Greetings, Tommi! Quite recently NOMICON released few brand new tracks in the shape of a promo CD. Consequently, I want you to introduce this effort to our readers...

- I guess you can't anymore say it was released recently, because it came out last year already, but anyway, Promo '98 CD includes 3 new songs. It shows NOMICON as a trio, featuring me on programming, bass & vocals, Roope on guitars and Agathon on drums. All these 3 songs will come to my next full-length album as well, naturally as better versions. After all, we didn't have that much time for recording the promo, so it's enough only to give you a clue about NOMICON's current sound. Promo '98 CD is still available by sending 40 FIM / 8US$ (Europe) / 9$ (world) in cash to me. You'll get something from my list as a bonus! (Tommi means one of the Aquarius Productions' items - ED)

Why is it a promo only? Did you leave Shiver Records? If so, I wonder why? Have you got a new deal already?

- Promo '98 CD was recorded and released mainly for dealhunting after I left Shiver. They just didn't put as much effort to my music as I hoped, so I decided I better go on. I guess NOMICON would be signed to one German label already, but I didn't sign their proposal yet, because of several reasons it isn't possible for us to go to studio as soon as I planned. That's why I decided to try some more labels. Hah, but it seems this German label really wants NOMICON, because they called me a couple of days ago (the interview was taken in August '99 - ED) and said they'll send me a better deal to check! More news about that withing a month...

That promo CD mentioned above, features Agathon on drums, while there's no Whisper's voice anymore. Any explanations for that?

- Whisper is nowadays involved in many bands, too. This made me to think it might be difficult to get her to studio and live when needed, so I decided better to continue without her. What comes to Agathon, he was a natural choice for me. First I thought that Janne, who did some drums for "Yellow", would be a good drummer for NOMICON, but he seems to be too busy. Besides, Agathon has learned to play fast blasts, haha! Fast parts have always been important part of NOMICON's music, so there will be them in the next album also.

Do you really consider Jussi Heikkinen to be a good producer / sound engineer? I think the answer is "yes", since he worked with you on "Promo '98 CD"...

- More important reason that he ended up being behind the mixing desk, is his work. You know, in the place he works, there's a small studio which he can use. More than that, it doesn't cost very much, so there were some financial reasons, too. Nothing wrong in Jussi, but those fucking computers in the studio almost destroyed our recording! I can't even remember how many times we had to boot them over and over again and try to play some parts "once more"! Roope suffered the most.

When we were talking with Jussi, he called you a "bloodbrother". Is that true?

- Yes.

Also, one of the bands led by Mr. Heikkinen (TENEBRAE {R.I.P.}) has a song "Wounds" which seems to be dedicated to your person. If that's true, it means that you're into all that S / M stuff?

- I'm not that much interested in S/M stuff, but Jussi made those lyrics after he cut the flesh of my arm to the bone with a razor blade! It happened in one local bar when me, Jussi and Agathon were going through a several days-lasting heavy drinking session. That day we were already quite far from "normal life" and from something, got a great idea of buying those blades. Then in the evening in the bar I noticed Jussi going around with one of them. So, I asked him to cut my arm. Neither of us knew it would go so deep and very much blood started to flow. Two girls at our side started to throw up. I had to go to hospital for operation. Almost lost the ability to use my right hand. Operation was fast and we could still go to another bar the same night. So, this story has a happy ending. As has the story when it was Agathon's turn to go to hospital. As has the story when it was Jussi's turn to go to hospital. Maybe my turn again next time?

Ok, let's get back to NOMICON. "The Me" - split CD with SARNATH, was your first-ever "official" recording. Would you like to talk about it a bit?

- "The Me" was recorded with "previous" NOMICON about 1 1/2 years before it's release. The reason for the delay was that it was recorded to be released by English Tombstone Records and not for Shiver Records! After all, the guy (Mark Gray) behind Tombstone and some other "labels" didn't keep any of his promises and I had to find another label to release "The Me". Shiver answered positively.

Back in 1994 you composed extremely complicated stuff in the vein of so-called "techno (or progressive) death metal", while both "Yellow" and "Promo '98 CD" appear as pure vanguard black metal. How can you explain this (rather weird) metamorphosis?

- I don't see anything weird in it. It has to do with so many things. Several changes in line-up, changes in my musical taste, changes in my personal life, changes in the equipment and other resources I can use, etc, etc... Besides, I don't see "Yellow" as pure BM, it's still very "techno", it has still very much to do with death- and even thrash metal. If this metamorphosis is weird, the only explanation for it is that NOMICON is a weird band. If I succeed, none of my following albums sound the same to each other. There will be no new "The Me", there will be no new "Yellow".

Can you tell what kind of musical and spiritual development (if there was any) NOMICON endured throughout years - taking "The Me", "Yellow" and "Promo '98 CD" as examples...

- Musical development is involved with two main things: first, my personal development as a musician and second, how developed musicians the other persons involved in NOMICON are. On "Yellow" I had very professional musicians around me already and now the situation is maybe even better. The same goes for "spiritual" development, I don't know how developed we were as musicians during "The Me", but at least "spiritually" (I still don't know how much I believe in so-called spirituality) on "Yellow" the situation is far ahead. Now as we are a trio, maybe we are even more tight, mentally also. What is this bullshit I'm talking about??? Forget this bullshit. Next question...

By the way, you did that split CD together with SARNATH and I wonder what happened to that band. Are they still alive?

- I guess they're more or less alive as I remember I've seen some ads of their albums.

