The world-renowned Nordic collective Heilung are releasing their first new studio single in four years via Season of Mist. “Læknisgaldr” was originally recorded for the award-winning video game Hellblade II: Senua’s Saga. It is the first single from Heilung’s upcoming release Sagas, which collects other recordings that they made in collaboration with Ninja Theory for Hellblade II.
After a restful hiatus, Heilung is waking up. This month, the world famous ritual collective is entering LAVA Studios to begin recording their highly-anticipated fourth full-length studio album.
While fans around the globe eagerly await their next album, today, Heilung is excited to share the first single from Sagas, a collection of recordings that core members Kai Uwe Faust, Maria Franz and Christopher Juul created in collaboration with Ninja Theory for the award-winning video game Hellblade II: Senua’s Saga. Unreleased until now, “Læknisgaldr” heals afflictions of the mind, body and soul through the simple act of ritual repetition.
“‘Læknisgaldr’ is the first song we are sharing from our in-between albums release Sagas, which collects sounds from the time we traveled to the land of Hellblade II: Senua’s Saga”, Heilung says. ”We see Sagas as its own branch within Heilung’s musical universe. These recordings show a cinematic, immersive and environmental side of what we do and were shaped very specifically by our work with Ninja Theory and the world of Hellblade.
“The first sound you hear on ‘Læknisgaldr’ was not made by anything from our reality. During the recording process, somehow, while playing with real human bones and breath, we managed to capture a ghost in the studio!” Heilung continues. “The video tells the second part of a greater story about trauma. Like Hellblade II: Senua’s Saga, it deals with what causes trauma to our minds and, most importantly, how to heal it”.
Sagas holds a special place in Heilung’s discography. While the recordings capture Senua’s epic journey through 9th century Iceland, they took on a life of their own after Franz, Faust and Juul returned home inspired from a 10-day trip across the country’s ice caves, rivers, waterfalls, beaches and volcanoes. These forces of nature inspired them to write far more material than could be used in the game, including the new single “Læknisgaldr”.
Heilung envisions “Læknisgaldr” as a song of healing. It is rooted in a belief from the early medieval period that language is connected to the condition of the human body. By naming an affliction, it becomes defined, contained and open to ritual healing. With each repetition of the song’s percussive beat, its affliction weakens, until it is guided toward dissolution by soothing tribal chants.
“In situations that create acute stress, shock or danger, the body releases adrenaline, preparing the muscles to go into a fight-or-flight state or the so-called freeze response”, Heilung core member and throat singer Kai Uwe Faust explains. “In nature, mammals use neurogenic tremors to shake off this built-up adrenaline once the danger has passed”.
“We humans, being socially conditioned, see trembling with fear as a sign of weakness”, Faust continues. “Or we find ourselves in dangerous situations that last for a long time, where the body simply has no chance to release it. As a result, the adrenaline builds up both in the muscles and in the body. Only in a state of absolute safety and security – and often with the help of therapy – does the possibility arise to develop these neurogenic tremors and free the body from the built-up energy. If this energy stays trapped in the body, it can lead to a range of illnesses.
“In the video for ‘Læknisgaldr’, you can see how the warriors reach this feeling of absolute safety and security in the forest after the battle is over. There, with the help of psychedelics, they are guided into the neurogenic tremors”.