Today, Signal Rex announces December 8th as the international release date for Geistaz’ika‘s highly anticipated second album, Midnatsbøn ved Djævelens Port, on CD, vinyl LP, and cassette tape formats.
Hailing from Denmark’s revitalized (and rising) black metal underground, the shadowy entity known as Geistaz’ika revealed their first public recording, Trolddomsejd i skovens dybe kedel, at the very end of 2018, but only digitally. So impressed by its windswept wonder, Signal Rex eagerly stepped forward to release this debut album unto the worldwide stage less than a year later.
Five years on from that fresh breath of old air, Geistaz’ika return with their second album, Midnatsbøn ved Djævelens Port. Continuing the windswept wonder of its not-inconsiderable predecessor, Midnatsbøn ved Djævelens Port lays bare an even-more-poignant landscape of mysticism and melancholy. Here, Geistaz’ika put pronounced emphasis on delicate acoustics, amplifying their already dynamic sound, still recalling the likes of both the Norwegian Perished and Hades but also early Isvind, Helheim, and Ulver. But to reference such immortal names only underlines the authentically ancient ground upon which Geistaz’ika walk, and they duly back up such bravura with their most windingly epic songwriting yet; two tracks on Midnatsbøn ved Djævelens Port top 10 minutes each, with the closing “Fortabt Moribund” just eking past 20 minutes. Uniquely, the band even incorporate the “singing” saw into their foggy atmospheres, which are already dense with a swirling blanket of choirs. Fittingly, the production across the album carries the aura of classic Nordic black metal circa 1995 – otherworldly to the extreme, but nevertheless the work of actual humans (and actual bass guitar can be heard, too) – with the mastering courtesy of Henri Sorvali and Trollhouse Audio no doubt helping.
Not so much a rejection of the modern “black metal” scene as it simply ignores the last 25 years of such, Geistaz’ika continue creating their own solemn, sensorial world with Midnatsbøn ved Djævelens Port. To celebrate this new album’s release, Trolddomsejd i skovens dybe kedel is concurrently being reissued by Signal Rex.
In the meantime, hear the brand-new track “Med Korstegn og Grådkvalt Fadervor” here:
Cover and tracklisting are as follows:
Tracklisting for Geistaz’ika’s Midnatsbøn ved Djævelens Port
1. Mareredet Hyrdetime [1:40]
2. Bestænkt af Syndens Vievand [13:17]
3. Med Korstegn og Grådkvalt Fadervor [9:01]
4. Asken fra Hendes Brænden [4:27]
5. Fortabt Moribund [20:04]