After 15 years and 10 albums, Dutch post-black metal band An Autumn is embracing a new chapter, and their latest single, “Dreaming,” from Ethereal, captures that transformation in all its intensity. Formerly known as An Autumn for Crippled Children, the band has shed the name that first brought them attention, opting for a more straightforward, more personal approach that reflects their growth and the close-knit journey they’ve been on since their early days.
This track also marks part of the beginning for the Bölverk Records Collective, the newly formed record and apparel company created by JR Walker and Dan Oropallo of Brimminghorn Meadery, focusing on music and merch. Known for crafting meads inspired by Norse mythology and old-world traditions, Brimminghorn has built a reputation around blending history and community in every pour. With a Viking hall-inspired tasting room and a commitment to creating unforgettable flavors, Brimminghorn embodies the spirit of artistry and legacy that Bölverk aims to bring to music. (Check out our full interview with JR Walker about the founding of Bölverk Records Collective below the video.)
In choosing An Autumn’s Ethereal as its inaugural release, Bölverk Records brings together the worlds of mead and music, offering listeners a taste of something both ancient and refreshingly new. “The new album feels inspired…to us, anyways,” shares M, one of the band’s founding members. Known for a sound that fuses abrasive black metal textures with delicate, shoegaze-infused atmospherics, the band’s evolution has brought greater clarity to their vocals and lyrics. This time, the words take on a new transparency, a move that opens up an additional layer of emotional depth for longtime fans and newcomers alike.
Dreaming underscores the band’s hallmark ability to channel raw, personal themes—no grandiose mythological motifs here, just heartfelt expressions of real experiences and trials. It’s a track that takes listeners to the heart of what Ethereal is all about: rebirth, authenticity, and the lingering effects of time and change. You can preorder the record here, and listen below and experience this new chapter unfolding.
Interview with JR Walker
What inspired you to start Bölverk Records, and why now?
Bölverk Collective (Records) basically started from a conversation Steve Joh and I had about a few bands we really liked and just kind of floated the idea about starting a small label to release albums from bands we wanted to work with. An Autumn had sent him the Ethereal album and asked me what I thought about releasing it ourselves, so I jumped at that opportunity to A) work with someone I have a ton of respect for and B) work with a band that is one of my favorites. They wanted to release the singles in October and album in late November, so it had to be now. Bölverk Collective also has an apparel section based on the darker side of Norse Mythology. That was started with Brimming Horn artist Dan Oropallo and then we decided to add Bölverk Records to it, so hence the Collective part.
What are your goals for the label, creatively and in terms of its impact on the music scene?
The goals are pretty simple really: Release some great albums from bands we love that larger labels may not care about, at least right now, and allow bands to keep their music without having to sign their life away. We aren’t here to get rich off other musicians hard work, but to give them a jumping board in to something bigger should that be their goal. I don’t think any of us want to pretend we’re re-inventing the wheel. I think sometimes people want to take something already proven and pretend they created this new improved version of it. We just want you (the listener) to have access to some great music and allow bands to get their music done in vinyl for their fans.
An Autumn is a unique choice for a first signing. Could you share more about the decision to release Ethereal as the label’s debut?
Definitely unique. The funny thing is An Autumn (for Crippled Children) is one of the first bands Steve Joh and I bonded over. When Brimming Horn did a mead for the almighty Junius, we wound up becoming friends and would send each other different bands to check out all the time. AAFCC, We felt they were by far the best shoegaze black metal band going at the time. This was about 5 years ago and one of the reasons why they wound up on Prosthetic for the last few albums. Prosthetic even re-released a bunch of their old albums on vinyl which was amazing.
How would you describe the album Ethereal? What makes it a good fit for Bölverk Records’ first release?
When I was sent the final for Ethereal, it blew me away. I mentioned about them already being one of my favorite bands, so it wasn’t a big surprise on how good it turned out. AAFCC definitely had their own sound so you’re not getting too much different in that aspect, but I think the biggest thing that stood out was the improvement in the songwriting and there’s just so many catchy riffs that get stuck in your head. The vocals are a lot clearer as well and the addition of lyrics is brand new, so that’s pretty great first addition to the vinyl. The emotional rawness of the album fits in well with the Bölverk Collective mindset.
