Wardruna – Modern Ambassadors of Ancient Norse Culture

Wardruna has quickly earned international renown as modern ambassadors of ancient Norse culture, lore, and tradition through performances on popular shows like Vikings on History Channel as well as high profile concerts at Red Rocks Amphitheatre – they describe themselves as sowing new seeds while strengthening old roots!

Einar Selvik forgoing the romantic notion that things used to be better, emphasizing rather the importance of maintaining traditions.

The Band

Established in 2003 by Einar Selvik and Lindy-Fay Hella along with Gaahl, Runaljod was formed with the goal of producing musical interpretations of Norse cultural and esoteric traditions. Their first three albums in the Runaljod trilogy are all themed around Nordic runes; specifically 8 out of 24 Proto-Norse runes better known as Elder Futhark runes for each release – meaning their rune music stands on its own without contemporary context – making their rune music accessible.

Kvitravn (White Raven), their latest full-length album released in January 2021, features eleven songs that explore Nordic sorcery, spirit animals, shadows, nature and animism as well as various Norse spiritual concepts. This record was an overwhelming success and debuted on German chart positions.

Wardruna stands apart from its counterparts in that their focus on Norse paganism pits it against Christianity as an imperialist religion that has undermined Norse identity and stripped people of their identities.

The Music

Wardruna’s latest record Hertan (which translates to “Heart”) may sound similar to black metal but there has been less of an abrupt shift than initially anticipated; rather than leaning heavily on metal sounds and instrumentation for their inspiration, Wardruna have moved into more folkish/neofolk territory by drawing heavily upon Norse mythology and heritage for inspiration.

Selvik describes that Wardruna’s rituals centering around runes aim to foster relationships among music, nature, region, and Norse mythology – with idealized past identities serving as consolation for lost ones. Because Wardruna does not keep these cultural constructs alive through historical memory preservation efforts alone, their musical “realms of memory” are more like inventions rather than actual preservations.

Wardruna has enjoyed immense popularity due to their music being featured on History Channel TV show Vikings as well as high profile performances at venues like Viking Ship Museum and New York By Norse 2022. They recently performed to a sold out Kings Theatre room filled with history buffs, metalheads and modern Vikings alike!

The Members

Einar Selvik and Lindy Fay Hella’s band Wardruna is one of the leading modern ambassadors of ancient Norse music, culture, and lore. Since 2003 when the trio first collaborated together using traditional instruments to interpret cultural traditions from ancient Norse history.

Wardruna’s music spans the genres typically classified as folk, world and ambient and is more than simply an accumulation of old sounds. Their fundamental belief is that ancient instruments represent timeless values and spiritualities unaffected by context-dependent criticism.

Kvitravn is the band’s latest release and serves as an extension of this message to a larger audience. Opening track ‘Andvarljod’ (or “Song of The Spirit Weavers”) charts weather patterns which determine our destiny; thus connecting to nature’s power over us. Thus making climate emergency an integral component of its message.

The Video

Wardruna first made waves with their captivating 2009 album ‘Gap var Ginnunga’ (first of three parts), spreading new seeds by performing live at several historic sites such as Plovdiv’s Ancient Theatre and Borgholm Castle in Sweden. By 2023 they had taken their show around the globe – performing from US cities to Norway and Iceland before playing legendary festivals like Wacken Open Air festival and Hellfest Open Air festival in France.

Wardruna was created in 2003 by Einar Selvik and Gaahl of black metal band Gorgoroth; their goal is to craft accurate musical renditions of traditional Norse cultural and esoteric traditions using Nordic historical instruments, languages, whispering voices and powerful choirs – truly captivating music that stands the test of time.

In their video for Hertan (Heart), featuring Finnish actress Karin Pacius, they take us back in time to Doggerland: an island connecting Britain and continental Europe some 10,000 years ago that was eventually erased by submarine landslides known as Storegga eruptions. Here was a land of myth and magic; home to spirit animals such as Hugin and Munin who held incredible power through thought and memory.