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Spawned in Norway's capital city, Oslo, in 2013 Vingulmork's roots lie deep in the Norwegian black metal scene, its wicked chill and ice-blasted ferocity. However, over the years they have set themselves apart with their colossally heavy and riff driven approach, infused with melody and steeped in atmosphere, their focus always on delivering the most musically and emotionally devastating music, rather than keeping a careful eye on the demarcation of genre boundaries. Following on from their 2014 debut EP, The Long March, Vingulmork's 2015 full length debut album, Chiaroscuro, really started to establish the band in the underground metal consciousness, with the respected Brutalism zine branding it “nasty and fulfilling”. 2019s Avgrunn EP continued the good work, with critics and fans alike flocking to Vingulmork's banner as their black crusade marched by. Yet that was the last new music to emerge from the band for seven long years - and only now has the silence been broken. Vingulmork have returned with their darkest, heaviest, most creative and ambitious recording to date, a new full-length album born from anger and despair, fermented in the bitter bile of broken dreams and the cold, thick blood of never healing wounds - Barmhjertighetens Fallitt!
Barmhjertighetens Fallitt seizes the listener in an unbreakable grip from the very first song, 'Ørkesløs'. The song's intensity is overwhelming; the constant movement, the voice like a devil howling in the storm, the outstanding riffs, the shifts in tempo, the consuming atmosphere, the breathtaking power of the drums… 'Ørkesløs' delivers so much and it is only the first step on this journey through desolation and devastation. Every song that follows possesses moments of dark magic that embed themselves in your memory, each one a highlight in its own right, exhilarating even as they lay bare the absolute hopelessness of existence. The magic is there as the drums rise up with staggering power beneath the portentous opening of 'Skam', as the dark majesty of 'Avmakt' tumbles into the ice-storm riffing of first single 'Krigserklæring', as the rich, precise riffs of 'Svart Time' construct a textured landscape over which the vocals soar and scream like a devil in flight and as the rousing warrior call of 'Brann' is slowly consumed by darkness. Each song has a strong, individual identity and each one is a vital part in the overall construction of Barmhjertighetens Fallitt. Most albums have their weaker songs, their space fillers, but here every one is integral to the overall bleak grandeur and absorbing sense of narrative. Vingulmork have crafted a classic piece of Nordic darkness, intransigent and unshakeable, enthralling and imaginative, powerful beyond belief.
The sound with which Barmhjertighetens Fallitt has been blessed is simply staggering - every muscular riff, every venomous vocal exhortation, every resonant note and cataclysmic drum beat imbued with a formidable strength and cutting vitality. The recording and mixing took place at Top Room Studios, Sounds Of O Studios, MOTU Studios and Stokkosen Studios, with the final touches being applied by the meticulous mastering of Robin Mahler at Ocean Studios in Germany. Adorned in the outstanding artwork of Jon Schaug Carlsen every element of Barmhjertighetens Fallitt has been honed to perfection. Look for its coming on September 11th, released by the triumvirate of Crime Records, Likskue Productions and Schattenpfade. This is unmissable.
Track Listing:
01 - Ørkesløs
02 - Skam
03 - Sitring
04 - Avmakt
05 - Krigserklæring
06 - Fallitt
07 - Alarm
08 - Svart Time
09 - Nådestøt
10 - Mannen og kråka
11 - Trolldom
12 - Brann
Label: Crime Records / Likskue Productions / Schattenpfade
Release Date: September 11th, 2026
For Fans Of: Immortal | Vreid | Dissection | Necrophobic
ONLINE
LINEUP
Jostein Stensrud Køhn - Vocals
Martin Kandola - Guitars
Martin Storm-Olsen - Bass
Simen Kandola - Drums
BIOGRAPHY/LOGO
Vingulmork is a Norwegian blackened thrash metal band from Oslo, formed in the early 2010s. Combining the raw aggression and speed of old-school thrash metal with the cold atmosphere, intensity and melodic qualities of black metal, the band has developed a sound built around contrasts – brutality and melody, darkness and light, desperation and hope.
