30-AUG-2018
STORMWIND FANZINE
KRAMPUSNACHT INTERVIEW
SW: All hails to the punisher of misbehaved children. All hails to the dark side of Christmas. Stormwind is proud to have you for an interview. Please tell us where did this original idea of making Dungeon Synth music referenced on Krampus character come from?
KRA: Krampusnacht is the sole musical expression of the goat deity known as Krampus, which is me. So not a ‘character’ as such, but the living embodiment of the cryptid you are speaking directly to. I find the use of the word ‘Christmas’ offensive, but I guess I’m kinda used to it now *shrugs* So yeah, hails, and I hope all is well in Australia, some friends of mine live down there, the Bunyip, Akurra the snake, Jimmy Barnes, and Chopper Reid.
SW: May you please tell us about your creative process? Do you walk around the neighbours houses at night and watch misbehaved children when it is Christmas time?
KRA: Look mate, I’m not some kinda pervert, and if I’m looking through anyone’s window it’s not for their kids, it’s for their worldly possessions, see what I can rip off when they go hit the slopes for their winter holidays. However, if any of those little shits scream all excitedly when Santa delivers his lame gifts under the plastic tree, I start feeling a rumble in my tummy. Might get a bit peckish, may have a gobble.
The music I make is usually derivative of existing melodies and songs, but I at least play and re-record them to my own style, unlike ripping the midi file straight off the internet and pretending I sequenced it like that ElixiR guy’s Harry Potter album *vomits* - and, I suspect a fair few other artists who will all be exposed eventually.
SW: Is this a one album concept project, or shall we hear new material from Krampusnacht?
KRA: I’m currently working on a new album in time for December 6th, you know, Krampusnacht. This will incorporate music from around the world, used during various culture’s festive celebrations, and maybe the music of Lloyd-Webber and Tim Rice’s ‘Jesus Christ Superstar’ – without consulting any composers, arrangers, or representatives of the cultures I’m appropriating, because you humans keep mis-representing cryptids, so fuck you!
SW: Does the winter season, especially the Christmas time, have an effect on your creativity?
KRA: Ah the fucking ‘C’ word again. I think even Jesus is sick of it. Anyway, definitely. The entire season tests my patience, dealing with all the St Nick worshippers, it stresses me out. Since the Roman Catholic Church shifted the date of Yuletide celebrations to the end of the month, after the night of the 6th, I usually get really fed up with all the commercialism, the shoppers, the shitty humans getting all excitable and fat, so, I hide away in my cabin, with vague memories of melodies I’ve heard playing at the supermarket, and rework them in my own style, which just happens to be dungeon synth.
You keep saying it’s winter, but I know in Australia during December-January, it’s summer, so I try to avoid most of the southern hemisphere during this time. I have a very furry coat.
SW: Please tell us about the reactions from the Dungeon Synth community, to the album.
KRA: Mostly good, there were some pissed off nerds who thought a ‘holiday’/’christmas’ themed dungeon synth album was an abomination to their precious genre. However, they failed to see the point. This is not a fucking CHRISTmas album, these are not originally Christian songs, they originate from folk melodies, pub songs, reels, chants, nature worship, pantheism. Not churches!
So the 2 people lamenting the so-called ‘death of dungeon synth’ can munch on my giant goat-demon 3-headed phallus.
SW: Did you watch the movie Krampus which was released in 2015? If yes, do you think that movie shows the real horror of Krampus?
KRA: It’s certainly a faithful representation of my loyal cohorts and their general distaste for the period. That said, they’d never be caught dead in such gauche footwear. What sort of practicality do loops above ones foot serve? Otherwise, it was certainly an entertaining and rather inspiring piece. I’ll be sure to utilise some of the guerilla tactics those characters displayed before the years end.
SW: If you see Krampus in your house near the fireplace when it is Christmas, what will the first thing be to say?
KRA: I’ll look in the mirror, and say “This is not my beautiful house!? This is not my beautiful wife!” Then leave. But actually, I’ll be in my own fucking house at Christmas. Avoiding all the cheerful frivolity, fulfilling mail orders and putting coal in people’s letterboxes.
SW: Are you also interested in the bright side of the Christmas and Santa? If yes, then will you also create a music about the bright side too?
KRA: NO!
SW: What does creating a dungeon synth album mean to you? Is that a way to Express yourself?
KRA: Well, I really wanted to redefine the music that’s often associated with Christmas, it should be taken away from Christmas and re-paganised. Even the most popular Carols, Hymns and narratives around the Christmas story were taken from European pagan traditions. That was my original intention. I heard later that some people on an internet page were talking about doing this first, and Krampusnacht ultimately beat them to it, without even engaging them.
Also, sales for this particular release were good too. The self titled album helped pay my high rent up here in Greenland over the winter period, my regular job shuts down for a month and a half, and I’m out of work for a bit. The energy bills and rates went up, and last year, I was clocking in enough dollars every week to shout myself some expensive whisky and a few cigars with my holiday pay, and the album sales just sweetened the deal. Hey I’m getting older, I’m allowed to treat myself now. So thanks to everyone who supported the debut, I even sold an album in Dubai! I hope the follow up/sophomore album will share a similar success, complete with a cassette release. I’ll leave it to my record label Goblin Terror to deal with that shit though, I just make the music, I don’t control where it ends up.
SW: These are our questions. Thanks for being a guest to Stormwind pages. It will be our pleasure to hear if you have any last words.
KRA: Well, don’t mind me for correcting a few spelling errors on the way, hey English is my second language too! I probably made a few grammatical errors anyway. I’ll take a closer look at your zine once I learn how to type with these hooves. If you need any pictures, I don’t have any current ones – but there are plenty of historical images of me on google, just please only use the public domain stuff, or the pics from bandcamp, not someone else’s precious artwork.
Thanks for your questions, please remove Christmas from your calendars and replace it with Winter Solstice, Yuletide, the Wild Hunt, Mōdraniht, Krampusnacht, Hogmanay, Kwanzaa, fucking Yaksmas, Snowflake Day, Snoggletog, Prixin...anything but Christmas!
Thanks, Krampus.
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