Black Metal

WINTER ETERNAL set release date for new HELLS HEADBANGERS album

Today, Hells Headbangers announces June 28th as the international release date for Winter Eternal‘s highly anticipated fourth album, Echoes of Primordial Gnosis, on CD, vinyl LP, and cassette tape formats.

It was but the dawn of summer 2021 when Winter Eternal released their breakthrough album, Land of Darkness. The band’s third album overall and first with Hells Headbangers, Land of Darkness truly launched the name Winter Eternal onto the worldwide metal map with their absolutely authentic synthesis of 1997-vintage melodicism and mysticism. “Melodic black metal” before it became a dirty word, mainman Soulreaper proved that his heart pumped the blood of the ancients, recalling both ’90s Swedish and Hellenic scenes (the band originally formed in Greece, but later relocated to Scotland) but now with charisma and personality to spare. Above all, Land of Darkness bristled with stellar songwriting and impassioned playing – timeless black metal songcraft that can stacked alongside those old, hallowed tomes rather than simply drawing influence from them.

Now, two years later, Winter Eternal return with their boldest record yet: Echoes of Primordial Gnosis. While immediately recognizable as the same Winter Eternal that delivered the preceding modern classic, Echoes of Primordial Gnosis just-as-prominently displays a greater usage of dynamics, particularly those revolving around acoustic and clean-stringed instruments such as cello. Similarly, the still-impassioned playing has been giving an uptick in intensity and analog spirit through session drums by V. Nuctemeron (Sacral Rage, Chainsaw), lending warmth – nay, burning desire! – to the band’s ever-characteristic attack. Soulreaper, for his part, gives a masterclass in spiraling, twilit melodicism: hammering and mesmerizing at first, but his riffs become rippling layers of majesty and mayhem that seemingly echo back on each other, proving that there’s indeed complexity in simplicity of design. Add to this his anguished & emotive vocals, with guest clean vocals courtesy of Macabre Omen mainman Alexandros and Hildr Valkyrie, and the album’s overall concept fully comes into focus: calling forth the spirits of ancient gods and legendary heroes around the world, paying tribute to their timeless powers, with each song thematically focused on one such god or hero. Form meeting content, in every sense – and likewise for Mars Triumph’s symbolic cover artwork.

No longer the black metal underground’s best-kept secret, Winter Eternal step fully into the halls of greatness with Echoes of Primordial Wisdom.

In the meantime, hear the recently revealed track “The Serpent’s Curse” here:

Also hear the previously revealed “Two Heavens as One” HERE, also at Hells Headbangers‘ official YouTube channel. Preorder info can be found HERE. Aforementioned cover artwork and tracklisting are as follows:

Tracklisting for Winter Eternal’s Echoes of Primordial Wisdom
1. Echoes of Primordial Wisdom (Goddess Athena – Greece)
2. Two Heavens as One (Miyamoto Musashi – Japan)
3. Battle Cry (William Wallace – Scotland)
4. The Serpent’s Curse (God Bida – Uganda)
5. Voices (instrumental)
6. Bending the Fabric of Reality (Common Human)
7. Sacrifice for Glory (Iphigenia – Greece)
8. The Keeper of Sorrows (Goddess Oizys – Greece)

MORE INFO:
www.facebook.com/WinterEternalBand

www.hellsheadbangers.com
www.facebook.com/hellsheadbangers 

CULT OF ERINYES set release date for new AMOR FATI album

Today, Amor Fati Productions announces May 24th as the international release date for Cult of Erinyes‘ highly anticipated fifth album, Metempsychosis, on CD and vinyl LP formats.

Cult of Erinyes comes back with Metempsychosis, an album to set the band as a main force of inspired and unique black metal. As a conceptual album based on the delirum and the introspection one can live in front of Death, Metempsychosis contains only two pieces, but together clock to more than 43 minutes of relentless darkness.

The Cult makes a statement that will resonate throughout the older generations, but newer ones, as well: vicious leads; perfect dissonance; blastbeats by the beast himself, Ahephaïm from Sabathan; and one of (if not) the best vocal performances from Belgian madman Déhà. Corvus, once again, shows his genius in complex compositions, from violent black metal to “noir ambient,” that will bring you to the brink of Death.

