1. Hello, TVINNA! Many people know you very well from the Faun team. Where did the idea for TVINNA project come from?

Fiona: This idea was first called to life by Laura Fella, who asked in Elveities singer Fabienne Erni and then me, to join for a strong female vocal project. So, the vision was characterized by a focus on female power right from the start. As we started out the first writing sessions and Fieke van den Hurk joined, we felt that the core of TVINNA was complete. I guess, as a creative person you never stop developing and it was a wonderful chance for all of us to step out of musical frames and reinvent ourselves in a free and undetermined musical way.

2. This year you released a mesmerizing album “One – In The Dark”. I hear a lot of inspirations from the primeval north and wild nature there. Can you tell what other fascinations were reflected in your music?

Fieke: Today’s world is very much oriented towards positivity. We try to be as comfortable as possible most of the time. For us it’s like a “half life”. It is very valuable to be able to delve into the dark parts of your life. We are fascinated by that which becomes visible to those who are brave enough to look closer, and step into dark places where others might not go. Once there, a hidden world enfolds and enables one to live more deeply, fully, purely. We have become estranged to that way of living – so perhaps this is where the link to more primeval times comes into play. There are many hidden treasures in the dark. Here you hide your fears, worries, your feelings.

If you don’t face them, they will haunt you. The title One – In The Dark means that we don’t differ too much from one another in the dark. We all come from the same place (the dark womb). We all feel fear and shame. We have all had trauma. This are all keys to transformation and growth – but only if you really look at them and accept them. In the Kabbalistic “Zohar” the first divine emanation is described as a “spark of impenetrable darkness” that is so radiant that it cannot be seen. The womb is the eternal secret of the primordial, blinding darkness that brings light into life. It is the gateway to a magical realm of wisdom. It is sometimes even associated with the Holy Grail! I think I could go on on this topic forever.

Laura: As this album is specifically focusing on the first stages of life – in our definiton on the state of the unborn and birth itself – it was also our very own and personal experiences, that inspired us. We really poured our hearts and emotions into OITD and I think, this might also be the reason why it has the capability to really touch people. When writing the last songs of the album, I, for example, was pregnant and this was a huge inspiration for some lyrics, which later then became the song Partus.

3. Which track from this album is your favorite?

Laura: This is such a tough question, as simply each song keeps amazing me in its very unique way. Still, as they all tell different stories, there is one song I am most connected to, which is Inside – The Dark. This very song touches a very delicate topic, which many women have to go through – the loss of unborn life. Having experienced this myself, I know the pain and impervious darkness which comes along with it.
To me, this song perfectly reflects these emotions and void, but also gives space for anger and grief. There are no words to describe the immense pain of the loss of a child, but maybe this song can carry it a bit.

4. The song wild hunt brings to mind “The Witcher”. Are you a fan of books or series?

Fiona: This song refers to the ancient narrative tradition telling of hosts of supernatural creatures. Although mostly known from the Germanic and Scandinavian sphere, similar tales exist in many countries all over the world. They describe a hunt at the edge of the world as we see it, pervading the borders between the worlds. So our song has no link to the mentioned book or series. It originates from taking on the perspective of being part in a magic chase along and across the edges of life as we see it.

Fieke: I am not into The Witcher series, but would love to tip the Boudica book series by Manda Scott, and Blade Honer books from Maria Kvilhaug – they are definitely inspiring to me. I’m currently reading Mists of Avalon – cult classic 😉

5. You invited guests to the recordings. On the album we will hear, among others Eivør Pálsdóttir. How did this cooperation come about?

Fieke: I once approached Eivør after she played an amazing show in Amsterdam and introduced myself as a studio engineer. We exchanged contact info and some time later when visiting friends in Copenhagen, I met Eivør for some coffee. We really clicked and I ended up going to Copenhagen again soon with my car full of studio equipment, and my accordion. She was just writing a song called Stirdur Saknur and we recorded me playing on accordion.

