Dutch performer Anneke van Giersbergen has announced another studio album called The Darkest Skies Are The Brightest, which is set to be released on February 26, 2021. This upcoming studio album will feature 11 new tracks, and will serve as a departure from her previous work with the metal band VUUR.

The recording for this project came at a pivotal time for van Giersbergen, who originally attempted an immediate VUUR follow-up project after the release of their debut album In This Moment We Are Free. Van Gierbergen stated that the album’s recording process and their follow-up tour saw her spend all her savings, which placed a large financial burden on her.

This burden was further exacerbated by the marriage troubles van Giersbergen began experiencing around this time as well. “I instantly knew I needed to write music about fixing my life. This creative endeavour would be far too personal for a VUUR album. And it would also require solitude,” van Giersbergen stated in a press release.

Taking a simple acoustic guitar and basic recording equipment, van Giersbergen retreated to the woods near her home of Eindhoven, where she began writing songs for the album. She eventually teamed up with Gijs Coolen for the project, which would go on to have panoramic strings, horns and percussion into the recordings.

The artist released Symphonized back in 2018, which was made alongside The Hague’s Resident Orchestra. She also teamed up with Devin Townsend and Che Aimee Dorval this year as a part of Townsend’s expansive Quarantine project.

The Darkest Skies Are The Brightest track list

1. Agape
2. Hurricane
3. My Promise
4. I Saw A Car
5. The Soul Knows
6. The End
7. Keep It Simple
8. Lo And Behold
9. Losing You
10. Survive
11. Love You Like I Love You