MÅNEGARM

Release Year: 2016
Artist Origin: SWE
Style: dark folk viking black metal

celebrating twentieth anniversary in 2015, Swedes take rather bold step by releasing a self-titled album, aiming to showcase virtually everything this band, so deeply committed to its roots, has become known for - from relentless black metal assaults, menacing guitar riffs and pagan fury to majestic melodic passages, epic choruses, folkloric interludes and acoustic, melancholic touches, as frontman Erik Grawsiö explains, this undertaking was intended as a kind of summary of their creative journey, encompassing different stages of evolution and stylistic directions without being confined to any particular sound or mood, but rather affirming Månegarm's identity as a whole, diverse yet firmly rooted in Nordic folklore, mythology and extreme metal traditions, while album closes with two significant bonuses: first-ever composition, ferocious Månljus, written back in 1995, and enchanting Bathory Mother Earth, Father Thunder cover, featuring guest vocal contributions from several other well-familiar faces