“Fremmede Toner” from Norwegian Folk Prog Rockers LUMSK is a long way from being your average album because all its twelve tracks are actually in pairs, with each individual pair taking as their base one poem and revisiting it in two different, yet beguilingly similar, ways.

It therefore follows that when revealing a new single from the album, there must be two tracks, as is the case with “Avskjed” and “Abschied” which can be streamed or downloaded from a variety of sources at THIS LOCATION.

As the band explained:

Avskjed / Abschied is the second pair of songs (singles) taken from our upcoming album “Fremmede Toner”. This time the lyrics are the re-creation of the famous German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche´s “Abschied” by Norwegian author Andre Bjerke, as well as the poem in its original form.  Just as Bjerke´s poems are translations and recreations and are quite familiar but not the same as the original, the songs also try to reflect eachother in the same way. They will feel familiar but will still not be the same.

“Fremmede Toner” is the fourth full-length release from LUMSK, a band that was formed in 1999, just when the metal scene was exploring the use of regional folk traditions within music. With their use of heavy guitars, keyboard and organs, violins, session horns and female vocals, and a clear vision of the direction they wanted their music to take, LUMSK was in the right place at the right time. 

Having garnered a considerable fan base and a stellar reputation, both at home and internationally, LUMSK released their third full-length album and promptly took a hiatus that was to last sixteen years.

Now, with their new album set for release on the 5th of May on Dark Essence Records, LUMSK’s seven-piece lineup includes Mari Klingen on Vocals, Siv Lena Laugtug Sæther on Violin, Eystein Garberg on Guitar, Roar Grindheim on Guitar, Espen Warankov Godø on Keyboards, Espen Hammer on Bass, and Vidar Berg on Drums.
 
Mixed by Rhys Marsh at Autumnsongs Recordings, and Mastered by Arnstein Fossvik at AudioMaster, “Fremmede Toner” is LUMSK’s most varied and intriguing work to date, demonstrating how the band’s unique blend of metal and Nordic folk music melds together with rich textures and clever arrangements. 

Track listing is as follows:

1. Det Døde Barn
2. En Harmoni
3. Avskjed
4. Under Linden
5. Fiolen
6. Dagen er Endt
7. Das Tode Kind
8. A Match
9. Abschied
10. Under der Linden
11. Das Veilchen
12. The Day is Done

“Fremmede Toner” will be available in CD, Limited Edition Double LP in Gold and Turquoise vinyl and Digital formats, and can now be pre-order from the following: 

BandCamp:  https://lumsk.bandcamp.com/album/fremmede-toner
Webshop:  https://darkessencerecords.no/kar215-lumsk-fremmede-toner/
US Webshop:  https://darkessence.indiemerch.com/

Featuring works by some of the most famous European and North American poets, such as Nietzsche, Goethe, Swinburne etc., the album cover, by Per Spjøtvold, someone with whom the band has worked since the beginning, also reflects the “dual” concept of “Fremmede Toner”. A concept that the band recently described:     
 
We stumbled upon “Fremmde Toner”, a collection of poems the by Norwegian Author André Bjerke in which he had translated and re-created poems from different English and German speaking poets, and we realised that not only did we want to write music for the Norwegian poems, but also to write music for the original poems themselves. The idea of the concept was not to create the same songs twice, but to make the songs mirror each other in a way, trying to somehow recreate the idea of a translation or re-creation. Thus, as with the poems themselves, the songs are not the same, but are, nevertheless familiar.

More information about LUMSK can be found on the band’s Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/lumskmusic

A video for the track “Trolltind” from LUMSK’s 2005 album “Troll” can be seen below.

When Dark Essence Records recently announced the details of “Fremmede Toner”,  the upcoming release from  Norwegian Folk Prog Rockers LUMSK, it was clear that this was going to be a very unusual  album, as the band explained:

We stumbled upon “Fremmde Toner”, a collection of poems the by Norwegian Author André Bjerke in which he had translated and re-created poems from different English and German speaking poets, and we realised that not only did we want to write music for the Norwegian poems, but also to write music for the original poems themselves. The idea of the concept was not to create the same songs twice, but to make the songs mirror each other in a way, trying to somehow recreate the idea of a translation or re-creation. Thus, as with the poems themselves, the songs are not the same, but are, nevertheless familiar.

In keeping with this concept, Dark Essence Records will be debuting a double single from the album, with Andre Bjerk´s “Det Døde Barn” and Conrad Ferdinand Meyer´s “Das Tode Kind” being the first pair to be released, and, according to LUMSK, this will be the first time that the band can be heard singing in German.

