Ihsahn (born 1975), born Vegard Sverre Tveitan, is a Norwegian guitar, bass… Read Full Bio ↴Ihsahn (born 1975), born Vegard Sverre Tveitan, is a Norwegian guitar, bass and keyboard player and vocalist. He is best known for his work with Norwegian black metal band Emperor. He played in Peccatum with his wife Ihriel (real name Heidi S. Tveitan) until 2006 and has appeared in Thou Shalt Suffer, Zyklon-B and Hardingrock, and now devotes himself to his solo project, Ihsahn. In very early releases he went by the name Ygg.

Born in the town of Notodden, Norway, Tveitan began playing piano at seven and guitar at ten and began recording songs shortly thereafter. His influences range from heavy metal, classical, ambient and techno. He grew up on a large farm in rural Norway.

Tveitan first met his partner in numerous musical projects, Tomas Thormodsæter Haugen (a.k.a. Samoth) at the age of thirteen at a music seminar. Tveitan gained Haugen's attention with his Iron Maiden patches. In 1991 they formed Thou Shalt Suffer together, a death/black metal band where Tveitan was guitarist and keyboardist. They produced several releases before Haugen left the band. Tveitan was left as the only member of the band and continues it to this day as a side-project. Unlike his solo work under his own name, Ihsahn's latest compositions for Thou Shalt Suffer are predominately keyboard-based and more classical in nature and influence.

After Haugen's departure from Thou Shalt suffer, the two formed Emperor where Tveitan again played guitar and provided vocals and keyboards. Emperor had a much more refined black metal sound which showcased Tveitan's developing keyboard sound, a distinct feature that would appear in his later releases. The band at this time received much support and encouragement from black metal pioneer Euronymous (member of the black metal band Mayhem) and after several demos, In the Nightside Eclipse was released to much acclaim.

Shortly thereafter, bandmates Haugen and Bård Eithun (a.k.a. Faust) were arrested and imprisoned leaving Tveitan to his own devices. He retreated to a property owned by his family to compose much of what would later become Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk, which was recorded after the parole of Haugen.

In 1995 the cult album Blood Must Be Shed from Zyklon-B was released featuring members of Emperor and Satyricon, with Tveitan on synth. In 1998 Tveitan formed, along with his wife Heidi Tveitan (a.k.a. Ihriel), the highly experimental project Peccatum. In 1999 Emperor released IX Equilibrium.

Peccatum would feature his trademark synth sound as well as clean and black vocals. Over the years Peccatum has released five albums and EPs and was Tveitan's main project until the project was ended in early March 2006.

In 2001, the final Emperor album was realesed. A studio album, Prometheus: The Discipline of Fire & Demise was entirely composed by Tveitan and featured much more complex melodies than previous works. It had significantly less synth than before. It was at this time Emperor mutually decided to dissolve, leaving the band with more time to focus on side projects.

On September 30th 2005, Emperor made a surprise return at Scream's 15-year anniversary party in Oslo at the Rockefeller. The move was kept top secret, was only known by a handful of people, and they played three songs only. This was to announce the reuniting of the band for a few shows around Europe and America in 2006, namely at the Wacken Open Air festival and Inferno Festival.

His first solo album The Adversary was released in April 2006. All work was done by him with the exception of percussion, which was done by Asgeir Mickelson (Borknagar, Vintersorg and others). It showcases his progressive influences as well as heavy metal, black metal and classical music. The album was recorded at Symphonique Studios in Norway and is to be released on his label Mnemosyne Productions, which was formed in 2003 with Ihriel. A video accompanies the track Invocation.

As well as being a talented musician, Tveitan is also a capable artist and once considered doing the artwork for a Thou Shalt Suffer album. He presently lives in Notodden, Norway with his wife and one dog, an Akita Inu. He also teaches music at the local school.

From Official Myspace:
Just thirty years of age, Ihsahn has traveled far beyond his rural beginnings. In little more than a decade, the largely self-taught musician has amassed a resume that when combined exceeds more than three quarters of a million worldwide album sales. His cumulative professional accolades include a 2001 Spelleman (Norwegian Grammy) Award nomination, 2003 Notodden City Cultural Award, and countless "Best of" class honors in internationally respected metal and rock magazines including Terrorizer, Metal Maniacs, Revolver, Kerrang!, Guitar World and many more. Now with The Adversary, the former Emperor vocalist/guitarist steps outside the comforts of an ensemble or collaboration and commands for the first time his most challenging project - a solo album.

He also contributed vocals on Devin Townsend Project's album, Deconstruction.

