CoC: It has been almost five years since _The Fireblade_. Was there any one event or reason which would cause this silence? Did _Tiurida_ take any longer to write and create?

Vratyas Vakyas: Sometimes there are no new melodies, no new ideas coming to my mind, and as I do not try to force new things, there's not too much I can do about it. There were no five years of hard work on _Tiurida_, there was just some time without any music at all, and this lead to those five years in the end.

CoC: You used the same session musicians as your previous two albums. Are Tyrann, Hagalaz and Bottlhorn becoming more integrated into the band?

VV: During the recordings, they contributed a lot to the songs already on the former albums. This time, Tyrann wrote one of the lyrics, Hagalaz added one part of a song, etc. Still, most of the work in advance is up to me, nevertheless those guys play a very important role. Without them Falkenbach wouldn't be what it is.

CoC: I noticed some Germanic themed songs on the album, specifically "Tanfana". Is the Germanic heritage in your songs as strong as the Norse influence?

VV: "Norse" in the end -is- "Germanic", nevertheless I think I know what you refer to. So the answer must be yes, I think. Falkenbach was and still is about all Germanic cultures, traditions, values, beliefs, etc.

CoC: What prompted the two tributes to Falkenbach?

VV: The idea came from a guy from Belgium back then. Unfortunately he had to quit his work due to personal reasons on short notice. I had to choose either to tell all the bands that they recorded the songs for nothing, or to release it on my own. All the bands had invested quite some time and even money for the recordings already. So I decided to take over the work.

CoC: Usually I ask for musical influences, but with you, I'm more interested in mythology. Is there any particular myth, story or poem that could be considered a primary influence or even a creed for Falkenbach?

VV: No particular one.

CoC: Falkenbach fans congregate on a message board where you frequently answer questions. Have you found this personal form of contact appealing?

VV: To me this seems to be much better than a pure homepage, because this forum is interactive. People are free to place their questions, and whenever there's time, I try to answer the best I can.

CoC: I would like you to recommend me any album, but the rules are it can be from any continent except for North America or Europe. I will accept albums from Antarctica.

VV: As I am not a follower of music in general, there's not too much I could recommend, unfortunately.

CoC: What is next for the Falkenbach project? Are there any plans for live performances?

VV: At the moment there are plans for a couple of live shows, but it's not 100% sure yet. Besides that, it seems the work on new songs is going faster than last time, so maybe a new album, if so, could be realized earlier then expected.