Q.: Dearest greetings from Japan, Anna! We hope that this interview finds you well.

ANNA-VARNEY: It is kind of bearable at the moment. So, yes … thank you.

Q.: Knowing that your new album will be seeing the light of day very soon, many of your admirers have been wondering what has been going on in your world as of lately. However, since there are many people in Japan, who are unfamiliar with your work, could you please tell us a little about the origins of SOPOR AETERNUS, and the original inspiration for its creation?

ANNA-VARNEY: Oh, dear … I have been dreading that question to reappear. It is really not my intention to be impolite, but … honestly, right now … I don’t think that I have the strength in me to go through all of this again. But on the other hand … if you are asking me about the original “inspiration”, the reason why I simply had to start making music … well … that’s easy: PAIN … - or, to be more precise, depression; which, by the way, is exactly what I am suffering from at the moment. The only difference now is that I feel totally drained … empty ... not really capable of doing anything at all. SOPOR was and is basically nothing more than auto-therapy … - an introverted exhibitionism. In other words: I am making the music for myself to … well ... make me feel better, to exorcise myself from all those hungry ghosts that tend to cling to my neck, trying to make a permanent residence sitting on my shoulders while feeding from the blood that is dripping from my wounds … - well, figuratively speaking. Looking at the state I am in right now, I obviously have not been particularly successful about it. A while ago I actually came to the conclusion that there is no such thing as a cure anyway. All there is … is distraction! Depression, at least in my case, is nothing that will ever go away. All I can do, is to create a diversion, in order to keep my mind off … well … myself, really. And the only thing that makes me forget the pain, at least for a little while, is by … yes … creatively diving into it. In my situation this means conceiving and recording an entire album … - or being involved in some other form of art or project. Unfortunately, this “calming” effect only lasts for a relatively short while … and the intervals are getting shorter and shorter every time … - much like a drug that keeps having less and less effect. It’s a bit frightening, to be honest.

Q.: On every album, it seems as if we are seeing a new chapter and exploring a new dimension of yourself and your spirit. What side of you can we expect to discover in the upcoming album, “Les Fleurs du Mal”? Can you explain to us the concept of the album?

ANNA-VARNEY: No, not really. I mean, I could, of course, but I don’t want to. If one has ears to hear, it is all kind of self-explanatory, anyway. At least, this is what I always think of it. But then I get send questions for interviews, which are so unbelievably stupid that I really wonder … you know … - what is there not to understand, huh?! How much clearer could I possible get?! On the other hand there is no real point in explaining a concept, or the content of an album, because, if someone honestly has to ask such silly questions, he or she would not be able to understand the answers anyway. So, why bother in the first place? All I can tell you, however, is that, even though the title suggests otherwise, the new album is not about CHARLES BAUDELAIRE, or his brilliant book of poems for that matter. I merely borrowed the title from him, even though I wasn’t really thinking about it when the name came to me, as it was such an obvious thing to do. There has never been any question about it. After all, flowers and sickness are both symbols that have appeared in a SOPOR context many times before. However, once the choice was accepted, it was, of course, all too clear, that basically everyone would automatically assume that “Les Fleurs du Mal” was about Baudelaire, or being a celebration of his work, simple because the two names are just inseparable. Much like EDGAR ALLAN POE will always be associated with “The Fall of the House of Usher” (or rather “The Raven” for the majority of people), or SHAKESPEARE with “Hamlet”. I mean, ask anyone to quote something from a Shakespeare drama, and I bet you’ll get to hear a version of: “To be or not to be”. However, one person I know has called the album “the most homosexual thing” he has heard in years. Which, if you ask me, is really quite a lovely compliment. It certainly did put a smile on my face.

Q.: Your last album, “La Chambre D`Echo”, had changed considerably in instrumental style, using many electronic sounds, but the spirit of SOPOR still remained unchanged at its core.

ANNA-VARNEY: Well, thank you very much for pointing that out! Again, it is one of those rather obvious things, but when “La Chambre d’Echo” came out, I have had people actually trying to tell me that everything is … oh, so different now … and that it is not SOPOR anymore … and all that nonsense. Honestly, I sometimes think that people must be completely deaf … or alternatively so very shallow that you only have to put someone in different clothing and they will automatically take him for a completely different person. Well, if you know what I mean …

Q.: What sort of change, musically, can we expect of the newest release?

ANNA-VARNEY: Oh, that is a difficult question … and as strange as it might seem, I am perhaps the wrong person to be asked about it. You see, to me it is all the same really, as I only write about myself … exclusively … and about nothing else. There was this funny moment in the studio when we had our cellist in, who we had been recording with on some of the previous albums as well, and she was asking me about the music of “Les Fleur du Mal”, and in how far it would differ from the last albums. I remember saying something like: “Ah, well ... it is basically the same as usual”, to which John totally disagreed, arguing: ”Oh, no … it is completely different! It is like opening a whole new book!” -- You see, what I mean? It really is very hard for me to answer, because, apart from what I just said, every album I record is not only a consequence of the previous album(s) and concept(s) … but also a preparation for the one(s) to follow. Making it a link in a chain, I find it difficult to analyse it separately … - simply because I am basically stuck right in the middle of it, which makes it hard to just step back and have a look at it from a distance. There is, however, a rather obvious difference, and that is the use of a choir. It was the first time that I have actually allowed the voices of other people being heard on a recording of mine … so, yes … one might say that by doing so there is more colour being added to the music of SOPOR. Well, that certainly goes for the artwork of it … - ha, I cannot deny that. J Some people have said that in a way the new album is like going back to the roots, which might be true … well … at least to a certain degree. But in returning I have taken back with me all the things from the last albums. So, yes … I am still using analogue synths on this recording, but only here and there. The rest is classical instrumentation like strings, woodwinds and brass, but also wonderful baroque organs … and, not to forget … a very enjoyable choir.