It was then that I re-discovered I am a musician, and also that I can alter the sound of my accordion with guitar pedals. I visited Eivør more often and we wrote some songs together and played around with the material she was writing for her album. Later I also joined her on stage a few times. When we were looking for a strong and powerful female voice for Kreiz, Eivør was happy to return the favour of contributing to our album.

6. The album is on the market for a short time, but you can see that it has already gained a lot of fans. How do you rate its reception?

Laura: Oh, we are pretty overwhelmed by all the amazing feedback from our fans, friends and listeners. Plus we were simply blown away by quite a few shining reviews we got – all over Europe! You know, we were working on this Album for such a long time and in such an unique intensity, that it grew so special to us. Also, the whole TVINNA journey is not „only“ about the music, but so much ore, all the intention and messages behind it, that we couldn’t wait for One – In The Dark to be out there. Anticipation and Anxiety walked hand in hand before the release – and now anxiety is gone and anticipation turned into pure joy! So, really, to everyone out there who followed us along our way and gifted us with their support: thank you so much!

7. Now something for people who haven’t listened to TVINNA yet – for encouragement. If you were to describe your music in one word, what would it be like and why?                      

Fiona: Over the time we´ve put together a pretty exciting and absurd hashtag collection, most of which will never be told in public. But thinking of a description that brings our debut to the point, for me it definitely was the quote Mindblowing by Metal Factory Switzerland. This sums it up pretty well for me – not because I want to blow our own trumpet but because these songs simply do this to me. Even after going through the very detailed and excessive production process I listen to the music and I just get flashed again.

8. What do you do besides music? What do you like to do? After listening to the album,
I would say that you spend a lot of time with nature. Am I right?

Fiona: Good guess, I can say this applies on each one of us. We all live apart from big cities and prefer being out in the woods instead. We do enjoy modern times in many ways, which is also hearable in the modern sounds we use in TVINNA – but when it comes to regenerating from a lot of touring there is nothing better than a quiet forest with only the gentle sounds of nature. I often get new musical ideas strolling through the woods and impressions I take in there very often evoke feelings that can be reflected best in this way.

Fieke: Yes! We all love going out in nature and get inspired by it. I’m glad you can hear it in our music. Laura happens to be a wonderful illustrator and she made some pretty awesome artworks (follow her instagram because sometimes she sells prints!). Fiona runs a deer farm and is also teaching her epic bagpipe skills (you should contact her for lessons!!). I enjoy calligraphy, running and have been reading a lot lately.

9. What are your plans for the future? Birds are chirping that we will hear you in better times in Poland …

Fieke: Are they really? The future seems fluid these days – it’s hard for us to plan, so we simply have multiple plans in place. So we can confirm we are working on playing live and touring with our album!

Laura: Oh – we certainly cannot wait to carry our music out into the world to play it live! Shortly before Covid arrived we were already rehearsing, eager to play shows – so we’re definitely holding onto these plans! Also we’re still working out every detail of our stage set-up, as we’re having something special on our minds.
Besides this – we really can’t wait to be back writing music again! One – In The Dark is supposed to be the first out of four chapters, in which we’re putting the different stages of life into music. So – we’re very much looing forward to what future will bring!

10. What do I wish for the future? Apart from the concerts, because we are all waiting for them …

Laura: We of course hope to reach as many people as possible with our music – and with that, touch their hearts and souls to remind them of their own strength. We can’t wait to see what the future might brings us and I’m a bit superstitious when it comes to wishes – I think they should remain secret until their fulfillment.

11. Anything special at the end for Folk Metal readers?

Fiona: If you haven´t had a chance to listen to the album yet, we can reveal to you that you will find many decent distorted guitar moments by Rafael Salzmann (Eluveitie) as well as some powerfull drums from our math metal drummer Jasper Barendregt (Ulsect/Dodecahedron) amongst on One – In the Dark. So this should definitely is new interesting input for metalheads out there!

Thank you very much! Good luck and – we hope – see you!