Cult of Erinyes is not just one black metal band amongst others; it is a true force to be reckoned with. And Metempsychosis hammers the nails down. Cover and tracklisting are as follows:

Tracklisting for Cult of Erinyes’ Metempsychosis

1. Death and the Voyage [22:23]
2. Eternity in a Second [21:09]


MORE INFO:
www.facebook.com/cult.erinyes

www.amor-fati-productions.de 
www.amorfatiproductions.bandcamp.com
www.facebook.com/amorfatiprod

Mystical black metallers Magistraal stream the entirety of their highly anticipated debut EP

Today, mystical black metallers Magistraal stream the entirety of their highly anticipated debut EP, Fantoom van de Deemsterburcht. To be digitally self-released on April 16th – the EP will also be available through Zwaertgevegt on vinyl format as one half of a split release – hear Magistraal‘s Fantoom van de Deemsterburcht in its entirety  here:

Magistraal: a jet-black concoction sprung from the depths of the Shadow Mountains, fashioned in the gruesome sight of the eight hateful eyes of Shelob and beautified by the enchanting fingers of Fëanor, maestro of architecture. Cultivated by two opposing, ancient powers: she is mistress of the cold, dark, drizzly existence and embittered by a lonely exile, cast into a darkness where her shrill voice was banished for an eternity; he was a powerful designer of splendor, an inventor of works of art and a superior preserver of light, a perfectionist whose work proved to be a refuge for the apostate.

In reality, the duo – originating from the Netherlands – do not want to reveal much about themselves, comparing a presence in the scene to an enigmatic and mystical existence of black metal in the ’90s, reawakened in 2023. Magistraal is an expression of fantasy, dreamscapes, the power of imagination, emotion and kinship, audible in hidden lyrics underpinned by an atmospheric-yet-raw approach to workings in dark music.

The duo’s first expression is the EP Fantoom van de Deemsterburcht, penned and crafted in 2023. Here, Magistraal cultivate a wide arsenal of tempo, rhythm, and instrumental styles for the listener – where the title track “Fantoom van de Deemsterburcht” and the eruption of “Waar leed zich eeuwig voedt” are presented with overwhelming violence, the centerpiece of this allotment of music is a constructive opus of 11 minutes of growing madness in the form of “Mijn branded licht.” Dutch evil produced in three depraved episodes, each embracing its own godless theme, but which merge into a creeping, lugubrious muck.

Cover and tracklisting are as follows:

Tracklisting for Magistraal’s Fantoom van de Deemsterburcht
1. Waar leed zich eeuwig voedt [5:21]
2. Mijn brandend licht [11:29]
3. Fantoom van de Deemsterburcht [4:37]

MORE INFO:
www.magistraal.bandcamp.com

TORTURERS’ LOBBY premiere new track

Today, nasty metallers Torturers’ Lobby premiere the new track “Reptilian Hide”. The track is the second to be revealed from the band’s highly anticipated debut album, Deadened Nerves, which is now set for international release on June 14th: Caligari Records will release the CD and cassette tape versions while Ixiol Productions will release the vinyl version. Hear Torturers’ Lobby‘s “Reptilian Hide” in its entirety here:

Hailing from Tampa, Torturers’ Lobby began as a three-piece band with Tim Anderson on drums, Ryan Conway on bass, and Evan Dawson, on guitar/vocals. After the Again debut demo in 2021, Adam Shaw joined as a dedicated vocalist. With this lineup, the band recorded the Crisis of Faith Rehearsal, which was released later in 2021. The following year, the 7″ EP Man in Zwugzang was released, and Anderson left the band after the subsequent Kinetic Disapproval rehearsal, which featured some early versions of songs that would be on Torturers’ Lobby‘s eventual debut album, Deadened Nerves. Dwane Nihiser replaced him, and that debut album is the first release with him playing drums.

Now at last here and their lineup firm, Deadened Nerves announces Torturers’ Lobby‘s arrival with devastating punctuation. A metal record for metal people, the band’s first full-length doesn’t kowtow to genre conventions – death metal, black metal, thrash, and even juiced-up traditional metal all get diced and sliced into their cranky cauldron – nor does it get overly “clever” and pay lazy lip service to a please-everybody middle ground. No, Torturers’ Lobby simply go for the throat quickly and without compunction, rushing forth with an urgency of approach and physicality that’s tangible – truly, this is a whole band playing together instead of punched-in parts – but soon twist the knife in myriad ways. And that’s perhaps the trump card of Deadened Nerves: violent and off the rails it might often be, but there’s a diabolic logic to the angular shapes Torturers’ Lobby throw, a strive to elevate songwriting to something at once palpitating and mind-bending, careening and in control. RIFFS are aplenty, and the production’s thick and scuzzy yet fully pro, and Shaw’s vocals keep apace with acerbic annunciation. 

“Truly, we just wanted to create unique music we haven’t heard, yet want to listen to,” state the band. “It’s very difficult to nail down what we play, and we like it that way. We worship no specific style, as the greats have already done it, so there is no sense in recreating some watered-down parody of it. We just wanted to be different and pursue something new, a different direction in violent ‘underground’ music. We have jokingly referred to our sound as ‘Florida shitkicker.'”

Still, there’s no joking around on Deadened Nerves. The lyrics match the severity of its music, focusing on actual events and societal ails. “We do not write silly songs about juvenile notions of ‘evil,’ the ‘occult,’ or fictitious gore,” the band continue. “We strive to turn humanity to face its grotesque reflection and reconcile with its own evil and misguided obsession with cruelty, morbidity, and lack of independent thought. This is a real reflection of the decaying world around us, though we are not seeking to advocate for it.”

Nasty, authentically underground, but not bogged down by too-cool borders, Torturers’ Lobby shitkick past, present, and future with Deadened Nerves.

Also hear the previously revealed “Reaper’s Impunity” HERE at Caligari‘s Bandcamp, where the CD and tape versions can also be preordered. Cover and tracklisting are as follows:

Tracklisting for Torturers’ Lobby’s Deadened Nerves
1. Dawning
2. Barbaric Alchemy
3. Chromosomal Devastation
4. Captured Pieces
5. Reaper’s Impunity
6. Hypnotic Seeds Sown
7. Humanity’s Husk
8. Re-education
9. Enduring Spirit
10. Reptilian Hide

MORE INFO:
www.torturerslobby.bandcamp.com

www.caligarirecords.com
www.facebook.com/caligarirecords
www.caligarirecords.bandcamp.com 

www.ixiol.com 

ANCIENT GUARD set release date for IRON BONEHEAD debut mini-album, reveal first track – features RUNESPELL member

Today, Iron Bonehead Productions announces June 14th as the international release date for Ancient Guard‘s striking debut mini-album, Nightfall Enthroned, on CD and 12″ vinyl formats.

Ancient Guard is a new creation of Nightwolf, renown for pagan black metal vanguard Runespell. As expected, his unmistakable mastery is all across Nightfall Enthroned, Ancient Guard‘s first public work. A surprisingly vast mini-album at four songs in 31 minutes, Nightfall Enthroned is immersive to the extreme and almost soothing in its continually cresting swell of sumptuous black metal mysticism. While Runespell‘s no-less-grandiose sound is oft given to bouts of bloodlust and battle rage, Ancient Guard is pure magisterial march & might as can be expected of such a moniker. And Nighttwolf’s knack for mesmerizing melodicism holds true here, as well, but if one could make distinctions in this regard, it’s that Nightfall Enthroned swirls about to a spacious-yet-thick foundation that’s equal parts stargazing wonder and weight-of-the-universe terror – an infinitely compelling canvas equally suited to adrift dreamers and austere realists alike. Followed by the acoustic lament “Eld,” the synth-heavy epic “A Moonscape Abyss” says exactly everything it needs to about Ancient Guard: awaken to Nightfall Enthroned!

