Amalie Bruun has always paved her own path, challenging underground preconceptions of heavy metal ever since the release of her debut Myrkur EP in 2014. Her first two full-length studio albums, 2015’s M and 2017’s Mareridt, recast black metal in the most personal yet expansive of terms, their blending of Amalie’s Danish folk roots with tempestuous internal struggles breathing new life into a subgenre whose followers can be rigidly possessive. With the release of her new album, Folkesange, Amalie Bruun has set out to journey into the very heart of the Scandinavian culture that marked her childhood. Folkesange relinquishes black metal for a refined yet far-reaching evocation of traditional folk, combining songs ancient and new to sublimely resonant effect. After the nightmare-induced visions that wrought themselves throughout Mareridt, Folkesange offers an emotional sanctuary, a means to reconnect to something permanent and nature-aligned. It’s an awareness that’s become deeply bound to the album’s organic, regenerative spirit, from the opening track Ella’s heartbeat, frame-drum percussion and crystalline vocals that become the grounding for a rapt, richly textured awakening, to the gentle carousel of the closing Vinter, with its nostalgia-steeped connotations of seasonal, snowfall-bewitched awe. Storytelling, rites of passage, and the invocation of a continuity that passes through time and generation are all part of folk music’s tapestry, and Folkesange taps into all these currents in their most essential form. In part a purist’s approach to the genre, free from over-interpretation and fusion, the use of traditional instruments throughout, such as nyckelharpa, lyre, and mandola offer a deeper, more tactile connection to their source, an unbroken line of communication back to the past. But the album is no museum piece; it resonates in the here and now, aided by the spacious production of Heilung member and musical collaborator Christopher Juul. Cinematic yet intimate, Folkesange exists in a state of boundless reverie, bourne by string-led drones, cyclical, elegiac rhythms and Amalie’s frictionless voice, all carrier signals for deep-rooted, ancestral memories, and associations felt on an elemental level. It’s a binding of the otherworldly and the earthy that echoes the the subject matter of many of the tales themselves. Written by Amalie, Leaves Of Yggdrasil’s medieval cadences bind tragic love story and mythology, full of both fairytale wonder and deeply human foible. Tor i Helheim, its dreamily persistent rhythm redolent of both innocence and encroachment, is based on a poem from the Icelandic Eddas, relating a journey into the underworld of Hel where the sparse nature of the accompaniment becomes the medium that carries you along in its thrall. An immersive experience in its own right, but also belonging to a wider, pagan folk-based renaissance that has attracted a devoted following worldwide, Folkesange answers a need that has become ever more pressing in turbulent times. A zeroing in on a resonance that is both intrinsic and enduring, it’s a rediscovery of personal grounding, and an experience that reaches beyond culture to remind us of a shared, deeply rooted inheritance. A tuning fork that binds the personal and the universal, Folkesange is a reminder that the most transcendent experiences are those closest to home. (Words by Jonathan Selzer)

one of the most beautiful songs I've ever heard

My name is Thorkell the Tall. I shall translate this song for you: A throne stood tall beneath the arched stone. It was made of skulls and brittle mortal bones. That was the home of Hel. Her feet were white, her head was blue, from the blood that turns stale. A white corpse bone, well bleached by the light of the moon, she reaches out with a vengeful mind. It has a smell like mold, but she holds it like a branch. Like the scepter of a king, she wields it in her cruel hand. It was so silent in there, the smell of death everywhere. No wind stirred, apart from hollow sighs. At each corpse stood three blue torches, only witnessed by horror. But not even a trace of blood. [because the souls who end up in Hel are the cowards who did not die in battle] Thor was seen to smile; he turned around. He did not tarry to join the circle of the dead. Loudly he yelled in those chambers these strict words: Thus it will pass for every woman who dares not follow Thor! [he insults the dead, calling them women] You miserable fools who fear wounds and death. Now Hel will wound you forever more with misery and bitter want. You did not let the helmet envelop your skull in battle so bold. You were made to tremble, so tremble forever more! And then the stern warrior stepped forth in front of Hel herself. He had to calm his voice in her dark home. He said: Pallid woman, your judgement is just! But my aim is not to be here. To see the lord of Udgård, for that I set my course. And he could agree that I walked in here. Then tell me if you are able, which road I have to walk. To visit those strong bloodlines of Jotunheim. Then she cried to the one who wields MjølnR. Hel cried with her horrible voice. It rang out like a sword that sinks into an armoured back. Leave my black home! Go forth, soon you will be there! It blinds me to behold thy rosy sheen of health! That godly Thor, he winked boldly when Hel she passed him by. Loki turned away when Hel walked past his place. He closely shut his eye, so heavy was her gait. She gazed upon him and sighed. Her spire it did reverb.

The beautiful kulning at the beginning of this song calls out to all ears to listen to the story about to be told.

Every time I play this song, my cat meows, runs over to me, and starts purring in my lap. I think it's the Kulning in the beginning of the song that she likes. It really makes her content and relaxed... almost like a spell from Freyja. 😻

Ive already listened to this folksong album at least 200 times! So amazing!

My cat when she listens to this music is in a frenzy ...and special even for animals.. I love this song

This is so beautifull. Ghoosebumps all over my body.

This album somehow has become my top choice workout music for the past year 👌🙌🏼

Efsane ötesi ya yazılarıma müzik ararken keşfettim ve kopamıyorum özellikle bu şarkıdan muhteşem bir detaysınız myrkur⭐

das ist sehr schön, ich liebe das sehr Was für eine wunderschöne Stimme sie hat Die ganze Musik ist atemberaubend

I came across you're music very very randomly throughout Spotify, and I wanna say thank you for bringing such beautiful sounds to my ear, and taking me back in young memories of my Teen age years walking in the wilderness and doing all kinds of activities outdoors. Thank You!

