Dimmu Borgir - Grand Serpent Rising (2026)

Marking a triumphant return, today we have Dimmu Borgir and their latest offering “Grand Serpent Rising”. Eight years have passed since their last release and Shagrath and Silenoz are back to the basics with thirteen tracks and nearly 70 minutes of high-octane music. With a more stripped down sound than in their last effort, but still retaining all the magical elements of the band’s core sound, this release is ready to take the scene by storm.

Opening with the epic “Tridentium”, we get an instantly sinister vibe filled with dramatic atmospherics. After this mood-setting intro, the band takes a fork back to their more pummeling days of “Puritanical Euphoric Misanthropia”, with the piercing “Ascent”, a track filled with vicious drumming and incisive guitars. Not missing a step with Galder leaving the band, both remaining founding members did a great job in creating some truly intense and brilliant compositions like “As Seen in the Unseen”, “The Qryptfarer”, and “Ulvgjeld & blodsodel”.

The band’s sound is more Metal in every sense, something that got drowned by the grandioseness of the atmospheric/orchestral/choral elements of “Eonian”. A perfect example of this is the melodic guitars of “Slik Minnes en Alkymist” and “Recognizant”, creating very crisp and ravaging tracks that masterfully blend the band’s aggressive side with their more refined, but not extremely over the top atmospherics. Giving in some instances vibes of the older/simpler Symphonic Metal days of Tartaros and (90’s) Limbonic Art.

As the band closes the release with tracks like the crushing “Shadows of a Thousand Perceptions” and the epic instrumental “Gjǫll”, Dimmu Borgir has come full circle and gotten their sound perfectly balanced to deliver both harsh brutality alongside engaging atmospherics. “Grand Serpent Rising” is one of those releases that has no filler tracks and that flows perfectly, transporting the listener to the dark and twisted world of the band. We can’t wait to listen to these intense tracks in the live setting as the band takes over a pretty extensive and international touring schedule in the next year or so.

Rating: 97/100