In the meantime, hear the brand-new track “A Moonscape Abyss”  here:

Cover and tracklisting are as follows:

Tracklisting for Ancient Guard’s Nightfall Enthroned
1. Dominion of Primordial Darkness [11:40]
2. Sepulchral Damnation [9:04]
3. A Moonscape Abyss [7:29]
4. Eld [2:45]

www.facebook.com/IronBoneheadProductions

KERASFÓRA set release date for IRON BONEHEAD debut album, reveal first track

Today, Iron Bonehead Productions announces June 14th as the international release date for Kerasfóra‘s highly anticipated debut album, Six Nights Beyond the Serpents Threshold, on CD and vinyl LP formats.

In the summer of 2021, Kerasfóra quietly released their debut EP, Denn die Todten reiten schnell, on CD and cassette in their native Chile. An obsidian gem like few others in the nowadays black metal scene, its mesmerizing mysticism sounded utterly ancient, but it didn’t nod too conspicuously nor too often to any ’90s touchstones. For that reason – and many others, so copious were its charms – Iron Bonehead released it worldwide on vinyl in early 2022.

However, for awe-inspiring as that record often was, Kerasfóra‘s debut album is set to eclipse that and everything else within the wider black metal scene. Titled Six Nights Beyond the Serpents Threshold, indeed does the album comprise six immersive, none-more-mesmerizing songs, each one once again evoking forgotten realms and vast vistas of wonder. And yet, here does the one-man Kerasfóra strike upon bolder or at least more rarefied territory with his inscrutable usage of synths: whereas so many black metal bands, past and present, use synths as a blanket of atmosphere – often unobtrusively, for fear of “un-true” accusations – the selfsame mainman puts them front and center across these Six Nights, carrying each song’s main melody with an almost-demonic lullaby style. It’s difficult, then, to compare that synth usage / prominence to Kerasfóra‘s contemporaries; one would likely have to dig deep into the realm of old psychedelia and krautrock in the ’70s or the first caustic rumblings of post-punk at the dawn of the ’80s to locate a proper analog(ue). Which is all to say that, somehow, Six Nights Beyond the Serpents Threshold manages to be more BLACK METAL than all and sundry: menacing and majestic, wonderfully weird and wildly singular. That Kerasfóra‘s guitar tone is even thicker and his gait grimmer and more lumbering here simply make the album an even grander achievement.

Kerasfóra‘s first EP might’ve evoked the likes of Grimorium Verum, Vobiscum Inferni, and early Hetroertzen as far as displaying a different face for South American black metal brewed in the cauldrons of olde, but with Six Nights Beyond the Serpents Threshold, it’s not unjust to say that the man created a modern classic of spaced-out rawness.

In the meantime, hear the brand-new track “Of Serpent and Return”  here:

Cover and tracklisting are as follows:

Tracklisting for Kerasfóra’s 
Six Nights Beyond the Serpents Threshold
1. Of Night and Fire [6:51]
2. Of Omniscience and Mystery [5:08]
3. Of Consternation and Ecstasy [4:07]
4. Of Enlightenment and Fall [5:06]
5. Of Darkness and Confusion [4:37]
6. Of Serpent and Return [5:34]

MORE INFO:
www.kerasfora.bandcamp.com

www.facebook.com/IronBoneheadProductions

FUNERAL STORM set release date for new HELLS HEADBANGERS album

Today, Hells Headbangers announces May 10th as the international release date for Funeral Storm highly anticipated second album, Chthonic Invocations, on CD and vinyl LP formats.

It was but 2019 when Funeral Storm made their grand entrance onto the international metal stage with their acclaimed debut album, Arcane Mysteries, courtesy of Hells Headbangers. While their history goes back to 2001, activities didn’t begin in earnest until 2012, and hard graft became their watchword. But it was Arcane Mysteries that majestically consolidated all of Funeral Storm‘s considerable promise into one grand statement of classic Greek black metal in an authentically early ’90s style. It certainly didn’t hurt that that debut album featured Varathron founder Necroabyssious on vocals. Two years came a split 7″ with Greek comrades Synteleia, appropriately titled The Ancient Calling, also courtesy of Hells Headbangers.

