HELVETETS PORT: The Magic of Classic Heavy Metal: Between Nostalgia and Fantasy

In this interview with Tomas, we dive into the essence of Helvetets Port, a Swedish band that has created a sound almost like a time capsule, filled with influences from 80s heavy metal. Beyond the music, the most fascinating aspect is their approach to escapism as a positive force and nostalgia not as an empty longing, but as a tool to improve the present. Helvetets Port doesn’t aim to adapt to modern times; instead, they pride themselves on their authenticity, avoiding contemporary influences and exploring epic and post-apocalyptic themes without letting reality invade their creative process. With a touch of humor and a clear vision of their art, we discover what it truly means to stay true to oneself on stage and in life.

-Hi, first off thanks for taking your time. How’s everything doing in the lair of Helvetets Port?

Hello! One could say it’s both relaxing and busy at the same time. It’s a big relief that the album is finally out and seeing the great response. Then we have a release party gig coming up in a few days, for which we have a new constellation where I both sing and play guitar. So there’s a lot to think about!

-Your music often feels like a time capsule from a different era, capturing the essence of 80s heavy metal. How do you personally connect with the past while living in the present? Does this nostalgia serve as an escape, or is it a lens to understand modern life?

I’m an expert in being nostalgic; it started as soon as I could remember previous states of things. I really don’t know any other way of being. When I was a teenager and in my 20s I still kept up to date about what was going on in music and culture in general, in part thanks to music television being about music, and the fact that one interacted more with different people because of school etc. The purpose for nostalgia I would say is to make things better for oneself. Because I don’t mean nostalgia as in thinking and dreaming of the past, but to utilize old things and old ideas because they were often better. If you’re just wishing you lived in the past you’re in for a depressing life, but if you use the things from the past to your advantage, you are bolstering your life. I have no problem straying from that when it’s suitable, for example I can recognize that the processing power of 80s computers is not quite satisfactory for today’s tasks.

-Many of your songs explore themes of heroism, mythology, and apocalyptic futures. How do these themes reflect your personal beliefs or worldview? Are there parallels between your music and the challenges you see in the real world today?

I like heavy metal to be about escapism and fantasy. The lyrics often do not reflect personal feelings and beliefs, meaning that they are not to be interpreted as «hmm, what underlying real world issue might this be a symbol for» or anything – most often it is just a part of the painted heavy metal fantasy picture. That’s not to say they are meaningless. I believe that the meaning and purpose of this escapism and fantasy is in itself a paramount force. Although sometimes reflections of real things slip in, especially when the theme for the song is not an outright fantasy one. 

-You’ve said that Helvetets Port doesn’t need to be «in with the times.» How do you balance staying true to your sound and evolving as artists? Is there ever a temptation to changee, or do you find freedom in remaining timeless? Creativity often involves pushing against boundaries, whether internal or external. Have you ever felt limited by the traditional heavy metal framework? How do you challenge yourselves artistically while staying true to your roots?

Firstly I see nothing in the present that merits influencing our music, so influences will come from the past. With the past as the foundation, evolvement will come from within. Music is a playground with infinite possibilities even within a set framework. I believe both in genre purity and in evolving, so if we change, it’s still classic heavy metal but in some new way. I believe that one doesn’t need to second-guess oneself or try too hard when it comes to evolving. If you feel stunted or stale, it’s time to try changing things. If not, then just go ahead and it will probably turn out good. Conviction and passion for what you do will shine through in the end and is what matters the most. If there is a contrived change, it will fall flat.

-Your new album Warlords moves between themes of post-apocalypse and medieval fantasy. In a world that often feels on the brink, how do you think metal can offer a form of escapism or, conversely, a way of confronting our darkest realities?

It is the part about escapism that I’m the most familiar with. I believe that there is a more positive power in escapism, in listening to music, than there is in confronting reality. Confronting reality is of course important, but perhaps best done outside of the music listening experience. The feeling that I believe is the strongest and best one that can arise from music is that goosebump and throat lump feeling of awe and coolness. It’s difficult to explain and attain, a fickle thing. Sometimes it just arises. For example if you watch the Heavy Load live video without audience from 1983 and when the verse for «Heavy Metal Angels» starts, that is such a moment, and I can’t explain why. When «Evil Dream» by Zone Zero goes into the faster part. And when the riff for «Swords and Chains» by Gotham City starts. Those are moments that magically grab your heart. 

-In interviews, musicians are often asked about their influences and idols, but rarely about the opposite—what aspects of heavy metal or rock culture do you consciously avoid or push against?

When it comes to our music and how it’s executed, I want to consciously avoid excesses when it comes to speed, sound, heaviness, meaning that it must not sound modern or akin to speed metal. If there would be experimentation or a «slip-up», then it’s best if it goes in the other direction, to something even older or mellower. Like I said I believe in genre purity; I have rarely heard crossover things that I have liked. I can enjoy listening to other forms of metal and then I also like it to stay true to the genre. I also want to have distance to occult stuff since it can so easily appear like there are black metal influences, at least image-wise. Then of course there are the countless metal genres that aren’t very good, but that are so far from home and nothing to really «worry about».

Good metal music is the best music, and bad metal music is the worst music – when it’s bad it’s more of a knife-in-the-back feeling than some completely different bad genre.

