After the success with the Album "The Winds that sang of Midgard" and the mini album "Urd- That Which Was", Hagalaz Runedance has realeased the new full-length album "Volven", taking us a new on a voyage that carries the listeners back into forgotten times, waking the ancient spirit of the north.
Hagalaz Runedance is the entity of Andrea "Nebel" Haugen, devoted to the spirituality of northern Europe. Through Hagalaz Runedance she does her part to revive Asatru, the ancient natural religion of the Nort. She works towards the remembrance and the understanding or the old wisdom and the values of her pagan ancestors, which were suppressed, demonished, or stolen and disguised into Christian customs, by the early Christians.
The musical inspiration comes mainly from northern folk tunes and primal magical chants. The musical has been described as paganfolk, yet Hagalaz Runedance certainly has its individual style. Using natural instruments combined with tribal drumming and synth arrangements, Hagalaz Runedance invokes a primal, earthly and visual athmosphere. The lyriks sall to the natural spirit and Andrea expresses her longings, passions and views upon the world. Andrea´s lyrics are beautifully mythical. Just as the myths of her ancestors, they bear strong message, displaying rality and the ignorance of mankind today.
Some songs describe visions, dreams and Seidr trances (shamanism and earthly magic, which was practised by the wise women of the North). Hagalaz Runedance is particularly focused on the feminine mysteries of the North and Andrea is herself working the ancient magic of her foremothers. She describes Hagalaz as the rune to use to open the doors to the hidden self. Hagalaz is representing the mysterious side of femininity and is thus the rune of the Volva or Volven (the sooth-sayer and witch, who explores the unknown in soul-journeys, bringing wisdom back from the other side). Thus to Andrea, Hagalaz Runedance represents the dance in-between the worlds.
In her own words, "Volven" is her best work so far, using real instruments that wereused by the ancient Germanic and Celtic people such as lyre, strykelyre (the forerunner of the fiddel), harp, Nordic bag-pipe, drehleier (hurdy-gurdy) and various wind-instruments, combined with "modern sounds" and ritualistic drums, letting us feel the spirit of nature within ourselves again.
Andrea has further written a number of publications, articals and letters. Her book "The Ancient Fires of Midgard" is discussing nothern spirtuality, its mythology and magic, tradition which we still practise, the sacredness of trees, herbs, the animal soul, natural birth and generally pagan thinking and life-style. It will be published via this label.
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