Folk

  • Sylvaine - Eg Er Framand (2024)

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    Being huge fans of Sylvaine since their beginnings, we are quite excited to hear Kathrine Shepard taking a risk and releasing a very different release with “Eg Er Framand”. This EP features six tracks and nearly 30 minutes of dreamy Folk music, with absolutely no elements of Metal, showcasing a very different and raw side to Kathrine’s talents.

    The release opens with the solemn “Dagsens Auga Sloknar Ut”, and its very minimalist instrumentation that surrounds Kathrine’s clean vocals. If the organ didn’t create enough tension for you on the first track, “Arvestykker” introduces some excellent vocal layering alongside “Eg Veit I Himmelrik Ei Borg”, which features a bit more instrumentation and somber atmospherics.

  • Suldusk - Anthesis (2024)

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    Hailing from Australia, today we have Suldusk and their sophomore release “Anthesis”. Marking a transition from a Folk sound to Dark Folk with Blackgaze, Progressive and even some Doom influences, this release unleashes nine tracks of sublime music filled with raw emotion and mystery. For fans of more modern Post-Black Metal releases with a melancholic edge, this release will certainly catch many by surprise and take the scene by storm.

    Opening with the solemn “Astraeus”, the band quickly changes gears with the brutal initial onslaughts of “Verdalet”. Once the band settles in more melancholic territories, their stylistic duality is masterfully revealed. Emily Highfield’s vocals are just the right amount of sweet and mysterious to carry a very lush instrumentation including dramatic violins and intricate guitar melodies.

  • Hexvessel - Polar Veil (2023)

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    From the mind of Mat McNerney, aka Kvohst, Hexvessel has been a very unique and engaging band throughout their multiple stylistic changes. From the dark and eerie occult folk/doom/rock days of “Dawnbearer“ and “No Holier Temple”, to the more psychedelic rock edge of “When We Are Death”, “All Tree”, and “Kindred”. The band has always had a very mysterious and eerie core that now fully unravels alongside piercing Black Metal riffs and creepy atmospherics. With only a handful of bands being able to drastically transition into (or from) Black Metal, “Polar Veil” showcases a very powerful aural experience that shows the band morphing into yet another version of themselves and unleashing one of the best releases of 2023.

    Opening with “The Tundra is Awake”, we get vicious and raw Black Metal riffs, for a moment you will be taken aback as this is not where the band seemed to be going on their last release. However, after McNerney’s signature vocals come into the mix, that whole ‘Hexvessel vibe’ is immediately felt as it brilliantly blends together. This release is heavy and yet quite atmospheric, as pieces like “Older Than The Gods” seem to be pulling one way with the guitars and yet the lush vocal arrangements pull a different way, creating a very intoxicating and yet perplexingly harmonious sound.

  • Tenhi - Valkama (2023)

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    After all the new releases and surprise returns from many of our favorite bands, Tenhi was the one we least expected. Marking their first release in nearly 12 years, after the excellent “Saivo”, the band returns with “Valkama”. Featuring 12 tracks and 70 minutes of solemn and enigmatic music, it is like the band never left as the melancholy and mysterious beauty of this release oozes through your speakers. Needing no introduction, if you are into Dark Folk/Neo-folk music, and never heard of Tenhi, you are missing out.

    The release kicks off with the gentle and immersive “Saattue”, the band always crafts dark and powerful atmospheres with very minimal instrumentation and this track is a clear example of this. Fully enveloping the listener in the band’s world, “Valkama”, “Kesävihanta”, and “Rannankukka”, are tracks that mix lush acoustic guitars with hypnotic Finnish-only vocal arrangements and very subtle atmospheric arrangements.

  • Frøkedal / Sâver - Split (2022)

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    Delivering a very interesting concept of covering tracks from each other, today we have Norwegian artists Frøkedal and Sâver. In this split release we get two very unique pieces, one highly atmospheric, the second with a Folkier edge, creating a dark and engaging release that we found ourselves playing in repeat a few too many times.

