Volcandra - Border World

Exploring Volcandra's World-Hopping Black Metal on "Border World" (Track by Track)


I was sent the Border World EP by Invisible Oranges probably because I just wrote an article on video games in dungeon synth [Editor’s Note: Guilty!]. It is nice to know they are grouping the nerds together in the library as we look at Magic cards. Volcandra is from Kentucky, and while the state has its equestrian splendor and rich pastoral landscapes, this melodic black metal band has crafted an entire world that is built from the mortar of fantasy.

Border World is Volcandra’s EP to commemorate a new life. After releasing their debut Into the Azure in the depths of 2020, Border World in 2022 feels like a new adventure with everything that has changed in our world. While the Metal Archives page lists darkness, oblivion, and death as major lyrical themes, Border World might be an outlier in its themes. One of Volcandra’s selling points for this release is just how heavily video games have inspired it. Below, vocalist Dave Palenske explains some of their favorite video games and how each of the songs is linked to moments in recent and classic titles. Metroid Prime, Half Life, and the collected works of Team Ico (Ico, Shadow of Colossus, The Last Guardian) make up the composition of lyrical themes and influences. While Volcandra’s black metal has not exactly brightened compared to their 2020 debut, this eagerness to share their influences is both charming and suited for an audience who enjoyed technical black metal while putting hundreds of hours into games.

Even without these lyrical anchors, the music for Border World is enough for a sale. With technical flourishes that are flown as flags, the band rides a horse of black metal while doing death-defying stunts. One some of the longer tracks like “Resonant Cascade” and “Colossi,” the band has the space to open up resulting in long guitar solos which feel like piloting space ships in cosmic wars. The final track “Guardian” rolls out these banners with both black metal prowess and a penchant for entertainment. Metal is not without its pageantry, and many thematic angles can work. I am glad for a time when a band can be themselves and talk about video game lore for an hour while also talking about skeleton warriors.

Dave Palenske (vocals): Not even trying to hide it, we’re a bunch of nerds. When I’m writing lyrics for the band, they’re usually based on what I’m nerding out about at the time. And lately it’s been video games. Border World was written over the course of the COVID-19 lockdown. It had been a week since we got back from our tour promoting our first album Into the Azure and next thing you know I’m temporarily furloughed from my job for about a month and a half. One of the first things I dive into to combat the boredom of quarantine was revisiting the GameCube classic Metroid Prime. I sunk hours into this masterpiece, and immediately fell in love with the story. The lyrics in the opening track ‘Tallon IV’ are inspired from the game. The intro to the song just screams “space age sci-fi” to me, so the vocals and subject matter needed to reflect that. ‘Prime’ was what I had on my mind during that time.

‘Resonance Cascade’, the second track on the EP is an aggressive song that feels like an uphill battle which kind of builds and builds into this imposing climax. A game that reflects this narrative is the original Half Life. I recently played the remake ‘Black Mesa’ and really got into the experience the player has as the game’s protagonist Gordon Freeman. The whole time, you’re desperately trying to make your way out of this catastrophic event, and then by the end of it you’re plunged into this alien world, or ‘Border World’ if you will. The song’s structure gives you a similar feeling, so I went all in on the concept for that one.

There are few games that have the same cinematic grandeur of Team Ico’s ‘Shadow of the Colossus’ and ‘The Last Guardian’. It is that level of storytelling and world building which inspired lyrics for the last two tracks on the EP. ‘Colossi’ tells the story of a warrior who is trying to resurrect a loved one by taking on a forbidden quest that corrupts them entirely in the end. The music and overall vibe of the song hold this feeling of dread, but not without a glimmer of hope. The final track ‘Guardian’ tells the tale of a boy who wakes up next to a formidable, yet benevolent beast in a mysterious place. The two of them must form a bond needed to escape the dangers bestowed upon them. The music in the song is very triumphant and emotional, which accompanies the lyrical concept to a tee. It was nice to end the EP on this high note with a song that, at its core, is about companionship.

Half of ‘Border World’ is inspired by science fiction, and the other half is full blown fantasy. So there’s kind of a split concept going on for this release. For our next album we’re picking one concept and committing to it from start to finish. But no matter what, listeners can always expect us to draw from larger than life places far from our own.

Border World released on June 24th via Prosthetic Records.