That split featured a scaled-back lineup of Necroabyssious and guitarist Arcania and founding guitarist / bassist / drum-programmer Wampyrion, and thus fortified does Funeral Storm‘s second full-length follow. Likewise appropriately titled, Chthonic Invocations further explores the steadfast theme of the Cthulhu mythos. More specifically, Funeral Storm‘s second album in general focuses on death, in every form, for Arcania and Wampyrion were totally isolated during the lockdown and Necroabyssious was heavily infected with Covid-19 to a point where the band didn’t know what would happen. However, after he was healed, Necroabyssious delivered an exceptionally aggressive performance, suiting to his bandmates’ more surging yet more mystical music. Truly, Chthonic Invocations sounds like Funeral Storm 666%, and harkens even further into the ancient past: to say that the album could’ve been released in 1993 on Unisound is an understatement to end all understatements. But again, just like its full-length predecessor, Chthonic Invocations easily avoids lazy “throwback” status on both the strength of its songwriting and its era-authentic synths, handled by both Arcania and Wampyrion.

Featuring another awe-inspiring cover courtesy of Markus Vesper (Denial of God, Manilla Road, Attic), with Chthonic Invocations do Funeral Storm once again triumphantly revive atmospheric tartaric black metal in the vein of the old Hellenic scene. The old ones have been summoned!

In the meantime, hear the previously revealed track “The Void”  here:

Preorder info can be found HERE. Aforementioned cover artwork and tracklisting are as follows:

Tracklisting for Funeral Storm’s Chthonic Invocations
1. Whispers From The Beyond
2. Behold The Dark
3. The Void
4. Funeral Pyre
5. The Epitaph Of The Dead
6. The Covenant Of Old
7. Mistress Of The Night (The Gathering Begins)
8. The Calling Of The Father

MORE INFO:
www.facebook.com/funeralstorm666

www.hellsheadbangers.com
www.facebook.com/hellsheadbangers 

Finnish black metallers Kratti premiere the new track “Haudanvvartija”

Today, Finnish black metallers Kratti premiere the new track “Haudanvvartija”. The track is the second to be revealed from the band’s highly anticipated debut album, Matka Kohti Kosmista, set for international release on May 1st via Signal Rex. Hear Kratti‘s “Haudanvvartija” in its entirety here:

Kratti are a power-trio hailing from the infinitely fertile Finnish black metal underground. They made their public demo with the accurately titled Demo 2023. Despite their apparent newness, Kratti are undeniably old souls as far as black metal goes, and they fully assert their ancientness with the full-length debut, Matka Kohti Kosmista.

While so much Finnish black metal for the past couple decades has been influenced by the hands of Shatraug or a certain Warmaster, Kratti cast their gaze upon some of the scene’s culter or less-fully-realized likes, such as antagonistic paragons Impious Havoc or the short-lived Syöpä. Which is to say, Matka Kohti Kosmista is NOT for trendy ears, and unapologetically whips forth a nastiness that’s shot through with melancholy – hypnotically hummable riffs spiraled to the point of delirium, but built upon a stern ‘n’ stoic foundation of linear, deceptively epic songwriting. Even with the hysteric surge at which Kratti move most of the time, atmosphere is built from within, their flat-yet-full production choice working as another instrument and rendering their miasmic musings that much more pained and poignant. Plus, occasional daubs of moonlit synth further separate band and record from normcore “black metal” non-ideals. 

For those nostalgic for a more Sombre age, Kratti have created a transportive spell with Matka Kohti Kosmista.

Feel more nostalgia with the previously revealed “Ääni Hiljaisuuteen Katoava” HERE at Signal Rex‘s Bandcamp. Cover and tracklisting are as follows

Tracklisting for Kratti’s Matka Kohti Kosmista
1. Pyhä Alttari
2. Haudanvartija
3. Matka Kohti Kosmista
4. Sota Viimeinen
5. Ääni Hiljaisuuteen Katoava
6. Synkissä Muistoissa


MORE INFO:
kratti.bandcamp.com 

www.signalrex.com
www.facebook.com/signalrex

www.signalrex.bandcamp.com

Finland’s NIGHTSIDE set release date for PURITY THROUGH FIRE comeback album, reveal first track

oday, Purity ThroughFire announces May 24th as the international release date for the long-awaited second album of Finland’s Nightside, Death From the North, on digipack CD and vinyl LP formats.

