INTERVIEW: Helvetets Port

From the wastelands Västra Götaland hails Helvetets Port. A Band which embodies the total die-hard passion for heavy metal that this very zine stands for. I decided it was long overdue that I spoke to their enigmatic frontman so below are the results…

1. Greetings Witchfinder! Please introduce yourself and your band for the uninitiated!

Hello there Jørgen and the readers! Well, I’m the founding member, singer and rhythm guitarist of Helvetets Port from Sweden. We play classic heavy metal in a self-willed way.

2. You formed in 2001 (or 2000 if we are counting Brute Force). This was a turbulent era for true heavy metal. Of course some obscure bands kept flying the flag in this world of modernisation long before the more recent resurgence. Can you tell us how it was being a band in the early 2000s that played proper heavy metal?

Those were some “lonely” times but it was of course fun to go against the grain and do our own thing according to our own convictions. Though, in the early 2000s it’s difficult to call it a band since Helvetets Port was only 1-2 people and no live shows played etc. I just circulated some mp3s and CD-Rs with home recordings. It felt like all the music I wrote was some sort of new invention even though it was so inspired by the past.

3. Starting your career was the “Metal Strike” 7” from 2006. How did you write and record this cult 45? Do you still like it today, nearly two decades later?

Heavy Metal Night was the first complete HP song written in 2000. Hårdrockens Förkämpe had a couple of parts written maybe as early as 1999 (under the name “Heavy-Metal-Forces”) but completed in 2003 (as the lyrics suggest). Swing the Studded Mace was written in 2004. We recorded the drums in a studio, then the rest at home. For the vocals I used a 20 SEK (€2) “pencil” microphone with a 3,5  mm jack for PC because I thought it produced an older sound than a more expensive real mic. I still like those songs a lot, I am proud of all songs we’ve written though the recordings themselves weren’t always the best.

4. Speaking of the 7” format, I think this is probably the most true / cult format for metal music. Do you have any favourites on this short-form attack of music?

I do love the 7″ format, though mostly those that were made in the 80s. Releasing a new single in this day and age feels like a bit of an emergency solution, at least if there are only two songs. My favorite 7″ are Gotham City, Zone Zero, and to name one that I don’t always mention: Tyrant – Hold back the Lightning. Somehow I connect the format almost exclusively to Sweden and the UK whereas other countries excelled more in the longer formats.

5. Okay, back to Helvetets Port. 2009 saw you debut with the divisive (and in my opinion wild) LP “Exodus to Hell”. This firmly cemented the band in the underground as the force of unusual, off-kilter, janky but absolutely amazing music that you have remained to this day. Can you talk us through the creation of this short but sweet opus?

Some songs were written early and already featured on the same demo as the 7″ songs: Djävulens triangel, Fly by Night and Killed by a Reaper. I like to tell the story about the birth of “Killed” to illustrate how quickly one could work back then: I was packing in the evening to go to a festival the next day. Then I got the urge to write a song. I came up with the music + lyrics and recorded the demo all within 4 hours, and still managed to pack all my stuff. That would not be quite feasible nowadays. Anyway, we had made friends with Olof Wikstrand from Enforcer and recorded all the instruments and vocals in his studio on reel-to-reel tape during a few days. It was a bit nervous having such a serious setting for the recording when one wasn’t very experienced.

6. Only a year later came the “Man with the Chains” 12” EP. How come these tracks didn’t make the debut? You recorded them on 16-track reel to reel. How do you find working with this technique as opposed to the standardised digital approach that many find the convenient way to go about things?

Exodus to Hell took quite some time from recording to mixing to release, so we had plenty of time to write some new material. Lightning Rod Avenger was written and released as a video version very soon after the LP, and we wanted to record it for the MLP as well since it was such a good song, but the original video version was best I think. The recording technique was pretty much the same as on Exodus to Hell and I must say it’s not really worth the couple of percent of extra vintage sound if you aren’t an amazing singer/player, because it’s much more difficult to do retakes and you tend to let things through that aren’t great.

7. Next came a period of silence. An entire nine years before the second LP. What were you up to in these years? Writing? Playing shows? Fighting mutants?

There were a couple years of inactivity, some years where we played some shows and wrote some songs. But time flies fast and years go by with no release, unless one works as fast as during the writing of Killed by a Reaper.

