Toronto-based experimental doom trio VÖLUR will release its sophomore album, Ancestors, on June 2 via Prophecy Productions. Produced by the band and mixed by Charles Spearin (Broken Social Scene), Ancestors is the follow-up to VÖLUR's celebrated debut, Disir, which was hailed as "a winsome blend of pastoral folk, gentle prog, atmospheric doom, and old world magic" by Noisey. In advance of the record's release, Invisible Oranges debuts the new song, "Breaker of Oaths", adding, "Völur slowly morphs and unfurls, masking a surmounting aggression with layers of whimsy and beauty. As their petals fully open, their unique sound organically radiates with a kaleidoscope of colors." Hear VÖLUR's "Breaker of Oaths" at THIS location:
https://www.invisibleoranges.com/volur-breaker-of-oaths-song-premiere/
"Breaker of Oaths" is inspired by the saga of Gisli Surrson, a man whom through a complex network of alliances, finds himself outcast from society on the run from those who wish to exact revenge on him," comments the band. "The song weaves together different moments of the grotesque with sorrowful melodies. Intended to be structured like a true tragedy, it barrels toward its sad conclusion, only stopping to breathe its sorrow into the air. This song shows all the band's strengths, the alchemy of doom, folk and the avant-garde."
Moving between high-tension heaviness and beautiful pastoral moods, VÖLUR aims to reflect the world of primordial nature inspired by ancient myths and chilling poems of death and heroism. Ancestors shares the stories and sagas of great men from the past that have been shrouded by the obscurity of time while simultaneously spotlighting one of North America's most ambitious and striving young acts.
Just as the band's 2016 debut, Disir, dealt with themes surrounding female figures from mythology, Ancestors focuses on the heroine's male counterparts and is the second part of a planned four album series spotlighting various elements of the old Germanic spiritual world. VÖLUR's songs are long, quasi-narrative pieces that feature Laura C. Bates' violin assuming the role traditionally executed by a guitar, allowing the bass playing of Lucas Gadke (also of Blood Ceremony) to take on unique responsibilities in both lead and melodic roles while drummer Jimmy Payment (Do Make Say Think) feeds the band's bombastic, crushing oomph. Doom music (not necessarily metal) is about slow contemplation and the transfixing power of heaviness and VÖLUR's weighty riffs, layers of feedback, dynamic, angular melodies and moments of beauty give heed to the band's promise to always seek newer modes of musical expression and discovery.
Track listing:
1.) Breaker of Silence
2.) Breaker of Skulls
3.) Breaker of Oaths
4.) Breaker of Famine
"a winsome blend of pastoral folk, gentle prog, atmospheric doom, and old world magic...there's a lot of doom and folk going on, but what they leave out is how jaw-droppingly good they are at interweaving the two musical disciplines into a cohesive, beautiful whole that also manages to seamlessly incorporate prog, drone, and neoclassical elements. There's an ambient aspect, as well, which is sort of unavoidable when you're working with two genres-doom and folk-that demand space and atmosphere to really unfurl and grow into themselves." - NOISEY
"Beautiful, sprawling folk/doom metal psychedelia" - INVISIBLE ORANGES
"Völur create entirely entrancing music. Norse leaning, globally influenced and completely unique. It's an album you can enjoy lying down or driving through the hills. But, even if you are merely sitting in a basement, Völur will create the audio illusion that you are on some sort of beautiful journey in a land where you walk alone." - NINE CIRCLES
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