UHRIPUU Interview

Uhripuu’s music often feels like a journey into the unknown, blending black metal with atmospheric and folk elements. How did the band come to form, and what were some of your earliest musical influences?

Tell me if I'm wrong. But your lyrics often explore themes of nature, folklore, and spirituality. Is there a specific myth or piece of Finnish folklore/mythology that particularly resonates with the band or you? How do these themes translate into the music?

That describes it well. There isn't any one single piece of mythology that trancedes over others, but in general Kalevala has had a great influence. All the lyrics that haven't come out of my head have come from Kalevala. In addition the impact of Kalevala in classic Finnish literature is massive.

Well talking about nature but more on a personal side. For example Finnish black metal has always had a deep connection to the land and nature. The concept of "nature as a force" is often central in metal. How does Uhripuu and/or you perceive nature, and do you see it as a source of both strength and vulnerability? Or neither, can we ever truly understand the wisdom of a forest, or is it beyond human comprehension? 

Nature and humanity are ideally equals and part of each other. Nature is the constant in the equation and humanity is the variable. Modern humans find themselves vulnerable in nature while primitive kinds thrive. Nature gives strength to those who don't see themselves as greater than nature. I think it's freeing to let nature take hold of your actions and reduce your goals to pure survival. Humans have had a deep understanding of forest until quite recently and I believe humans will learn again willingly or not.

Well moving tiny bit forward from nature, trying to at least. Because of the big folk and nature themes I wanted to ask you, obviously because after all, this is black metal. Does Satan play a role in your music or personal life? And how? Ooooorr does nature and satan/satanism somehow align or go together with nature?

No, Satan doesn't have a significance to me. The evil that Satan represents feels foreign and distant. There are evil things in reality that are more palpable and by extent you can interact and influence those evils. Some satanic values like hate and strength are still a part of Uhripuu.

You have already released a total of 5 releases, what's your feelings about them looking back. Or how do you yourself view your own releases? Are they like time machines where every release is a specific time or your life that you expressed. Or are released built on specific themes. Or do you think about stuff like this haha, am i reaching too far now

I'm still quite proud of every release that I've done. You can hear the sound and performance develop release by release. The themes have stayed relatively the same while the influences that I draw from are different in each release.

If you don't mind, I will bore you to death with the next couple of questions. Anyways some quickfires, answer the first thing that comes to mind etc. You know how this works

Favorite finnish BM band?

Tough to choose just one, so everything that Atvar of Kêres, Circle of Ouroborus etc.. has been a part of.

Favorite genre outside of black metal?

Neo Folk, Industrial, Punk

Favorite mythology creature

Tapio the god of forest

If Uhripuu could be any mythology creature, what would it be, or if it could be totally new, what the name would be

Uhripuu's are said to be inhabited by the spirit of the tree. Maybe just more powerful and active than the traditional depiction of the spirit.

I'm sorry about that, but hey i tried to keep it short, anyways let's move on. What do you hope fans take away from listening to Uhripuu's music? Is there a particular emotion, message or state of mind you're hoping to evoke?

Deeper appreciation for nature and willingness to take action. I want to make listeners think about their place in the world.

It's been a pleasure, really. To start to wrap this up. How do you see the band's sound evolving in the future? Are there new directions you're interested in exploring, both musically and thematically or something you want to add? Or are we keeping it the same for now!

I don't see the themes changing all that much, however music wise innovation is my goal. I will be exploring new sounds, sources and styles in upcoming releases. Currently experimenting with acoustic guitars, contact mics and different effects.

Finally, please tell us, what’s next for Uhripuu? Are there any upcoming projects, new albums, or collaborations that fans can look forward to?

New music is always being written. If everything goes well I'll probably have a new album out next year.

Well, Thank you Uhripuu and thank you M.M  a lot for answering my questions and for this interview, we appreciate it a lot, if you have any last words, shout outs, feel free to just pour them out here

Again, it has been a pleasure. Support your local music and art.