8. 2019 saw the release of “From Life to Death”, an album nearly twice the length of its predecessor. Can you give us some information about the writing, recording and release of this one too?

For that one we had accumulated so many written songs over the preceding years that we thought we might as well make it a double LP. This time around we recorded it digitally but with re-amped guitars. At first we planned to do everything ourselves but we opted to let Olof do the mixing in the end. The album was released shortly before the pandemic so the touring plans we had didn’t come to fruition. But it was nice to be back at least album-wise after that long break.

9. So now we have covered the earlier portion of the band’s career. Do you still enjoy these records and take pride in what they achieved for Helvetets Port?

As I was pointing to earlier I very much enjoy the old songs, playing them live etc. The recordings themselves aren’t always the best when it comes to the performance. But they didn’t leave the listener indifferent, which is an important factor.

10. Before we step back to the present, I think it would be a huge mistake to not ask you to suggest some real cult gems from your collection. You are a man whose opinion on obscure metal I really respect and I would love it if you can tip off myself and my readers to some real rarities and relics you think we ought to check out. They can be old, new, Swedish, foreign; whatever you like!

Then the only restriction I will impose is that they should be in my collection. I will recommend some sorely overlooked stuff:

-Lezlie Paice (SWE) – Fightin’ Man 7″ 1983 – A single no one mentions. Maybe hasn’t aged perfectly, but I have really loved this single which is a lot heavier than I think people suspect.

-Overkill (GER) – Demo 1983 – One of the best demo tapes ever made, with three perfect songs representing three different styles.

-Harfang (FRA) – Slice of Life (compilation released 2017) – A band that released some demos and live stuff in the 80s which have such a forgotten and melancholic sound it almost hurts just to think of it.

11. 2024 saw Helvetets Port return with my favourite album to date; “Warlords”. This took the rough-around-the-edges charm of the two previous LPs but injected it with a certain confidence and increase in musicality that I felt perfectly balanced out into a really wonderful album. You know the drill by now, please can you talk us through what went into creating this album from inspirations to recording and productions?

I had grown to realise that my own perception of the weirdness of songs I write is much milder than other people’s perception, so I wanted to try and get to a level where people can take it all in better. So what I think is super straightforward, someone else might think is appropriately balanced, which I think is the case for this album. For the first time, all the songs were new as in they were all written after the prior release. The inspiration has been random sparks from our 80s predecessors as usual, but the biggest part is just kind of a self-propulsion of the style that we have developed. Once again we recorded the drums in a studio and the rest at home, and had Olof at the control knobs. So we continued refining the formula. It’s the release that I’m definitely the most happy with!

12. Based on your prior releases taking some years, it is probably too early to ask about new music. Though if I am mistaken, do tell us! But are you warlords working on anything new be it music or some cool shows?

The latest gap, 5 years, is still a bit longer than we would ideally want. So we have upped the tempo a notch further and have lots of songs that are basically fully written. We have a few shows coming up in 2026 but the main focus will be working toward a new album.

13. Helvetets Port is a band that doesn’t play a ton of live shows. Do you enjoy playing live? If so, what are some favourite memories from going into the arena? Feel free to give us a heads-up on upcoming dates too! I am yet to catch you live, but hope we can change that soon.

Yeah we do enjoy playing live, though living far apart and people having lots of stuff in their lives makes it so that the frequency of live shows isn’t what it could be. My favourite show in recent times was Dying Victims in Essen 2025, awesome crowd there! Next up is a festival called Ostämman in Sweden on July 17. Then three dates in Finland with Mindless Sinner September 3, 4 and 5. After that, once again in Sweden on October 9.

14. As has always been the way with these things, the last words are yours. Use them wisely…

Check out the band’s youtube channel where I have lots of discussion videos about heavy metal: 

https://www.youtube.com/@HelvetetsPort

It would be fun to hear from people in the comments there; about the topics discussed, about what you’d like to discuss. I think it’s important to imbue the heavy metal scene with all sorts of stuff and not only bands playing music: discussion, visual things, exhibitions, anything that helps to make the scene exciting. Also you who aren’t inclined to play music yourself can contribute a whole lot! 

Available in print as part of Shrieks From The Abyss fanzine issue 8! Buy here!