Verbolgen

HULDER is a dark black metal project from the United States, driven by the creative partnership of Hulder and Necreon, whose three albums to date have steadily drawn the project toward more expansive and collaborative territory. Verbolgen, released jointly by Season of Mist and 20 Buck Spin, marks a decisive turn: the first Hulder record on which Necreon steps fully into his role as co-leader rather than session contributor.

Rooted in ancient nature worship, ancestral rite, and the shadows of pre-Christian tradition, Verbolgen moves through nine tracks that trade in both the severity and the strange, wintry beauty that have always defined Hulder's sound. The writing has grown more layered here, drawing on a wider palette of instrumentation: hurdy gurdy and additional keys from Keld bring an almost processional weight to certain passages, while Ianuaria's session flute drifts through the album like smoke across still water. Two drummers divide the record between them, Vapula and Vrolok each bringing their own character to their respective tracks, and the sum of it is a rhythm section that feels alive to the album's shifts in mood and tempo. The mix, handled by Ahti Kortelainen at Tico Tico Studio in Finland, gives the record an earthy, resonant quality that suits its themes of blood, soil, and the settling of old debts. Even the visual identity signals a new chapter: the cover art, painted by Morrigan, is her first work created for a metal band in nearly three decades, with an updated logo crafted by Jannicke Wiese Hansen. Three of the album's songs are sung in Flemish, lending Verbolgen a peculiar, incantatory dimension that sets it apart from anything in Hulder's back catalogue.