Published: January 1, 1970
Polish pagan group VARMIA – who pay tribute to their Baltic roots by combining black metal with traditional instruments such as the goat horn and the tagelharpa – have revealed their first new music since 2021's 'bal Lada' album. The new song "Oddal" is presented as a standalone video (no digital single at this time) and comes as an introduction for the intriguing and unique group's next chapter.
"In the near future we will share our three new pieces. A musical and visual triptych, which in fact is a prologue to what's next to come," further explains vocalist/guitarist Lasota. "For the first time in our history, we've felt that the album needs some sort of introduction, an opening. So, here's the first lift of the veil. 'Oddal' is a Polish word for seclusion, distance and isolation. We invite you there."
"Oddal" opens the band's new EP, 'Prolog,' that will be released January 6th across all digital platforms.
VARMIA was formed in 2016 by composer Lasota with a mission of fusing black metal with musical influences that pay tribute to the ancient Baltic tribes of the historical Warmia region of northern Poland. Vocally, harsh growls shroud the band's music and native Polish lyrics in a visceral aura, the only breaks occurring when using the traditional, ancient technique of "whitevoice" clean singing as utilized during ancient East-Central European rituals, rites of passage and festivals. Meanwhile, the power of the band's metal influences are enhanced by traditional ethnic instrumentation of the Baltic Rites via sounds of tagelharpa, goat horn, wood tuba and krivula. The final result is a compelling mix of dark metallic sounds that channel the spirit of early Enslaved, Satyricon and Wolves in the Throne Room and folk elements that drive acts such as Wardruna and Heilung.
VARMIA has released three albums to date – 2017's 'Z mar twych,' 2018's 'W ciele nie' and 2021's international release, 'bal Lada,' their first collaborating with M-Theory Audio. The group records all of their music in culturally significant remote locations throughout their native Poland.
