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Album Review – Jordfäst / Av Stoft (2022)

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A ruthless Swedish Black Metal duo returns with their sophomore opus, telling sobering tales of human struggles against societal norms and religious oppression, and the fight for the right to determine one’s own fate.

An old Swedish word for being buried, loosely translated to ”attached to soil”, Jordfäst is also the name of a Skåne, Sweden-based Black Metal duo who unearth the grim past of the Scandinavian peninsula in their songs, channeling the long-forgotten cries of people that once lived. Now in 2022 it’s time for vocalist Olof Bengtsson and multi-instrumentalist Elis Edin Markskog, supported by session drummer Joakim Unger, to unleash upon humanity their sophomore opus entitled Av Stoft, the follow-up to their critically acclaimed 2021 debut full-length album Hädanfärd. Epic and dreaming, conjuring up soundscapes comparable to genre greats such as Ulver, Saiva, and Primordial, Av Stoft, which is Swedish for “of dust”, continues where Hädanefter left off, with folky melodies and theatrical narratives woven into a solid backbone of Black Metal. Recorded at Studio Wheelmust, mixed and mastered by William Blackmon at The Overlook, and featuring guest vocals by Joakim Svensson of Skogen, the album is comprised of two songs which have a combined playing time of 33 minutes, telling sobering tales of human struggles against societal norms and religious oppression, and the fight for the right to determine one’s own fate, with its gloomy layers interspersed with searing melodies reflecting a reality as unforgiving as the northern winter.

Eerie voices are suddenly joined by the massive beats by Joakim in Abortologen (“the abortologist”, from Swedish), bringing to our damned ears over 16 minutes of Scandinavian Black Metal infused with Folk and Doom Metal nuances where Olof roars manically in the name of pure evil, while Elis crafts a beyond caustic and visceral sound with his riffs, bass and keys, not to mention his guitar solos are a thing of beauty, enhancing the song’s epicness and electricity considerably. Put differently, it’s imposing and violent from start to finish, being therefore tailored for admirers of the genre while also ending in a serene way to the sound of a piano. The second song of the album, Kom Eld, Kom Regn (“come fire, come rain”), offers our ears pure Scandinavian Black Metal flowing from the very first second, with its vocalizations adding an extra touch of darkness to the overall result. Furthermore, the song brings forward a headbanging pace led by the strident riffage by Elis while Joakim hammers his drums in great fashion, and the music alternates between sheer aggressiveness and more melodic, Stygian moments. Not only that, Olof sounds absolutely bestial with his enraged roars, without a single second left empty throughout its 17 minutes of Scandinavian awesomeness that builds up to a sinister, epic and chilling ending.

“With Av Stoft we took a more timeless approach by implementing themes which have always been part of humanity’s history and shaped our society. Concepts pertaining to life and death; the right of the lone individual to either end or start one or the other as he sees fit, as well as the consequences that might follow. As on Hädanefter, the stories are told from several perspectives and depict everything from personal suffering to the relentless forces of nature – all of which are indifferent to our suffering and just biding their time to sweep us away, once and for all,” commented the duo about their newborn spawn, which will soon be available for purchase from the band’s own BandCamp page and from Nordvis Produktion, as well as for streaming on Spotify. Hence, don’t forget to start following Olof and Elis on Facebook and Instagram to stay up to date with all things Jordfäst, letting the obscure tales told by the duo in Av Stoft crawl dep inside your mind while they keep carrying the flag of Scandinavian Black Metal armed with their austere music for many decades to come.

Best moments of the album: Kom Eld, Kom Regn.

Worst moments of the album: None.

Released in 2022 Nordvis Produktion

Track listing
1. Abortologen 16:08
2. Kom Eld, Kom Regn 16:59

Band members
Olof Bengtsson – vocals
Elis Edin Markskog – guitar, bass, keyboards, backing vocals

Guest musicians
Joakim Unger – drums (session)
Joakim Svensson – additional vocals

Album Review – Skogen / Skuggorna Kallar (2018)

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Weaving a tapestry of triumph and tragedy, loss and remembrance, this Swedish quartet translates the beauty and melancholy of their homeland into first-class Blackened Folk Metal.

