1. First of all – the name, how did it come about and are there any meaning behind it?
The name Thoby Loth is actually taken from one of my nicknames and
altered to sound more medieval. We thought the name stood out and
suited the music. But there is no specific meaning behind it.
2.
Fairytale music, is this a genre you have created and why fairytale
rock?
The songs are inspired by fairytales and elemental beings, and
makes your thoughts wander to a different time and place. That’s why we
have chosen the name fairytale rock.
3. Folk music, epic rock, a conceptual album – this sounds like prog, is it?
Yes this is a kind of prog, progressive folkrock.
4. What is prog?
To me prog is a canvas almost without limits, it doesn't have as strict "rules" as say pop or dance music. It allows us to express ourselves any way we want, anytime we want. One song for example can have influences from all over the world and it can explore the whole dynamic range. I guess one could say that prog is thinking outside of the box, not doing things the way they've always been done and forgetting all the rules and just make music that moves you. I guess the term prog frees us from having to do this or that with a particular song, it lets the song decide.
5. You state musical influence: Traditional music from all over the world, Gjallarhorn, Eivor Pålsdottir, but to me there is a hint of Blackmore..s Night somewhere. Is that correct in your opinion?
Yes it is similar; some of our more “folkish” songs are similar. I do not have Blackmores Night as a main influence, but I like it because its good songs and great sounding stuff. We use the same instruments as they do, but the flute have bigger roll in our sound I think.
6. Why the medieval vibe?
As a composer I have always been interested in the medieval sound. I tried to find my own way to express myself and the sound of Thoby Loth is the music that comes naturally to me, so I..m just going to continue with that! As a young boy I started with the piano and played a lot of renaissance and Baroque music and felt for that. Later on I discovered folk music and liked the way you could mix it with rock to get a more dynamic and powerful sound. The flute contributes to get the right sound as well.
7. How do you rate Ritchie Blackmore as writer/composer and guitarist?
He is a great guitarist and composer and a big influence to many guitarists I think.
8. Any prog moments in Ritchie`s careeer?
Blackmores Night is a kind of prog…some songs could be part of a prog song. They mix different styles of music as we do.
9. Tell me about the album you release, what can we expect?
Nine beautiful songs with beautiful melodies that take you on a trip around the world and make you beg for more! The songs range from beautiful soft flute melodies to bombastic drums and guitar riffs, sometimes nearly a hypnotizing experience. The album and it's music is really diverse and it has really something for everyone in a good way: you know the way when for example at a nice restaurant, you get a soup that is made from quality ingredients by a skilled chef but you for some reason don't like broccoli? The other ingredients and the soup as a whole is just so good you start to love the broccoli! I feel that's in a way how our album is, it's a great soup one should not miss.
10. What is your aim for the band and the music?
We would like to get our music to touch as many people all over the world as possible. We've been getting an overwhelmingly positive response from all the places we've played and that's our greatest inspiration and motivation. When you put this much work and love into something it feels unbelievably good to get people excited and to really dig what we do. So in a nutshell the aim is to make as much great and inspiring music as humanly possible.
11. How is you creative process?
When I have flow a can work for days without a break and make 1-3 songs depending on the song. After that I can take a three week break for example. When I have an idea I will not stop until its ready. I composed the songs for our album “Lägereldarnas Tid” over a period of 10 months. I had almost the whole album ready even before we even had our first session with Thoby Loth in the summer of 2007! But when we started to play together I changed the arrangements a bit. Daniel, Peter and Roger contribute with their own sound and skills so I don’t have to think about that. Now after 1,5 years of playing we have our own characteristic sound and we know what..s working and what..s not, so it’s a little easier for me now, arranging parts. I usually seek inspiration in nature but also in books and film that have a fantasy or medieval vibe to it. I..m working a lot at night but I have my own studio now so it helps.
12. Will you tour?
This spring we have gigs around in Finland, bigger and smaller towns and gigs. We will play at the opening for a finish fantasy film as well. We will promote our new record and we are working on arranging more concerts now. The goal is to go beyond the borders of Finland and get ourselves a new audience.
13. You are connected to MusicSam Entertainment, what will they do for the band?
The connection is new, but we hope that they will help us with gigs and advertisement and all the practical stuff.
14. What do you expect from the critics?
We expect them to do their work. I don't think we have anything to be afraid of, we've worked very hard to make an album that we're very proud of and I think the critics will recognize that. Of course there's always room for improvement and we learnt unbelievably much during the process of making this album, all of that and more is of course to be heard on the next album. It will be very exciting and interesting to get this album in the hands of critics and 'normal' listeners. I hope you will like what you hear!
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