  • Grift - Vilsna andars utmark (2022)

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    Delivering to solemn and very well crafted Folk/Neofolk tracks, today we have Sweden’s Grift and their latest 7-inch “Vilsna andars utmark”. While fans of Black Metal and DSBM will not find what they are looking for here, this is still a very eclectic and moody release that quite fits Erik Gärdefors style of calmer and yet dark and sinister music.

  • Haavard - Haavard (2022)

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    Set to be released on Prophecy Production’s sub-label Auerbach Tonträger, today we have Håvard Jørgensen and his Neofolk release “Haavard”. Labeled by promotional materials to the closest thing to Ulver’s masterpiece “Kveldssanger", this album delivers 13 tracks of very melancholic and somber music. Yes, the music style is similar to Ulver’s second album that shocked many, but it is also on the lines of records released by outfits like Empyrium (“Weiland”) and Tenhi to name a few.

    Opening with the lush “Printemps” and “Heartwood”, we quickly got chills as it has plenty of Empyrium’s purely Neofolk phase thanks to its solemn acoustic guitars and very unsettling and somber mood thanks to additional string instruments. The folky nature of the music is further appreciated in the lively “Oberon” and the transition piece “The Chase”, just before the minimalist and mysterious “Snhetta”.

  • Xasthur - Victims of the Times (2021)

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    It was quite a shock when we listened to the first cross-over dark/neo folk Xasthur release as we expected the band’s older style. However, we managed to get over it as many years have passed and actually enjoyed their Prophecy Fest 2018 (USA edition) performance quite a lot. In “Victims of the Times”, Malefic delivers around 70 minutes of engaging dark and somber music that could be described as a combination of King Dude, Dornenreich, with some Americana elements.

    Not everybody can pull off the Dark Folk style, but as the album starts with “Same Old Suspects”, it is instantly clear that Malefic perfectly blends somber arrangements with crafty guitars and a personable voice. Mixing in acoustic 1 -2 minute long interludes between the first 10 or so tracks brilliantly works for this release as a transition between tracks like “Mirror in the Face”, “Fairy Tale Ideologies”, and “Stars Amongst Failures”, allows the songs with vocals to be better framed and more effective.

  • Dornenreich - Du wilde Liebe sei (2021)

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    The always mysterious and captivating Neo Folk sound of Dornenreich has been one of our favorites alongside bands like Empyrium and The Moon and the Nightspirit. While the band’s style is far from Metal, they have a certain darkness to their music that makes it quite appealing and engaging. Led by Eviga, this trio has been creating unique music for over 20 years, and “Du wilde Liebe sei” is yet another excellent release filled with dramatic arrangements, somber tempos and lush violins.

    The opener “So ruf sie wach das Sehnen” immediately sets the listener in a dark trance of lush acoustic guitars and playful drums. While all singing is done in German, the language it-self is very fitting to this kind of dark and melancholic music, as the listener can enjoy in “In Strömen aus Verwandlung ein flackerloses Licht”, “Dein knochern Kosen”, and “Liebes dunkle Nacht”. There is some slight use of electric guitars here and there, with distortion too, but we feel it distracts a bit from more eclectic acoustic efforts.

  • Empyrium - Über den Sternen (2021)

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    Empyrium has a way of making fans way for long periods of time for new music, but yet when they release something, all is forgotten as the band’s sonic magic appeases even the most disgruntled fan. Just making us wait seven years, instead of twelve as in the last time, Schwadorf and Thomas Helm return with over 52 minutes of music that manages to merge the band’s original ingenuity and ferocity, with their more refined and Folky sound of their later releases.

    The release opens with the solemn acoustic guitars of “The Three Flames Sapphire”, a track that slowly moves into more complex territories with the lush clean vocals of Thoman Helm and layers of additional classical elements. However, one of the most interesting parts is the introduction of distorted guitars and harsh vocals, turning the track’s mood in a completely new dimension and bringing back “A Wintersunset...” vibes, and this is just the first song.

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