DIMMU BORGIR guitarist Silenoz is featured in a new interview with Brandon Marshall at Sonic Excess. An excerpt is available below.

Q: Is the reason why there was such a gap between In Sorte Diaboli and Abrahadabra because of the high level of production involved?

Silenoz: "Not really. We were concentrated on touring, and we don’t really write music while we are on tour. Our touring cycle is one to two, or three years. Then, we start from scratch with the album. So, that is why it took us a few years."

Q: Has there been any discussion about performing live shows with a full orchestra and choir in selected cities?

Silenoz: "Yes. We are actually working on that at the moment, with one-off show in Norway this spring. I think it’s going to happen, but it takes a lot of planning. There is a lot of stuff that needs to be worked out, but it’s possible, and it’s time for us to do something like that. We have wanted to do it in the past as well, but the timing hasn’t been right. Now, with the band as it is now, we are the tightest we have been with any line-up we have had so far. If it goes well, then there is no reason why we can’t take it around the world with selected dates, because, let’s face it, touring with an orchestra is not really feasible, except for some cities, let’s say for example, Los Angeles, Sydney, Tokyo, or whatever (tour dates). It would have to be the bigger cities."

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Following is a review from Dimmu Borgir's recent visit to Toronto by BW&BK; scribe David Perri:

It seems like a simplistic concept, but the fogs of nostalgia unequivocally propel people in directions they wouldn't necessary gravitate towards otherwise. Case in point: Dimmu Borgir headlining show in Toronto on December 12, 2010, an absorption that was equal halves reminiscence and present-day for its factions of partisans, a division that was immediately, and unmistakably, clear on sight. On this night, if you were under 25, you were around to witness Dimmu redux 2010, a band whose latest record, Abrahadabra, is an event and a moment, one that will bring all sorts of melancholic longing for a present that won't seem quite this routine and ordinary when looking back ten years from now. For the over 25s, and especially those hovering in the 30 vicinity, this was a night where visions of 1999 came flooding back, those internal apparitions acting as the catalyst for spending a cold Sunday night in the company of Norway's most commercially succesful instantiation of the second wave black metal scene of Oslo/Bergen '91, even if Dimmu's sound hasn't been Euronymous-approved since, like, '94.

Dimmu's a theatrical band, and its emphasis on performance can't be overstated. But you know what you're in for when you commit to time with Enthrone Darkness Triumphant's creators, the group's symphonic black metal a bombastic foray into lands and spheres most us would rather not even contemplate in the here and now of the urban. But Dimmu knows how to entertain, and satan's court jesters offer the apple that led to the downfall in its most ripe appearance. Dimmu's delivery is honed and refined, the consummate professionalism on display being one that leads to flawless renditions of equally fretted-over and agonized-about (by Silenoz, in the studio) source material.

Though venturing head-first into new tracks off of Abrahadabra, the band made sure to satiate its original patrons. When Shagrath asked if there were any old-school Dimmu fans in the house, too many hands were raised in agreement. If you were there in '99, you know that the venues weren't nearly as big as Toronto's Sound Academy or Montreal's Metropolis. Foufounes Electriques is Canada's CBGB, and it's the size of a gravestone compared to the 2010 venues Dimmu is filling.

As Dimmu continues to fly too close to the symphonic sun, the band's popularity remains steadfast and wide-ranging. Death Cult Armageddon sold over 100,000 copies in North America in the mid-stages of this decade, and those types of numbers ensure a substantial following long after the vapor trails of the record's tour cycle have ebbed and faded. On a cold night in December in Toronto, Dimmu Borgir's flair, flamboyance and commitment to delivering the most proficient show possible brought a sense of comfort in knowing that many out there are still puritanical, euphoric and misanthropic.