On 11th September, VOLA will perform an intimate but stunning live spectacle – Live from the Pool, where fans can watch the Danish-Swedish quartet perform songs from their back catalogue in a unique setting. They have also revealed an incredible remix of “Straight Lines” by The Algorithm, which you can see here.

‘Live From The Pool’ takes place at the swimming pool of the abandoned Auderød military camp in North Zealand near Copenhagen, Denmark. Designed by the world-famous architect Henning Larsen this defunct building has become part of the Auderød nature park. A place where nature encounters the mysteries of a once existing military base, ready to be explored.

Creating a unique experience, the bands’ genre-melding music is met with collaboration from visionary Danish audio-visual artist collective Vertigo, where light, nature, music, and concrete meet.

Tickets for ‘Live From The Pool’ will be available here. There will be a FAQ on the bands’ website once the show has begun, and there will be a live pre-sale hangout on the bands’ YouTube channel an hour before the show starts. The show will be available for two weeks for those who purchase tickets.

Talking about the upcoming event, Adam Janzi says, “We are ecstatic to invite you to our first-ever online show, ‘VOLA – Live From The Pool.’ It is our most ambitious visual production to date, with a brand-new live set spanning across our discography. This will be your first chance to hear us play songs from Witness live outside of Denmark. If you ever wondered how we sound playing in an abandoned pool full of vegetation, this is your chance to find out.”
 
VOLA has also announced the remix of “Straight Lines” by French Electronic artist, The Algorithm. Talking about the track, Nicolai Mogensen says, “This is our first-ever officially released VOLA remix! We have been curious to hear how Rémi (aka The Algorithm) would remix one of our songs. Excitingly he chose “Straight Lines” to fuse his own unique style with ours. He created a banger of a remix!”

The original version of “Straight Lines” is taken from their new album Witness, released in May. Their new album shines a light on the subject of failed relationships, on a societal scale—the friction between leaders and followers, which is caused by the misuse of power.
 
“If I zoom in,” guitarist-singer Asger Mygind says. “The failure is born from unrequited love, grief, manipulative behaviour and insecurity. Connecting it with the album title, one could view the characters portrayed in the lyrics as being witnesses to the dissolution of the bond they have created with people in their lives.”
 
Discussing the “Straight Lines”, Mygind explains, “Imagine someone being on the run from the authorities. It is becoming increasingly hard for this person to hide, which “running low on straight lines” can be seen as a metaphor. He/she can’t just choose the direct route but has to be creative to escape. Whether the hunt is real or just in the person’s head should be an open question for the listener.”
  
VOLA are Asger Mygind (vocals/guitar), Martin Werner (keys), Nicolai Mogensen (bass) and Adam Janzi (drums).

You can listen to VOLA’s most recent album Witness via Spotify HERE

VOLA will release their upcoming album Witness 21st May 2021 via Mascot Records/Mascot Label Group.

Watch the brand new video for These Black Claws here:

Witness comes nearly three years after the release of ‘Applause of a Distant Crowd,’ which saw the band go deep into the rabbit-hole, exploring society’s distractions from thoughtfulness and examined the way human relationships have evolved. Their new album goes a step further, shining a light on the subject of failed relationships, on a societal scale—the friction between leaders and followers, which is caused by the misuse of power.

“If I zoom in,” guitarist-singer Asger Mygind says. “The failure is born from unrequited love, grief, manipulative behaviour and insecurity. Connecting it with the album title, one could view the characters portrayed in the lyrics as being witnesses to the dissolution of the bond they have created with people in their lives.”

The album was produced by the band and it was mixed and mastered by the Grammy nominated Jacob Hansen (Volbeat, The Black Dahlia Murder, Amaranthe).

“These Black Claws” is a metaphor for addiction and the experience of being pulled back through the darkness and features electronic/hip-hop duo, SHAHMEN. Bless (vocalist in SHAHMEN) contributed all the lyrics for his verse. Mygind says, “I think his vocals contribute with a demonic vibe while adding groove to the track. The beat in the verse is very hip hop inspired, so putting rap on top feels like fulfilling the potential of that part.” The lyrics “One straw in the drain/One word that you failed to sustain” echoes over and over before the band rip into a Panzer heavy attack as the song spirals deep into a suffocating heaviness. 

