Enslaved guitarist/singer Ivar Bjørnson Peersen and drummer as well as Wardruna mainman Einar Selvik are finally taking their band Skuggsjá to the next level. The Norwegian band has just signed a deal with Season of Mist and these acclaimed musical masterminds will release their debut album in early 2016. Find out more about how this band came to be here. More details regarding this debut release will follow soon.

The Skuggsjá duo commented: "When we were asked to write a joined convert piece by the Eidsivablot festival for the 200th anniversary of the Norwegian constitution, we both immediately saw the outline of something massive and important. Our performance confirmed that this project should live on, develop and thrive. During 2015 we have performed the piece once more at the Roadburn festival, and have also discreetly slipped in and out of studios around Norway to record what is to become our debut album. We are extremely proud of what we will present on this album; and are delighted to be working with the professionals at Season of Mist. It has been quite a journey already for the two of us, but this where it really begins. We have created something that is bigger than its individual parts. Now we are excited to see what the world make out of our creation!"

Skuggsjá was conceived as a commissioned musical work written by Ivar Bjørnson and Einar Selvik. The arrangement was performed by Enslaved and Wardruna as a concert piece in commemoration of the 200th anniversary of the Norwegian constitution at the Eidsivablot festival in Eidsvoll, Norway on September 13th, 2014. Shortly after this premiere, Skuggsjá was announced as one of the headliners of the 20th edition of Roadburn Festival 2015. The growing desire to present Skuggsjá to a broader audience has ultimately led Bjørnson and Selvik to record their work in its entirety.

Skuggsjá translates into 'mirror' or 'reflection' in the Norse language. This composition not only contextualises the role of extreme music in Norway's democracy in the year 2014, but also joins threads from the country's ancient musical history and solidifies the position of metal as Norway's most important cultural export.

By highlighting ideas, traditions and instruments of their Norse past, Skuggsjá tells the history of Norway and reflects relevant aspects from the past into the present day. In light of they reflect on themselves as a people and nation. In a magnificent tapestry of metal instrumentation, a wide variety of Norway's and Scandinavia's oldest instruments as well as poetry in Norse and Norwegian, Skuggsjá is a fusion between past and present, both lyrically and musically.

Line-up:

Ivar Bjørnson: vocals, guitars, bass, keyboards

Einar Selvik: vocals, taglharpa, Kravik-lyre, goat-horn, birch-bark lure, bone-flute, percussion, electronics

Contributing musicians:

Grutle Kjellson: vocals

Lindy-Fay Hella: vocals

Eilif Gundersen: birch bark lure

Olav L. Mjelva: Harding fiddle

Cato Bekkevold: drums

Skuggsjá will perform a special show in London in March 2016 as part of a three day event also featuring Enslaved, Wardruna, and many more Norse attractions.

Source:	facebook.com
Band profile:	Enslaved