Q.: How different was the writing process of this album compared to the previous albums?

ANNA-VARNEY: Well, the trouble is that being depressive really does not help you in any way, and after the “La Chambre d’Echo” experience it took me quite long to get started again. I even began with a completely different album, for which I also had an extensive photo-session. But then I decided to simply quit it and work on something new instead, as I strongly felt that, if I didn’t turn away from all that death and depression for a while, I would probably only end up feeling a lot worse than before … - and that certainly would be the exact opposite of what I need SOPOR to be: after all, it is supposed to heal … and not to make things worse.

Q: Your music is one that has always transcended culture and gender. With each new album, we can see a progressively more powerful female energy. Has this always been intentional, or do you feel it is natural to the music itself?

ANNA-VARNEY: Yes, these things do come rather naturally, as in: I don’t have to force anything into the music … - which wouldn’t make much sense, anyway. But I am not sure, if I do really agree with you … as I think that LA CHAMBRE, for example, was actually rather … well … almost masculine. Relatively speaking, that is.

Q: On the new album, there is a lot more colour being added to the artwork and the song-titles, creating an interesting duality that compliments the more sombre and melancholic tones of the music. Do you feel that working with such dynamics is necessary in expressing all sides of yourself?

ANNA-VARNEY: Yes, it obviously is. But then again, this simply happens to be what I am … you know … black & pink … that sort of thing … all just a natural part of the process of creation. I do, however, have a strong need for very personal, even intimate and consequently multi-layered art. It is the old dogma of truth & necessity, I guess … - how could I ever justify my work, if it wasn’t based on this ideal?

Q: You have made it a point to write about yourself exclusively, as well as to not explain your lyrics and symbols to others, yet at the same time your music continues to reach across language barriers and heal many people. As an introverted artist, do you have a certain hope for how your music will affect others?

ANNA-VARNEY: To be perfectly honest: I have no idea. Does anything of what I do have an impact on anyone but myself? Of course, I do wish that everyone on this planet would be happy … of course I do. But then I am looking at myself, sitting here in this black hole … and all I seem to be able to come up with is the same old stuff that has been haunting me for ages … you know, depression, disease, suicide, pain, loneliness … and above all DEATH … and I am thinking: how the hell is this supposed to help anyone. So I get caught in that old circle again, questions without end, but no answers … until I finally have to crawl into some corner, escaping into sleep … On better days, I do however realise that the one thing about SOPOR, which kind of makes it unique in a way, is its general fragility. I mean, whatever the topic of a song or an album might ever be, the listener never gets hurt. It is actually very innocent in that regard.

Q: What made you to decide to share your work with other people?

ANNA-VARNEY: Pain … and my ego … - obviously. Well, I simply had to. After all, what is the point of suffering, if no-one knows about it, huh?

Q: This may seem a silly question, but what places have you visited that have had the strongest impact on you?

ANNA-VARNEY: Oh, somehow they all do have an impact on me … - this way or another. Like everything that you encounter in your life has an effect on you. That is just how things are. There is not much you can do about it, really. Well, except for staying at home. But even that doesn’t work forever.

Q: Are there any countries or places you’d like to travel to in the future? ANNA-VARNEY: Hmm, not in particular, no. Q: In an older interview, you mentioned, you believe in love in a more altruistic form, rather than the concept of romantic love our culture has made of the term.

ANNA-VARNEY: Gosh, that’s true. I had totally forgotten that I said this. How interesting to be confronted with such a statement right after having released this particular album. Let me think about this for a moment. Hmm … yes … I am afraid that hasn’t changed. It is maybe because I am not really capable of feeling love … at least not in a common way. As pathetic as it may be, but generally I am a rather cold person, almost to the point of being misanthropic. So, a few years ago I began approaching this entire “human affection” thing from a strictly intellectual side, almost like a training process. The trick is to consciously pick some aspect of a person, anything you believe you could find attractive in some way or another … be it a part of his physical appearance or something about his character … - and than you basically: PRETEND. That’s it. If you only pretend long enough, you will get used to it … and then sooner or later you actually establish this emotion inside of you. In other words: your feelings towards this man become real. Yep, that once again proves the point that love is really hard work.

Q: Do you believe in love being an important part of your music? ANNA-VARNEY: Hmm, yes … in a … twisted … way. I think, you could say that. Q: What is the one thing you love and cherish most in this world?

ANNA-VARNEY: Well, art … or music in my case. Actually, this is the only thing that still keeps me here. I honestly do not think that I would want to stay here any longer, if it weren’t for the sake of music … and that, even though sometimes it can be so very painful and frustrating to create.

Q: Another odd question. What disgusts you the most about the world we live in? If there was something you could change or have removed from existence, what would it be?

ANNA-VARNEY: Well, humans … obviously. But only, if I am in a very bad mood, like when I am forgetting my ideals … as to be expressed in the song “Interlude – The Quiet Earth”. My general desire is more like wanting to have a silver switch, which, when you flip it, speeds up everybody’s spiritual development right next to enlightenment. Oh, dear … wouldn’t that be nice? No more pain, no more confusion …

Q: Thank you very much for your time in writing to us. It is a wonderful honour and opportunity!

ANNA-VARNEY: Oh, I have to thank you.