I’d like to share my favorite fact about Nytt Land, the Siberian dark folk project from husband and wife, Anatoly and Natalia Pakhalenko.1 During my research for this review, I came across an old interview with Anatoly. He was discussing instrumental diversity on their then-upcoming release, ODAL. Of all the instruments Anatoly plays, the talharpa, an ancient Nordic bowed lyre, is his favorite. Do you know why it’s his favorite? BECAUSE HIS WIFE MADE IT FOR HIM. MADE IT. WITH HER OWN TWO HANDS.2 I can’t even imagine the incalculable value of such a gift. And I’m only half kidding when I say that fact alone makes Aba Khan—and anything else they release—worth a spin.

Nytt Land often releases albums strictly preserving the ancient traditions of their homeland, like 2025’s Songs of the Shaman, but Aba Khan follows a different path. Picking up the threads first woven on 2021’s Ritual and continued on 2023’s Torem, Aba Khan captures the energy of the shamanic rites of Nytt Land’s native Siberia. Nytt Land doesn’t perform any one specific rite on Aba Khan, but rather, Nytt Land channels their significance, their substance. As such, this isn’t a direct transcription or translation, but a respectful, contemporary interpretation that places listeners in the midst of ancestral proceedings. Produced with immersion in mind, the soundstage is dynamic and beautifully utilized. You can almost smell the clean air and feel the warmth of the bonfire as practitioners’ shifting vocals and well-placed instruments surround you, each given plenty of room to breathe and shine. To get the full effect, headphones are highly recommended here.

Aba Khan by Nytt Land

Production and mixing would mean little here, were it not for Nytt Land’s excellent performances. Natalia is the centerpiece, providing striking lead vocals and bringing to life the chanting, throat singing chorus of this ceremony (“Aba Khan,” “Taiga”). She and fellow drummer Aleksandr Rosliakov provide the raw, thunderous backbone for the album, stoking ritual fervor and reverence alike (“The Oath,” “Tygir Tayii (Heavenly Sacrifice)”).3 All other instruments are handled by Anatoly. Flutes, both bone and wood, alternate between heraldic (“Totem,” “Mansi”) and musical (“Taiga,” “Mansi”) duties, while strings—like the talharpa—guide Aba Khan through its eight movements. A high base quality means standout moments are few here, but the instrumental bridge of “Taiga,” which features mouth harp, flute, and talharpa all playing different melodies on top of a deep stringed foundation, is noteworthy, as is the absolutely massive, constant thrum of “Prayer.” It’s like listening to a god breathe.

According to the promo sheet, Aba Khan comprises a collection of shamanic vignettes, but it nevertheless possesses a loose narrative flow from one track to the next. This is largely driven by Natalia’s singing. Aba Khan is written entirely in indigenous Serbian languages and Old Norse, but Natalia defies the language barrier through measured swaying (“Taiga,” “Totem”), raw vulnerability (“The Oath,” “Prayer”) and ritualistic staccatos (“Tygir Tayii (Heavenly Sacrifice)”) to sketch the shape and purpose of each movement. I’m normally pretty unforgiving on intros, but “Aba Khan” serves more as an invocation or invitation before the ceremony begins in earnest with “Taiga.” Aside from mid-album snag “Uitag,” which dwells overlong in ambient repetition, Nytt Land moves with purpose through each movement. Aba Khan closes in a whirlwind, shifting from the tension of ceremonial action (“The Oath”) to that of anticipation (“Prayer”), before releasing it in spiraling celebration and catharsis (“Tygir Tayii”).

I don’t think anyone would argue the value of preservation efforts, but I might argue that Aba Khan does something even more important. Whether at a museum or on recordings like Songs of the Shaman, a clinical detachment separates us from feeling the gravity of these traditions as an insider would. Aba Khan annihilates that barrier. Using every tool at their disposal, Nytt Land communicates the emotions, atmosphere, and spirit of Siberia’s shamanic traditions through music, a universal language. This isn’t meant to be known in the mind. It’s meant to be felt in the heart. On Aba Khan, Nytt Land invites you to walk in their millennia-old shoes to a time and place where spirits rule, shamans protect the people, and old gods whisper.4

Rating: 3.5/5.0
DR: 8 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps mp3
Label: Prophecy Productions
Websites: Bandcamp | Facebook | Instagram
Releases Worldwide: February 20th, 2026

Some beautiful #Swedish #DarkFolk with some very emotional themes.

https://youtu.be/L9blbqNea4I

#DarkBlue #AltBlues #Modernblues #AltCountry #MoonMother

Free download codes:

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https://getmusic.fm/l/Es1BrQ

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Ce matin, c'est un ciel blanc d'hiver ultra lumineux qui m'a reveillé. Je saisi l'occasion pour calmer le jeu en écoutant la sombre musique de mon ami Yann Lafosse AKA My North Eye. https://mynortheye.bandcamp.com/album/my-north-eye-6

dernier album en date enregistré par Nico Brusq et dont je signe une fois de plus la pochette.

#darkfolk #folkSinger

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https://getmusic.fm/l/PKXfnr

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Vartra - Inanna [Dark Folk, Neo-Pagan Folk] [2022]

https://piefed.social/c/obscuremusic/p/1645293/vartra-inanna-dark-folk-neo-pagan-folk-2022

Kielichy / Strangers in Name

2KOŁA, niedziela, 25 stycznia 18:30 CET

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mW0IdSxJ1TQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ePQmwDFNrA4...

Klimat, klimat, klimat. Pierwszy Old Skull w 2026 roku pod znakiem nastroju stał będzie. Ładne piosenki, ale troszkę przeczołgane przez hałaśliwe pomruki ech i dysonansów, nieco chropowate w formie, a jednak wzniosłe i ulotne, balansujące między brzmieniami delikatnymi a fuzzem gitar.

Warszawski Strangers in Name, drugi raz na Oldskullu, trio gitara, bas, saksofon, dwa mieszane głosy. Trio które na tyle gra, co czaruje i którego każdy występ robi się wydarzeniem.
https://www.instagram.com/strangersinname/

Krakowski kwintet Kielichy. Kapela, która zaczynała w strefach bliższych neofolkowi, ale popłynęła w dużo ciekawsze rejony sfuzzowanego postpunkowego emocjonalnego pieśniopisarstwa spod znaku Crime and The City Solution, The Bad Seeds albo wrocławskich zapomnianych Los Loveros. Pierwszy raz na Oldskullu.
https://linktr.ee/kielichy

https://warszawa.askapunk.net/event/kielichy-strangers-in-name