VOLA are Asger Mygind (vocals/guitar), Martin Werner (keys), Nicolai Mogensen (bass) and Adam Janzi (drums).

Track list

1. Straight Lines
2. 24 Light-Years
3. These Black Claws (feat. SHAHMEN)
4. Freak
5. Napalm
6. Future Bird
7. Stone Leader Falling Down
8. Inside Your Fur
9. Head Mounted Sideways

The genre-welding Danish-Swedish quartet VOLA return with their brand-new album, Witness, on 21 May, released on Mascot Records. Ahead of this they have revealed the official video for “Straight Lines,” which you can see below.

Witness comes nearly three years after the release of ‘Applause of a Distant Crowd,’ which saw the band go deep into the rabbit-hole, exploring society’s distractions from thoughtfulness and examined the way human relationships have evolved. Their new album goes a step further, shining a light on the subject of failed relationships, on a societal scale—the friction between leaders and followers, which is caused by the misuse of power.

“If I zoom in,” guitarist-singer Asger Mygind says. “The failure is born from unrequited love, grief, manipulative behaviour and insecurity. Connecting it with the album title, one could view the characters portrayed in the lyrics as being witnesses to the dissolution of the bond they have created with people in their lives.”

The band have also revealed the stunning video for the album opener, “Straight Lines.” Discussing the song, Mygind explains, “Imagine someone being on the run from the authorities. It is becoming increasingly hard for this person to hide, which “running low on straight lines” can be seen as a metaphor. He/she can’t just choose the direct route but has to be creative to escape. Whether the hunt is real or just in the person’s head should be an open question for the listener.” 

Witness Tracklisting
Straight Lines
24 Light-years
These Black Claws (feat. SHAHMEN)
Freak
Napalm
Future Bird
Stone Leader Falling Down
Inside Your Fur
Head Mounted Sideways

Last year the band revealed their first taster of the new album with “Head Mounted Sideways.’’ The song elegantly flows in and out of crushing riffs and hauntingly beautiful melodies all with the musical complexity that has become the hallmark of a VOLA song. “The ‘head-mounted sideways’ is another metaphor, for ‘looking the other way,’” says Asger Mygind. “I did not have any plan with the lyrics, but once I knew that they should convey anger, it was intuitive to talk about the decline of civilizations and not taking responsibility for the obvious decline. It didn’t necessarily speak about Earth in 2020. What I felt was important to get across was the image of a world built on flawed morals, and how this world eventually crumbles and falls due to the cracks in the foundation.”

VOLA wrote the songs after they returned from their successful 2019 headline tour across Europe. The tour had a string of sold-out shows along the way. It capped off an incredible two years, which had seen them also tour with Dream Theater, Anathema, Katatonia, Haken, Monuments, as well as show-stealing performances at Euroblast, Ramblin’ Man Fair, Radar Festival, Bloodstock, Damnation Fest, Tech Fest and more.

The album’s themes are entwined into both the cover art and the title as Mygind elaborates; “The cover art of the album largely inspired the title. To me, the image could either portray the close-up of an eye, or a zoomed-out image of something burning. In case of the eye, I imagine that it belongs to someone witnessing an event. Something huge and life changing. In case of burning, it is the viewer of the cover art who becomes the witness. Or maybe this burning is what the eye is looking at. No matter how I look at it, the concept of being a witness seems very present in the artwork.”

The album was produced by the band and it was mixed and mastered by the Grammy nominated Jacob Hansen (Volbeat, The Black Dahlia Murder, Amaranthe). Each song presents its unique characters, some are fictional, and real events inspire some. “24 Light-years,” follows someone searching for a vanished relative – are they lost/dead? How deep does the story dive? “Freak,“ delves into insecurity and power, “Napalm,” represents a failed relationship and the remorse and regret that follows, whilst “Stone Leader Falling Down,” highlights bullying and the misuse of power and “Inside Your Fur,” explores the ills of nostalgia.

