Norwegian black metal outfit Mannkvern has signed with Wormholedeath Records and announced the release of its debut album, The Harlot's Wake, on 4 December. To mark the occasion, the band has unveiled the first single, "The Former Things Have Passed Away", offering a bleak and uncompromising introduction to the album's dark thematic and sonic landscape.
Founded by Orkana V (Man Gremmes Kan, Nattsol, Gnipaheller, ex-Ragnarok live), Mannkvern emerged from a six-year creative journey following his move from Norway to Poland. What began as a solo studio project evolved into a fully realised black metal entity, drawing inspiration from Norwegian and Eastern European black metal traditions, while incorporating the sombre atmosphere of old hymnals.
Spanning seven tracks and over 40 minutes, The Harlot's Wake explores themes of theological collapse, psychological decay, and humanity's cyclical return to primal instincts. Featuring the precise drumming of K. Voster, the album draws lyrical inspiration from the New Testament, Fyodor Dostoevsky, and George Orwell.
"The album chronicles our inherent pull toward suffering and our need to believe in failing systems," explains Orkana V. From the desperate scriptural invocations of "The Former Things Have Passed Away" to the predatory impulses explored in "Masochistic Displeasure", the album presents a stark reflection on the darker aspects of human nature.
The record also features guest appearances by Raum (Noen Hater Oss, Sjelferd), Embor (Mother Ov Light), Hellgrave (Grave Silence), and Maurice Wilson (Antrisch). Meanwhile, Mannkvern is assembling a live line-up, with plans to take the stage in 2027. Link
The Harlot's Wake tracklist:
01. Woe Betide You
02. The Former Things Have Passed Away
03. Tempelets Barn
04. Masochistic Displeasure
05. Avgrunn
06. The Harlot's Wake
07. Send Your Sons to Bury Your Daughters
08. The Crystal Palace (Forlorn cover)
Rising from the murky depths of the UK heavy music underground, doom metal collective Altera Doomonica has officially announced the upcoming release of their debut full-length, Angelic...
US post‑punk/shoegaze entity Lowsunday have shared a video for the track "Someone To Talk To" taken from their latest Ghost Machine – Black EP, released in May under Projekt Records.
Swiss NDH gothsters Morgenstern have teamed up with singer Jade for their new single “Fire Now Gone”, a melancholic and deeply emotive gothic metal ballad that explores fading memories...
Having performed at the annual German alternative‑music festival M'era Luna in early August, Canadian electronic rock/dark pop act The Birthday Massacre will return to Europe in late...
"I can say that when I play with Bosco Sacro, I'm in total trans. When I play on a stage, I go into another world." - Luca Scotti
"When you feel something you need to share, creating songs is the best way to do it. You can reflect on yourself so that you can relax and be relieved of that emotion." - Çağla Güleray
"I can call our show an emotional exhibitionism. If you want to drink beer and cry, please come to our show, haha." - Nokt Aeon
"There were already bands doing small illustrations of symphonic metal, and I was thinking, why doesn't someone do this all the time?" - Christofer Johnsson
