Video Premiere: ELUVEITIE's 'Ategnatos'

Swiss folk metallers ELUVEITIE will release their new album, "Ategnatos", on April 5 via Nuclear Blast. The official music video for the title track can be seen below. The clip was produced in January by the Polish company Grupa13. The cover artwork for the disc was created by Travis Smith.

The band states: "'Ategnatos' probably became our most organic album by all accounts. It is the result of a thoroughly intuitive process, where we gave creativity full scope. And during this process quite some back-to-the-roots developments emerged in diverse aspects. Many a riff off 'Ategnatos' reminds on the guitar work on 'Slania'. Following our gut feeling, we brought the mixing duties back to Jens Bogren's Fascination Street studios, where our Nuclear Blast debut was produced. And regarding the album artwork, it soon became very clear to us that we'd love to work with the fabulous Travis Smith again, who already created the front covers of our albums 'Spirit' (14 years ago!) and 'Everything Remains As It Never Was'. And we're honestly excited with the result! The front cover shows a spectacular scenery in central Switzerland, a so-called 'vulva cave', as it was sought to mark sacred rites of fertility and celebrations of life in ancient times! The artwork mystically and beautifully expresses the 'Ategnatos''s very core and essence! Once again, it was a pleasure to work with Travis!"

Recordings for "Ategnatos" took at New Sound Studio with their engineer of choice Tommy Vetterli.

A work based on archaic archetypes and the ancient concept of renewal, "Ategnatos" unfolds an elemental force to be reckoned with. "These archetypes are still within us," leader Christian "Chrigel" Glanzmann says. "People didn't change that much during the last 3000 years — and men were always just men." No wonder the album follows a decidedly darker, monumental tone that suits them very well.

Of course, ELUVEITIE has long had its very own trademark sound, a sonic adventure often copied but never overcome. With "Ategnatos", the dedicated nine-piece not only worked with a real string quartet and granted Fabienne Erni's sublime mastery of the harp the room it deserved; they also undertook a holistic upgrade resulting in some of the catchiest, most aggressive and most epic tunes the Swiss metal nobility has ever offered.

ELUVEITIE will embark on a European tour with LACUNA COIL and INFECTED RAIN in November.

ELUVEITIE in May 2016 announced the departure of drummer Merlin Sutter, vocalist Anna Murphy and guitarist Ivo Henzi.

The band's new lineup made its live debut at the Eluveitie & Friends festival in January 2017 at Z7 in Pratteln, Switzerland.

ELUVEITIE is:

Jonas Wolf - guitars
Matteo Sisti - whistles, bagpipes, mandola, bodhran
Nicole Ansperger - fiddle
Alain Ackermann - drums
Chrigel Glanzmann - vocals, whistles, mandola, bagpipes
Fabienne Erni - vocals, celtic harp
Kay Brem - bass
Michalina Malisz - hurdy gurdy
Rafael Salzmann - guitars