Description
Norway's avantgarde Black Metal pioneers and innovators BORKNAGAR arise at their most spirited and resplendend on their 11th studio album, "True North". Succeeding 2016's acclaimed "Winter Thrice" release and 25 years into the band's existence, BORKNAGAR's characteristically varied fusion of musical styles and inimitable layered vocal arrangements elevates the hour-long array of these 9 new tracks to a sonic spectacle of epic proportions and undisputable grandeur. "True North" was once again mixed by Jens Bogren / Fascination Street Studios (Opeth, Amon Amarth, Kreator) and is made available as limited first-pressing Digipak CD with 2 bonustracks and as Gatefold 2-LP on 180gr. vinyl.Intrepid black metallers Borknagar, in partnership with Century Media, mark their return with resplendent new album, True North. The Norwegians spent the better part of three years writing and rebuilding the lineup-Borknagar are now Oystein G. Brun (guitars), Simen "I.C.S. Vortex" Hestnas (bass/vocals), Lars A. Nedland (keyboards/vocals), Bjorn Dugstad Ronnow (drums), and Jostein Thomassen (guitars)-to make their 11th studio album a reality. The reasons are plenty but the main driver for space between and change within Borknagar's repertoire and membership was calibration. Chief songman Brun needed to refocus his labor of love after the assiduous Winter Thrice album cycle. Indeed, that's exactly what he's done on True North. While Winter Thrice was a celebration of time spent and bonds made, True North is the vanguard forward, clear-sighted, refined, and full of power. Truly, there's no holding back now, but with year 25-the band's silver anniversary-approaching next year, small wonder that Brun and Borknagar are still with us. Fortuitous, or part of the plan all along."Absolutely not," Oystein G. Brun says [of the plan]. "Back in the day when I starting to play around with the ideas about the band I had no goal aside from making music I love myself.
