Këkht Aräkh has announced ‘Morning Star,’ due March 27th via Sacred Bones, and the lead single “Three winters away” signals exactly where this record lives. Recorded between Berlin and Stockholm, the album blends aggressive black metal passages with immersive, melancholic soundscapes shaped by analog tape warmth and lo-fi immediacy. This is a deeply personal record from an artist arriving at a truer version of himself, and it sounds like it.
Dmitry recorded nearly all instruments himself, with drums contributed by Jonathan (Spira Me, Vanskapth, Olycka). Sound design and mastering on tape Portastudio were handled by VS-55 and Varg2™, with final mastering by James Ginzburg of Emptyset and Osmium. The result has a distinctive grain and analog character that gives every track its own tangible weight. On the album’s creation, Dmitry is direct: “This album was created at a point where I’m more skillful as an artist, with a much clearer sense of my own sound than in my earlier work. On this record, I feel more like myself than ever before.”
The most unexpected collaboration on ‘Morning Star’ is also one of its most compelling. Bladee appears on “Eternal martyr,” co-writing lyrics and contributing vocals. The pairing may seem unlikely on paper, but both artists share a commitment to world-building, emotional directness, and carving a singular path outside their respective genres. It works precisely because neither artist forced it.
“Three winters away” sets the emotional tone for everything that follows, reflecting on three years of change since his previous album ‘Pale Swordsman’ with a lyric that deliberately withholds judgment. “Three winters away from my old life, I look back, and I smile,” Dmitry explains, “it doesn’t reveal whether those changes were for better or for worse.” That kind of open emotional honesty, filtered through black metal tradition and lo-fi warmth, is what makes ‘Morning Star’ worth every bit of anticipation.
‘Morning Star’ Track Listing:
- Wänderer
- Castle
- Lament
- Genom sorgen (ft. VS-55)
- Angest
- Mörker över mörker
- Three winters away
- Drömsång
- Raven king
- Vigil
- Eternal martyr (ft. Bladee)
- Trollsång (ft. Spöke)
- Land av evig natt l
- Land av evig natt ll
- Gates
- Morning star
- Outro (ft. Varg2™)