Initially the name of a collaborative CD between Henrik Nordvargr Björkk and Margaux Renaudin released on Cold Spring in 2016, the duo have now relabeled and solidified themselves under the Anima Nostra moniker, and in turn, broadly expanded their sonic palette, taking the more intimate ritual ambient aspects of the debut, and incorporating them as part of towering constructs that blur the line between death industrial, doom metal, and neo-classical. With it’s upward swells of foreboding brass, fearsome tribal percussion, and hammering, bass heavy dirge, “Atraments” is the unleashing of something truly monumental and cataclysmic, eclipsing nearly everything Nordvargr has ever been associated with in of scope and grandeur. Integral and prominent in the mix are heavily serrated and imperious vocals, employed to drag the listener inexorably into an inferno of apocalyptic proportions, while adding a more structured “song” element and trumpeting the arrival of an inevitable doom. “Atraments” stands firmly as a vision complete and the perfect soundtrack for times of great tumult. Completed with artwork by Thomas Ekelund (Trepaneringsritualen) and Portugese occult calligrapher Gordoletters, in 6 panel, heavy stock digipak with spot varnish finish and 8 page booklet.
https://soundcloud.com/malignantrecords/03-blameless-by-anima-nostra