The two tracks can be streamed or downloaded from a variety of services at this location.

When LUMSK were formed in 1999 it was a time when metal bands and fans alike were exploring the use  regional folk traditions within music. Already sure that this was the direction in which they wanted their music to go, and with their use of heavy guitars, keyboard and organs, violins, session horns and female vocals, LUMSK were therefore ideally placed to build themselves from the ground up, and take their place in what was to become a sub-genre all of its own.
 
Having garnered  a considerable reputation, both at home and internationally, LUMSK took a hiatus which lasted sixteen years from the release of their last album, but now they are back with “Fremmede Toner” which will be the band’s fourth full-length release. 

Mixed by Rhys Marsh at Autumnsongs Recordings, and Mastering by Arnstein Fossvik at AudioMaster,  “Fremmede Toner”  is the LUMSK’s most varied and intriguing work to date , demonstrating how the band’s unique blend of metal and Nordic folk music melds together with rich textures and clever arrangements. 

Featuring works by some of the most famous European and North American poets, such as Nietzsche, Goethe, Swinburne etc., the “dual” concept of “Fremmede Toner”   is also reflected on the album cover by Per Spjøtvold, someone with whom the band has worked since the beginning.

Track listing is as follows:

1. Det Døde Barn
2. En Harmoni
3. Avskjed
4. Under Linden
5. Fiolen
6. Dagen er Endt
7. Das Tode Kind
8. A Match
9. Abschied
10. Under der Linden
11. Das Veilchen
12. The Day is Done

“Fremmede Toner” will be released on the 5th May in CD, Limited Edition Double LP in Gold and Turquoise vinyl and Digital formats, and is now available to pre-order from the following:  

BandCamp:  https://lumsk.bandcamp.com/album/fremmede-toner
Webshop:  https://darkessencerecords.no/kar215-lumsk-fremmede-toner/
US Webshop:  https://darkessence.indiemerch.com/

Having undergone a number of changes over the years, LUMSK’s seven-piece lineup today includes Mari Klingen on Vocals, Siv Lena Laugtug Sæther on Violin, Eystein Garberg on Guitar, Roar Grindheim on  Guitar, Espen Warankov Godø on Keyboards, Espen Hammer on Bass, and Vidar Berg on Drums, and more information about the band can be found on Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/lumskmusic

A video for the track “Trolltind” from LUMSK’s 2005 album “Troll” can be seen below.

Sixteen years have passed since Folk Prog Rockers LUMSK last released an album, but there’s good news for the band’s many fans, because on the 5th of May “Fremmede Toner”, the band’s fourth full-length album, is due to hit the streets on Dark Essence Records. 

The title, “Fremmede Toner”, which translated means “Foreign Tones” is taken from a collection of poems translated into Norwegian by the author André Bjerke. The poems featured include those by some of the most famous European and North American poets, such as Nietzsche, Goethe, Swinburne etc.

So far nothing too unusual you may be thinking, but this is where LUMSK take the concept one step further, because, after having composed the music using the Norwegian version of the poems, the band then take those compositions and adapt them to the poems in the original language itself, as they explain:

Not long after the release of «Det Vilde Kor» back in 2007 we somehow stumbled upon a collection of poems by Norwegian Author André Bjerke. In this book, entitled «Fremmde Toner», Bjerke has translated and re-created poems from different English and German speaking poets. When we read those translations and re-creations an idea started to form. We wanted not only to write music to the Norwegian poems, but also write songs to the original poems. The idea of the concept was not only to make the same songs twice, but to make the songs mirror each other in a way, trying to somehow recreate the idea of a translation or re-creation. As with the poems the songs are not the same, but still familiar.
 
So, finally, after over 15 years, we are ready to present this work. The album, named «Fremmede Toner», consists of twelve songs, or 6 pairs. First you have the Norwegian poems, and afterwards you have the poems in their original form. Even though it has taken us 15 years to release this new album, we have not been working on it continuously over these years. It wasn´t until we completed our line-up with a new vocalist, Mari Klingen, and a new guitarist, Roar Grindheim, that things really started to happen. We are so happy to once again be able to release new music, and are excited to see how it will resonate with old and new listeners.
 
We really would like to thank those of you who patiently have waited and asked for news from us. The support from different places around the world have been important and moving to witness. It makes the enormous effort behind this album worth it in every way. We hope you will enjoy the album and the concept. It might be strange to hear Lumsk in German and English, but we are really satisfied with the result.

