I remember when Eihwar revealed their first music video to the world with ‘Völva’s Chant’. There was a bit of discourse surrounding the video with a buncha folks commenting on the inauthentic outfits the duo, Asrunn and Mark, were wearing in the video. And all I could think of was how cool and grand they’d look in the middle of the Rennaissance Faire I go to each and every single year. Far as I’m concerned, they’re two people having fun making danceable neo-folk music based around Nordic and pagan culture. The better part? They make some fantastic fucking music that I jive with.

Of course there are going to be a ton of comparisons to Wardruna and Heilung with Eihwar but I tend not to do that. Are they in the same wheelhouse? Of course. But to me, Wardruna and Heilung tend to stick to more traditional music while Eihwar brings a bit of the ancient to the modern.

The album starts with the title track which features war chants, a growling voice, and Asrunn’s gorgeous vocals. The music travels between ethereal verses that bring me to a time of peace; riding a ship through calm waves. The chorus, however, brings raids and pillages to mind, a hypnotic beat for combat. Or, as the title states, a war trance.

‘Geri and Freki’ is another standout track on the album; a rapid tribal drum takes up the majority of the album whilst the growling vocals fill the ambient sections of the album, as if Odin himself is whispering orders to you from Valhalla. Eihwar even managed to remaster, or reforge a couple of tracks for the album such as one of their original hits ‘Berserker’. This has swiftly climbed the ranks as one of my favorite go-to workout songs for obvious reasons. I see heavy weights, I hear someone shout the word ‘Berserker’, and I go berserk trying to life that weight. It sure does give me a pretty good stimulus when at the gym, and when off as well. Chores have never felt so light when listening to this track.

I suppose what’s the most astonishing moment on the album is Eihwar’s finale, a smooth rendition of ‘Sir Mannelig’, or ‘Herr Mannelig’, a Swedish folk ballad that’s ancient. The original song is about a troll (some believe who is actual supposed to be a pagan) attempting to wed a Christian man by offering him gifts, but he refuses. Regardless, Eihwar’s version is a beautifully sung folk song with nothing more than a few forest ambient sounds, a bit of echo on the vocals, and an acoustic guitar. It came as a shock when I first heard it and now it’s a favorite for my Renaissance playlist.

Since ‘Viking War Trance’ has released it’s been playing at least twice a week for me. Car rides, grocery shopping, lifting weights, doing chores, walking the dog. It follows me everywhere I go and that’s a testament, in my book, to how good an album actually is. Don’t listen to the naysayers; have fun with it, cause Eihwar clearly is, and dance and drink like a Viking.