Rob wanted the world of The Northman to feel raw and gloomy, as if it were covered in mud and dried blood, so it was important that the music reflect this." Composers Robin Carolan (Tri-Angle Records) and Sebastian Gainsborough (Vessel) were faced with a task of epic proportions when director Rob Eggers (The VVitch, The Lighthouse) asked them to write the score for his ambitious film The Northman. They had to create a score that both honored the immense research into the authenticity of this historical piece from the Viking Age and complemented the film's cinematic maximalism for a modern audience. The artists pushed the boundaries of their creativity, and the result is a beautiful soundscape that immerses the listener in the film. In arranging the score, the composers consulted musician and ethnographer Poul Hoxbro for inspiration and insight into the history of Viking music. Since Robin and Sebastian come from the field of electronic music, they weren't limited to a small selection of musical instruments, but they used them as a starting point. "Electronic music has almost limitless potential when it comes to creating sounds, and that's obviously an incredible thing, but you can also fall into a wormhole and sometimes get lost in it. That danger doesn't exist when you only have a few main instruments to fall back on," says Robin Carolan. They used traditional instruments like the tagelharpa, the langspil, the kravik lyre, and the säckpip to create the cinematic world of The Northman, but they also took creative liberties by adding instruments like drums, which some scholars believe wouldn't have played a major role in Viking musical culture, simply because there is no archaeological evidence of real drums. "One of the pieces was meant to emulate the sound of a bullroarer; an ancient instrument used in sacred rituals or in battle to intimidate enemies. It produces a truly disorienting, roaring vibrato sound and low frequencies that can travel incredible distances," says Robin when asked about one of the more unique aspects of the score. Everyone involved put so much effort into their research and creativity, and that richness is evident in every piece. The album as a whole is a cinematic masterpiece of sound and atmosphere, both beautiful and unsettling, just like the film it so wonderfully accompanies.