Interview with Stalo, Chairman of the Swedish Satanist Church
In this interview, we meet “Stalo.” Stalo is the chairman of the Swedish Satanist Church and currently leads Sweden’s only satanic church. I sat down for a conversation with this widely discussed “icon.”
What makes this somewhat unique is that no one actually knows who Stalo really is—yet everyone (who is somewhat informed) knows that Stalo exists. Who is the person behind the name? Why use an alias? The questions are many, and I hope to get answers to some of them in this interview.
This is the second interview in our interview series “A Dark Portrait from Within.” I wish you an enjoyable read.
For clarification: “V” stands for “Valpuri,” that is, myself, and “S” stands for Stalo.
V: What do you want to achieve with the Swedish Satanist Church after taking over as chairman?
S: That’s a good question. First and foremost, I want to carry on what Tommy has built, but I also want to guide us onto a new path—not in terms of what we stand for satanically, but more in terms of a new way of thinking.
Not that the old way was bad, but as times change, I personally believe that anyone responsible for a worldview-based or religious organization must evolve with the times. We must do the same. Society has developed over the nearly 30 years we’ve been active. Otherwise, we become like all the other dull people—backward-thinking imbeciles.
That said, I want to continue along the path we are currently on, where we are in fact the largest satanic organization in Sweden in terms of adherents—perhaps not in social media followers, but definitely in actual members. That is something I want to preserve and build upon.
In the long term, I also want to take it to the next level—perhaps a Nordic or Scandinavian initiative in a few years. This is also my life philosophy. It has become my personal project, so I am very protective of it. But I want people to see this, and I believe the world is ready for a bit of satanism.
Partly to present a more accurate image of satanism, but also because I believe the world, as it looks today, needs a counterforce. A counterforce to people hiding behind religion—especially to justify their actions.
That’s roughly my vision. And of course, no one would be happier than me if we became huge—but that’s a dream.
V: A very curious question—why “Stalo”?
S: Here’s the thing. What we do has, since ancient times, been surrounded by the idea that satanists are evil—that they are child-sacrificing animal killers, which is obviously not true.
Even today, on social media, we are called pedophiles, Nazis, racists, antisemites, and so on. We receive quite a lot of threats and attacks daily, all completely baseless—and frankly quite unintelligent. It doesn’t take much reading about satanism to understand that we despise people who harm animals or children.
But anyway—because of what we do and the attitudes people have, it can be easier for both me and other members to use aliases. It’s not about cowardice, but about choosing one’s battles.
I know what I believe in, I know what I stand for. I don’t need to run around trying to convince others as a private individual—I can do that as Stalo if necessary. Though usually, people come to us, not the other way around. We don’t go knocking on doors trying to convert people—we’re not fucking Jehovah’s Witnesses.
It also makes it easier for me to appear publicly. Now it may sound like I’m some kind of celebrity—but I’m not, since no one knows who I am. But Stalo might be.
The chairman position of the Swedish Satanist Church has always been something of a public-facing role, and I would rather take on that role as Stalo. Who I “really” am is irrelevant. Within the Swedish Satanist Church, I am Stalo—and that’s what matters.
It also ties into our upcoming book release, as mentioned in the previous interview with Tommy Eriksson. In those books, we—or I—can speak more freely as Stalo than I could as a private individual. Some of the content may be quite intense, and it’s easier if it’s Stalo or the Church standing behind it rather than me personally.
And honestly, I don’t think people are that interested in who I am. What matters is that I exist and what I do. That’s why I chose the name Stalo. For those who don’t know, it’s a type of demon—or giant, depending on the story—from Sámi mythology.
Stalo or Stallo—there are two pronunciations. I believe it is—
V: A broad question you can interpret as you like—where do you come from?
S: Yes, that’s a broad one. Alright:
My background is in LaVeyan Satanism. That’s where I found my first satanic text—The Satanic Bible. It influenced me deeply, as I had long—since childhood, really—been searching for something dark.
That’s where the journey began. Or perhaps earlier, but I wouldn’t have called myself a satanist back then. I was more fascinated by villains in Batman, heavy metal, and darker aesthetics. I’ve always found skulls aesthetically beautiful as well.
I had heard of the Swedish Satanist Church, but since I lived somewhat remotely, it felt more like a myth. I remember thinking, “How the hell do you find them?” It was like trying to find Saddam Hussein’s cave—basically impossible. But I decided I would find them one day.
