News · 27 May 2025

Russian Folk Metal Act Arkona Announce Debut Australian Tour

The Southern Ritual tour includes support from the Siberian folk rock duo Nytt Land.

Winter is coming with the announcement that Russian folk metal beasts Arkona are touring Australia this September.

The Pagan folk collective are touring the country for the very first time in support of their ninth long player, Kob’, which dropped in 2023. Influenced by Russian folklore and Slavic mythology, Arkona merge traditional Russian instruments with modern metal tropes, crafting a uniquely devastating sound.

Joining them are two-piece folk rockers Nytt Land, whose music combines throat singing with traditional handmade instruments such as the Kantele and the Talharpa. Nytt Land are inspired by Norse mythology, with many of the lyrics sung in the Old Norse language.

Arkona and Nytt Land’s Southern Ritual tour claims its first victims at Canberra’s The Baso on Wednesday, September 24, conitnuing with dates at Sydney’s Manning Bar on Thursday, September 25, Melbourne’s Croxton Bandroom on Friday, September 26 and Brisbane’s Crowbar on Saturday, September 27, before the final sacrifice at Adelaide’s Lion Arts Factory on Sunday, September 28.

Early bird tickets, which are available at a discounted rate, go on sale on Wednesday, May 28, at 9:30 am local time. General on-sale begins Tuesday, June 3, at 9:30am local time. For ticketing information, visit hardlinemedia.net.

Led by sole original member Maria “Masha Scream” Arkhipova, Pagan metal purveyors Arkona have been creating enchanting folk black metal for over two decades.

Despite several lineup changes over the years, the band have become a staple of the European metal touring scene, with their most recent release, 2023’s Kob’, a dark and despairing meditation on mankind’s descent towards self-anhilation.

Hailing from Kalachinsk in Siberia, Russia, the husband and wife duo of Nytt Land have been compared to Nordic folk rock acts Wardruna and Danheim. They’ve released nine albums since forming in 2013, with their most recent record, 2023’s Torem.

Catch Arkona at Lion Arts Factory on Sunday, September 28. For full ticketing information, visit hardlinemedia.net.