The band emerged with guitarist Martin Kandola and drummer Simen Kandola at its core, later joined by bassist Steffen Grønneberg and vocalist Jostein Stensrud Køhn. Drawing inspiration from both classic thrash and Scandinavian extreme metal, Vingulmork quickly established an energetic style characterized by sharp riffing, rapid tempo changes, melodic guitar work and harsh vocals. Their music has frequently been compared to bands such as Dissection, Old Man's Child and Skeletonwitch, while retaining a distinctly Norwegian character.
Vingulmork made their first major recorded statement with the EP The Long March in 2014. The release introduced the band's mixture of blackened aggression, thrash metal momentum and melodic songwriting, laying the groundwork for their first full-length album.
In November 2015, Vingulmork released their debut album, Chiaroscuro, through Crime Records. Recorded at TopRoom Studio in Lunner, Norway, the album expanded considerably upon the band's earlier material. Its title – referring to the artistic contrast between light and darkness – reflected an important element of both the music and lyrics. Throughout the record, aggressive old-school thrash collided with contemporary black metal, melodic passages and occasional darker, more atmospheric sections.
Rather than relying entirely on relentless speed, Chiaroscuro demonstrated a broader approach to songwriting. Songs such as “Collapse and Rebuild,” “Hold Your Ground,” “Painting Lives” and the closing “It Will Suffice” moved between direct aggression, melody and more expansive passages. Lyrically, much of the album revolved around contrasts such as desperation and hope, life and death, and light and darkness.
Following Chiaroscuro, activity slowed as the members balanced Vingulmork with family life, work, education and involvement in other musical projects. The band nevertheless continued writing and eventually returned with new material that pushed their sound in a noticeably heavier direction.
The result was the four-track EP Avgrunn, released through Crime Records in June 2019. With this release, Vingulmork deliberately intensified the aggressive elements of their music, producing material that was heavier, faster and more uncompromising than its predecessor while maintaining the melodic characteristics that had become part of their identity.
Avgrunn contained the tracks “Ytterst,” “Eternally Swallow, Eternally Keep,” “Land of Nothing” and “Døderlein.” The latter was a reinterpretation of the song originally associated with Norwegian alternative rock band Seigmen. Rather than simply reproducing the original, Vingulmork reshaped the composition into their own blackened metal style.
The lyrical atmosphere of Avgrunn was also considerably bleaker than that of Chiaroscuro. Where the debut explored opposing forces such as hope and despair, the EP moved deeper into themes of loss, darkness and desolation. This darker direction complemented the increasingly forceful and aggressive musical approach.
Around the release of Avgrunn, Vingulmork increased their live activity and appeared at Norway's Inferno Metal Festival in 2019. The band also played alongside other Norwegian metal acts, reinforcing their position within the country's underground extreme-metal scene.
The musicians behind Vingulmork have connections to several other Norwegian bands. Vocalist Jostein Stensrud Køhn and guitarist Martin Kandola have also been involved with thrash/death metal band Dead Man's Hand, while bassist Steffen Grønneberg is known from the Oslo-based extreme metal band Sibiir. Drummer Simen Kandola has additionally been involved with Defect Designer.
Musically, Vingulmork occupies the territory where black metal, thrash and melodic extreme metal intersect. Their songs combine aggressive riffing and speed with darker melodic guitar lines and atmospheric contrasts rather than adhering strictly to either traditional thrash or black metal. This mixture, together with their emphasis on dynamics and melody, gives the band a recognizable identity within the Norwegian underground.
With releases such as The Long March, Chiaroscuro and Avgrunn, Vingulmork have demonstrated an ability to combine the immediacy of thrash metal with the atmosphere and darkness of Scandinavian black metal, creating aggressive yet melodic extreme metal firmly rooted in the Norwegian scene.
DISCOGRAPHY
The Long March (EP, 2014)
Chiaroscuro (Album, 2015)
Avgrunn (EP, 2019)
Barmhjertighetens fallitt (Album, 2026)
GENRE/COUNTRY
Black Metal
Norway
