So, it’s Saturday morning. I slept in late. The back screen door is open, and the cats are out for their morning wander. My coffee is suitably warm, my headphones are ready, and I’m flipping through the bands I’ll be reviewing this morning. One is called VANSIND, a folk metal band out of Denmark. I’ll be checking out their debut full-length, “Mørket.” They had an EP, “MXIII,” in 2021, but this album is all new material. I crack upon their photo. Five members. Looks like they just got back from the Renaissance Fair. They look suitably Folkish—long hair and bald heads, beards and no beards, men and women. Okay, well maybe it’s the peaceful look they all have. The look that suggests they commune with nature, are careful about what they eat, and read Tarot. One member, Rikke Klint Johansen, is holding a bagpipe . . . and that’s how I know this band is going to be legit, or at least fun. Turns out she also plays the ‘pen whistle,’ whatever that is. Less exciting, she’s the keyboardist. That’s okay, they had me at bagpipes.

VANSIND formed in the pre-COVID days of 2019. Their promo material informs me that lyrically they focus on “the darker side of the Nordic mythology and Scandinavian history.” Musically they “provide a solid soundtrack for battle, chain dance and raised horns with melodies inspired by folk music that meets solid metal, rumbling growls and clean female singing.” All good. No problems with any of that.

As far as the album, “Mørket” comprises eight tracks and has a solid runtime of just over 45 minutes. There is a short intro piece with some spoken word, choral vocals, and acoustic instruments. Otherwise, there are no interludes and no outro track to eat up space although there is still plenty of atmosphere built with flourishes of field recordings and acoustic breaks within the songs themselves. I’m not a gatekeeper for Folk Metal, but I know what I like.

I like that this album captures Folk without going Symphonic or Pirate. I like that the vocals are intentionally guttural as well as clean to correspond with the texture of the music as opposed to just a rote beauty-and-beast trade-off. And finally, I like that VANSIND understand melody and harmony and know that you don’t have to sacrifice either to go heavy. These are well written compositions, remarkably executed, excellently recorded.

I’ll list my favorite tracks, but they are all excellent. I also want to emphasize that this is an album. As an album it should be experienced from tracks 1 – 8, straight through. It tells a story, and even if you can’t understand Danish, the music tells a story. If you want singles, go to Spotify and sell your soul; if you want to hear what the artists have to tell, buy the album and partake in the experience. Lecture over.

My fav tracks are: “Grib til våben” (trans: the big ash) for its great guitar work, riffs as well as solo. “Blodmosen” (the blood blog)—the intro is a little sing-songy but the breathless chorus and the galloping tempo makes up for it. “Den første fejde” (the first feud) —just utterly and heartbreakingly beautiful. I also love the blackened tremolo and the beer swagging refrain. Yep, all that in one song. Love it. “Blot” (blood sacrifice) another gorgeous track because “Den første fejde” wasn’t enough.

“Mørket” translates to ‘the darkness.’ A suitable name for an album that focuses on a folklore filled with battle and death. It also captures a key essence of VANSIND. This isn’t a get-mellow-and-commune-with-your-spirit-animal band, unless your spirit animal is cocaine bear. Okay, maybe I exaggerate, but my point is VANSIND dials up the Metal in Folk Metal while still integrating bardic instruments. Great suff.