Borknagar

Borknagar is a Norwegian progressive metal band formed in Bergen in 1995 by Øystein Garnes Brun. The band's music incorporates elements of black metal and folk music, as well as melodic and progressive metal. Its lyrics address subjects including philosophy, paganism, nature and the cosmos. Borknagar has released twelve studio albums. Borknagar was formed by Brun while he was a member of the Norwegian death metal band Molested. Seeking a more melodic musical direction Read more on Last.fm …read full bio

Borknagar is a Norwegian progressive metal band formed in Bergen in 1995 by Øystein Garnes Brun. The band's music incorporates elements of black metal and folk music, as well as melodic and progressive metal. Its lyrics address subjects including philosophy, paganism, nature and the cosmos. Borknagar has released twelve studio albums. Borknagar was formed by Brun while he was a member of the Norwegian death metal band Molested. Seeking a more melodic musical direction, Brun founded Borknagar with influences from the Norwegian black metal scene and an interest in expanding the conventions of the genre. He wrote the band's initial music and lyrics and recruited several established black metal musicians, including Infernus of Gorgoroth, Grim of Immortal and Gorgoroth, and Ivar Bjørnson of Enslaved. The subsequent addition of Garm of Ulver, Head Control System and Arcturus further increased attention surrounding the band. Borknagar did not record a demo before securing a recording contract with Malicious Records. The band's debut album, "Borknagar", was released with Norwegian-language lyrics. Grim died in 1999 and was initially replaced by Justin Greaves, who subsequently left the band and was replaced by Asgeir Mickelson. Later albums primarily featured English-language lyrics. "The Olden Domain" contains an instrumental track with a Norwegian title. In addition to Brun, songwriting contributions have been made by ICS Vortex of Arcturus and formerly Dimmu Borgir, Mickelson, keyboardist Lars Nedland and Vintersorg of Otyg and Vintersorg. Bassist Jan Erik Tiwaz, also known as Tyr, wrote the song "The View of Everlast". Borknagar has toured with bands including Emperor, Peccatum, In Flames, Morbid Angel and Cradle of Filth. The album "Origin" represented a departure from the band's predominantly electric approach, incorporating acoustic instrumentation and focusing on its progressive and epic elements. Brun described the album as an acoustic effort in an interview with Blabbermouth.net. In December 2007, Borknagar signed a three-album contract with Norwegian record label Indie Recordings. In March 2008, the band announced that Tiwaz and Jens F. Ryland had rejoined the lineup. In May of that year, Mickelson left the band, with Brun citing differences in musical ideas and direction. He was replaced by American drummer David Kinkade, who had previously performed with Arsis and Malevolent Creation. In April 2009, Borknagar announced the album "Universal". Originally scheduled for release in September 2009, it was postponed until February 2010. In June 2010, Tiwaz left the band following disagreements within the group. ICS Vortex subsequently performed bass and vocals during the band's planned tour. Borknagar also announced its first tour of South America, with ICS Vortex performing vocals, but cancelled the tour in August 2010 for reasons described by the band as beyond its control. Borknagar's contract with Indie Recordings ended in January 2011. In March 2011, the band signed a three-album contract with Century Media Records. In April 2011, the band announced the return of ICS Vortex as bassist and vocalist. Kinkade announced his departure from Borknagar in October 2011, citing his intention to focus on Soulfly. In February 2012, Baard Kolstad was announced as his replacement. Borknagar spent 2014 and 2015 writing and recording the album "Winter Thrice". The recording process was delayed by injuries sustained by Vintersorg in late 2014, but was completed in June 2015. Kristoffer Rygg, the band's original vocalist, contributed guest vocals to the album. In early 2019, Vintersorg left Borknagar, citing conflicts involving his work and family commitments and the continuing effects of his previous injuries. His departure was described as amicable. Kolstad also left the band because of time constraints resulting from his other projects. ICS Vortex resumed lead vocal duties, while Bjørn Dugstad Rønnow became the band's drummer at Kolstad's recommendation. Borknagar released its eleventh studio album, "True North", on 27 September 2019. On 15 December 2023, Borknagar announced that its twelfth studio album, "Fall", would be released on 23 February 2024. The announcement was accompanied by the release of the single "Summits" and an accompanying visualiser video. Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Borknagar Studio albums Borknagar (1996) The Olden Domain (1997) The Archaic Course (1998) Quintessence (2000) Empiricism (2001) Epic (2004) Origin (2006) Universal (2010) Urd (2012) Winter Thrice (2016) True North (2019) Fall (2024) Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.

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…shrink me down again