New EP 'Live By The Sword' to be released March 24

On March 24, we will release a new EP entitled 'Live By The Sword'. The EP features five songs: three band new ones, inlcuding the first song written for the band by our guitarist Valgard who joined us in 2019, and two new versions of older songs. These are 'Desisdaimonia' that was originally released on our sophomore album in 1994 (and played live last year for the first time since 1995) and 'On Wings Of Defiance', the title track from our 2011 full-length.

Tracklist:

1. Raven Banners Fly (3:50)

2. Spectre (4:33)

3. Ballad Of Sigrid The Haughty (7:03)

4. Deisidaimonia (4:45)

5. On Wings Of Defiance (8:42)

The EP will be available on all major digital platforms such as Spotify, Apple Music and Deezer as well as on our official Bandcamp store.

New single 'De Vloek Van Het Goud' out on September 17

On Friday, September 17, we will release a new single entitled 'De Vloek Van Het Goud'. The song was recorded during the 'Banners Of Blood' sessions, but not included on the album. The title means 'The Curse Of The Gold' and the song tells how greed, symbolized by gold, came into the world. Its main sources are stanzas 21-22 of Völuspá. The idea that the thrice-burned witch and goddess was reborn each time as one of the three Norns – which I find very compelling – was first put forth by Freya Aswynn if I am not mistaken (in Leaves Of Yggdrasil, p.77-78).

As for the translation of her name, ‘Gullveig’, in the two Dutch translations of the poetic Edda, by Jan de Vries (1938) and Marcel Otten (1994), two different options are chosen. De Vries does not translate her name at all and simply ‘dutchifies’ it as ‘Gulweig’ while Otten translates it as ‘Goudroes’ (literally ‘Gold Fever’). I decided to differ and translate her name as ‘Gouddronk’, which sounds good to my ears and is quite literal (‘gull’ meaning ‘gold’ and ‘veig’ possibly meaning ‘drink’).

'Fires Of Destiny Over Europe' memories

Time for another trip down memory lane . . . Orlok looks back on our shows with Blackdeath and Barathrum in 2017.

"In February 2017, we did a short tour with Blackdeath and Barathrum. What made this especially cool was that it took place almost exactly twenty years after our shows with Barathrum and Sabbat. Herjann, who was our keyboard player in 2014-2015, put a lot of work in putting the shows together. In addition to being the tour manager, he would also join Blackdeath on stage as live guitarist.

In the morning of February 23, we set off for Paris, where the first show would take place. After a drive of about six hours, we reached Paris where we would play our first-ever show in France. The club, Le Klub, turned out to be located in the heart of the city, practically next to the Notre-Dame. 

Arriving in Paris.

'Banners Of Blood' track by track

It's been three months since the release of our new album. The album has received an excellent reception from fans and critics alike. In this blog post, we discuss the album track by track.

New album 'Banners Of Blood' to be released February 11

On February 11, we will release our long-awaited new full-length album, entitled ‘Banners Of Blood'.

'Banners Of Blood' is our sixteenth full-length and features twelve tracks of uncompromising metal music, blending first wave Black Metal and traditional Heavy Metal in a way only Countess can.

The albums features two songs in Dutch and, for the first time, a song in Russian: 'Ledovoye Poboishche' ('Battle On The Ice') tells the story of Alexander Nevsky's great victory over the crusader knights in 1242 CE.

The new album also marks the first appearance on a Countess full-length of guitarist Valgard and keyboardist Häxa. 

Everyone can get a first taste of the new album as of today. A digital single has been released for the song 'Last Man Of Honour'. This song was inspired by the life of Saigo Takamori, who is often considered to have been the last true samurai and who was born on this day in 1828 CE. The single is available on all major platforms such as Spotify, Apple Music and Deezer as well as a free download on our offical Bandcamp site.

The album's full track list:

1. Sword Of The Millennia
2. Below The Sky
3. Wall Of The North
4. Ledovoye Poboishche
5. Night Of The Fallen
6. Banners Of Blood
7. Pagan Man
8. Fall Of The Achaemenid Empire
9. Slachting Der Saksen
10. Last Man Of Honour
11. Toortsen Uit Het Verleden
12. Sword Symphony

New single out on August 7

While we are still working hard on our new album, we will already release a brand new song on all major platforms on August 7 (Elizabeth Báthory's birthday, coincidentally). Below is the official video for the single.

Zagan leaves Countess

With regret we have to announce that our guitarist Zagan has decided to leave the band. He made this decision because his heart is no longer in being part of the band, as he feels he has accomplished all he can with Countess. While we are obviously sad to see him leave, we cannot but respect his decision.

Zagan joined Countess in 1995 and was part of the line-up that played quite a few shows in the mid-nineties - including our legendary tour with Barathrum and Sabbat - and recorded the 'Hell's Rock & Roll' EP. After the split of the live band at the end of 1997, he still occasionally worked with the band in following years. In 2013 he rejoined the band full-time and was instrumental in the resurrection of the live band the next year.

Zagan on stage in Augsburg in 2014

Over the years, Zagan definitely left his mark on the Countess sound. Not only because of his great leads, but also because of his input on arrangements and of course because of the music he contributed to the band. He was responsible for our classic anthem 'Hell's Rock & Roll' and most recently wrote a substantial amount of material for our latest full-length 'Fires Of Destiny'.

We wish Zagan all the best for the future and the best of luck with whatever his future endeavours may be. Enjoy some of his most notable contributions to the Countess canon in this special playlist: