There is truth in the old saying that there is strength in numbers! Case in point is the brotherhood that has bonded Icelandic black metal bands together in recent history. As many of us know, this country has become a key player in the underground metal scene. Although many of the bands sound different, they all share the bond of creating music that pushes the boundaries of genre. Over the past couple of months, Hafsteinn Viðar of Wormlust has been photographing his peers for this outstanding Icelandic photo feature you are about to see. Way better than my words ever could, these photos will give you an insight into these bands, and how the cold and gorgeous land they inhabit influences them. CVLT Nation would like to thank all of the bands for taking the time to make this feature a reality, and H.V. for so beautifully capturing the prolific underground scene in Iceland. You can visit his Facebook page Verði ljós and his Instagram @verdiljos to see more of his photos.

Abominor

Nyith

Nauð. Ýr. Ís. Þurs.

The stave, inscribed upon the flesh of a horse’s head

in the blood of a seal, a fox and a man.

And the words uttered;

Þykkt blóð, þreytast rekkar.

Þjóð mörg vos öld bjóða,

grand heitt, gumar andast,

glatast auður, firrast snauðir.

Hætt grand hræðast dróttir

hríð mörg, vesöld kvíða,

angur vænt, ærnar skærur.

Illur sveimur nú er í heimi.

Carpe Noctem

Beyond the edge of the sky

is a temple

where cracked lips chant malevolent psalms

its stones are leaning, about to collapse

but its foundation is a rock

It was built by the flesh

and inhabited by the spirit

Your name is written there in faded letters

one word in an unbreakable mantra

-translated excerpt from Og hofið fylltist af reyk (And the temple was filled with smoke)

Mannveira

There is nothing to be lost or gained from this collective human experience. We have yet to see that which is permanent; to which the laws of time do not apply. Our longing for a purpose and to discover something beyond our physical realm will certainly be an obstacle in our journey to seize power of our real lives and to fully grasp what is within our reach.

There will be no ecstacy nor salvation, no judgement nor enlightenment. There will only be the brief glimpse of when we are truly alive, and then our inevitable return into nothingness.

“We have in fact only two certainties in this world – that we are not everything and that we will die.”

– Georges Bataille

Svartidauði

Naðra

Nornahetta

0

Sinmara

Misþyrming

Vánagandr

WORMLUST

Look upon the warped mirror, it is held up to the ones that came before. In it we are lost, in an aesthetic dissonance. We stretch our limbs into phantom places and carve meanings into ephemera. A test of limits by inward reflection. Trace up and down along the glass’ surface. The boundary between the spirit and flesh. Inside it is our collection, journals of transmutation. What you see is only the mystic dimensions that lie beyond sanity carved upon the faces of gods. Look upon us.

Golden chain-veil by Habe