HAVUKRUUNU

Wormwood Chronicles is not known as a bastion of geography, but we can wear a lot of hats around here. So let’s learn a little about Tavastland. Also known as Tavastia, it is a heavily forested region of southern Finland, known for being wild and remote. The nomadic Sami people hunted reindeer here since time immemorial and the region was a stronghold of pagan Finland. Even with the coming of Christianity, people clung to the old ways and it remains a stronghold of traditional beliefs and practices. The Swedes and Russians have laid claim to the land over the centuries but Tavastland has never really bowed to foreign conquerors.

The members of HAVUKRUUNU are proud sons of Tavastland and so their latest album is named after the province. They continue the fight of their ancestors into a soulless modern age, using the power of ancient and majestic black metal to strike hard and deep. The album “Tavastland” is almost certain to emerge as my #1 pick of the year and it moves me in a way few other albums do. There is something dark, noble and dangerous as well as inspirational in the music this great band conjures up and I can’t really recommend “Tavastland” enough.

Fortunately, the old gods of the forest smiles upon me and I made contact with proud Tavastian Stefa, architect of HAVUKRUUNU’s magic. Incidentally, HAVUKRUUNU means “coniferous crown”. As you will learn, Stefa holds nothing back and says exactly what he thinks. No friend of the church or modern technology is this sharp fellow and for that we can be grateful...

WORMWOOD CHRONICLES: Greetings to HAVAKRUUNU! Your new masterpiece “Tavastland” is inspired by the Finnish area of the same name and their rebellion against the Christian church. Is this area home for the band? Have the stories of Tavastland been something you grew up with or did you learn of them recently?

STEFA: Yes, we are Tavastian, and the band is Tavastian, and I have known of these things all my life. I do constant research on a wide variety of things at all times, though. Alas, this means also that I’m thinking much, and assuming much, and really, i do not know truly anything.  Fuck Christ!

WC: Do you see yourselves as continuing the same fight the elders of Tavastland did? Is there a spirit that still resists the Christian church?

S: Sure, and every church there ever was. If your religion has rules, you're fucked. These demented values are again rising their ugly heads, and we must learn from the Tavastians of old that nothing of that sort is to be tolerated. 

WC:  There is something about the music of HAVAKRUUNU that seems so ancient and majestic. Did you grow up with the old folk music traditions from an early age or was it something you had to discover on your own?

S: I have been a vessel for the NIGHT-FOLK and spirits of old for all my life, i see things differently, and i have been haunted by images of macabre nature for as long as i remember (800 years or so)

My kin from my mothers side are very musical and very into classical and folk music.

WC:  What were the bands and concerts that made you want to play heavy metal?

S: JUDAS PRIEST “fuel for life-live 1987”, and BLACK SABBATH “Live in Hammersmith 1978” which my dad had on VHS. Also if you remember a cartoon called “Biker Mice From Mars”, yeah, that was pretty much it for me. Also SLAYER was a huge thing for me as a kid, and the live video of “HELL AWAITS” from the 1985 concert video with VENOM and EXODUS.

WC: They say Finland is the most “metal” country in Europe, if not the world. Is there something special in the Finnish people that draws them to this music?

S: I don’t know, maybe it's the inherent melancholy in this weird folk. I think Finns are more prone to dark and morbid thinking.

WC: Finland also has a great black metal tradition. What were some of the Finnish black metal bands that inspired you? Do you feel a strong part of Finland’s black metal scene or do you keep yourself “outside” any organized group?

S: Well, we've always been outside, and I don’t mind, I don’t really listen to anything. Of course, I listened to BEHERIT and IMPALED NAZARENE and all that when i was like 14-15 but not much beyond that. Didn't really impress me all that much, I much more always liked the Scandinavian bands, and Austrian stuff.

WC: What’s the songwriting process like for HAVAKRUUNU? Is there a “general” that’s in charge or does everybody pitch in with ideas?

S: This is my life's work, and I write everything, I do demos on my own of all the material playing everything myself, and then the guys in the band interpret from that. Also Henkka writes his own solos naturally.

WC:Your use of choirs is amazing and gives your music such a rich sound. What led you to using choirs in your music and where do you get the voices for them?

S: BATHORY, BATHORY, BATHORY. Remember on “Jubileum III” I think there’s the Valhalla Backing Vocals multitrack sample, so listen and learn. It's either all me, or like on the EP the whole band contributed, and now on “Tavastland” my dear wife participated on choirs and acoustic instrumentation.

WC: Have you ever used actual choirs for live shows or do you rely on taped versions?

S:Nothing from tape, thank you, we can manage with 3-voice-harmonies. Me, Henkka and Humö can do it on our own. No need for playing with backing tracks or click-track, we can perform without those. 100% live. With the exception of the acoustic “KUOLEMAN OMA”-intro, cos it would just suck played on two guitars, and the occasional intro tape ,etc.

WC:  Speaking of live shows, is HAVUKRUUNU active on the live front? If so, what would you say is your most memorable show?

S: More active than I'd like, we have now many shows this spring and then a couple of summer festivals, but I am actively trying to tone it down, and cut back on concerts.

Most memorable show... I don’t know, there’s something in every concert to remember. Basically the more the audience is into it, the more it sticks with me. That being said, Oslo 2023 at Orgicvm Satanicvm  Fest was memorable for me.

WC: Have you got any ideas for what comes after “Tavastland” or is it too early to say yet?

S: Well, reissues of the earlier 3 albums through Svart Records. I’m gonna fix a couple of typos, and take a few things from the booklets etc. But basically it'll just be remastered, so no tampering with old material.

WC:  Are any of the members involved in other bands and if so, which bands?

S: Well, yeah, I got HIRVIÖ and KÖLDVRÅ, Henkka plays in a death metal band, and in KLEPTOCRACY with Kostajainen. We do odd recording projects with HUMÖ and have played in tons of punk and joke-bands, so there you go.

WC: If you could have dinner with any 3 people from history, who would they be?

S: Depends of if they are paying, I don’t have any money for dinner. Maybe Albin Grau and Carl Jung. AND CARL BARKS.

WC: The cover image for “Tavastland” is striking. Is there any story behind the owl carrying the sword?

S: Yeah, the owl snatched the sword from our logo on the back cover, and is flying away with stolen weapons. It's open for interpretation, whatever you want it to be.

WC: Any last messages or words for the fans?

S: TAKE HEED OF WHAT YOU DO!

HAVUKRUUNU