“Future Bird” is a heartbreaking story based on real events. “I got the idea for those lyrics after having read a Facebook post by a couple who had lost an unborn child. They told about the pregnancy and their emotions directed towards this human being they never got to meet.” He continues, “The “future bird” is a metaphor for the child who never got the chance to grow up and make a mark on the world.”

“These Black Claws” is a metaphor for addiction and the experience of being pulled back through the darkness and features electronic/hip-hop duo, SHAHMEN. Bless (vocalist in SHAHMEN) contributed all the lyrics for his verse. Mygind says, “I think his vocals contribute with a demonic vibe while adding groove to the track. The beat in the verse is very hip hop inspired, so putting rap on top feels like fulfilling the potential of that part.” The lyrics “One straw in the drain/One word that you failed to sustain”  echoes over and over before the band rip into a Panzer heavy attack as the song spirals deep into a suffocating heaviness. 

Always evocative, VOLA glide along, barely a breath away from their subject matter, holding the listener close and silent as you observe the journey unfold. It’s their ability to create a cinematic aesthetic that allows you to be a detached observer, but also enveloped in the narrative, pulling you deeper within the rabbit hole, following the story further down into its veins. 

VOLA are Asger Mygind (vocals/guitar), Martin Werner (keys), Nicolai Mogensen (bass) and Adam Janzi (drums).

The genre-welding Danish-Swedish quartet VOLA return with their brand-new song, the incredible ‘Head Mounted Sideways.’

Watch the video below.

‘Head Mounted Sideways’ is their first new music in two years following 2018s album, ‘Applause of a Distant Crowd.’ The song elegantly flows in and out of crushing riffs and hauntingly beautiful melodies all with the musical complexity that has become the hallmark of a VOLA song.

“The ‘head-mounted sideways’ is a metaphor for ‘looking the other way,’” says Asger Mygind. “I did not have any plan with the lyrics, but once I knew that they should convey anger, It was intuitive to talk about the decline of civilizations and not taking responsibility for the obvious decline. It doesn’t necessarily speak about Earth in 2020. What I felt was important to get across was the image of a world built on flawed morals, and how this world eventually crumbles and falls due to the cracks in the foundation.”

Songs for the new album were written shortly after they returned from their 2019 headline tour across Europe, with a string of sold-out shows along the way. This capped off an incredible 2 years, which had seen them also tour with the likes of Dream Theater, Anathema, Katatonia, Haken, Monuments as well as show-stealing performances at Euroblast, Ramblin’ Man Fair, Radar Festival, Bloodstock, Damnation Fest, Tech Fest and more.

Previous album ‘Applause of a Distant Crowd,’ tackled society’s distractions from thoughtfulness and examined the way human relationships have evolved, also touching upon fear and anxiety, whereas their debut ‘Inmazes’ dealt with the struggle that came with being trapped in mental mazes. They lyrically entwine the exploration of behaviour and human nature with a deep character narrative. 

“I think Steven Wilson was a big inspiration in pushing me in the direction of writing songs about “the person next door” rather than philosophy, mythology etc.,” Asger continues. “I like when lyrics contain characters and situations that are easy to relate to, with a frequent use of everyday nouns. I think this is a nice way of “grounding” the lyrics, while the music itself might be very intangible, seeking an otherworldly vibe. 

An obliterating war like heaviness opens the song, which then makes way for the lyrics; “We should let the mud consume this thing we built / 80 years of drooling turned to streams of filth / Wounds appearing underneath the skin we killed / Head mounted sideways to shun the guilt” culminating in a delicately haunting finale.

“We like contrasts, as it doesn’t just make it easier to create mood swings in the songs, but also the ability to change the point of view of the character that’s singing or being sung about,” he says. “In ‘Head Mounted Sideways’ the point of view changes to one of the victims of the decline in the 2nd verse.”

There is always an underlining cinematic aesthetic to VOLA that explodes in front of you upon listening to them. But it then entices you deeper within the rabbit hole, following the story further down into its veins. 

VOLA are Asger Mygind (vocals/guitar), Martin Werner (keys), Nicolai Mogensen (bass) and Adam Janzi (drums) and their new album will be coming in 2021.