No wonder his own neofolk project, Apatheia, seems to suffer from… well, apathy. Despite existing for about a decade, it has only produced a few releases, in highly limited editions on highly obscure labels. But as anyone who has heard any of this material knows, they have been well worth tracking down. Apatheia’s songs are typically well arranged and well played, with a strong sense of melody and sound. A song like “Rot in the Core” is worth the entire productions of some of the neofolk outfits out there. This situation couldn’t last. It would only be a matter of time before a label grabbed Apatheia and gave its music the audience it deserved. This label turned out to be renowned Swedish label Cold Meat Industry, and now they’re re-releasing Apatheia’s Lifethesis.

 

While his musical merits speak for themselves, there is more that makes Apatheia a bit unique in the world of neofolk. In a genre obsessed with symbols of power, conquest and control, Apatheia (the term denotes a state of detachment from the world) is all about retreating to one’s bedroom, to regroup and plot one’s revenge against everyone and everything. A bit like punk, only less noisy, less smelly and – let’s admit it – less silly.