Rauhnåcht is the solo project of Austrian musician Stefan Traunmüller, who has been a presence in many other projects over many years, including Golden Dawn, A Portrait of Flesh and Blood, and Wallachia. Although he began releasing music under the Rauhnåcht banner as far back as 2010, with two albums, two EPs, and a split with Sturmpercht recorded over the next four years, it was Rauhnåcht‘s wonderful 2017 split with Hanternoz and Tannöd, which we premiered, that first brought the artistry of Rauhnåcht to our attention.

That split, which was released by the underground French label Antiq Records, was an hour-long concept recording about the legends of the Alps. It was not the first nor the last example of the ways in which the natural splendor of the Alpine peaks and valleys, through all their changing seasons, and the old cultures that have evolved in their presence, have inspired the music of Rauhnåcht. The most recent example is a new album named Unterm Gipfelthron, which will be released on December 7th by Debemur Morti Productions.

We’ve already written about the album’s opening track, “Zwischen den Jahren”, which at four-and-a-half minutes is shortest of the album’s fives songs. The two that come last — “Ein Raunen aus vergess’ner Zeit” and “Winter zieht übers Land” — are long compositions, at ten-and-a-half and more than 11 minutes, respectively. To provide alluring glimpses of what they’re capable of doing to your head and heart, DMP has prepared a medley of the music from those two tracks that we’re sharing with you today. Continue reading »