#1.) Hails to you! How are you and Mourning The Ancient doing?
We're doing well, Mourning the Ancient is coming along well also. The Sunless Dawn is beginning to shine....

#2.) Let's start with some Mourning The Ancient history. The idea was born in 1995 right, originally to be in a paper form?
Yes, we experienced various common problems and some not-so common problems in the beginning. We didn't desire for Mourning the Ancient to appear on the internet, especially since it's such an impersonal way of expressing yourself or an idea. Unfortunately, after almost three years of working on material, we decided it was our best alternative. One night the idea surfaced, and within a week MTA was online after three years of waiting. After we finish the video and photo cd-rom projects we'll work on putting things to paper also. It's strange really, for three years only about 4 people saw our work, now after about four months 1000's have seen it... It's something hard to get used to, as we're usually very solitary people.

#3.) With the problems of getting into paper form, was there any problems with printing quality as well? I ask because this is one major problem I had with getting Realms into paper. Everywhere I went it was either insane cost or shitty quality.
Yeah, I suppose that's a very common problem with underground publications. Since we concentrate on the video/photographic side of things, our costs tend to be quite high. Its a small price to pay though really, if your endeavors are motivated by things other than material. Mourning the Ancient is our vision and our voice...

#4.) Alright well, I suppose it would be best for you to explain in your words what Mourning The Ancient is all about.... its main focus and intent?
We focus on various things we find important to us. Truth, ancient religion, death, 'Armageddon,' etc. ... these are some of the things that are paramount in our lives, as they have always been since we were young. The four aforementioned topics are all intertwined in numerous ways. They are both fascinating, and at times disheartening. Such ideals as truth many find inconvenient and frightening. But the grand truth coming to this world will be as undeniable as it is deadly. The grand silencer of lies and the great awakening to the weary and sleeping.

#5.) Let's talk about the "Expansion Rune" for a moment, the official symbol for Mourning The Ancient. Tell us who came up with this and it's meaning besides a symbol for M.T.A.? As I read the story about it on you site and was quite interested in it more.
The expansion rune was born along side Mourning the Ancient. We needed a strong image to be our banner. The pentagram itself was used as a symbol of truth in various ancient cultures long before the birth of Christianity. Like most 'pagan' imagery, Christianity perverted it, and wrongful most think it to be a symbol representing evil. But in fact, it is a 'heathen' rune of truth. The points that we added to the rune represent 'expansion.' So the two combined are 'the expansion of truth.' To us, there is much hidden beyond its edges and angles. An unspoken, alluring power associated with it. It is Mourning the Ancient, as Mourning the Ancient is it.

#6.) Ok, all photography was originally done with a Polaroid and then a 35 mm camera right? But then you had problems with film developers not wanting to develop the photography you create. What did you do then and are you now working with a film developer at all?
Yes, our problems were very numerous when it came to photography. (i.e. equipment, props, outside developers, etc.) Everything began with 10 Polaroids, late one night three years or so ago. The initial photos are nothing too spectacular to us, but we plan to release some of them on the photo cd-rom, due to a lot of interest. For awhile we used various 35mm cameras, until we got fed up with the squeamish developers. Now a days we use digital cameras... so those problems are a thing of our past. If not for the invention of digital cameras, we would be using our own darkroom. Nothing will hinder us.

#7.) What about the video Mourning The Ancient are going to release soon, fill us in on the details of this?
It's planned to be released sometime this winter. We had planned on releasing something of this sort a long time ago, but until now we had not the knowledge or equipment to see it through. To sum up the technical aspects, it will be released limited in all formats. It will be available in the VHS formats of NTSC (USA, etc.) and PAL (Europe) ... The latter being more limited than the NTSC. Each format will have different cover art and additional footage unique to the respective format. The content of the video (we estimate will be roughly 45 minutes long) will be in much the same vein of our photography, but with themes of sorts put to approximately five segments or so. Several well known musicians of the scene and several not-so well known musicians will be doing the soundtrack. Among them, Peter K. of Abigor and Mark Riddick of ...The Soil Bleeds Black to name a few. This will be our first effort, our video demo of sorts, so it will only be available for a short time.

#8.) So if these video demo's work out well fans of Mourning The Ancient can expect more video releases in future times?
Yes indeed. It is very likely we will continue our work in this area in the future.

#9.) Mourning The Ancient has done interveiws with some great bands like Abigor, Broken Hope, The Soil Bleeds Black, Siebenburgen, and Master to name a few. Who usually does the interveiws for Mourning The Ancient and how has the public responded to your interveiws? As well who are your favorite bands?
Both of us usually do the interviews. It depends on how busy we are really. Our readers respond quite well to our questioning of the bands. We try to delve beyond music, into the philosophical realms. We think its very important to know the people behind it all. So questions of a non-musical sort are most important to us. And quite often we are rewarded with some very intellectual thoughts. An example of some of the bands that we find most worthy are: Burzum, Abigor, Weltenbrand, Opera IX, Ordo Equitum Solis, Countess, Barathrum, Arcana, ...The Soil Bleeds Black, etc. ....