Discography:

Thou Shalt Suffer:
1991 - Into the Woods of Belial (Demo)
1991 - Open the Mysteries of Your Creation (Demo)
1997 - Into the Woods of Belial (Compilation), (Re-issued 2004)
2000 - Somnium

Emperor:
Full Length:
1994 - In the Nightside Eclipse
1997 - Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk
1999 - IX Equilibrium
2001 - Prometheus: The Discipline of Fire & Demise

Live Albums:
2000 - Emperial Live Ceremony

Compilation Albums:
1998 - Wrath of the Tyrant
2001 - Emperial Vinyl Presentation
2003 - Scattered Ashes: A Decade of Emperial Wrath

Split Albums:
1993 - Emperor / Hordanes Land - Split with Enslaved
1999 - Thorns vs. Emperor - Split with Thorns
2000 - True Kings of Norway - Split with Immortal, Dimmu Borgir, Ancient and Arcturus

Singles/EPs:
1993 - Emperor
1994 - As the Shadows Rise
1996 - Reverence

Demos/Promos:
1992 - Wrath of the Tyrant

Bootlegs:
1995 - A Midsummer Night's Dream
1997 - Conquering Europe
1999 - Live in Frostland

Videography:
1997 - The Loss and Curse of Reverence (Promo Video)
2000 - Emperial Live Ceremony (VHS/DVD)
2001 - Empty (Promo Video)

Peccatum:
1999 - Strangling from Within
2000 - Oh, My Regrets (EP)
2001 - Amor Fati
2004 - Lost in Reverie
2005 - The Moribund People (EP)

Ihsahn: (Solo-albums)
2006 - The Adversary
2008 - Angl
2010 - After
2012 - Eremita
2013 - Das Seelnbrechen
2016 - Arktis
2018 - ÀMR

Hardingrock:
2007 - Grimen

Guest appearances and session:
1995 - Ildjarn - Det Frysende Nordariket (Session vocals on various tracks)
1995 - Wongraven - Fjelltronen (Session synth)
1995 - Zyklon-B - Blood Must Be Shed (Session synth and guitar)
1998 - Ulver - Themes from William Blake's The Marriage of Heaven & Hell (Guest vocals on A Song of Liberty)
2002 - Arcturus - The Sham Mirrors (Guest vocals on Radical Cut)
2002 - Star of Ash - Iter.Viator. (Various roles including guitar and bass duties)
2011 - Devin Townsend Project - Deconstruction (Guest vocals on Juular)
2012 - Jeff Loomis - Plains Of Oblivion (Guest vocals on Surrender)

Called By The Fire
Ihsahn Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

The sky is clouded and grey
like a mirror
Dreams of celestial bliss
buried deep
An invisible web of whispers
spread out over dead-end streets
silently blessing the virtue of sleep

I'm still
Called by the fire
My spirit
Called by the fire
Yes, i'm still
Called by the fire
Called by the fire

Eternally

The flickering light
The heat of the flame
creates and devours
In my soul there is night

Every day I grow more immune
to social sedatives
Every day the web is more
transparent
United in fear and the comfort of reason
illusions that we are all peers
Walking the stairs I am ever more awake

The black cloud is beneath me
and I laugh

Overall Meaning

In "Called By The Fire," Ihsahn paints a bleak picture of modern society, where people are lulled into a false sense of security by social sedatives and illusions of equality. The sky is a metaphor for the state of humanity; it is clouded and gray, like a mirror reflecting the inner turmoil and lack of purpose. The dreams of celestial bliss are buried deep, perhaps due to the overpowering presence of the invisible web of whispers that silently blesses the virtue of sleep. This web may represent the illusion of comfort and ease that comes with conforming to societal norms and values.

Despite this, the singer is still called by the fire - a symbolic representation of intense passion and emotion. The fire burns bright even amidst the darkness, hinting at a desire to break free from the shackles of social conformity and embrace one's true self. The final line, "The black cloud is beneath me, and I laugh," suggests a sense of detachment from the physical world, perhaps as a result of rising above the illusions of society and discovering one's true identity.

Line by Line Meaning

The sky is clouded and grey
The sky is overcast and grey in color.

like a mirror
It looks like a reflection of something seen in a mirror.

Dreams of celestial bliss
Thoughts of heavenly happiness.

buried deep
Tucked away in a hidden place.

An invisible web of whispers
A network of inaudible murmurings that cannot be seen.

spread out over dead-end streets
Extended throughout streets that have no exit.

silently blessing the virtue of sleep
Quietly approving and promoting the goodness of rest.

I'm still
I remain.

Called by the fire
Drawn towards the flame.

My spirit
My soul.

Yes, i'm still
Certainly, I remain.