Following the bands EP Efterår and standalone single Dvale, Danish instrumental blackgaze/post rock duo NORDSIND is gearing up to release their debut full length “Lys” on March 26th through DIY punk/hardcore/post-metal labels Voice of the Unheard, Belladonna Records, Vinyltrolden, Araki, Maniyax and Dingleberry Records. Today, we’re giving you an exclusive insight into its backstory and writing process, through a special first-hand commentary delivered by the band themselves!
The core of Nordsind has always been storytelling through music. By creating atmospheres of melancholy, joy, calm and sadness, Nordsind strive to be the soundtrack to your daydream. The bands coming album Lys is no exception and as the title suggests, the main inspiration for this album has been light (Lys being the danish word for light). Light both as a physical thing, that can be observed and explained, but also light in an esoteric and spiritual manner. Lys serves as a sonic representation of how the band interprets this.
Hailing from Copenhagen, Denmark, Nordsind has existed since the beginning of 2017 and play instrumental post rock/blackgaze, with big open chords, fast blastbeats and calming melodic parts, that makes thoughts wander and time fly.
Since its inception, Nordsind has supported bands like Ghost Bath (US), Møl (DK), Toundra (ESP), LLNN (DK), Birds in Row (FR) and more. Furthermore the band has released an EP in dec 2017 called Efterår and the single Dvale featuring Kim of Throwe on vocals in june 2019.
For fans of: Lantlos, We Lost the Sea, Alcest etc.
“Nordsind sprung from the underground hardcore and metal scene in Copenhagen in early 2017 and consists of Ole (drums, percussion) and Asger (guitars and bass) and started as a creative outlet for the more atmospheric and melodic visions that we both had, but couldnt live out in our respective bands.” – comments the band.
“It started out as a completely unambitious project, that served to satisfy our creativity and not really anything else, but once you start investing time and heart into songwriting, it’s hard not to get swept up by it. The positive feedback we got from Efterår from both friends and strangers alike, also made the decision to transform Nordsind into something more pretty easy.”
𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑑𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑜𝑓 𝑁𝑜𝑟𝑑𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑑 𝑖𝑠 𝑠𝑡𝑜𝑟𝑦𝑡𝑒𝑙𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡ℎ𝑟𝑜𝑢𝑔ℎ 𝑚𝑢𝑠𝑖𝑐 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑠𝑝𝑎𝑟𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑖𝑚𝑎𝑔𝑖𝑛𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑙𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑒𝑟.
“We have always talked a lot about what images we see or how we feel, when playing or listening to our tracks. There has to be room in our music to drift off on a daydream and we try to take a very cinematic approach to songwriting. It’s such an integral part of how we write and perceive music that it affects both the individual parts themselves, but also the structure and music as a whole. You have to think about the songs in a different way, when writing instrumental music… even though there isn’t that sing along moment, you still have to create something that draws the listener in and makes them want to come back.”
“Going into the recording session of Lys, we wanted to take a lot more charge of how the album would sound, than we did on Efterår. We knew how everything should sound, because we had spent about 6 month doing really thorough demos and we had talked everything out, to even the smallest details. We didn’t want to reamp anything or add all sorts of effects afterwards… It had to be us coming through the speakers when everything was mixed and mastered and it had to feel right. A lot of that comes from being prepared when entering the studio. Knowing where every kick drum beat is or what reverb goes on which guitar part. It’s not like we didn’t experiment in the studio, but if we hadn’t been as prepared, we wouldn’t have had the same amount of time to try out different directions. It’s all about finding the right balance between control and exploration.”
𝑀𝑎𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝐿𝑦𝑠 𝑤𝑎𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑎 𝑙𝑜𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑤𝑎𝑦𝑠 𝑎 𝑡𝑟𝑢𝑒 𝑙𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑜𝑓 𝑙𝑜𝑣𝑒.
“It’s such a huge undertaking to make an album, and especially since we are only two people carrying the load of both songwriting, booking, managing the band and maintaining day jobs, but you power through it, because you have this creative drive and you know how satisfying the end result can be.”
“Ever since our inception, we’ve worked with big ideas and concepts for everything we do. There has to be something connecting the dots in our music. Lys is the Danish word for light and this serves as the primary inspiration and theme for this album. Not just in a happy-go-lucky way, but also battling depression and trying to understand light, both scientifically and spiritually. We tried to put our collective understanding, perception and experience of the word light into this record.”
