Birna

On their sixth studio album, mystical Norwegian folk troupe Wardruna conjure a song cycle about the she-bear, or Birna. “Bears are an absolutely fascinating species, and it’s easy to understand why they have become such an important part of folklore in certain types of culture—in fairy tales, in lullabies, and in star signs,” Wardruna’s songwriter, co-vocalist, and multi-instrumentalist Einar Selvik tells Apple Music. “Why I chose the she-bear rather than the male bear is the fact that their annual rhythm mirrors completely the rhythm of Mother Earth in a way—the cyclic turns of life, death, and regeneration. That’s the story I wanted to tell on this record.” Since 2003, Selvik and his musical partner and co-vocalist Lindy-Fay Hella—along with an ever-expanding cast of backing musicians—have used Old Norse language and ancient traditional instruments to channel the majesty of the natural world. “Giving voice to the wild, I think, is important,” Selvik says. “I think a lot of us feel a deeper and deeper void between us and our surroundings. To be living so removed from nature, from the cycles of the Earth, is not healthy. But our society doesn’t really allow us to follow the rhythm of the seasons. We tend to have one tempo year-round; we eat everything year-round, neglecting the fact that we are cyclic beings. That’s one of the things bears can teach us. And not only bears, but nature: They help us remember that we’re part of something.” Below, Selvik discusses each song on *Birna*. **“Hertan”** “Hertan is the proto-Scandinavian word for ‘heart,’ and that is where we start this journey—with the pulse that beats in everything and that governs all of these movements within ourselves, and also in nature in various forms and beings. That’s, of course, the physical heart, but then you also have the metaphorical heart, the ship of emotion. That is what counsels our decisions and choices here in life and our emotions. It takes us through one of these cycles of death and rebirth. In enduring that process, we understand it and see it clearly, these movements and patterns and our place in them.” **“Birna”** “The word means ‘she-bear.’ It is a track that represents a dialogue between man and she-bear. It’s written in a playful way, like many of the old bear songs from traditions where there are a lot of bears in their culture. It addresses the somewhat problematic relationship we have had with bears throughout time. It acknowledges that our path together has been a tangled one. And then, the she-bear asks to lend its hide, which is something that has been used ceremonially or in many traditions to borrow the bear’s strength, to borrow its courage or whatever skill. It is said that bears have the strength of 12 men and the wits of 10, and that is often the skills we wanted to learn from them.” **“Ljos til Jord”** “Here, we start at the summer solstice, and we follow the bear’s movement towards the den. We see the birds migrate, we see the salmon swim upstream in the river to spawn where they were born and then die. All of these movements we see in nature. It is written in the lyrics that it’s almost like every year we’re invited to this wonderful, luscious feast, but at some point, the hostess of the party leaves, and we’re left to gather what we can to survive until she returns in spring.” **“Dvaledraumar”** “It means ‘Dormant Dreams,’ and this, of course, is the hibernation. The bear doesn’t really hibernate, per definition—it goes into a semi-hibernating state where it lowers its heart rate to between eight and 10 beats per minute. I chose nine beats per minute for conceptual reasons, and that is the pulse that leads you through this 15-minute dreamscape. The sounds you hear—they’re almost whalelike—they come from a lake that freezes in a very specific way in wintertime. We were lucky to have Jonna Jinton, the Swedish artist who has been recording these singing ice lakes for several years now, collaborating on this song with both the field recordings and some vocals toward the end.” **“Jord til Ljos”** “This was made as one track with ‘Dvaledraumar,’ and the title means ‘Earth to Light’ or ‘Womb to Light.’ It follows the same pulse as ‘Dvaledraumar,’ with the same instrumentation in a way, but it subtly transforms as the den is becoming smaller and smaller, and the birds are singing. It’s time to wake up and enter spring, to enter the life cycle of the year.” **“Himinndotter”** “This is the emergence of spring, but also coming into light, or enlightenment. You have journeyed together with this bear through this cycle. It’s a song very much about seeing these movements and cyclic patterns that we are a part of and realizing the repercussions of messing with these systems. It’s a lot about seeking connection, but also acknowledging that at this point, the shepherd of the forest—in this case, the bear—is no longer welcome in its homelands. The choir you hear is an all-female choir from Oslo, the Koret Artemis. They work a lot with traditional music from all over the world. I wanted it to feel like we’re in unison, that we are many people who think and feel the importance of this.” **“Hibjørnen”** “It means ‘The Den Bear,’ or ‘The Hibernator.’ It’s written as a lullaby because lullabies are very much connected to bears. Wherever there are bears, you have a lot of lullabies about bears because of their sleep. And the way they mother their cubs is so powerful. It’s the reason why we call some mothers ‘mother bear’ or ‘mama bear.’ Bears are badass moms. They give it all. So, it’s a lullaby from the bear’s perspective within the den.” **“Skuggehesten”** “It means ‘Shadow Horse,’ and we’re in the human realm again, not the bear realm. It’s basically a long set of metaphors and descriptions of when you’re in a dark place or when darkness rides you. It’s pretty aggressive in a way. At the same time, it’s emotional. It’s the type of song I really recommend you have a look at the lyrics. It, of course, is best if you know the original language because it’s not as poetic in the translation, but we always include English translations in our booklets.” **“Tretale”** “It means ‘The Voice of Trees.’ It’s basically a song about how your surroundings speak to you—or through you, potentially—if you listen. It’s the type of voice that whispers silently in your ear. You can’t necessarily hear it externally, but it speaks through you from within. A lot of the sounds you hear in the song, it’s me out in the forest shaking big and small trees, scraping on the bark of many different trees and twigs and all sorts of things—and the wind in many different types of leaves. So, the soundscape is very much trees. Trees and instruments, of course.” **“Lyfjaberg”** “It means ‘The Healing Mountain,’ and this song came out a few years ago. It was made after the last album was finished, but as a result of us having to postpone the record \[due to the COVID-19 pandemic\], that is why we released the song \[in 2020\]. We really wanted to release music, and a lot of people were waiting. We know Lyfjaberg from the old myths and the old Eddic poetry as a mythical place where, if you were able to climb this mountain, you would be healed of all your illnesses. So, the song contains incantations and ancient healing spells. And climbing a mountain is a very good metaphor also for fighting difficult things in your life. The core of it is that anything of true value comes at a true cost. You won’t reach the top of the mountain without walking uphill.”

Norway's WARDRUNA took a bite out of pop culture when its music was featured on History Channel's popular historical fiction series "Vikings". Any quick snippet of their music may seem out of place in metal, however, it makes sense because of the folk experience that runs parallel with that metal su...

Tom Fordham reviews the new album from Norwegian folk collective Wardruna! Read his review of 'Birna' here on Distorted Sound!

A rare double review for Birna by Wardruna, available January 24th worldwide via By Norse and Sony Music.

Traditional instruments, drones and repetitive lyrics make for some epic listening, possibly more suitable for a medieval TV romp