Premiere: Nephila ‘Living Grave’ – New Album ‘Huldra’ Drops 28th August
The Shaman is thrilled to present the exclusive premiere of Living Grave, the driving new single from Swedish heavy rock outfit Nephila, which is taken from their upcoming album Huldra. Partly recorded in a secluded former orphanage, the track signals a sharp evolution for the Arvika collective, as they adopt a heavier, darker, and yet more atmospheric sound.
Scheduled to be released on the 28th August via Majestic Mountain Records, Living Graveacts as a pivotal chapter for the new record, swapping warm grooves for crushing riffs and brooding dual vocal harmonies that centre on themes of dissociation and losing self-control.
About the track’s concept, the band states, ‘What happens when your own reflection belongs to someone else? With Living Grave, we plunge deep into a psychological and mythological darkness where the boundaries between the human mind and the ancient forces of the forest begin to blur.
The song is an intense and atmospheric portrayal of losing control over oneself. It captures the unsettling moment of dissociation when you look into the mirror, only to find that the eyes staring back are no longer your own. Psychological anguish intertwines with Nordic folklore as the threatening yet alluring forest spirit, Huldra, draws ever closer, whispering that it is in her forest where we truly belong. Balancing on the edge between denial and complete surrender, Living Grave explores the struggle between resisting and yielding to the darkness that consumes from within.’
Now, hit play below and lose yourself in the heavy, dark, yet grooving atmosphere…
More On Nephila & ‘Huldra’
Some bands evolve gradually. Others disappear into the woods and emerge transformed. Sweden’s Nephila have done the latter.
Since forming in Arvika, Värmland in 2017, the masked rock collective have carved out a distinctive identity rooted in the spirit of 1970s rock while refusing to be confined by nostalgia. Driven by twin lead vocalists and twin lead guitarists, Nephila have always balanced hypnotic grooves with soaring melodies, creating music that feels both familiar and strangely otherworldly. But from the very beginning, the band has been about more than music alone. Their mysterious masked appearance has become an integral part of the band’s identity, reinforcing the cinematic world that surrounds their music.
Following the release of their first single in 2018, Nephila quickly established themselves as one of Sweden’s most intriguing new rock acts. Their acclaimed debut album embraced the warmth and swagger of classic 70s rock while hinting at something darker beneath the surface, earning a nomination for Rock/Metal Album of the Year at Sweden’s prestigious P3 Guld Awards in 2022.
Now, three years in the making, Huldra marks the beginning of a bold new chapter. Rather than simply expanding on the sound of their debut, Nephila have shed their musical skin entirely. The result is a heavier, richer, and far more atmospheric album, one that surrounds its listeners with towering riffs, haunting vocal harmonies, and layers of texture that mirror the mystery and complexity of the Scandinavian forest itself. The groove remains unmistakably Nephila, but this time it is cloaked in shadow.
At the heart of Huldra lies an ambitious concept inspired by the legend of the skogsrå, the enigmatic forest spirit of Nordic folklore. Across the album, every song becomes another chapter in a world built around this captivating figure, who acts as both narrator and guide through an untamed landscape where beauty and danger exist side by side.
From the whispering darkness beneath ancient trees to the liberating force found deep within nature, Huldra unfolds as a cinematic journey through myth, transformation, and humanity’s fragile relationship with the natural world. Yet beneath its folklore lies something far more contemporary.
‘It’s not just about mythology,’ explain vocalists Josephine Asker and the band’s newest member, Linn Edlund. ‘It’s about what the forest spirit represents, our fascination with the unknown and the tension between being drawn to it and fearing it.’
That symbolism runs throughout the album. Historically, women who challenged the expectations of their time, whether through independence, ambition, or simply refusing to conform, were often misunderstood, demonized, or feared. In Nephila‘s interpretation, the skogsrå becomes a powerful reflection of that history: a woman who answers to no one, ruling her own world while society casts her as both temptation and threat. The album explores identity, freedom, power, and our instinctive longing for places beyond civilization, allowing ancient mythology to speak directly to modern anxieties.
The road to Huldra has been anything but straightforward. The project took more than three years to complete, slowed by the aftermath of the pandemic, lineup changes, and the arrival of new members. Just as the record neared completion, another setback followed when the label originally scheduled to release the album declared bankruptcy in 2025, forcing Nephila to postpone its release once again. Undeterred, the band continued refining the record.
During late summer of 2024, they recorded Huldra between guitarist Jacob Hellenrud‘s studio and a remote former orphanage in Lappnäs, a setting whose isolation and atmosphere seeped naturally into the music.
The wait is finally over. On August 28, Nephila will release Huldra through Majestic Mountain Records, inviting listeners into their most haunting, cinematic, and emotionally profound work to date. It is an album where classic heavy rock collides with Nordic folklore, where towering riffs meet haunting melodies, and where the forest itself becomes both storyteller and sanctuary.
Huldra Tracklist:
01. Mother of The Woods
02. In Her Hands
03. The Hidden Folk
04. Ash Their Bones
05. Capercailles Hymn
06. Huldra
07. Solar Eclipse
08. Living Grave
09. F.I.N.N
Nephila is:
Josephine Asker – Vocals
Linn Edlund – Vocals
Jacob Hellenrud – Guitar
Anton Athley – Guitar
Charlie Andersson Vistbacka – Bass
Johan Larsson – Organ, Keyboards
Johan Lööf – Drums
Huldra, the new album of heavy rock, dark harmonies, and Scandinavian folklore from Sweden’s Nephila, that releases 28th August via Majestic Mountain Records.
Label: Majestic Mountain Records
Band Links: Official | Facebook | Bandcamp | Spotify | Instagram
