Whispering Void At the Sound of the Heart

It was well known in Nordic traditions that the voice holds magical power. With their debut album "At the Sound of the Heart", a collective of renowned musicians from the west coast of Norway explores and embodies these ancient ways. All band members brought a part of their own background to Whispering Void: The distinctive voices of WARDRUNA vocalist Lindy-Fay Hella and her male counterpart Kristian "Gaahl" Espedal spellbind the listener with an enormous range of techniques and sounds. Guitarist Ronny Stavestrand and ENSLAVED drummer Iver Sandoy combine ambient, psychedelic prog, and rock with notes of dark folk and metal on "At the Sound of the Heart" into something essentially Nordic but extending beyond already explored dimensions. The creative spark that lit the fire of Whispering Void burning came from a long time of creating new music by Ronny Stavestrand. The guitarist had shared many years in the legendary underground black metal act TRELLDOM with outstanding vocalist Kristian "Gaahl" Espedal, who rose to fame with GORGOROTH and has meanwhile also established GAAHLS WYRD as a channel for his creativity. Therefore, it was only natural that Stavestrand asked Espedal to contribute to Whispering Void - to which the latter chose to agree. While exploring new musical territories together, the need for a female voice arose. Having been part of WARDRUNA in the early years, Espedal was quick to note that vocal powerhouse Lindy-Fay Hella with her characteristic voice and unique contributions, which she has also shared in her own projects, was the perfect match for Whispering Void. Hella was duly invited and luckily heeded the call. The quartet was completed by Iver Sandoy on battery and bass, who had put his impeccable musical sensitivity and timing into the service of ENSLAVED some years back but already made himself a name with the progressive outfit EMMERHOFF & THE MELANCHOLY BABIES. The result of their collective musings and interchanges is a unique mixture of the various influences that the band members represent. There are elements of ambient, dark and Nordic folk, psychedelic prog, rock, and many more ingredients in the unique music created by Whispering Void, which due to lack of an easy description needs to be experienced by each listener individually. There is magic woven into "At the Sound of the Heart"!