-With a sound that hearkens back to the golden age of metal, what would you say to younger listeners who might feel disconnected from the music of the past? How would you argue that the raw spirit of classic metal is still relevant today?

 Those who feel disconnected from the music of the past are also surely disconnected from regular heavy metal, because I have a hard time imagining a fan of regular heavy metal who dislikes everything from the 80s. So then I will imagine addressing young listeners who are into other forms of more modern metal. But I think I would have to know more about what it’s like at, let’s say, an In Flames concert or the most modern metal festivals. I can’t say because I haven’t been there. Maybe they have a good atmosphere for the people who are there. Maybe those fans like the music to be more aggressive and heavier. In my teens I used to listen to a lot of black and death metal as well. But now I have to say that everything that one would want from that sort of music can be found in classic heavy metal as well, in better forms. A song like «Killers in the Dawn» by German band Overkill or «Vampire» by US band Killen, to me it doesn’t get more bleak and malicious sounding.

-Heavy metal has always had a reputation for its larger-than-life characters, whether on stage or in lyrics. But when the show is over, who are you offstage? How do you reconcile the theatricality of metal with your everyday lives?

Speaking for myself, I’m a reserved guy who doesn’t like social gatherings and stuff like that, but being on stage is no problem. When it comes to music I’ve always had (a fool’s) confidence, it has always felt natural to present one’s music and oneself as an artist to the world … or at least the immediate mourners. Furthermore personally I lead a pretty healthy lifestyle with very little alcohol, lots of broccoli, early mornings. I like penguins and video games. The other guys in the band are  in some sense the same; down-to-earth guys but with strong or peculiar personalities.

-You’ve described the new material as post-apocalyptic but also more direct and straightforward than previous records. How has the uncertainty of the world in recent years influenced your songwriting, either consciously or unconsciously?

I’m not sure if it has influenced it in any way. Our music is more about the imagination than about the real world. Maybe it’s influenced by proxy by uncertainty and hardships that have influenced our idols, for example the melancholy you hear in the music of Mindless Sinner’s first EP, Zone Zero, Sadwings … maybe that came from cold northern desolation long ago; maybe old inspirations even for them. It’s like stars that died a long time ago but whose light is still visible to us.

-There’s a recurring theme of power in your music, whether through battle imagery or epic storytelling. How does power, either personal or collective, manifest in your lives outside of music? Is this something you consciously think about when writing?

I think that what drew most heavy metal fans to this music is how powerful it felt when they heard it for the first time. It’s embedded in the music style, so a lot of the themes will be dealing with power in some form or another. I rarely think of power outside of the context of heavy metal, and I might not be thinking very consciously of it there either – it just arises. I’m a live and let live person, I don’t want to control or be controlled and I think that goes for the rest of the band, and is in fact a reason that we’ve had longevity. There are no power games, except in the music itself.

-The long gaps between albums suggest a deep thoughtfulness in your process. Can you talk about how you approach songwriting—are you more methodical and deliberate, or do you wait for inspiration to strike? What’s the most challenging part of that process for you?

It can differ from song to song, but quite often it starts with a song title that has popped up in my mind, and then it is natural to start from the chorus, to build music around the words of the title being sung. Other times it might start with a riff. Only in very rare cases does it start with lyrics – one such song is Legions Running Wild. In the optimal scenario, the entire song is written in one or two fits of inspiration, but that has only happened a couple of times in my life. One song like that was Killed by a Reaper, which was witten and recorded as a demo in four hours.

Most often there’s one or two parts ready and then it has to simmer for a while until inspiration kicks in to find a continuation. I won’t force myself to sit for hours writing on a single song, but sometimes I force myself to quickly go through 4-5 unfinished songs and maybe change a note here and there. The most challenging part I think is to fuse parts together in a way that makes sense. I have tons of great riffs, verses, bridges and choruses but the task of putting them together, or finding the missing puzzle pieces to make it a coherent song is difficult. I don’t know much music theory so I often wing it. But I have to get a certain feeling in my stomach when listening to what I have done, I have to be thrilled as though I’m hearing something great from a favorite band.

It was great fun putting Black Knight together, a song that three of us contributed to. We will try to find ways to make more stuff together when it’s time for the next album.   

– As a band that plays with historical and fantasy elements, how do you see the relationship between art and history? Do you think music can change how we view the past or perhaps help us understand it better?

Plays is the right word for the historical elements, they can be a bit odd since they are highly personal takes on history, basically making history up. Even a song like Röda Nejlikan which might appear historical is pure re-imagining. In some strange way, accurately describing historical events for me feels like making a cover song. I would rather come up with it myself.

The link between art and history is of course especially apparent when we can see with our own eyes (or hear, if we keep to more «modern» times) art which itself is old, but so much more powerful than any descriptive text could hope to be. If it’s a painting it might be nice to look at it if it’s lifelike and technically perfect, but greatness comes from the painter’s ability to tell something more and make you feel something. It’s the same in the case of new art having to do with the past. It’s not enough to just tell what it was like, or might have been like in the past. It has to evoke feelings and have flair. That’s the sort of «education» that counts for a listener of music, and can lead to a heightened interest moreso than the prosaic.  

-That’s all from our side. Thanks again for answering to these questions. If you’d like to add some final words; its your turn.

I want to thank you for the thoughtful interview, like always. Keep up the good work!