DALLAS, TEXAS — After years of grinding through Europe’s underground metal scene and chasing dreams across the Atlantic, Swedish metal band STUÄRNTANG has officially announced the release of their debut U.S. album under Riffuge Studios. The record—unnamed at press time—signals not just a creative rebirth, but a hard-earned turning point for the group, who came to America with nothing but suitcases, guitars, and scars.
Formed in the grey mists of Uppsala and baptized in the brutal Gothenburg circuit, STUÄRNTANG’s sound is forged from contradictions: sacred and profane, beauty and violence, order and chaos. Frontman Viktor Halden (Lead Vocals, Rhythm Guitar) leads with haunting conviction, often channeling the fire of a prophet in full collapse. “I never wanted to be saved,” Viktor says, “I just wanted the truth loud enough to bleed.”
The journey from Sweden to Texas wasn’t paved in gold—or even asphalt. After relocating legally to the U.S. in 2022 with dreams of tapping into the fertile American metal market, the band struggled to find footing. They self-funded an early EP with money from busking and remote gigs, selling merch out of their van while living on gas station food and determination. That record, while cult-adored in niche online circles, did little to break them into the U.S. touring circuit.
“We were burning out,” admits Sofia “Sif” Lundgren, the band’s explosive drummer with a background in jazz and hymnody. “We played for beer and floor space, and most nights, people talked over our set. But we knew the music deserved more.”
It wasn’t until a chance encounter with a Riffuge-backed band at a warehouse show in Kansas City that everything changed.
“I remember hearing this wall of sound—so clean, so punishing, but full of light,” says Erik Blomkvist, the band’s lead guitarist. “I went over to the merch table and asked who mixed it. They said: ‘Riffuge. Out of Texas. Look up Sam Nolan Carter.’”
The band cold-called the label that night.
Two weeks later, Viktor Halden and Jonas Ehn (bass, backing vocals) drove through a lightning storm to Dallas to meet with Sam Nolan Carter, co-founder of Riffuge Studios and rhythm guitarist of the supernatural metal band Ghost Riff Riders.
What they found was more than a label—it was a refuge. “A studio that produced our music with no strings attached?” Viktor says. “We had to sign on.”
With the support of Sam, and other GRR members including Luna Grey and Ryder Mason, STUÄRNTANG laid down tracks in Riffuge’s analog/digital hybrid studio, capturing the band’s raw Scandinavian roots while layering in the atmosphere and orchestral darkness that defines their evolving sound. Longtime ambient collaborator Freja Törn joined the sessions from Stockholm, sculpting ghostly textures that now haunt the record’s every breath. Their veteran sound engineer, David Norström, ensured the final product roared without distortion—“hell in high fidelity,” as he likes to call it.
Even touring crewman and occasional baritone vocalist Leif Arnås was brought in to help layer harmonies and “battle hymns” that appear across the record.
“This album isn’t just our first real release,” says Jonas. “It’s a confession. A resurrection. It’s everything we couldn’t say when no one was listening.”
With influences ranging from Gojira to Ulver, Behemoth to Hildegard von Bingen, the album moves like a sermon screamed through a collapsing cathedral. Lyrics wrestle with inherited faith, inherited trauma, and the haunting pull of inner apocalypse. Viktor’s voice shifts between guttural despair and eerie, melodic pleading—never offering comfort, only confrontation.
ABOUT THE BAND
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Viktor Halden – Lead Vocals, Rhythm Guitar
A preacher’s son who sings like he’s exorcising himself on stage. -
Erik Blomkvist – Lead Guitar, Backing Vocals
Classical-trained, melody-obsessed shredder from Gothenburg. -
Sofia “Sif” Lundgren – Drums, Percussion
Former jazz percussionist turned hurricane of polyrhythms. -
Jonas Ehn – Bass, Backing Vocals
Bassist with a spiritual ache that groans through his fretboard. -
Freja Törn – Studio Synth / Live Ambient FX
Industrial ghost-architect of the band’s atmosphere. -
David Norström – Live Sound / Mixing Engineer
Doom-sculptor and sonic ritualist behind the board. -
Leif Arnås – Pit Choir / Live Crew
Veteran stagehand and Nordic hymn-bearer who joins live sets.
ABOUT THE ALBUM (From Viktor Halden)
“This album is a death and a birth. A howl and a hymn. We didn’t write it to be liked—we wrote it because we had to. Every song is a prayer with blood in its teeth, and every note is a memory we couldn’t bury.
We come from silence. From shame. From snowy nights spent screaming into the dark. But this—this album—is the answer we finally heard back.
Riffuge didn’t just give us a studio. They gave us belief. They didn’t ask us to change, didn’t slap on a brand. They just handed us the match and let us light the fire.
To those who’ve followed us since the first demo, and those who are just hearing us now: We’re STUÄRNTANG. And we finally sound like ourselves.”
FOR INTERVIEWS, BOOKINGS, OR PRESS INQUIRIES
Please contact: [email protected]
Follow the band: @STUARNTANGofficial | STUARNTANG.com
Follow on Distrokid – https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/sturntang/stuarntang
STUÄRNTANG’s debut U.S. album releases this month under Riffuge Studios. More details coming soon.
6 Responses
Guess the website is not up yet? Love the sound. Presaved. Hope to catch your show in Austin next week! Cannot wait!
Herregud, vilket ljud! Har följt Viktor sedan hans tid i mindre band i Uppsala – att höra honom nu med STUÄRNTANG är som att se en demon predika från en katedral av distortion. Albumet är ren magi!
Jag fick gåshud av första tonen på introspåret. Kombinationen av Frejas ambient ljudlandskap och Jonas’ mörka basgångar är ren konst. Ni förtjänar all hype ni får!
Sofia Lundgren slaktar trummorna med sådan elegans och precision – hur kan något så brutalt kännas så vackert? Stort grattis till hela bandet. Ser fram emot att se er live igen!
Just pre-saved the album! The concept, the lineup, the eerie religious undertones… this is what the modern metal scene was missing. Huge respect from Chicago!
Been a fan since I stumbled across their live set in Berlin. This release feels like a thunderstorm of emotion and chaos—exactly what I needed. Can’t wait for the vinyl drop.