Born in 2009 under a frozen Swedish moon in the city of Växjö, Blackened Folk Metal horde Skogen has their sonic pentagram of albums in homage to the stark, nebular beauty of their motherland. Formed by vocalist and bassist Joakim Svensson and guitarist and vocalist Mathias Nilsson, who played together in other bands and shared the same musical vision, Skogen (which means “forest” in Swedish) released their debut album Vittra, in 2009, followed by Svitjod, in 2011, Eld, in 2012, I Döden, in 2014, and finally Skuggorna Kallar (or “the shadows call” from Swedish), now in 2018, all blending the robustness of Black Metal with the melancholy of folk music in a captivating manner, weaving a tapestry of triumph and tragedy, loss and remembrance.

Possessed by the mysteries of nature and dedicated to paying homage to its majesty, both in light and darkness, Skogen will offer your avid ears a polarity of sounds felt in their music as subtly beautiful melodies and clean vocals are woven into the more pervasive darker tones that saturate Skuggorna Kallar, like the blanket of night, heavy with dew. Joakim and Mathias, accompanied by Jonathan Jansson on the guitar and L. Larsson on drums, as well as an array of fantastic guest musicians, deliver their most complete and darkest work to date in their new album, a must-have for fans of the cold and austere sounds of the North.

The opening track of the album Det Nordiska Mörkret, is also one of their two with a Swedish name, meaning “the Nordic darkness”, beginning in full force and as heavy and somber as it can be, where the anguished clean vocals by Joakim bring a touch of melancholy to the music while the background elements such as the whimsical bowed lyre by guest Vittervärja also enhance the song’s taste and impact considerably. Faster and leaning towards classic Folk Metal, När Solen Bleknar Bort (“when the sun fades away” from Swedish) presents more aggressive and cavernous vocals, with the music flowing smoothly thanks to the amazing riffage by the band’s guitar duo, not to mention L. Larsson’s precise beats; and their darkened sounds keep haunting our souls in Nebula, a gripping fusion of Folk, Black and Doom Metal, with the guitar lines by both Mathias and Jonathan sounding truly captivating, resulting in an enfolding sonority that will please all fans of such distinct underground metal genre.

An ominous, almost tribal bridge titled Omen sets the tone for the bitterly cold and neck-breaking Frostland, where L. Larsson and his rhythmic beats dictate the song’s pace while the band’s stringed trio fires some lancinating and thunderous riffs and punches in a vibrant display of Blackened Folk Metal. Then a somber atmosphere embraces one of their darkest compositions, The Suns Blood, with Joakim growling like a demonic entity while L. Larsson and his Doom Metal beats keep the music lugubrious and vile, also presenting guitar riffs and solos that bring more electricity to the overall result (as well as its folk, acoustic moments), whereas a giant wave of Black and Folk Metal arises in one of their boldest creations, the amazing Beneath the Trees, with all band members sounding crisp and aggressive, generating an epic ambience perfect for Joakim and his anguished gnarls, also feeling like two or three songs in one. Lastly, the bad offers us The Funeral, another 8-minute Folk Metal aria starting in a smooth, almost acoustic manner before exploding into beautiful extreme music, fading into a melancholic piano piece courtesy of guest musician Dísa, and then again getting back to the band’s puissant sonority until the song’s soulful ending.

In case you want to show your appreciation for Skogen, you can pay them a visit at their Facebook page for news, tour dates and other nice-to-know information, and of course buy your copy of Skuggorna Kallar (available for a full listen on YouTube) from their own BandCamp page, from the special page dedicated to Skogen at the Nordvis Produktion website, or from several other retailers like iTunes and Amazon. In a nutshell, Skogen more than succeeded in translating the beauty and melancholy of their beloved Sweden into their multi-layered folk music, carving their name as one of the most interesting and exciting groups from the underground Swedish metal scene.

Best moments of the album: När Solen Bleknar Bort, Nebula and Beneath the Trees.

Worst moments of the album: Frostland.

Released in 2018 Nordvis Produktion

Track listing   
1. Det Nordiska Mörkret 4:46
2. När Solen Bleknar Bort 4:54
3. Nebula 3:43
4. Omen 1:44
5. Frostland 4:24
6. The Suns Blood 4:33
7. Beneath the Trees 8:46
8. The Funeral 8:29

Band members
Joakim Svensson – vocals, bass
Mathias Nilsson – guitars, vocals
Jonathan Jansson – guitars, vocals
L. Larsson – drums, vocals

Guest musicians
Dísa – piano
Elis Edin Markskog – vocals
Vittervärja – bowed lyre