Finland’s Nightside were originally founded in 1996, in Turku. A cult band by nearly every definition, they soon set about a stream of short-length releases over the next three years, finally culminating in their 2001 debut album, The End of Christianity. Their sound was strikingly of the times, just as their native country was beginning to assert its dominance in the underground. However, by 2003, Nightside effectively split up and all members continued on with other bands.

Then, in 2021, Nightside returned with a new lineup that still contained two original members, and they played a comeback gig in early 2022 at the Turku Saatanalle fest. Soon after that, some new songs were written. Of them, three new songs were performed live for the first time in early December 2022 and, a week after that, recorded as a demo to showcase what the band’s all about nowadays. This manifested in Lions (Demo 2023), which Purity Through Fire released in April of that year.  Despite the “demo” appellation, Lions contained superlative quality within, not to mention sharpened, era-authentic production courtesy of Kryptamok‘s Hex Inferi. An auspicious comeback recording as any, setting the stage for Nightside‘s long-awaited second album…

Now, at LONG last is it here, bearing the make-no-mistake title of Death From the North. Picking up exactly where Lions left off – or, indeed, The End of Christianity – Nightside‘S second album shows that the fire of old burns brighter than ever. Just like that short-length predecessor, Death From the North could be a veritable throwback to the late ’90s, if not for the absolutely invigorating passion presented across these 42 windswept moments. Indeed, Nightside reap a whirlwind of mystical magisterial energy here, with grim splendor to spare: forthrightly melodic riffing rips the soul asunder, rhythms underneath surge and coil with malevolent intent, the vocals of founding frontman Serpent spit invective and acid, and the subtle-yet-overt synths of wrap majestically around the icy spires the sextet so effortlessly erect. Once again, Hex Inferi helps harness this magickal assault with sterling clarity, never sacrificing grit whilst allowing each awe-inspiring layer to breathe its fullest breaths. “Fuck off melodic black metal”? FUCK YOU!

In today’s “black metal” landscape, records like Death From the North might seem antiquated or anachronistic. To suggest such betrays the dearth of authenticity in the Bandcamp era. Undeterred, Nightside righteously return from their slumber as the new kings of old!

In the meantime, hear the brand-new title track “Death From the North” here:

Cover and tracklisting are as follows:

Tracklisting for Nightside (Finland)’s Death From the North
1. Death from the North
2. The Crumbling Tower
3. Disciples
4. There Won’t Be Another Dawn
5. Dying Sun
6. Gates of Hell
7. Lions
8. Solitude

MORE INFO:
www.facebook.com/nightsideblackmetal

www.purity-through-fire.com

WARDRUNA release new song and music video for Hertan

Amidst Wardruna´s song-writing hibernation, the group resurfaces to offer a taste of their next album with the single release and music video for the song Hertan. The song is available on all digital streaming platforms now.

Einar Selvik comments on the new song: ““Hertan” is the proto-Scandinavian word for “heart” and that is exactly what we explore in this song and film. The duality of the heart with the rhythm, flow and pulse we can see, hear, and feel in nature and in all forms of life – and the more abstract idea of the heart, The rudder on the ship of emotions, our decisions, and our true desires.”
 
Once again, Wardruna teamed up with Finnish director and photographer Tuukka Koski for the video production of Hertan. Koski has previously directed Wardruna´s videos for Raido, Voluspá, and Grá. This time, the production mainly took place during some freezing nights in northern Finland at the island of Hailouto.
 
Einar about the video shooting process: “It is always a true pleasure to create art with Tuukka and his colleagues at Breakfast Helsinki! His experience and eye for detail as well as the ability to always conjure up next-level material, is very inspiring to be part of. Three days, three locations, no sleep but a lot of heart. This is how it went down. Hope you will enjoy the result!”

