MYRKUR, the one-woman black metal act from Copenhagen, Denmark has made quite the name for herself over the past three years. Amalie Bruun, the woman behind it all, has received great praise for her debut LP M, which hit the black metal scene by storm just two years ago.
Outside of MYRKUR, Amalie Bruun has had quite the musical history so far. Bruun had first brought herself to the public eye via her excellent work in dream-pop duo Ex Cops. Perhaps knowing that her pop background would make some metalheads dismiss her before even listening to her music, Bruun and her label, Relapse Records, completely hid the identity of MYRKUR’s mastermind until just last year.
As is always the case, the tough-to-please metal crowd were concerned about her dubious true kvlt credibility, but hopefully the continued excellent old school Norwegian black metal of last year’s Mausoleum EP have changed some minds.
MYRKUR seems to hope to keep up the good work with her newly announced upcoming sophomore LP Mareridt (which is Danish for “nightmare,” isn’t that about as concisely metal as it gets?). In support, Bruun has released a lead single by the name of “Måneblôt.” Though Google Translate doesn’t seem to offer any answers as to what it means, it is sure to be appropriately metal.
The track seems to be both heavenly and heavy with its light mandola and violin melodies that support Bruun’s patented snarls and coos, perfectly paralleling the transitions between the hardcore blastbeats and foggy guitar tones.
“I was in one of the worst times of my life,” described Bruun, explaining how the new album was inspired by a troubling episode of nightmares and sleep paralysis the singer suffered. “I was afraid to sleep. You know how they say that when you have been through trauma or abuse, you tend to recreate the situation in an attempt to take ownership of it? I think I was doing that. I was trying to solve things in my nightmares that I could not solve in real life. Things I could not run away from.”
Check out the single below, as well as several upcoming tour dates and album information.
1. Mareridt
2. Måneblôt
3. The Serpent
4. Crown
5. Elleskudt
6. De Tre Piker
7. Funeral (featuring Chelsea Wolfe)
8. Ulvinde
9. Gladiatrix
10. Kætteren
11. Børnehjem
12. Death of Days *
13. Kvindelil * (featuring Chelsea Wolfe)
14. Løven *
15. Himlen blev sort *
16. Två Konungabarn *
*(Digital / Deluxe 2xLP Bonus Track)
MYRKUR LIVE DATES:
07/21: Katowice (PL) – Metal Hammer Festival
07/22: Sheffield (UK) – Tramlines Festival
08/17: Brooklyn, NY – Saint Vitus
08/18: Las Vegas, NV – Psycho Las Vegas
10/26: Stockholm (SE) – Close-Up Baten Cruise
11/04: Leeds (UK) – Damnation Festival
11/17: London (UK) – Heaven #
11/18: Leeuwarden (NL) – Neushoorn #
11/19: Lille (FR) – Maison Folie Beaulieu #
11/20: Paris (FR) – Alhambra #
11/21: Rennes (FR) – Antipode MJC #
11/23: Bilbao (ES) – Santana27 #
11/24: Madrid (ES) – Caracol #
11/25: Barcelona (ES) – Razzmatazz2 #
11/27: Milan (IT) – Circolo Magnolia #
11/29: Munich (DE) – Theaterfabrik #
11/30: Salzburg (AT) – Rockhouse #
12/01: Bologna (IT) – Locomotiv #
12/07: Budapest (HU) – A38 #
12/08: Vienna (AT) – Arena #
12/11: Prague (CZ) – Roxy #
12/12: Berlin (DE) – Heimathafen #
12/13: Cologne (DE) – Kantine #
12/15: Rotterdam (NL) – maasSilo #
12/16: Brussels (BE) – VK #
12/18: Copenhagen (DK) – Pumpehuset #
12/20: Stockholm (SE) – Debaser Strand #
# – w/ Solstafir
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