Ashes of The Desert God

 

Here is the full story of how the burned (in June 1992) Fantoft Stave church photo taken and then became a cover in the iconic ASKE EP. One of the most cult Black Metal releases ever!

Answered by Are Mundal

You took the photos of Fantoft Stave Church in ashes used on the cover of the Aske mini-LP. Would you please share some of the details of this very fascinating story?

Yes, for instance I went to see Varg in Ibsensgt. to deliver some guitar equipment, and he asked me if I could take a picture of the Fantoft stave church that had just burned down. He lent me his camera and I went there on my way home to take the pictures I was asked too. This was later that day, and there were some bystanders and fire fighters still on the premises. They were doing some post fire security work, and the heat was still radiating from the ruins and the ground. I definitely stood out in the crowd of bystanders which made me a little uneasy, and I was concerned the people there would find it suspicious that I was photographing the remains of the church. I definitely did not look anything like a reporter either. When I next saw Varg I returned the camera to him with the film in it. One of these pictures made it to the album cover of the Aske EP. To me it's a very symbolic picture, because this was my Lutheran, bigot, sorrow and misery inflicting grandfathers favourite church.

Anyway, one day a police car stood outside my home place in Fana, and the police man said: "Hi, you know what this is all about don’t you? Just get dressed and get in the car!". Apparently I was a suspect of the fire or something, because I was taken into custody and they took my mugshot and my fingerprints and interrogated me for hours. The interrogations started with screaming and threats, waving Varg's camera in front of my face. It lasted for hours until they let me go. I was also called in for a second round of this, and when the interviews were finished, I heard nothing more from the police, and I never testified to anything in his court case.

Source: https://aremundalinterview.blogspot.com/