On September 22, Finland’s Hexvessel return with their sixth album, Polar Veil, a cold, metallic hymn to the Sub Arctic North. Haunted by primal forest spirits, Mat “Kvohst” McNerney summons the ghosts of his past in a jaw-dropping, unheard-of rebirth of style and sound. At once unmistakably Hexvessel, Polar Veil is also steeped in the nocturnal atmosphere of McNerney’s past, churned in the cauldron of black metal, ritual folk psychedelia and doom rock, and echoing with shivering Gothic undertones.
Holed up in a home-made studio in his log cabin during the winter of 2022, McNerney drew on all the fundamental elements of his music career as a shamanic shapeshifter, with only the isolation of nature’s solitude as inspiration. Painting an aura with Polar Veil which resonates with solitary reflection and themes of personal spiritual transcendence, Hexvessel’s new album is a bold statement from an artist who continues to reinvent and explore nature mysticism through music.
“Nature represents freedom, darkness and the call of the wild. Black metal has always been at the borders of my sound and playing, at the heart of everything I do. Tradition, nature, ritual, mythology, mysticism and philosophy, along with clashing and jarring chords have always been synonymous with Hexvessel. It was natural with Polar Veil, finally now as we reach the zenith of the journey, that these influences surface to the human ear, and with the freezing cold guitar sound that the climate here demands.”
Polar Veil features Nameless Void from Negative Plane, performing the guitar solo on the song "Ring" and on "Older Than The Gods", Okoi from Bølzer provides guest vocals. At first an unlikely partnership but one that makes total sense as the album deepens, and threads can be drawn that reveal the place Polar Veil is coming from.
When the components of the medicine are familiar but brewed in a completely novel concoction, the resulting side effects can be deliriously intoxicating. Peer behind this Polar Veil for a breath of fresh tundra air.
Polar Veil is pressed on exclusive limited edition transparent lake green vinyl, wider release limited transparent ice clear natural vinyl and standard issue blacker than midnight wax variants and each comes with a large scale 12 page booklet featuring artwork by Thomas Hooper.
Pre-order here, and watch a video for the single "Older Than The Gods", below.
Tracklisting:
"The Tundra Is Awake"
"Older Than The Gods"
"Listen To The River"
"A Cabin In Montana"
"Eternal Meadow"
"Crepuscular Creatures"
"Ring"
"Homeward Polar Spirit"
"Older Than The Gods" video:
(Band photo - A.H.)
