean, playing a concert on a big cruise ship in the middle of the Caribbean wouldn’t be too bad and it pains us to see all our favorite bands, who we would love to play with, being booked while we’re stuck in rainy Denmark, haha! ;D
If we were to think about what bands we would love to tour with, it would probably be Candlemass, Satyricon, Mastodon, Behemoth. Of course, that’s way out of our reach at the moment, but hey, we’re dreaming big! 😉
If you had to play a cover song, which song would it be and why?
We would probably take a long time to agree on anything but we suggest we would end up with an NAILS song, probably “You Will Never Be One of Us”. It’s not doomy what so ever, but all four of us love that band! We actually put it on quite often in our rehearsal space and go crazy. It really gets our creativity and motivation flowing!
Where do you see the band in five years?
On that NOLA tour!
Anything in closing that you’d like to say?
Just that we’re pretty stoked to be doing an interview with a magazine from the U.S.A. NOW BOOK US THERE, DAMMIT!
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