Black Metallers NYRST are a band whose pride in their native Iceland is obvious in all that they do. The country’s wild landscape, dotted with immense, still-active volcanoes, permeates NYRST’s music, whose dark melodies and intense vocals create a feeling that nature itself is a force to be reckoned with, and against whose power humanity is helpless.
The very title of the band’s sophomore full-length album “Völd”, which means “force, power or might” carries with it a sense of menace, and is indicative of what to expect from NYRST’s second outing on December 8th via Dark Essence Records. The band has unveiled an official music video for the album’s title track, created by by Valhalla Artworks, which perfectly encapsulates what NYRST is all about.
As the band explains from their base in Reykjavik: “This release marks a big milestone in our career as a band. We’ve developed a lot as musicians since the release of ‘Orsök’ and we took a very different approach to writing and composition. Our intention was to bring all the best elements of our previous work and implement new ideas along with a different theme, which in turn resulted in a much heavier, grim but melodic album.”
Being based in Reykjavik has no doubt helped NYRST’s ambition to bear fruit, because “Völd” was written and rehearsed within a few kilometres of an active, lava-spewing, volcano, whose very presence has allowed the band to draw inspiration from a stark landscape whose beauty is underscored by a brooding, ever-present, danger.
“Völd” track listing:
- Völd
- Sundra skal sálu
- Hrímvíti
- Fjallið andar
- Eilíft eldhaf
- Drottnari nafnlausra guða
- Af fjarri ströndum
You can watch the official music video for “Völd” below:
