A fusion of art of the highest standard – Satyricon & Munch

Satyricon & Munch showcases two of the most known Norwegian artists, Edvard Munch and SATYRICON, combined in one groundbreaking piece of art, breaking the boundaries between high culture and black metal music. The new music, created by SATYRICON mastermind Satyr, is written in the shape of a so-called musical work, it is 56 minutes long and transcends any genre barriers. Although the music was written for the art exhibition, it clearly has the emotional depth to take on any environment outside the exhibition room. The new, astonishing and critically acclaimed art exhibition of the same title is on display at the MUNCH museum in Oslo until August 28, 2022. The musical work is available in album format on June 10, 2022 in digital format and in physical formats to follow.

Satyr on Satyricon & Munch: “In the musical work Satyricon & Munch, you will find my musical response to the emotions that the works of Edvard Munch instilled in me when working on the art exhibition. One could therefore say that the album release is not only a consequence of the making of an exhibition, but also a reflection of my studies of Edvard Munch’s life and philosophy on the making of art – and my eagerness to push myself as an artist. I deeply appreciate his emphasis on feeling over technique, his will to experiment and his determination to walk his own way. Of course these are also core values to SATYRICON, which in this particular case becomes even more important.

To make this into what it is, it became clear early on that we needed to reverse the roles in the instrumentation: What has been complimentary in the past must now perhaps take more of a lead role, what is given in a regular song is perhaps not needed at all for this project – these types of reflections. To create the layers of emotion and atmospheres that we aspired to, the instrumentation needed to be rich in diversity. That is why we have a wide range of old school analog synthesizers, electric guitar, baritone guitar, bass guitar, drums, theremin, cello, viola, bass clarinet, contrabass clarinet, jouhikko, Hardanger fiddle, grand piano to name some. Some of these instruments are particularly receptive to the personal input of the musician and very suitable for creating the depth of layers that was necessary for this project. It has been important to us to break away from formatted approaches and focus strictly on what this project needs.

Black metal’s true nature is being limitless and while the format is unlike anything you’ve heard from SATYRICON before, the tonality and personal signature is highly recognizable to those who know their SATYRICON. We encourage everyone to refrain from trying to label the music and just accept that there is no need to. It is certainly not film music, it is not ambient and it is not something you have to make up a word for. It is SATYRICON.”

Founded back in 1991, SATYRICON is a true legend in the black metal scene, which they heavily influenced from the early 1990’s until today. Early works, such as Dark Medieval Times and The Shadowthrone are genre classics, while later works break free from traditional black metal. The band never strayed away from other musical influences and implemented them in their music, which led to multiple awards, gold records and #1 albums, as well as huge headline tours and festivals all over the world. With Satyricon & Munch, the band sets new standards in contemporary music in a monumental, yet intimate experience.