This concept is also reflected on the album cover by Per Spjøtvold, someone with whom the band has worked since the beginning, and, with mixing by Rhys Marsh at Autumnsongs Recordings, and Mastering by Arnstein Fossvik at AudioMaster, the track listing on “Fremmede Toner” is as follows:

1. Det Døde Barn
2. En Harmoni
3. Avskjed
4. Under Linden
5. Fiolen
6. Dagen er Endt
7. Das Tode Kind
8. A Match
9. Abschied
10. Under der Linden
11. Da Veilschen
12. The Day is Done

“Fremmede Toner” is actually the first album on which LUMSK perform songs in a foreign language,  whilst musically it continues along the path that has earned the band considerable international recognition. Thanks to their unique blend of metal and Nordic folk music, bound together with rich textures and clever arrangement, “Fremmede Toner” delivers LUMSK’s most varied and intriguing work to date.

“Fremmede Toner” will be released in CD, Double LP and Digital formats and is now available to pre-order from the following

BandCamp:  https://lumsk.bandcamp.com/album/fremmede-toner
Webshop:  https://darkessencerecords.no/kar215-lumsk-fremmede-toner/
US Webshop:  https://darkessence.indiemerch.com/

Formed in 1999 In Trondheim, Norway, it can be argued that LUMSK was likely one of the first bands to have been “built for folk” from the ground up. With their heavy guitars, keyboard and organs, violins, session horns and female vocals, LUMSK was one of the many bands who, towards the end of the 20th Century, were exploring the concept of regional folk traditions. This led to a growing interest amongst metal fans and the creation of a sub-genre all of its own.

Having undergone a number of changes over the years, LUMSK’s seven-piece lineup today includes Mari Klingen on Vocals, Siv Lena Laugtug Sæther on Violin, Eystein Garberg on Guitar, Roar Grindheim on  Guitar, Espen Warankov Godø on Keyboards, Espen Hammer on Bass, and Vidar Berg on Drums.

More information about LUMSK can be found on the band’s Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/lumskmusic

A video for the track “Trolltind” from LUMSK’s 2005 album “Troll” can be seen below.

Dark Essence Records have inked a deal with Folk Prog Rockers, LUMSK, a band that describes itself as:

A seven headed “troll” that combines traditional or traditional-inspired elements from Norwegian folklore and poetry with progressive rock and metal.

Formed in 1999 In Trondheim, Norway, LUMSK set out to explore the concept of regional folk traditions, as did many European heavy metal bands towards the end of the 20th Century.  So great, in fact, was that interest, and its ensuing popularity amongst fans,  that, by the first decade of the new Millennium, it had burgeoned into a significant sub-genre all of its own. 

You could, in fact, go as far as to say that LUMSK was probably one of the first bands that had been “built for folk” from the ground up,  with heavy guitars, keyboard and organs, violins, session horns and female vocals.

LUMSK’s debut album “Åsmund Frægdegjævar” appeared  in 2003 and was based on the saga of Åsmund Frægdegjævar, who traveled from Ireland to save the princess from trolls.  A year later In 2004 LUMSK  began  a collaboration with the author Birger Sivertsen, an expert on Norwegian folklore and sagas, which led to the release of 2005’s album “Troll” whose were lyrics based on Nordic mythology.   The band’s third album, 2007’s “Det Vilde Kor”,  this time featured  lyrics by Norwegian author, and holder of a Nobel Prize in Literature,  Knut Hamsun.

The band’s fourth full-length album has been a while in the making, with LUMSK entering the studio as early as 2010 to begin work on “Fremmede Toner”, a collection of poems by Norwegian  author Andre Bjerke. After a series of setbacks and delays,  which has served to make the album even more anticipated than before, work on “Fremmede Toner” is well underway, and is scheduled for release on Dark Essence Records in 2022, on a date as yet to be confirmed.

Which brings us to today, and today’s lineup, which, following a myriad of comings and goings over the years since LUMSK’s inception, is comprised of Mari Klingen  on Vocals, Siv Lena Laugtug Sæther on Violin, Eystein Garberg on Guitar, Roar Grindheim on  Guitar, Espen Warankov Godø on Keyboards, Espen Hammer on Bass, and Vidar Berg on drums.

More information about LUMSK can be found on the band’s Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/lumskmusic
 
A video for the track “Trolltind” from LUMSK’s 2005 album “Troll” can be seen below.