The mysterious fathoms of the sea is such that can inspire everything from the greatest sense of wonder to the most intense sense of curiosity to the more profoundly deep fear. But for many, it invoked a sense of adventure to see what lay beyond the waves. Such a thing has translated into many acts of metal as pagan metal is but one style that thrives on exploration. Nydvind is the most recent band that does this that’s come to my attention, and they do nothing but prove how fucking awesome it can be.

Creating an epic experience the likes of which perfectly encapsulates anything even close to vikings sailing the open sea is a monumental task, yet we’re treated to many bands that accomplish such with stunning success. Nydvind isn’t a name I’ve heard of before, but holy shit I wish I had discovered this band sooner so I could’ve heard their latest effort, “Tetramental I – Seas of Oblivion”, sooner! This pagan metal piece lacks the overly folk metal themes that many other bands of the style, but it still has that special flair that the style has become known for and Nydvind incorporates them beautifully into “Seas of Oblivion” to create a lengthy album that’s equal parts expansive and hard hitting. Everything that Nydvind brings together for these eight tracks come together so seamlessly and they all flow together like water incredibly well so that not only does one track transition amazingly from one to the next, but the whole of “Seas of Oblivion” feels like one amazing cohesive experience that Nydvind pulled off fantastically well. It’s often that we see a band manage to make a record that really feels like a solid experience, but it’s not often enough that it’s backed up with sheer quality and “Seas of Oblivion” offers that in spades.

With it being over five years since the last full-length from Nydvind, I can only imagine that fans of the group were clamoring when they saw this release, and it’s with good reason as Nydvind delivered a record well worth the wait. “Seas of Oblivion” is a stellar album from front to back, and it’s a trip that I’ll happily take time and again.

LISTEN to “Tetramental I – Seas of Oblivion” on Bandcamp here.

LIKE Nydvind on Facebook here.