Hertan Cover | Picture by Tuukka Koski | Design by Øivind Myksvoll

ABOUT WARDRUNA

Hertan, the proto-Scandinvian word for heart, is steeped in Wardruna tradition. With this new song, Wardruna announce the beginning of a vibrant new cycle, pulsating with life. The song explores the rhythm of pulse, a flow visible in all forms of life and in nature, and the heart as the rider of decisions.
 
Making room for something new to come into being, the Norwegian group ends the Kvitravn touring cycle in a remarkable way. During the autumn equinox on September 21, 2023, Wardruna performed at the world heritage site Odeon of Herodes Atticus, Acropolis, Athens. The event sold out quickly, with fans from all over the world attending.
 
The concert at the Acropolis is the culmination of an intense period of touring, with successful shows in the United States, Norway, Iceland and the United Kingdom. In 2022, Wardruna headlined the festivals Wacken Open Air in Germany and Hellfest Open Air in France and saw the group perform at historic sites, such as Ancient Theater in Plovdiv and Castle Devin, Bratislava during the Nordic Night Tour. In 2023, the second leg of the Kvitravn touring cycle took place throughout the summer with Wardruna playing (festival) shows in Germany, France, The Netherlands and a concert at Borgholm Castle in Sweden. 

At the heart of Wardruna lies the vision of sowing new seeds and strengthening old roots, a concept that main composer Einar Selvik, Lindy-Fay Hella and former member Gaahl bought to life in 2009. The first three albums formed the Runaljod trilogy and featured musical renditions based on the Nordic runes. Each of the three releases focused around eight of the twenty-four Proto-Norse runes, more commonly known as the Elder Futhark. The trilogy consists of Runaljod – gap var Ginnunga (2009), Runaljod – Yggdrasil (2013), Runaljod – Ragnarok (2016).

After years of acoustic concerts and lectures, performing Wardruna songs and creations made for the TV-show Vikings, Einar Selvik recorded Skald (2018). The album was recorded live with the intention of capturing the raw and uncompromising energy of the live performance. It set out to give a voice to the ancient craft that once lay at the foundation of the Norse oral traditions, presented as it takes shape in the hands of a humble contemporary skald today.

Wardruna’s fifth full-length Kvitravn (White-Raven) was released in January 2021. The album musically continues where the Runaljod trilogy left off, yet it marks a distinct evolution in the group’s sound. Throughout eleven songs, Kvitravn discusses Northern sorcery, spirit-animals, shadows, nature and animism, the wisdom and meanings of certain myths, various Norse spiritual concepts, and the relation between sage and songs. The record charted in 13 countries, including #1 in Canada and Austria, and #2 in Germany. A year later, the band presented a virtual live experience in the form of First Flight of the White Raven, also landing in the official German Album Charts.

The period between First Flight of the White Raven and Hertan, is not without creative output. A new rendition of Voluspá (live with the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra) came out in June 2023. Einar Selvik also performed on national Norwegian television with electronic dance music DJ Matoma and joined Faroese singer-songwriter Eivør and the Danish National Symphony Orchestra for a symphonic concert series. One of the duets, Voluspá (live with Eivør) shall be released physically on Record Store Day in April 2024, in the United States, Canada and Germany. Now a new cycle begins with Hertan and Wardruna soon announce new live dates in support of this new release. 
 
As a live band Wardruna operates in various constellations of personnel but the standard configuration the last years has been as follows:

Einar Selvik – Vocals, Taglharpa, Kravik-lyre, Bukkehorn
Lindy-Fay Hella – Vocals
Arne Sandvoll – Percussion, Backing vocals
Sondre Veland – Percussion, Backing vocals
Eilif Gundersen – Bukkehorn, Lur, Flute, Backing vocals
HC Dalgaard – Drums, Percussion, Backing vocals
John Stenersen – Mora-harp
 
Discography
Runaljod – gap var Ginnunga (2009)
Runaljod – Yggdrasil (2013)
Runaljod – Ragnarok (2016)
Skald (2018)
Kvitravn (2021)
Kvitravn – First Flight of the White Raven (2022)