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Arctic Dreams is a Serbian-German sympho-industrial-black-death-metal band originally founded in 2009 year in St.Petersburg, Russia by Alexander Alex_Y Järvinen (vocal/guitars/music/lyric) and Igor Sydius Pokatilov (back-vocal/guitar) and based in Belgrade, Serbia. The name of the group is the quintessence of the traditional values of Northern Scandinavian Metal, in the music of which the themes of the North, winter, cold, polar night can be traced. In the lyrics of the composition, completely different themes are raised, ranging from deeply abstracted themes to the plots of famous movies and videogames that form their own Arctic Dreams meta universe. The band was a studio project for a very long time, more than 10 years, but in 2020 they decided to return to full-fledged activitie
"Storm" Single Review
The track starts with atmospheric tones before erupting at the seams with guttural screams and blast beats that grab the listener with its intensity. Symphonic melodies join the fray and add even more dynamic elements while barreling full speed ahead. Somehow the track doesn't slow down even as it speeds past the midway point, if anything it picks up steam with its oustanding guitar solo around the three and a half minute mark. The closing of the track keeps the whirlwind riffs and aggression at 11 as it caps things off.
Verdict:
Arctic Dreams unleash chaotic carnage with their new single.
-Interview- (9/14/25)
1. What's new with Arctic Dreams?
Alex Y: Mike, hello! It's been ages since we last saw each other!)) So much has happened)) First of all, unfortunately, the co-founders of the project, Sydius and Nenad, have left. Distance takes its toll...Sid lives in Berlin, and when the question of concerts came up, we realized that he wouldn't be able to come to the Balkans. It's a shame, of course, we worked together for more than 10 years. Nenad, of course, didn't stay with us for very long, only two years, but he managed to make a serious contribution to the project.
This year, we finally got back into concert activity. We played in Belgrade and Niš, and we hope to play in other cities in Serbia this year. Gena finally switched from bass to guitar; he is a guitarist after all. We were joined by the wonderful charismatic bassist Mirko Deathlord and the brilliant keyboardist Ivan Kleiner, who our project was sorely lacking. They are participating in today's interview, by the way. We slowly began not only to gain concert experience, but also to build our own show production. Much has been done in this direction, and much remains to be done. We believe that the local audience welcomed us very warmly, and the crowning achievement of our activities this year was a concert with the legends of the Polish scene, Hate. We have definitely moved to a new level. I would like to take this opportunity to once again thank Hellhammer Promotion and Marco personally.
Gena: There's a lot of new stuff going on, we're working on a new album, new live shows.
Mirko Death: Well, we are recording new songs.
Roman: We are working on a new album and right now planning a single release before it.
Ivan: Working on a new album.
2. How's the new music comiung along and and is there a release date for it?
Alex Y: You know, we started working on our second album back in early 2023. But we had problems with the drummer after we moved. At first, our friend Marko Mitrovic helped us with the drums. But after a while, it became clear that he wouldn't be able to invest as much time as we needed. And that's when Roman, our current drummer, joined the project. That was in June 2024. It took him some time to learn the material for the new album, and in November 2024, he recorded all of his parts for the album. But in 2025, we switched to touring and didn't do any studio work. Basically, our 2025 concert season is coming to an end, and we plan to focus on completing the second album. We don't have any specific details yet, but we plan to support the album with concerts in the spring of 2026.
Gena: It's difficult to say when it will be ready, but we are working on new material in the studio.
Mirko Death: It's going quite well. Got a lot work yet to be done, but soon very soon album will be seeing the light of day.
Roman: I don’t think we can tell you the exact date because it takes forever to bring everything together.
Ivan: As far as I know, new album is aimed to be released next year.
3. What can you tell us about inspiration for the new music?
Alex Y: We continue along the same lines we started on our first album: we draw inspiration from everything we like, but filter it through the prism of Arctic Dreams.
Gena: It's like taking a shit... sometimes it happens naturally, and sometimes you have to strain to make it happen.
Mirko Death: I personally finding inspiration in slavic mythology and current social issues.
Roman: I just love good stories.
Ivan: Alex and Gena are composers so the question is for them.
4. What have you been listening to lately?
Alex Y: You know, lately I've been listening to what I'm walking to. My main focus is on participants in major European metal festivals. Over the past three years, I've managed to attend three Vaken festivals, the French Hellfest, and the Belgian Graspop Metal Meeting. These are the biggest metal festivals in Europe.
Gena: Protest the hero.
Mirko Death: Trivium.
Roman: Yesterday, I was at the Blind Guardian concert.
Ivan: Depeche Mode.
5. Do you have any pre-show rituals before performing?
Alex Y: We haven't performed enough yet, so we haven't come up with any yet.
Gena: Have a beer or two.
Mirko Death: Nope.
Roman: No.
Ivan: No.
6. What's one thing you'd change about the local music scene?
Alex Y :You know, we need a good (meaning big enough) metal festival. With big, interesting headliners. I don't think we'll be able to do something like Graspop or Hellfest in the coming years, but a festival like Romania's Posada Rock is well within our reach. It's a small, cozy festival, I think between 2,000 and 5,000 people, held in the province where Count Dracula's castle is located. Despite the relatively small number of visitors, the organizers bring in cult headliners. In 2023, these were Carcass, Sodom, Crematory, and even Royal Hunt)) Well, and a few more interesting headliners. Yes, maybe there aren't that many heavy music fans in Serbia itself for such a festival, but Serbia is geographically well located. People from neighboring countries can come to such an event.
Gena: More places where musicians can hang out and play live shows.
Mirko Death: More clubs for metal bands in every city.
Roman: More ads and promotion.
Ivan: More places for local metal bands.
7. What's your favorite show that you've played and why?
Alex Y: It was definitely the performance on September 4th together with Terrorhammer and Hate. The guys below answered this question before that concert, so their answer doesn't count, ha ha ha.
Gena: All live shows are unique, and I love them each in their own way.
Ivan: I am new to the band so I played only one gig so far.
8. Any plans for any new music videos?
Alex Y: We will definitely make a second official video for the future album.
Gena: There are many plans, but as always, there is little time and few resources.
Mirko Death: Yes there is. We are brainstorming about ideas.
Roman: I remember we discussed something, but it was just not a serious draft, so I wouldn’t say that there is some real work with it going on right now. Maybe one day we will do it.
Ivan: I am not yet familiar with such plans.
9. What do you wish to accomplish for the rest of the year?
Alex Y: Maybe a couple more concerts and definitely work on finishing the second album.
Gena: It would be nice not to die.
Mirko Death: Wish we play all around the world.
Roman: Survive =).
Ivan: To finish recording of all the synth parts for upcoming album.
-Interview- (6/25/22)
