The piece is split roughly down the following lines:

Why is it a classic? (I would say it is yet to become moreso)

- i dont really know that it is a "classic", im flattered its considered so by some people and even more flattered that people are split generally between journey, spirit and gathering as to which is our definitive work.

considering most bands debut or sophomore efforts are considered their "classics" we can only take positives from that. Honestly I think an album like Journeys End will have something of the Into the Pandemoniums about it, and Primordial in general. Not until we shuffle of this mortal metal coil and call it a day will people really recognise how different what we were doing really was. Of course that sounds somewhat arrogant and Im not suggesting we have had the same impact as Celtic Frost of course nor will but in certain rather smaller circles I think I could be justified in saying that...

What where the inspirations?

- Hard to say really, we went through a really tough time after our first album, changing drummers along the way and labels and generally not getting along with each other at all, in fact many times we thought 1996 and 1997 might be the end of the band completely, but we hung in there and went to academy with two thirds of an album and along the way I suppose you could say bonded and it made us stronger as a band and as people. But a lot of bitterness, anger and darkness went into the album. I think you can hear that.

How was it received at the time? (4/5 wasnt it?)

- primordial has been somewhat lucky in that respect in that we have always got great press. its just with journeys end for the first time we began to speak to the press, see reviews. so for the first time we got some idea how the band was percieved outside of the people we wrote letters with and the few uk mags we read. the concept of doing interviews with people from poland or even germany was something totally new. I think at the time according to the review which i only read the other day strangely enough stopping the album getting full marks was nick terry feeling some sections were over long and eh...boring !. Some fans of course of the more black metal sound of the first album found it a little hard to get into but we never really thought about any of that when making it.

How important was the artwork? (both the 'brown' and the 'face')

- actually the brown artwork was something that in hindsight i totally regret.

i was basically told to change what i wanted and was on the promos...the face of the old man because misanthropy didnt like it. so it got advertised with one cover and then sent out to the shops with another. of course i should have stuck to my guns and told them where to get of. but we were younger and more naive and ended up being more or less black mailed to change it. in hindsight it still makes me angry as we were treated with disrespect that a norwegian band for example would never have been treated with, somehow we were lesser artists by comparison. the cover you see on the promos, vinyl and subsequent re-releases by hammerheart and now plastic head is THE cover.

How influential did it prove to be? (Again i'd say it's yet to really be felt + demise of Misanthropy etc)

- i really dont know. at the time very little really. the sales were not that impressive, they were ok, ok in time it became sort of a sleeper "hit" or something that continually sells a bit, ok being at the time on the same label as burzum really put paid to your chances of selling much in germany but the band got stronger and moved on after that but in the last while the amount of bands adding themselves to our myspace who cite us as an influence or sound like us in some ways is quite staggering. I guess its taken time for our influence to be felt. as for the misanthropy thing ?, well its true they did have this artistic clique surrounding them and a very high standard generally in regard to everything they did and i respect tiz completely for quitting when she did and not milking the cash cow. it was interesting and rewarding to be part of that, but personally we needed to move on and i only wish we could have moved to metal blade almost as soon as misanthropy finished. we were a metal band, our live show more then anything attested to that and being compared to the likes of monumentum or fleurety really did us few favours as regards getting out there, playing and going on tour.

later