On Thursday 17th March 2022, Wardruna started their epically long UK, Europe and US tour that had been postponed from 2020's shenanigans and I was blessed to have bought myself a ticket to see them just a few days later on their twice-rescheduled tour date and I'm so glad that I didn't ask for a refund or anything like that when the world practically shut down two years ago. When I purchased the ticket, it was about a month after the release date of the tickets so I wasn't expecting to get a decent seat but I still managed to find a seat not too far from the front of the stage and close to the middle of the row, which is my preferred seating if I can choose.
So I rocked up to the Symphony Hall in Birmingham, excited to be seeing my ultimate favourite band on stage for the first time ever (but hopefully not the last) and sat down in my seat. I arrived a full hour before the concert started with a performance from cellist Jo Quail.
Jo Quail's music was transportive and so apt for this time of year here in the UK. One of the three pieces she performed was titled Gold and she said it was all about the abundant life energy that is returning to the world in this particular season now that Spring has "officially" started. It was so moving and I can't fully describe how her music made me feel using words at all or how well it tied into this particular time of year.
When Wardruna came onto the stage, the entire audience erupted into applause, purely out of anticipation of their amazing music. And that is exactly what it was! So many of the songs that were sung, I recognised by the opening bars (also, the backdrop helped with some of the imagery I remembered from their videos online). Some of the songs performed were Kvitravn, Skugge, Solringen, Lyjaberg, and Grá - apart from Solringen, all of these were from the Kvitravn album which was released in 2020 but the creation of this album started in 2009. I love how Wardruna and Einar Selvik don't just create and produce music as quickly as possible because each of their songs has a meaning that I think is just wonderful to know and understand. They take their time to ensure that the song feels just right and authentic with instruments that are based on historical writings but perhaps physically have been lost to time, until now.
This is reflected in the message of their first album, Runaljod - Gap var Ginnunga:
"After many years of working and studying runes and the ancient and ever young Norse pagan beliefs, the need for me to do a musical project like Wardruna became inevitable. . . . Wardruna search in the scattered ruins of Norse history and use the runes as a tool to understand the depths of the old nordic pagan beliefs. Musically, the main focus is on recreating the Norse cultic musical language and the near forgotten arts of galder and seidr, as well as the daily acts of life."
Einar "Kvitrafn" Selvik made reference to this just before he and Wardruna performed their encore song, Helvegen (English translation is "The Way to Hel"). He mentioned that this song was written based on the idea that there used to be a song for everything - for sowing seeds, for harvesting, for birth and for death - but most, if not all, of these old songs have been lost to history. So this song was created as that bridge between life and death, meant to be sung as someone crosses over. Einar emphasised this with a question: Who will sing me across? He also said that this song isn't just about death because it's also about memories and keeping those memories and Old Ways alive in today's modern age, while also letting go and moving on.
Helvegen was performed because of the first standing ovation, which appeared to take everyone on stage by surprise, partly because the audience almost refused to stop applauding them but also because Einar actually said "holy sh*t" followed by "Is that British for you'd like another song?" And, of course it was! Helvegen was one of the first Warduna songs that I personally encountered at the start of my witchy journey several years ago and I always recommend listening to their performance of this in Norway in a cave entrance (search for Helvegen Wardruna Aurora and Oslo Fagottkor) because it was just so magical - although it doesn't quite compare to seeing them in person.
There was a second standing ovation after Helvegen and Einar was persuaded to perform one last song of the evening. He did a piece that was written for the TV show Vikings (which I have yet to watch but I'm sure I will at some point) for the death of Ragnar Lothbrok. Einar added that the translation of Ragnar's surname is "Furrypants" so realistically, Ragnar in the show should have had furry underwear. Einar performed this on his own with a tagelharpe (viking fiddle) and it was so tranporting that there was no surprise at all that at the end, he received a third standing ovation.
As a side note, Wardruna has also written and recorded a song for the Assassin's Creed Valhalla game, Hrafnsmál which translates to "The Words of the Raven". This song is definitely well worth checking out online.
Kvitravn translates to "White Raven", which I know to be a very rare spiritual messenger, and this song truly lends itself to calling in any messages that could be carried by the White Raven. The other songs on this album are all so spiritual to me and just incredibly poignant that it is my go-to music when I'm writing or crafting spells currently. Wardruna's newest album, which will be released in June 2022, is titled First Flight of the White Raven and a close friend has pre-ordered it for me as a birthday present.
The music from both Jo Quail and Wardruna spoke to my soul, almost like it was a part of my soul in some way. I may use this inspiration to do some meditative journey work focusing on possible past lives or meeting members of my lineage that I have never met.
I look forward to attending future concerts, either on my own or with a friend or two, but I shall enjoy the albums I do have in the meantime. I hope my experience inspires you to find the music that speaks to and moves your own souls.
Peace and love to all!
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