Borknagar – Fall
Century Media Records
7,0/10,0
Brief:
After tours with Rotting Christ and Wolfheart in the U.S., Moonspell and Insomnium in Europe, along with high-visibility festival slots at Hellfest, Midgardsblot, and Nummirock in 2022, Brun and the rest of Borknagar holed up in their respective home studios across Norway to write their 12th full-length album. Brun recalls no defined starting point in the process, but the bulk of Fall—citing tracks like “Moon”, “Afar” and “The Wild Lingers” as examples —were in a constant state of renewal at Brun’s Crosound Studio. As always, Borknagar toiled over their art, its meaning, and its final form. It is, for all intents and purposes, the spiritual successor of True North. Fall, however, blazes new trails for the Norwegians.
Borknagar’s origins trace back to 1994. Over the past three decades, Borknagar have traversed a variety of thought-provoking topics on albums like The Olden Domain (1997), Empiricism (2001) and Winter Thrice (2016). Conceptually, the overarching themes have been universal. Still, the sub-surface was almost always personal to the band’s many lyricists, including but not limited to Brun, Hestnæs, Nedland, and former vocalist Andreas “Vintersorg” Hedlund. Whereas True North posited the idea of a compass upon Borknagar’s legion of devotees, Fall changes direction to a season-based approach. Of course, “Summits”, “Moon” and “Unraveling” aren’t simply about autumnal things like leaves changing. Instead, Fall, as a homonym, portends a far grimmer reality.
Borknagar recorded Fall across several studios in Norway. Norwegian producer Marius Strand captured Rønnow’s monstrous drums at Strand Studio in Oslo, while the remainder was tracked by Brun and team at Crosound Studio in the hinterlands of Hordaland. True to form, famed studio ace Jens Bogren was onboarded again to mix and master at Fascination Street Studios (Opeth, Amon Amarth, Sepultura) in Örebro, Sweden. Sonically, Fall is massive. From opener “Summits” and mid-album stunners (“Moon” and “Stars Ablaze”) to closer “Northward”, Borknagar have never sounded this monumental and electric.
Borknagar will lead Fall with a series of videos. A lyric video for “Summits” and two proper conceptual videos for “Nordic Anthem” and “Moon” are ready, with another as-yet-announced video track near the release date. The much-anticipated album, featuring cover art by award-winning artist Eliran Kantor (Kreator, Testament), is the sound of a band on the crest of their third wave. Fall into Borknagar, share the grand struggle against the wild in all of us…
Tracklist:
- Summits
- Nordic Anthem
- Afar
- Moon
- Stars Ablaze
- Unraveling
- The Wild Lingers
- Northward
Main Focus Tracks:
- Summits
- Afar
- Moon
Other Recommended Tracks:
- Stars Ablaze
- Nordic Anthem
- Unraveling
Line-Up:
Øystein G. Brun – Guitars
Jostein Thomassen – Guitars
Simen “ICS Vortex” Hestnæs – (vocals/bass)
ars A. Nedland – (vocals/keyboards)
Bjørn Dugstad Rønnow – Drums
Comments:
Combining incisive riffs and unstoppable melodies, Fall presents a now mature band that has perfectly digested its influences. A melodic and emotional success highly recommended.
Contact:
Video
Selected Discography:
Borknagar – 1996
The Olden Domain – 1997
The Archaic Course – 1998
Quintessence 2000
Empiricism – 2001
Epic – 2004
Origin – 2006
Universal – 2010
Urd – 2012
Winter Thrice – 2016
True North – 2019
Fall – 2024