Amalie Bruun looks like a native Slav from Poland. Poles and Nordic nations are related by blood. Our real folk music is very similar to yours. Historical artifacts found in our areas indicate cooperation between our peoples. That's why when I listen to this beautiful song, I'm very touched by how similar we are. And how much we miss you. And it's one of the most beautiful songs I've ever heard. I greet you my dears from Poland.

Wow Myrkur. So many emotions running through me while listening to this song. Your ability to transcend the energy through music is truly admirable.

Magnifique voix, magnifique musique, j'adore, merci Myrkur ❤️

I once compared this to the "Vulgaris Magistralis" son and now I'm spoiled, I can't unhear it. I love this song though, can't stop listenning to it either.

Bu parçayı menekşeme ithaf ediyorum 🌿

Since 90s in Denmark I have not seen such energy, Well done !

Listening to this ive started Kulning myself, so much fun never knew I could hit high notes like that. Thankyou ❤️

Thor in Helheim A chair stood high under arched stone It was made of skulls and brittle bones of the dead There, one could see Hel brooding, she was white to the foot Towards the crown of her head blue, from blood that ran beneath A dead man's white bone, well bleached in the moonlight She stretched out to torment, with a vengeful mind It smelled of earth, she waved it like a wand Like a scepter, she wielded it in her cruel hand It was so quiet within, the smell of corpses everywhere No winds moved there, only empty sighs were returned Three blue-flamed torches stood by each of the dead Beheld in empty terror, without a trace of blood Thor was seen smiling, he turned around He hastened forward into the ring of the dead He then shouted these harsh words: Thus will it be for every woman who dares not to follow Thor You poor fools who fear injury and death Now may Hel inflict injury eternally upon you, with woe and bitter hardship You let not the helmet adorn your head in battle You were created to tremble, so tremble for eternity Then the harsh giant went steadily before Hela He had to soften his voice in her dark home He said, pallid woman, you punish justly But I do not stand here of my own free will To journey to the chieftain of Utgard, I had set my mind upon He has caused me to wander in here For tell me if you know which road I must take To go to the strong kin in Jotunheim Then to the swinger of Mjölnir, Hel shouted in her rough voice It rang like the sword against a suit of armor Depart from my black arch, walk ahead, soon you will be there It dazzles me to behold the rosiness of your health The agile god Thor waved hastily, with a bold glance Loki turned away as Hel walked past him Tightly he closed his eyes, so heavy to him that day She looked at him and sighed, her scepter rang lyricstranslate.com/en/tor-i-helheim-thor-helheim.html

Simply... BEAUTIFUL

Another amazing piece from AMALIE an absolutely fantastic and talented artist...keep up the good work AMALIE no ones threats should harm you it's what you think of yourself that counts and should never let anyone put your spirit down.

Magnifique musique. Très apaisante 🧚‍♀️🌿

Hearing this made me feel so good..........love from India ❤️❤️❤️

What a gift to feel shivers upon flesh to a songstress once again.

beutifull song , make you traveling around the scandinavian mountain and field

For soul, this song is the best choose.

Tack för att det går att se översättningen på svenska igen ❤

Güzel bir şarkıya ne demeli ?Teşekkürler ❤

I listen 10 times a day. I'm addicted thanks mykur

Absolutely stunning, absolutely beautiful. I don’t fully understand the story but really blown away by this.

This is amazing! Thank you 💜💜💜

¡¡¡MYRKUR FOREVER!!! KISSES, A HUG AND CHEER UP FROM SPAIN😘😍👏👏👏👏👏👏

Amazing and beautiful and and just wow!

It is so... touchy... I love it so much...

These are really great. Made me lol alone in my room. Thanks for that! ❤

I'm so glad I found this, thank you

Hail to the Old Gods'. Hail to the Ancestors!!! ⚔

100 % Norway !

One of the best 'folkesange' i've ever heard

Супер

Marvelouse!!! Great vice! Fantastic!

Mesmerising ...

I am under a big storm with Manu thunders. The paradise.

This is amazing

True amazing

it's beautiful. Thanks.

Love

Beauty

💚💚💚

❤❤❤❤❤

Stolt dansker 🤗🇩🇰🇩🇰

This song is for my comtempary dance!

Dog står jeg ej herinde i en frivillig hu - это лучшая строчка , никак не могу выговорить "jeg ej" но звучит круто

I feel like I'm the main character of the RPG

English translation for the lyrics please, thank you

I would love to know the English translation to this beautiful song ❤️

It is Danish ? What does the song say ? I imagine a wonderful love story of a warrior and a princess. Love and tragedy.

This is a beautiful song. Ah.. I really wish the first 50 seconds weren't included tho. I feel like it kinda takes away beautiful flow it has. But that's just my opinion ofcouse .. Wonderful song, wonderful voice !

Norway or Sweden? Nice opening.

Jag kunde få denna sång översatt till Svenska förut. Av en som nu står bara på engelska. Hur har det kommit sig? Jätte bra musik. Höll på att sjunga med och förstå alla orden. Men är kass på engelska tyvärr. Jag önskar er det bästa. Kid

I absolutely love this song and totally hate its intro. Best album I've discovered this year though.

How many can understand what she is singing? (Im one of them)

0:51

Tor I helheim means thor in helheim

Proud to be pagan.

i like your shoelaces

Мне понравилось, ловите мой 599 лайк : )

Ist das die dänische Version von Katja Moslehners Hexenlied oder das Ursprungs-Lied davon?

Vi danskere kan også lyde nordiske!

Lol, WTF Scarborough fair is this? xd

so bored