''Urd'' is the ninth studio album by Norwegian heavy metal band

Borknagar Borknagar is a Norwegian heavy metal band from Bergen, founded in 1995 by Øystein Garnes Brun. The band's style combines black metal and folk metal with progressive and melodic elements. Borknagar's lyrics often deal with philosophy, pagan ...

. Released on March 26, 2012, it is the first album to feature Simen "ICS Vortex" Hestnæs and Andreas "Vintersorg" Hedlund sharing lead vocals. It is also the final album with drummer

David Kinkade David Kinkade (born August 25, 1983) is an American metal drummer. History David Kinkade was born in New Jersey in 1983. At the age of three, he started picking up drums after his grandfather gave him his first drum kit. He has become known f ...

, who joined

Soulfly Soulfly is an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1997, and later based out of Phoenix, Arizona. Soulfly is led by former Sepultura frontman Max Cavalera, who formed the band after he left the Brazilian group in 19 ...

after recording sessions were completed and subsequently retired from music.

Background

Borknagar’s founder, Øystein G. Brun, described the artwork for ''Urd'' as "an earthly expression...You can almost smell and feel the texture of the old Norse wooden carvings". Given that Borknagar's previous album was titled ''Universal'', Brun suggested that it was natural for the band to "head back home to earth" when choosing the title for its next album. For Brun, this choice reflected a desire to "get back to the core of the band", and specifically "admiration and pondering about nature and mankind’s place therein". For Brun, the meaning behind the album title connects with the sound of the album: "Even though the album has a very progressive approach, the spirit of the album is very retrospective. Might sound a bit like a paradox, but in my opinion this 'duality' is the very core of progression. Progression without a musical anchor is plain drifting. But

here Here is an adverb that means "in, on, or at this place". It may also refer to: Software * Here Technologies, a mapping company * Here WeGo (formerly Here Maps), a mobile app and map website by Here Technologies, Here Television * Here TV (form ...

is more to the title, different layers of philosophical ideas and perspectives." Among the different layers of the album title is its connection to Norse mythology. Urd, which is the name of a

norn Norn may refer to: *Norn language, an extinct North Germanic language that was spoken in Northern Isles of Scotland *Norns, beings from Norse mythology *Norn Iron, the local pronunciation of Northern Ireland * Norn iron works, an old industrial c ...

that represents the past when deciding the fates of persons. This entity is taken by Brun as a metaphor for a modern scientific discovery. Brun speculated that Urd "is an ancient expression of what we today know as DNA. And I have always been very fascinated by the fact that parts and bits of our DNA actually derive from the very beginning of time. All living creatures are somewhat connected to the very first organic cell. That is some of the story behind the album title". Elaborating upon the interconnectedness of organisms through time, Brun has alluded to the deep ecology of

Arne Næss Arne Dekke Eide Næss (; 27 January 1912 – 12 January 2009) was a Norwegian philosopher who coined the term "deep ecology", an important intellectual and inspirational figure within the environmental movement of the late twentieth century ...

as an inspiration on ''Urd''. "I just love how he aesstalks about nature, almost like in a childish but yet a very profound way. He professes the idea that every creature is connected and equally independent for survival. Some sort of revolt against the Christian dogma that mankind is the ruler of the earth. So based on this, I was inspired to turn my head down to earth to ponder about the 'roots' of mankind".

Track listing

Personnel

Borknagar

Andreas Hedlund Andreas Hedlund (born 17 September 1973), better known by his stage names Vintersorg and Mr. V, is a Swedish vocalist and multi-instrumentalist who has played in several heavy metal bands. Biography Hedlund's musical career came to be at or aro ...

(credited as "Vintersorg") – clean vocals, harsh vocals, choirs *

Øystein G. Brun Øystein is a Norwegian given name of Old Norse origins. One of its variants is Östen which is mostly used in Sweden. Notable people with the name include: *Øystein Aarseth (1968–1993), Norwegian guitarist (pseudonym Euronymous), co-founder o ...

– acoustic guitar, electric guitar *

Jens F. Ryland Jens Fredrik Ryland (born 5 May 1974) is a Norwegian guitarist most notable for his work with the heavy metal band Borknagar. He is known also for being the founder of the Inferno Festival in Oslo. Biography Jens was born in Narvik, Norway and g ...

– lead guitar *

Simen Hestnæs Simen Hestnæs (born 4 March 1974), better known by his stage name ICS Vortex or simply Vortex, is a Norwegian musician. He is the vocalist of the similarly named band ICS Vortex, the avant-garde metal band Arcturus and the doom metal band Lamen ...

(credited as "ICS Vortex") – clean vocals, choirs, bass guitar * Lars A. Nedland – clean vocals, choirs, keyboards *

– drums, percussion

Additional personnel

* Christophe Szpajdel – logo

References

{{Authority control 2012 albums Borknagar albums