Experimental Nordic folk band Heilung announced on the band’s next album, Futha. They also decided to reveal Norupo, a song that will be part of the release.
Norupo is based on the poem known as The Norwegian Rune Poem. The poem was preserved in a 17th century copy of a lost 13th century manuscript. The Norwegian Rune Poem provides a complete description of all sixteen runes from the more recent Futhark alphabet, also known as the “Viking runes”. Runes are the foundation of the album graphical art.
The band considers that the first album, Ofnir, is more masculine. The visual, the sonority and even the sources adopted to conceive it (runic inscriptions preserved in weapons and armor) confirm this. Futha will be its female counterpart, with the aim to bring balance. The lyrics will originate from Icelandic poetry, where sacred women sing spells and offer their blessings. Thus, female voices will be more prominent.
The album will be released on the Season of Mist label on June 28 on double vinyl, CD and digital format. Futha is already in pre-sale on the band’s Bandcamp profile.
Listen to the new track, Norupo!
Heilung means “cure” in German. With that word, the band intends to disconnect listeners from the artificial barriers of modern life, in its different aspects.
The band was founded in 2014 by Kai Uwe Faust (a tattoo artist specialized in ancient Nordic themes) and Christopher Juul (member of the bands Valravn and Euzen). Subsequently, Maria Franz (also a member of Euzen and Juul’s girlfriend) joined Heilung. The three are from different countries, namely Denmark, Norway and Germany. As usual among Nordic folk musicians, the trio has been, since their youth, passionate about the history and mythology of the Viking Era.
See also: Heilung releases new Nordic folk album, ‘Futha’
They have gained special notoriety for its highly stylized and ritualistic live performances. Often, they are joined by local fans with the purpose of forming the “army of Nordic warriors” on stage.
Heilung seeks to revive the Iron Age and the Viking Age of northern Europe through music. For that, they use running water, human bones, reconstructed swords and shields, even old-fashioned drums and bronze rings in the songs. The lyrics contain original texts of runestones and preserved spear shafts, amulets, as well as other artifacts. In addition, they use poems that deal with historical events or that are translations/interpretations of the originals.
Discography
The band’s first album, Ofnir, was independently released in 2015, but was re-released by Season of Mist in 2018.
The second album is called LIFA. It was recorded live, with songs from Ofnir and two others that will be in Futha. The most striking videos of the band posted on the internet are related to the recording and promotion of this work.
LIFA (2017) | Season of Mist
Links
| Bandcamp | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram |
| Spotify | Bandsintown | Season of Mist |
Playlists
| Heilung Hall |