There’s an interesting connection between your work with the meadery and Bölverk Records. How do these two ventures complement each other, and how did that influence your decision to launch a label?
Bölverk (Evil Doer) was the name of Odin in the myth of mead. Odin steals the Mead of Poetry from the giant Suttungr after seducing his daughter Gunnlod, turns into an eagle and flys off. The portion that falls from his mouth to mankind was the poets/skalds share. Music and Mead has always had a deep connection, so both Brimming Horn and the Bölverk Collective are based around true passion of what we love. My business partner Jon Talkington who was the founder of Brimming Horn and the mead-maker absolutely loves fermentation. He’s been doing it a long time and in turn it’s allowed us to collaborate with some really amazing bands. I know a good amount of people in the music scene from my time playing in black metal bands in the late 90’s to the mid 2000’s. This led to our first collab with our good friend Chuck Sherwood who plays in Incantation and it just went wild from there. Once Decibel brought us in to the metal fest as their flagship meadery we got to work with even bigger bands and labels. I basically listen to music 12 hours a day, every day. It’s like a drug for me, so the only logical next step was getting involved with a label to put out cool music.
Do you have any plans for special collaborations between the meadery and the label, like music-inspired meads or release events?
As of now, no. Our collaborations have gotten so big, that we have to tell a lot of bands No now as we’re booked well into 2025. Never say never though.
What musical influences or artists have shaped your vision for Bölverk Records?
Since the Bölverk Collective started off as a Norse Heathen based apparel company you’d think we’d be focused on bands that share our same religion of Dan and I, but that’s definitely far from the truth. Bölverk Records is really open to almost any genre of metal music. If we find the right band and what we can offer them works, then perfect. Personally I’m a huge fan of most styles of black metal. I’m sure I’ll lose my kvlt points, but the shoegaze black metal style is some of my favorite. Being a big shoegaze fan helps though I’m sure hahaha. To be honest, I’m not sure there was any one artist that shaped our vision for Bölverk Records. More so just quality. Whether it’s bands like An Autumn or grindcore or progressive metal, etc… If we can feel an emotional connection to it, we’re all about it.
How would you describe the musical direction or aesthetic you hope to cultivate with the label?
That’s honestly a tough question to answer. I want to say our direction is just to put out really great music that people might not get to hear. To work with bands that care about their music and want to grow it with a small company. We’re looking at being that minor league label that could possibly help a band jump from nothing to something and grab that larger labels attention. It’s all about the music for us and the joy or even sadness that it brings.
Where do you see Bölverk Records going in the next few years? Are there any particular artists, genres, or types of releases you hope to explore?
Our main hope is to put out a few really high quality albums out a year. You won’t see us putting out relase after release to try and become a household name. You lose that conncetion to the music/artist when trying to do something strictly to make money. Obviously we don’t want to go broke but staying small and consistent in quality is our biggest hope. We’ve definitely been in some talks with some killer bands. One is an atmospheric – shoegazey black metal band and another is a band I absolutely love and they’re more of a progressive metal band that’s played our meadery a bunch of times. We’ll see how things go.
What message or feeling do you hope listeners take away from the releases on Bölverk Records?
There’s so many great labels out there putting out high quality stuff. I pay attention to every release they have. I think it would be great to be one of those labels that people know everything we do is gonna be good. Might not be their cup of tea musically, but they know it’s not gonna be garbage.
Is there anything you’d like potential listeners or fans to know about Bölverk Records?
I would just say to check us out if you’re open minded and interested in a wide array of music. We aren’t going to pigeon hole ourselves to any one genre. Music runs the gambit of emotions so we look to do the same in our releases.
Finally, what are you most excited about as you take this journey with Bölverk Records?
We’re excited about releasing An Autumn’s album Ethereal to the public and hopefully working with some other great underground artists in the future. We’re also excited about the apparel portion of the Collective as well. Dan Oropallo has come up with some really great clothing designs focusing on the more violent and dark side of Norse Mythology. db
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