Lykantropi are to release Tales To Be Told on November 6 via Despotz. The eight-track recording, inspired by Jethro Tull and Coven, is a collection of timeless fairy tales that form a distillate of the band’s essence, both musically and personally. The Swedish six-piece’s blend of psychedelic folk prog should also appeal to fans of White Willow, Hexvessel and Purson.
Lykantropi’s previous two albums – 2017’s eponymous debut and last year’s Spirituosa – largely comprised material that had been written and recorded over decades, Tales To Be Told contains almost exclusively newly written material. Guitarist and vocalist Martin Ostlund says, “This time we have done everything together. We have come up with our own ideas and then arranged together. It’s new for us to work that way, but it’s given us the best album we’ve ever made with high quality both musically and lyrically.”
Ostlund says that the album offers respite from human realism and the frustration over the prevailing social climate: “My contributions on this record are not only about realism linked to the pandemic but also about people's views on things compared to how it has been before. Greed and riding free rides on others, the violence that we are becoming more and more aware of. I am dissatisfied with that and that makes it more important to me with an oasis and a place protected from reality where I get space for things that feel important to say. I may have listened too much to the informational radio, where there is a lot to be upset about but at the same time a lot that is beautiful.”
The album title and lead track Kom ta mig ut were inspired by Jim Jarmusch’s arty vampire film, Only Lovers Left Alive. Says Ostlund says: “Ever since I was little, I have watched horror movies. I recorded them on VHS when they where on TV and watched them almost too many times afterwards. One summer, black and white classics were broadcasted with Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi. I still like horror movies very much, Francis Ford Coppola's Dracula from the 90s is still a favourite.”
Watch the video for Kom ta mig ut below.
