The Silence of Gaahl | True Norwegian Black Metal

On January 2007 Photographer Peter Beste took the Vice team to Gaahls home town in Norway. Vice shot a documentary film by the name of True Norwegian Black Metal which predominantly focused on True Norwegian Black metal band Gorgoroth of Which Gaahl is a primary member. The film also took a strong interest in Gaahls personal life and the message behind the music.

True Norwegian Black Metal | Vice Documentary on Gaahl, Gorgoroth and Black Metal

The focus of this article is the silence of Gaahl. At the end of the Documentary The interviewer asks Gaahl the following question.

You’re one of the very view people who is worthy of the title of a Elite person.
Is it Lonely?

To which Gaahl replied.

I don’t think that you ask me the right questions.
I don’t think that you're focusing on what is being taught.

To which the interviewer replied.

Guide Me

Gaahl did not guide him. At least not in a way that would seem obvious. Instead he went in to silence and sat there as if he was frozen in time.
Why is it that Gaahl chose not to answer, and went in to this awkward silence I can not know for certain as I am not him. I can only guess why he chose silence. But I am fairly certain as to what triggered Gaahls response.

The Reason for Gaahls Silence

Lets begin at the beginning. From the very start of the Documentary Gaahl has been telling a message which is very important to him. It starts with his view on God and Christianity and he spoke the following sentences.

Christianity is based only on stolen souls and lives. So of course every trace of them should be erased.

The Flock and The Sheep, its the Christians themselves that’s chosen this word from the bible. You have the Goat, and you have the Sheep. So the sheep is the one that belongs to god and the Goat is the one that will be punished because they have a free will.

What the fall of the false gods will do basically. It will allow you to focus on the God within yourself. Because that is the only true God, the God within everything. It is the only thing for me that is worth calling God. It is the highest spirit of everything, and not this control freak, that is telling you, you are not supposed to do this! You’re not supposed to do this! You are only supposed to bow down and kneel before what I say. Don’t think its more than anything else. God is within men, god is within Nature, and nature will always grow. That's the force of all Life, is to grow.

The Christian God is a centralized Entity which Gaahl mentions is a control freak. A Elite who gets people to bow down before his will. He talks about the sheep which symbolizes the follower and the Goat which symbolizes free will and independence. Gaahl would like every trace of Christianity erased, so that people can stop being followers, and instead follow their own path and focus on the God within who which is not centralized and neither a leader nor a follower but the highest spirit within everything.

His stance on Leadership and following applies not only to Christianity, but to everyone including himself. He makes this clear when he talks about himself and his music.

I have no interest in getting a flock of sheep that’s just following me because I’m the same one direction, and they walk that direction. then it would be just as bad as society is. So fear is necessary to separate the ones that’s willing to be lead. Or the one who chose to lead himself.

He says that he uses fear as a tool to prevent people from following him like a flock of sheep. Or to deter people from becoming leaders themselves. Gaahl disapproves of societies mentality of the leader, the king, the elite and the submissive follower who is really a slave.

As long as nature is not allowed to rule by the laws of nature. There will always be King and there will always be slave.

Now that we have emphasized Gaahls message. Let's return to the end of the Documentary when Gaahl is asked.

You’re one of the very view people who is worthy of the title of a Elite person.
Is it Lonely?

Being a worthy elite person sounds awfully reminiscent of leaders, kings and their submissive inferiors. Gaahl has so heavily emphasized throughout this documentary that there should be no leaders and no followers. He does not want a flock of sheep following him. Because then he would be no better than society is.
And so Gaahl spoke the following and final sentence in response tho this question.

I don’t Think That you ask me the right questions.
I don’t think that your focusing on what is being taught.

Following this sentence Gaahl went in to silence.

The Silence of Gaahl | True Norwegian Black Metal

True Norwegian Black Metal | Vice Documentary on Gaahl, Gorgoroth and Black Metal

The Reason for Gaahls Silence

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