After a restful hiatus, Heilung is waking up. The world famous ritual collective is working on their highly-anticipated fourth full-length studio album.
While fans around the globe eagerly await their next album, today, Heilung is excited to share “Seidh”, the second single from Sagas, a collection of recordings that core members Kai Uwe Faust, Maria Franz and Christopher Juul created in collaboration with Ninja Theory for the award-winning video game Hellblade II: Senua’s Saga.
Previously performed live at The Game Awards in 2023, “Seidh” invokes the Norse mythology that guides Senua on her quest through 9th century Iceland. The song draws its breath from the oldest layers of the North, where ritual, poetry and prophecy were not yet separated. At its center stands the völva, who, through chant, rhythm and altered states of consciousness, opens a space where the unseen begins to speak.
Stream “Seidh”: https://orcd.co/heilungseidh
The music video for “Seidh” was directed by Gornoss (@gornoss). It is the third in a trilogy of videos from Sagas that deal with the trauma induced by warfare. The second part, “Læknisgaldr”, has been viewed 981K times on YouTube during the past four weeks.
Additional video credits
Produced by Eudaimonia APS/Maria Franz
Filmed on location at Voedselbos De Reiziger in The Netherlands,
Árdalur in Iceland, and Holtug kridtbrud, Vikingelandsbyen | Albertslund and Magleby skov in Denmark
Camera, Lightening and Editing – Gornoss
Additional Camera Operator – Ruben Terlouw
Colorist and Visual Effects – Teddy Masson
Mask creator – Vargr Ars Macabra
Special Effects Makeup – Avalon Middelton
Location Manager – Líam O’Malley
Location Caretaker – Steven A. Pilon
Landowner – Pétur Jónsson
Runner – Jessica Martinez
Warriors – Mitchell Bosch, Nina Cornelia Schilp, Chloé Alicia Bakker de Poorter, Gwydion Zomer, Nadiia Kalamieiets, Rowan Schuddeboom, Edward Boyter, Elbrich Vunderink Schoorstra, Egill Óskar Gíslason, Sigurjon Arason, Kristjón Rúnar Halldórsson, Kristján Logi Einarsson ísfeld, Jón Gestur Björgvinsson, Theodór Árni Söebech Hansson, Eydìs Moon Guðmundsdóttir, Natalía Ósk R. Snædal, Diðrik Mason Sigurðsson, Daníel Örn A. Linduson, Andri Björn Birgisson, Heimdall Apeland, Ísleifur Gisurrarson, Bjorgvín Hafn Ásmundson
Sagas comes out December 11, 2026 on Season of Mist. The deluxe CD and vinyl editions of Sagas include Ambient, which features eight additional soundscapes that Heilung recorded to draw listeners even deeper into the world of Hellblade II: Senua’s Saga.
Pre-order Sagas: https://orcd.co/heilungsagas
Pre-save Sagas on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/prerelease/73MXpxZwUgff1fbvRknmTl
When you walk an unknown path, it will reveal itself while you explore it.
This is what happened when Heilung and Gornoss began their adventure this May in creating the videos for Sagas.
“We knew we wanted to tell a story about healing from trauma, and the choice of song landed on ‘Læknisgaldr’”, Heilung core member Maria Franz says. “A tiny team with a great mission traveled first to a viking market in Borre, Norway, and then to rainy mountains in Iceland. But during the filming, it became clear that the story was too big for one video only. We instinctively knew that the next chapter needed to be to our song, ‘Seidh’”.
“To fulfill the vision for ‘Seidh’, there was no doubt that we had to bring the dancing of our Haarii warriors, who many might recognize from our live shows”, Franz continues. “The journey therefore brought us to a forest in The Netherlands. And as we followed the path, the story unfolded and revealed itself further… We now had too much to tell for only two videos.
This saga will now be told in three parts about trauma, healing and vision. In part two, ‘Læknisgaldr’, you participated in the healing. In part three, ‘Seidh’, we give you the vision. And finally in part one, you will witness the trauma in the still to be released ‘Slagt’”.
Sagas – Track list:
- Geiteseidh (00:48)
- Slagt (03:53)
- Læknisgaldr (06:15) [WATCH]
- Orrustumaul (02:34)
- Seidh (05:06)
- Jøtnarhaiti (05:30)
- Sverdhasøngurin (04:10)
- Spjoutsyla (02:42)
- Sonatorrek (02:01)
- Opnun (05:10)
- Dauðimessa (02:32)
Total runtime: 40:40
Sagas Ambient – Track list:
- Strongyle (11:01)
- Ran (13:04)
- Dimmuborgir (06:13)
- Baina (03:34)
- Isshellir (02:15)
- Hvaldaudhigaldr (15:45)
- Meinbein (14:03)
- Hyttepåhyttepå (02:31)
Total runtime: 1:08:26
Since they began in 2015, Heilung have paved melodic paths to the past with their unique and mystifying sound. Evading all conventional genre tags and the confines of any specific labels, the ritual collective connect modern society with the rudiments of humanity’s beginnings through amplified history.