#10.) What about the other things that make up Mourning The Ancient like the poetry and stories can you tell us some about this?
Well, obviously the poetry represents our thoughts and philosophies, sometimes in an abstract, hidden sense. It voices our hatred and scorn for existence. The hopelessness of life itself. Our fascination and love to our quest for ultimate truth. Which, in the end, the ultimate, undeniably truth, is alas Death. The one sole truth none contest. Lively, beautiful oblivion...

#11.) Do you find unity, tranquility, and a certain unexplainable desire for darkness, in death and it's many alluring qualities? I don't know why I ask this really, but I do and it is indeed a fuel to my entity in many ways.
Yes, and I believe all humans have an attraction to the 'darker' things in life. Its always been very strong and prevalent in me personally....

#12.) Who are the two women models for Mourning The Ancient photography? And I read on your site that the photography are meant to reflect anger and sorrow is this right? Is there any means to create a form of eroticness in the photo's in any way, be it dark or whatever?
I am one of the females in the photography. The very first pic on our page is of me. The other female is a comrade of MTA whom assists when needed. Anger and sorrow are indeed reflected, but other emotions accompany these. The eroticism of some of our latest pics represent many things to the keen eye. For example, our latest works, we chose a theme of eroticism/suicide. It depicts a soft longing for death. An inner element of all human beings is an attraction to death and the unknown. Suicide can be a very powerful, brave action. If of course, for the right purpose. In days of old, the brave would choose suicide rather than old age or death from their enemies hands. A sure way to judge a person is the way he/she lives and the way he/she dies. A flick of the wrist, and life fades, the laughter dies, the arguments end... Silence, beautiful, terrible silence.....

#13.) The name "Mourning The Ancient" has a meaning to behind it can you tell us what that meaning is meant to be?
Mourning the Ancient represents our longing for the days of old. When people yet had values like honor and bravery. Where truth yet had a place in peoples lives. Men were men, and women were women, and both had there place, in nature and in civilization. Mankind was in tune with his destiny. Death came quick to the weak and the deserving. Now humankind deems 'himself' the victor of nature, and 'he' strives to even conquer death. Nature shall deal a fatal blow to this traitor. We are guilty as a race to let this happen. Now we sift through our synthetic, meager lives and wonder where it all went wrong. Why our civilizations have become cesspools of decay. Greed and lust motivate the lowly tyrants of this barren world. But there is hope, a mighty destruction shall right the wrongs and put 'man' in 'his' place... Ragnarok cometh.

#14.) What about Mourning The Ancient merchandise? You have shirts and bracers that I am aware of. Is there anything else available at the moment or anything else being planned besides the video?
Besides what you mentioned there's the photo cd-rom planned to be released shortly after the video. We have recently erected a hidden photo gallery page for our supporters, comrades and friends. This contains additional photos from our current shoots and older photos all unavailable in the public galleries. Its a small thanks and a symbol of our gratitude to those worthy souls worldwide who share our vision and assist in our endeavors.

#15.) How about religious standings? What are your veiws and believes?
To state briefly, Mourning the Ancient is a vehicle of 'heathen' ideas and it embraces the ways of old. Therefore, we stand firmly against Christianity. It has dealt untold damage to worldwide cultures and religions of the past. It is a religion of murder, intolerance, guilt and weakness... and alien to the lands outside of where it was born. The great deities of Europe shall exact their vengeance upon this intruder. The sons and daughters of all the old religions Christianity sought to destroy are slowly opening their eyes. It is a bloodthirsty religion bent on destruction. A spiritual plague which shall destroy mankind if he does not rise and sever this cancer from his life. We have nothing but scorn and the blackest of hatred for a religion which murdered our ancestors.

#16.) Do you have any writers and artists other then yourselfs you like to indulge upon?
Yes, they are numerous. We are interested in a vast array of subjects. Unfortunately, our time is very limited these days, so reading is very spread out. But it is still a big part of our lives....

#17.) Ok well, thank you both very much for this interview on Mourning The Ancient !! I really appreciate you taking the time. Eternal Hails to you both and hope to see more and a better Mourning The Ancient in the near future! Is there anything either of you wish to add before we close?
Thanks to you Kevin... seek ever the truth they hide from our eyes...
Beneath the golden rays of the Sunless Dawn... the tyrants blood shall flow......

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