Darkthrone reveal new track “The Hardship Of The Scots”

On May 31st, in collaboration with Peaceville, legendary Norwegian duo Darkthrone will release their 18th album. According to Fenriz, the new album, Old Star, will be a riffcentric mix of slow thrash, slow death and classic doom; what he calls “BLACK OLD HEAVY METAL.” Described as the “big brother” of the band’s previous album, Arctic Thunder, which saw an unexpected return to grim black metal from the ever-experimental and ever-candid duo, Fenriz adds that Old Star will be not only “more solid and with even better riffs,” but the band’s “most 80s . . . and most metal album to date.”

Photo by Ester Segarra

Then today, in a rare move, Darkthrone premiered on their Facebook a new track from Old Star. Listening to this seven and a half minute banger, titled “The Hardship Of The Scots,” everything Fenriz was saying to expect from Old Star starts to make perfect sense!

“The Hardship Of The Scots”

 

HI ALL OF YOU!,” Fenriz writes on the band’s Facebook. “As you may know we have a new album coming out (I am not on social media at all anymore so I don’t know what you’ve seen or heard so far) and Ted said that this time our fans will hear a new song first. So guys here it is – our new track, “The Hardship Of The Scots” and since Ted and me always write our own songs, one song could not fully represent Old Star, but let’s start with this one[.]

“Normally the journalists and other scenesters get to check out new albums 2-3-4 months before fans get to hear it, but not this time .. you are first!”

According to the press sheet: “Old Star was recorded at the band’s Necrohell 2 Studios, with engineering and production duties carried out by vocalist/guitarist Nocturno Culto, complemented with a perfectly organic mix courtesy of Sanford Parker (Voivod) at Hypercube Studios, & mastered once more by Jack Control at Enormous Door.”

Old Star comes out May 31st but is available to order now on all relevant formats.