Ben Gillie - Heavy Metal Lumberjack

I managed to contact Anna earlier this year and secure an interview, asking about the future of Eluveitie and her solo work

1. How are you? are you enjoying promoting your solo project and touring with it?

Hello! I’m great, thank you! Right now I’m on tour with Anneke Van Giersbergen and I’m having an amazing time so far. 

2. could you tell me a bit more about your other bands? do you ever see yourself working more on other projects than eleuveitie?

Yeah I have quite a couple of bands. Fräkmündt is my Swiss folk project with some of my best friends. Lethe is an experimental project I have with Tor-Helge Skei. I’m also involved in Nucleus Torn which is Fredy Schnyders project. Meri Tadic (former violinist of Eluveitie) and I also have an experimental project called “godnr.universe!"

3. does it ever bother you that a lot of male fans find you to be very attractive?

Nope, don’t really care as long as it doesn’t get weird. 

4. what were your inspirations whilst making your solo album?

All sorts of things. The typical “love, unhappiness, sickness” stuff that’s on everybody’s mind from time to time. But also more “abstract” things that I can’t really describe where they came from. 

5. how do you find the time to be in so many musical projects?

Well I don’t really have that much time and I have to do one thing at a time. Sometimes I get into a lot of stress because I think I can do more than I actually can :-D

6. what exactly is a hurdy gurdy and what inspired you to learn how to play it?

A hurdy-gurdy is kind of like a mechanical violin. It’s existed since the medieval times and now it’s become kind of “a thing” again, there’s modern types of instruments and it’s also becoming quite popular in the rock culture. A band named “Faun” inspired me to play it. 

7. who has been your favourite band to tour with?

Anneke Van Giersbergen & Solstafir. 

8. what 3 things do you always take on tour with you?

Laptop, a good book & my hurdy-gurdy of course :-) 

9. what is the strangest thing a fan has said to you or given you?

Somebody once sent me a screenshot of a Youtube comment that said: “I’d love to lay Anna down in a forest and cover her with leaves” or something like that. That was really weird!

  10. do you have any plans to release more solo material in the future?

Yes, definitely! 

11. are you able to give me any details on the upcoming eleuveitie album?

It will be awesome :-) 

12. any plans for a uk tour with eleuveitie in the near future?

Yes, I think we already released some tour dates in fact…? 

13. if you could form a supergroup, what musicians would you put in it?

Tor-Helge Skei, Asgeir Hatlen & Eivind of Manes

John of Blutmond

Tal Wilkenfeld

Merlin of Eluveitie

Anneke Van Giersbergen

And that’s all I can think of for now :-D

  14. 3 favourite bands other than the ones you are in?

Manes, Sneaker Pimps, Archive, Urfaust… there’s many! 

15. any words of advice for fans of yours out there?

Why give a fuck if you can simply not give a fuck?

One of my biggest heroes the ultimate warrior has died, R.I.P

"Every man's heart one day beats its final beat, his lungs breath their final breath. And if what that man did in his life, makes the blood pulse through the body of others, and makes them believe deeper in something larger than life, then his essence, his spirit, will be immortalized by the storytellers, by the loyalty, by the memory, of those who honor him and make whatever the man did live forever."