And now the time has come to discuss "Yellow", don't you think? Let's talk about the lyrical concept behind it. Also, such titles as "Claritas", "Predestination" or "Fall" sound rather strange, at least for a black metal band. Moreover, why "Yellow"?

- Why not "Yellow"? I think it's good title because of so many interpretations of the word "yellow". In one sense "Yellow" is a very anti-yellow album. What comes to the song-titles, they come from the situation the concept story of the album is during that particular song. ... But they have something to do with my studies in theoretical philosophy in the university of Helsinki, too! Can't deny that. For example, study what Thomas Aquinas says about art (painting) and you'll run to "Claritas". To pre-destination you can run anywhere, studying the problem of free will, for example. Nowadays I'm not so interested in that kind of things anymore, I've decided to leave the world to be.

What caused such a hatred against muslims inside of you? Don't you think that x-tianity appears as much more serious problem at the moment?

- I think Islam is way more dangerous than christianity right now! I couldn't seriously think it's cool to mock the christian god who's dead already.

What are you going to do after Mecca is destroyed?

- It's destroyed already, so it's time to move on.

Am I right supposing that computers are an inalienable part of your band's sound?

- From 1996 they have been and will be in the next album, too. I don't say anything what it'll be after that.

Could you please tell us more of the way you produce your stuff? Are there any special modes to use various "cakewalks", "sound forges" and MIDI stuff?

- I just use my mouse in piano roll window. Yeah, Cakewalk-program I've to use, because it sends SMPTE-code that is necessary to transform my midi-instruments to analog-tape. Sound Forge I haven't used. I don't want to be too particular in explaining this, but doing songs with computer needs some additional time in studio, before live-instruments (guitars, basses, drums, vocals) can be recorded. It normally needs 1-2 days for all computer shit before anyone can go to real business!

Somehow I believe that playing live with NOMICON still stays only a dream for you?

- Wrong. Even if there was a huge time of 3 1/2 years that NOMICON didn't play live (since 1993), after "Yellow" we did some live shows. One the stage there were only me on bass & vocals, Roope on guitars and Whisper on female vocals. Other stuff, even drums came from background DAT. Now, as Agathon has joined, NOMICON will still remain trio in live, but there will be real drums. It just seems Whisper has to be put on tape, too.

Your band's line-up has been constantly changing throughout the years, therefore: NOMICON = Tommi Launonen?

- I guess you can put it that way. NOMICON is a very personal thing to me.

Roope Latvala from WALTARI currently plays guitar in NOMICON, while Janne Parviainen (also from WALTARI) participated in your former effort's recording, so it looks like there's a strong relationship between your bands?

- I wouldn't talk as much about strong relationship between NOMICON and WALTARI as I would talk about strong relationship between me and Roope. He's just a good friend of mine, simple as that. "Yellow" was recorded at WALTARI's rehearsal place with rent equipment (from STRATOVARIUS) and Janne used to hang around there quite often. He liked the stuff and wanted to play some drums. I said OK. Otherwise, "Yellow" is handmade by me and Roope. We did everything from the beginning to the end (mixing). He did even more that I could! Roope is much better with studio eqipment than me, but I learned a lot within that month.

Getting further into the subject mentioned above, I haven't heard anything from WALTARI since "Space Avenue" - did they release anything else during past few years?

- I'm not so good in this, because I don't follow WALTARI's things that closely, neither I ask Roope about them so often. I think they had some trouble with their deal after "Space Avenue"... Since then they have been recording some stuff, but I don't know if they have released something or not. One thing I know is that quite soon they'll do the follow-up to their death metal symphony (do you know "Yeah, Yeah, Die, Die..."?), because the recordings of that is one reason for delay in NOMICON's recordings!

NOMICON is not the only band you take part in...

- I'm on bass in GLOOMY GRIM, vocals in SOULGRIND (new album out soon on Holy Records) and bass + vocals in WALHALLA (we're just recording our debut album for Root'O'Evil Records, USA).

If I'm not mistaken, you started your own label / distribution service lately and Aquarius Productions is the name it carries. Here's a chance for you to promote it a bit.

- Actually, Aquarius started some years ago, when I started to distribute the releases of the bands I was involved in. So, in the beginning there was only something like 5 items on my list. But then, mainly because of trading it started to grow quite fast and now there're over 200 items I distribute. It has been my aim to make a "real" label out of it from the beginning, but always my dreams have collapsed to financial reasons. So, still now I call it "only" a distribution, but of course, write for my free mailorder list.

What do you know (and think) about Russia as well as it's people? What about the metal acts coming from our lands, have you heard any?

- When I was much younger, I visited Leningrad (nowadays St. Petersburg) when you were still "Soviet Union". So, the only time I've actually visited Russia, was the Moscow airport on my way to Tokyo two years ago. I can't say so accurate things about your country, only that it seems you haven't got your economy going on well after you became Russia again. That's why I think there must be quite much crime. And that's why, Finnish people have a feeling that Russian people are dishonest. At least all are not, because I've had and still have some co-operation with labels / distributions from your country (greetings to Vlad and R.I.P. Productions! Though... fuck the Russian postal service!). I know TALES OF DARKNORD, CHILDERMAS, CUMDEO, ICE DESERT, MIKHAIL ATOM, PROMONTORY, SKYTHRONE, THRON', for example. All these bands I carry in my mailorder.

I fear that's all, Tommi. You can say anything you wish for the end...

- Thank you Kai, very much for this interview! Sorry about my delay in answering...

NOMICON contact -
Email: tlaunone@cc.helsinki.fi