Review: Nortfalke - Kauntloft

Artist: Nortfalke

Album: Kauntloft

Label: Heidens Hart

Release date: May 2026

Any regular reader of this website will not be new to my love for Nortfalke, the mystical Dutch one-man project that's been releasing quality dungeon synth (or thereabouts) for more than a decade now. I simply love everything about it: the artistic approach, the use of near-extinct Dutch dialects for album and track titles, but most importantly, the willingness to experiment and go beyond the narrow confines of the dungeon synth genre, as Nortfalke himself explained in our recent interview. Therefore, you can imagine that I greeted the news of a new Nortfalke album with unbridled enthusiasm, but also an eagerness to see which sonic direction he has taken this time around.

Those who have listened to Nortfalke's recent releases such as Moonjeie and De widde juvver know that the artist has been putting more and more of his Berlin school influences into his sound. Well, on Kauntloft, he really let himself be completely overwhelmed with those, and I can freely say that this is the furthest the project has been from traditional dungeon synth, although the repetitive, hypnotic base of Nortfalke's nostalgia-tinged sound remains intact. In line with that approach, the artist has used no less than a dozen different analogue synthesizers in crafting this album, and took a significantly longer time than usual for mixing and mastering. Having heard this, I was expecting a big, grandiose and complex album, but that's not the case at all. Nortfalke went for a less-is-more approach this time around, focusing on honing his vision for each layer of the sound until he was perfectly satisfied, resulting in an album that is very approachable, easy to listen to and enjoy. Sublimated into six tracks with a running time of just 35 minutes, the album is deceptively straightforward, focusing on atmosphere more than compositional layering. Airy synth passages are interwoven with light rhythmic backgrounds that give the sound a sense of vastness and space, far from the usual claustrophobic dwellings typically associated with dungeon synth. It's only upon repeated listens that Kauntloft reveals some of its more intricate details that underpin the effort, which is particularly evident on the last and perhaps best track of the album (which Nortfalke also teased live at last year's edition of Blåsvart Aften), which is full of small details that really enhance the flow of what is otherwise a fairly repetitive track and elevate it into one of the best pieces of Nortfalke's career.

So, is Kauntloft in line with my expectations? Yes and no. No, because I didn't anticipate such a radical shift in Nortfalke's sound, and yes, because I knew that the musician behind it all is never content with sitting on his laurels and churning out more of the same, a trap that way too many dungeon artists have fallen into over the years. That said, it's unquestionably a terrific album in its own right and its approachability doesn't take away from the sheer quality of musicianship on display at all. It will not be to everyone's taste, certainly not that of genre purists, but for those who don't mind erring on the melodic side of things, it can only be an absolute delight.

Rating: 9/10