A Grove of Ashes and Aspens

  • Metal News: Twilight Force Gains New Members

    Now Playing: Long Live the King by Twilight Force So, we have some updates from a favourite band around this blog. Twilight Force departed with bassist Born, guitarist Arendir, and guitarist and founder Lynd a few months ago, and recently released an announcement on who would be replacing them. There are two new guitarists, a…

  • A New School Year

    Now Playing: White Willow by Elvenking So September has arrived, and with it, the start of a new school year is upon us. This means that yes, I am starting a new year at university. It won’t necessarily be easy, but I am taking some classes that I think will be fun. A lot of…

  • Alienation in Paganism: How Group Pressure can Affect the Individual

    Now Playing: The One We Shall Follow by Elvenking Before y’all get on my ass about this, yes, I know I’ve written about loneliness and alienation in paganism before, but bear with me. The throes of melancholy and pagan solitude have been gripping my soul and I want to talk about it. So overall, there…

  • Pagan vs Witch: The Intersection of Aesthetics and Faith

    Now Playing: 3 Ways to Magick by Elvenking Before anyone says anything, no, paganism and witchcraft aren’t the same thing, though there is a lot of overlap between the two, with many pagans practicing witchcraft and many witches also identifying as pagans to some degree, especially where Wicca is concerned. But they are not the…

  • Runic Tattoos and the Potential Pitfalls therein

    Now Playing: The Horned Ghost and the Sorcerer by Elvenking I recently got a tattoo, and I’m very happy with how it turned out. I got it done at a friend’s studio in my home city, and it’s a bindrune that means a lot to me. Now, getting this done brought a thought to my…

  • Lughnasadh: The Pagan Summer Cross Quarter

    Now Playing: Summon the Dawn Light by Elvenking So this is one of the quieter cross pagan holidays for me. It’s right when a lot of people are out of town, it isn’t a major seasonal change, and in general, there isn’t a lot happening. So instead, what is it? According to Wikipedia (I know,…

  • Wake Up The Wicked: My Thoughts on the New Powerwolf Album

    Now Playing: Kyrie Klitorem by Powerwolf This past Friday (July 26) marked the release of a new Powerwolf album, following the release of 1589 and Sinners of the Seven Seas as singles. The Spotify release of this album includes the release of a live set from New York City, as well as orchestral versions of…

  • Silliness in Metal: Writing Fun Music in a Heavy Genre

    Now Playing: Ask A Silly Question by Elvenking Something I feel is underrated and not discussed enough is the necessity for levity and silliness in metal. Not to be confused with meme or shitpost metal, because that’s an entirely different thing. As metal is often a very serious genre, I generally find that it can…

  • Damna: A Passion that Cannot be Ignored

    Now Playing: Twilight of Magic by Elvenking Damnagoras (aka Davide Moras) has been the singer for Elvenking since their conception, with a brief time away from the band for the recording and release of Wyrd in 2003-2004. (During this time, he was replaced by Kleid, who, while not the perfect fit for a band such…

  • Recent Music Notices: Brothers of Metal Announces a New Album

    Now Playing: Berserkir by Brothers of Metal An announcement that felt like it was coming since last summer has finally dropped. Brothers of Metal are releasing a new album on November 1st, 2024, titled Fimbulvinter. They have three singles released, one of which is confirmed to be on the new album. Heavy Metal Viking is…