“Our ancestral Nordic civilisations did not just pop up, exist and disappear in isolation”, Heilung core member and throat singer Kai Uwe Faust says. “With singing these primordial songs we want to give tribute to these cultures, reconnect to the beginnings and remember that we all, from East to West, from past to present, are connected through the exchange of ideas and inspiring each other”.
While Heilung feature authentic and archaic instrumentation that ranges from rattles and ritual bells to human bones and throat singing, their captivating brand of music is far from primitive. Producer and core member Christopher Juul implements subtle electronic elements that elevate the musical atmosphere and provide a more in-depth and layered soundscape.
Indeed, Heilung’s success has been unprecedented. The collective had already been rapidly growing a buzz upon the self-release of their first full-length Ofnir in 2015, but their dizzying upward trajectory really took off from the moment they set foot on the stage at Castlefest in 2017 for the now-legendary debut of their live ritual.
Every Heilung performance begins with Faust leading Juul, core member and vocalist Maria Franz and the rest of the tribe in an ancient prayer. Soon after, the audience is swept into rapture, swayed by incense and throat singing, primordial rhythms, subtle electronic textures, a mesmerising light show, an army of warriors and bursts of fire.
As Heilung trekked across Europe and brought their mystifying experience to new audiences, talk of this new band and their stunning ceremony made its way to Season of Mist label owner Michael Berberian, who quickly offered the band a record contract after seeing their undeniable musical impact for himself.
By 2019, Heilung launched their second full-length record, Futha, which contrasted the masculine and battle-heavy themes of their debut with a feminine counterpart that celebrated fertility and female energy. It debuted at #3 on the Billboard Heatseekers Charts and #4 on the Billboard World Music Chart and would place on a total of seven Billboard charts while receiving critical acclaim from press around the globe.
Heilung have crossed over into places outside the music industry. From hit television series like Game of Thrones and Vikings to the blockbuster Robert Eggers film The Northman, their songs have transcended into the larger world.
Even a global pandemic couldn’t slow down Heilung’s success; it only strengthened them and gave them the gift of time to complete work on their third album, Drif. In English, the title means “Gathering”. The music embodies this philosophy by tying together the beginning of civilisation with today’s modern society.
Heilung have performed their ritual all over the world. They sold out their first North American tour in 72 hours. Upon returning to the United States in 2021, they were greeted by another sold-out crowd, this time at the historic Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Morrison, Colorado. This performance was released on vinyl and CD in 2024 as the live album Lifa Iotungard.
In 2025, Heilung embarked on headlining tours of Europe, Australia and New Zealand. Along the way, they cast their spell over more of the world’s biggest stages, including Roskilde Festival, Download Festival and Glastonbury Festival.
After completing their 2025 Amplified History tour, Heilung went on hiatus. Following a restful period, in September 2026, the collective announced that they would return to the recording studio in October to record their fourth studio album.
They also announced Sagas, a collection of recordings that Franz, Faust and Juul created in collaboration with Ninja Theory for Hellblade II: Senua’s Saga, including many recordings that don’t appear in the video game. Now available in full for the first time on CD, vinyl and digital platforms, these recordings capture the game’s epic journey while also adding the Icelandic landscape to the ritual collective’s unmistakable sound. Lead single “Læknisgaldr” remedies an affliction through the simple act of repetition, like water running over stone.
The special edition of Sagas includes Sagas Ambient, a bonus disc of eight distinct tracks: ambient soundscapes that Heilung built to immerse gamers even deeper in the world of Hellblade II.
“Sagas holds a special place in Heilung’s discography”, Faust says. “The ideas that we composed and developed with Ninja Theory for Hellblade II: Senua’s Saga soon took on a life of their own after Chris, Maria and I came home from a formative 10-day journey through Iceland. The landscape of the country helped shape the sonic identity of the material and inspired us to write far more than could be used in the game. The pieces collected on Sagas and Ambient now stand on their own and can be experienced as fully realized Heilung music. After almost eight years since its creation, we are grateful to finally be able to share this material and present it to our listeners as part of our creative journey”.
More news about Heilung’s fourth studio album is coming soon.
Line-up
Kai Uwe Faust
Christopher Juul
Maria Franz
Production Credits
Recorded, Mixed and Mastered at LAVA Studio.
Produced, Mixed, Mastered and Engineered by Christopher Juul.
Cover Art
Kai Uwe Faust
Christopher Juul
Maria Franz
Adrien Bousson
Follow Heilung
Official Website: https://www.amplifiedhistory.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/amplifiedhistory
Instagram: https://instagram.com/amplifiedhistory
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@amplifiedhistory
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/7sTKZr30LqC928DZ5P9mNQ
Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/artist/heilung/536814752
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/Heilung
Bandcamp: https://heilung.bandcamp.com/music
Bandsintown: https://www.bandsintown.com/a/1977594-heilung
