Sváigas by Ruohtta

"Sváigas" is the third full-length album by Ruohtta. It portrays and interprets, musically and lyrically, the last months of a person´s life within a Sápmi context. It tells of the liminal spaces between stages and escalations of a disease, spiritually and culturally, towards the final day when Tauta loosen its grip and hands the soul over to Svaikainen.

A translation of the entire lyrical content into English may be available during this year 24.

Third full-length album by Ruohtta

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Reviews:

"'Sváigas' is the third full-length album by Ruohtta. It portrays and interprets, musically and lyrically, the last months of a person's life within a Sápmi context. It tells of the liminal spaces between stages and escalations of a disease, spiritually and culturally, towards the final day when Tauta loosen its grip and hands the soul over to Svaikainen."
The above is how raw indigenous black metal entity Ruohtta's sole practitioner, the preternaturally talented Tervaaja, describes the journey presented within his latest opus. Utilising his uncanny ability to weave unique, folkish riffcraft and spellbinding production values together to transport the listener to hitherto unseen and unconsidered planes of existence, the result is a quietly compelling record of an almost disturbing emotional depth and gravitas – not something one would usually expect from raw black metal, but therein lies the true and singular magick of Ruohtta. Released this very day, listen to this remarkable offering from an eternally underrated project in full below, and have your soul irrevocably scarred.
RATING: 4.3 / 5

- The Trve Black Metal Daily, April 2024

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The Sápmi bard, Ruohtta, returns with their third full length album titled, Sváigas. This is a pure meditation on death through the cultural lens of the native Sápmi of Northern Scandinavia. As described by Tervaaja himself, ‘It tells of the liminal spaces between stages and escalations of a disease, spiritually and culturally, towards the final day when Tauta loosen its grip and hands the soul over to Svaikainen.’ As one could gather from a quote like that, this is a rather deep album philosophically with unique and ethereal instrumentation that is a signature sound of Tervaaja and his many projects.

The album starts strong, with cold folk riffs played on a stripped back skeletal guitar interweaving this mystical mixture of raw black metal and folk qualities that creates this hypnotic and intriguing sound that seems to be signature with Tervaaja’s other works. This mixtures of genres can be risky for some, but with Ruohtta he’s able to strike that perfect balance and create a very memorable and rather underrated mix of sounds that captures this Sápmi saga perfectly. Sonically, the album has a style I can only describe as gothic. Its dark, cold, bleak, and very stripped back and skeletal. Even though all of it was performed by one man, it sounds like a live band is playing right in front of you, that’s how up front and personal this album feels.

The album is intensely emotional as well, taking the listener on a wild journey that ranges from grim melancholy to cold anger mixed with a touch of desperation. A perfect reflection of the idea of death and, I’m sure paired with the lyrics which are performed in a mixed language of Meänkieli and Sámi, two native languages of his region. But, while having the lyrics at hand would be a fun way to add another layer of interest especially to someone who’s not so familiar with this language at all, the music itself captures the emotion almost perfectly, especially within the guitars and its riffs. They’re extremely diverse and have this hypnotic quality to them at times while still staying simple and catchy.

The last track of the album, Haastuu, is a captivating ballad that feels like a final release into death. A solemn electric guitar wails along side a somber synth melody, lulling the soul into its cold embrace in the afterlife with a lone acoustic guitar. A unique and memorable way to end an album.

I think this is so far the best album from Ruohtta, and one of the best releases from Tervaaja yet. A beautifully bleak mixture of raw black metal, Sápmi folk melodies, and gothic aesthetics, this is certainly an extremely underrated album that I think many should give a listen. There won’t be any other album to compare it to, but that strangely familiar sound is so welcoming, much like the familiar spaces in between death.

- Runic Reviews, May 2024

Forest Sápmi Black Metal!

"My art will remain dark, however optimistic I become. I suck in the gloom from this region, from home, the surroundings, sickness, death. I shall never speak about joyful things, I shall always remind of the bad, the oppressive, I shall always sing in a minor key." - K. Palsa

Albums at War Against Yourself, Realm and Ritual, TormentRex, Escafismo Rec, Veritabel FG.