The tour had already gone through Siberia, the rest of Russia, Puerto Rico, the US and Canada, with Mexico and Europe still ahead. Morgan doesn't frame it as a response to piracy. The music is meant to be delivered live and in your face, and playing it for loyal fans wherever they are is, in his words, a privilege and an obligation. Marduk were among the first bands to tour the bigger parts of South America and Asia.
On artwork and merch he has one test: does it reflect the spirit of the music. Whether it's modern or on trend doesn't come into it.
On the business side, Marduk had just started working with Century Media, which distributed and marketed the record while the band kept its own label, Blooddawn Productions. Every album gets a vinyl version. Piracy he calls theft in its own way, then shrugs: you can't stop it, so you adjust and keep going.
I don't feel I have done an album before I have the vinyl version.
Morgan Håkansson, Marduk
We do what we believe in, and I think that's reflected in the artwork.
Morgan Håkansson, Marduk
What to take from it: Make the merch look like the music, press the vinyl, and go play the places other bands skip.
Quotes are from the interview audio, trimmed for filler words only.