Eventually, I did—through social media—and a whole new world opened up. I realized there were like-minded people, and I gained a broader understanding. Some see Satan as a symbol, others as a being or even a god. Over time, I became a mixture of all that, and it shaped the satanism I believe in today.
I also believe strongly in the spiritual—witchcraft, Mother Earth, herbalism, crystal magic, blood magic, voodoo, and dark magic. Everything supernatural fascinates me—it always has.
When I was younger, however, I was much more anti-Christian than I am today. I’ve read the Bible, the Qur’an, the Talmud, and parts of Hindu scriptures. I’ve seen what religion can do to people—and it’s not always good.
Today, I am more critical of the Abrahamic religions than outright anti-Christian, but that element is still there. Otherwise, we probably wouldn’t be sitting here. The difference is that now it is more thought-through and deeper.
It’s important to say that I do not encourage members to stand outside a cathedral holding signs saying “Hail Satan.” That’s just ridiculous. Satanism needs to become more academically grounded.
We must explain that it’s not about people running around in robes dancing in the forest. That may happen in certain rituals—or after a bit too much wine—but it’s not the outward focus. It should be a punch in the face—but a professional one. Stylish and reasonably clean.
V: How do you view satanism in Sweden today?
S: I think it looks promising. We see a bright—or dark—future, if you will. It has needed these roughly 30 years to grow and mature. The fact that we exist as Sweden’s only satanic church says a lot.
There are also other branches, like dark magic—for example through Thomas Karlsson and Dragon Rouge. Thomas Karlsson is also an excellent author with many books behind him.
There are always “wannabe groups” trying to be satanists but completely misunderstanding and misrepresenting the message. These gained a lot of attention when we were inactive and our social media was down.
That meant the only thing showing up in searches was one such group—the Satanic Community. We want to be clear that we strongly distance ourselves from them. Not out of malice, but for principled reasons.
For example, they claim that you must reject all spirituality to be a satanist. That pains my satanic heart, because our goal is individual free will. You cannot tell someone what they are allowed to believe. That is fundamentally unsatanic—almost Christian.
V: You will be involved in the book Chaos-Gnostic Anticosmology. In what way, and what is your view on chaos-gnosticism?
S: First of all, I will be writing the afterword. The book is written by Tommy Eriksson and Thomas Karlsson.
It’s a good book, but I’ll say this—chaos-gnosticism is not for everyone. It’s not for the faint-minded, to use an old expression.
It’s very easy to go very deep into it. I actually finished it the other day, and at times I had to pause and distance myself from what I had just read. Because once you go deep into chaos-gnosticism, it can become very dark very quickly if you don’t know what you’re doing.
It is what it is—it’s anticosmic. It essentially rejects morality, and that means not everyone can handle that way of thinking. If someone is already unstable and absorbs its message, it can become dangerous.
For my part, I use it for magical purposes, not as a life philosophy—even though I can agree with certain aspects from a philosophical standpoint.
You really have to study it, step back, then return to it. But it is fantastic.
If I were to make a political analogy—it’s not political, but just to explain—it would be like comparing our form of satanism to neoliberalism, while chaos-gnosticism would be closer to anarchism and total lawlessness.
Chaos-gnosticism is what people who aren’t well-read often call devil worship, since it is based on the idea of a god figure—Satan in this case.
With that said, I strongly recommend getting it when it’s released, as it will be in a limited edition. But again—it’s not for everyone, and that bears repeating. It’s absolutely not something I would present to someone who has just begun studying satanism.
You need to be well-read—and above all, have a strong sense of self-distance when reading it. It’s a masterpiece.
V: Is there anything you would like to add?
S: Yes—if it’s still unclear how things work, you can find us on Facebook, Instagram, and via email: densvenskasatanistkyrkan@gmail.com.
You can contact us there with questions. We also have subgroups, such as the witch group Malefica—which you yourself run—Estetisk Terror, and lodges like Muspelheim.
You can engage in art, music, magic—whatever you want. We exist wherever people want to find us.
Going forward, there will be a strong focus on books. We can’t say much more, but many people will be involved.
If you want to become a member—send us an email or a message.
V: Thank you, this was a pleasant conversation.
S: Likewise. Take care out there.
Ave Satanas!
The interview was conducted and compiled by me, Valpuri (First Witch of Malefica-SSK and Priestess, Grade 2, in the Swedish Satanist Church).
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