"I think it's a bit different compared to Anthems To The Welkin At Dusk and the others. It's Ihsahn's [guitarist and vocalist] expertise at this kind of music that I love. This album is quite progressive compared to some of the earlier stuff. I've not made it a secret that I love that sound and that type of music. Ihsahn is just a great guitar player, and as singer he was always doing things a little bit different to other bands in that genre. It's a real showcase of his ability to write and perform this type of sound. I'm a fan of everything he's done, especially that first solo album [The Adversary from 2006], but I'm a much bigger fan of Emperor. I found out about Emperor by doing what I think a lot more people should do, which is take the time to look around and search for new and exciting bands. That's how I've always found music from day one, just by asking around. Discovering a band by yourself is great and a very DIY way to do things. Making an extreme metal record with him is still on the bucket list. I just wish I had more time. We're still in contact and I talk to him once or twice a year and hopefully I'll see him when we go over to do these shows in Sweden."

"As a bass player and singer I liked Jack Bruce’s style. And then there was Clapton. Sometimes it was hard to tell who was singing what song, but this really influential on a generation of musicians, as was Jimi Hendrix – but I discovered Cream slightly before Hendrix. I liked both sides of Cream – the jamming and the songs – and Paul and l used to play music like that with jamming and long solos. I lost interest in Clapton after Cream, because I liked him best when he was playing through 1000 watts. I do like songs like ‘Layla’, because I’m a songwriter, but I didn’t follow him when he returned specifically to playing the blues. For that I preferred Gary Moore."