“Way back in early 2020, Suldusk played the last show I attended before fun was canceled. I was introduced by the non-suspiciously departed Emya‘s excellent TYMHM piece on one-woman debut Lunar Falls. This sort of black metal-inflected atmospheric folk is incredibly My Thing, as you can tell from where Helga landed on my list last year. So Suldusk were a pretty important fixture for me, particularly in the tough early pandemic months. The whole thing has that slight air of unreality you get with memories from around then. Now they’re back—finally—with a full band and signed to Napalm, so the stakes are high for Anthesis.” Dusk throne.
Myrkur
El Cuervo’s and GardensTale’s Top Ten(ish) of 2023
The days grow short and Listurnalia grows ever more refined and thoughful. Or so you would like. See what El Cuervo and GardensTale do to the curve.
Thus Spoke and Maddog’s Top Ten(ish) of 2023
Listurnalia23 rolls on with Thus Spoke and Maddog‘s Top 10(ish) Records o’ the Year.
Helga – Wrapped in Mist Review
“The term “shinrin-yoku,” or forest bathing, was coined in Japan in the early 1980s to describe a therapeutic practice both mental and physical. One can imagine this as a response to the relentless march of modern life that pulls our kind ever further from a connection to nature. Dissatisfied with this state of existence, Helga weaves forest-bathing deep into their debut album, Wrapped in Mist. Led by Helga Gabriel, this Swedish quintet looks to blend folk atmospheres, post-rock, and fleeting black metal into a potent and unique brand.” Thuggery and tree huggery.
Of the Muses – Senhal Review
“Good blackgaze feels way too hard to come by. There’s just something about the crossroad of metal and not metal that eludes so many artists and listeners. Done right, it’s one of my preferred styles of metal, allowing for intense beauty and vivid emotion at the same time, so I was excited to have the opportunity to review Senhal, the debut full-length album from Italy’s Of the Muses. According to its promotional material, the album mixes doom, black, and post-metal alongside dreampop elements in a mesh of blackgaze.” Gaze into the void.
Myrkur – Spine Review
“Myrkur apologists and her detractors both have a point. Her 2015 debut M succeeded as folky black metal, but aped predecessors like Ulver’s Bergtatt (1995). Two years later, Mareridt established a unique voice for Myrkur, but suffered from inconsistency. 2020’s Folkesange abandoned metal in favor of acoustic folk. A resounding success and an easy 4.5, Folkesange thrived on Amalie Bruun’s vocal melodies and her knack for arrangement. Its highly anticipated successor Spine resurrects Myrkur’s black metal roots amidst dreamy pop and mid-paced rock.” Crouching pop star, Myrkuring dragon.
Fredlös – Fredlös Review
“The medieval hellscape on Fredlös’ cover caught my eye at once. The scene would be peaceful and pastoral, if not for the gruesome executions, the demon, and the burning buildings. Then I noticed the dancing skeletons, the shallow graves, the corpses on the border, the apocalyptic background, and the skull and crossbones; there isn’t a glimmer of hope anywhere. Intrigued, I dug deeper. Fredlös is a side project of Entombed’s Alex Hellid, and the band’s debut attempts to narrate the late Middle Ages with a mix of folk elements and metal. The music matches the cover art to a T.” The dark rages.
Ols – Pustkowia Review
It’s been too long since I’ve happened upon some neofolk. Grabbing those folk albums that aren’t all that cheery and reviewing them is one of the best parts of writing here, and some of my favorite discoveries have been neofolk—including all of my albums of the year to date, for that matter. So I was thrilled to discover Pustkowia, the third full-length release from Poland’s Anna Maria Olchawa, the sole member of the project Ols.” Ols lang syne.
Urferd – Resan Review
“Promotional material is magical. Often it’s a poorly written, exaggerated exercise in alternate realities. That’s par for the course when you’re talking about marketing, and everyone who reads it knows what they’re getting into, but it’s funny how sometimes it works anyway. In the case of Resan, the debut full-length from the Swedish Urferd, it almost worked too well. By suggesting that Resan is “a journey through dark and olden Nordic forests” suitable for fans of Heilung, Myrkur, and Forndom, sole band member Daniel Beckman (Twilight Force, Ages) certainly caught my attention, but he also set the bar sky-high. And then… well, then he took me on a journey through dark and olden Nordic forests.” Nice forest package!
Osi and the Jupiter – Stave Review
Osi and the Jupiter is a folk duo (completed by cellist Kackophonix), coming out of the Appalachian region of eastern Ohio, U.S. and Stave is the project’s fourth album, following 2019’s Nordlige Rúnaskog.” Mind the mountain folk.