By Dig Dirkler
Emerging from the shadows with both intent and atmosphere, Fyrdsman returns with “The Forger,” a gripping first glimpse into the forthcoming album The Free Man (due May 1). Rooted in black metal yet unafraid to wander through textured, emotive terrain, the track is less about rigid structure and more about movement—guided by tone, storytelling, and raw feeling.
The Forger opens with a strong sense of atmosphere before the black-metal force kicks in. Did the track begin as a mood piece, or as a riff-driven idea?
Tim Shaw – You’ll have to forgive me as it was quite some time ago now since I wrote it, due to delays for various reasons. But if I recall, I think the clean intro was the first thing I came up with for that track, then I built on that. I like how you can use that kind of sparse intro to ignite something more ‘explosive’.
The Free Man is set in post-1066 England, a moment of cultural and political upheaval. What made that period the right backdrop for this story?
It was loosely inspired by Paul Kingsnorth’s novel “The Wake”, James Wilde’s “Hereward” series, and the heroic legend on which the latter is based. They focus on the resistance aspect. It interests me because it was the last time England was invaded successfully, resulting in a more rigid class divide, among other things. The resistance was ultimately stamped out, but this archetypal notion of the ‘Saxon rebel’ endured, at least for some. From around the 19th Century, Robin Hood became more romanticised in that way. The reality was obviously a lot darker, and I play a ‘dark’ style of metal, so I leaned more into the mood of The Wake, rather than any cheesy swashbuckling tales of derring-do.
Fyrdsman balances wide, reflective passages with sudden bursts of aggression. When writing, do you think in terms of dynamics first, or melody?
More the latter. I tend to write around the chord progression as that’s where you really deliver the mood, I think, but building suitable dynamics around those chord progressions is a rewarding process. On a slight tangent, song structure is an equally important way of making an impact. When I think of my favourite songs and why I love them, often it’s because of the way they use repetition, change, variation and so on. That can be one of the hardest things to get right.
The record’s protagonist is driven by visions and apparitions pushing him toward revenge. Are those meant as supernatural forces, or reflections of a fractured mind?
On “The Forger”, for example, it’s the apparition of Wayland the Smith, of English and broader Germanic legend, whose story I crudely summarised on “Wayland” from my previous album. This time, his purpose is spurring on the protagonist, which was inspired by his appearances in The Wake. Whether a genuine force or just a hallucination, the point is it’s giving him a sense of purpose and putting the proverbial wind in his sails.
The Forger’ runs over six minutes but never drifts. How do you keep long compositions focused while still letting them breathe?
It’s hard to articulate, but I’d say it’s an interplay between dynamics, atmosphere and what I mentioned about song structure, which is not just to affect the listener but also to keep their attention. One of the main qualities of a song is the ebb and flow of it, how it builds up anticipation, lifts you up, lets you down, or takes you on a journey. I sometimes try looking at songcraft like writing a story, or painting a picture. If you think about a film, it has a certain narrative and maybe emotional ‘arc’ to it, and if you nail that with music, you can remain engaging regardless of song length. I find it quite satisfying to continually learn to improve in that area, too.
Fyrdsman is largely a solo project, yet drummer Ian Finley plays a key role here. What did his playing add to the material that surprised you?
I was already familiar with Ian’s ‘chops’ from his Wodensthrone days. I was impressed by the articulate sense of urgency in his playing style, which is exactly what I was after. What’s nice about other people performing your material is the human flair they deliver to the parts, those little flourishes they add when they’re ‘in the moment’ (not to mention turning drum parts written by a non-drummer into something physically possible!) Ian added just the right amount, especially on the cymbals, and those flourishes can add a nice form of musical ‘punctuation’ in certain places. More generally speaking, I was just happy to have the organic touch of an actual human drummer, giving the songs a proper backbone.
Listeners know you from Alestorm, which sits in a very different corner of metal. Did starting Fyrdsman feel like opening a completely different creative channel?
It was the opposite way round. I started Fyrdsman before joining Alestorm and had to put it on hold for that brief period. They had to find someone at short notice, so because I knew them personally and had no other commitments, I offered, and nobody better was available. I was actually rather resistant to shedding my po-faced, introverted black metal mindset at the time. Me and Chris were big Bal-Sagoth fans, so I fantasized that we’d start leaning more in that direction (in an accessible way) than the jolly, ‘fiddly-dee’, oom-pah side that they’re better known for. Obviously it didn’t work out that way, so when I got booted, I just carried on with Fyrdsman where I left off.
Some moments in “The Forger” lean toward a romantic, melodic side of black metal reminiscent of bands like Les Discrets. How important is melody to the Fyrdsman sound?
Very, though I don’t sit down and say “I’m going to make melodic black metal”, it’s more that I just let my creative urges pour forth (within the conceptual framework), and if it happens to be melodic, so be it. That said, Fyrdsman does deal with a range of themes and emotions, which necessitates it at times, not to mention the historic/folkloric themes might sometimes inspire a ‘folkish’ or ‘bardic’ sense of melody, though there’s maybe more of that on the last album. Also, music is art, and art is arguably about the combination of light and shade in order to express something. If I just painted a canvas solid black, I wouldn’t be saying anything meaningful.
Fyrdsman draws heavily on English history, landscape, and myth. Do you write with a particular place or imagery in mind while composing?
I want to be all romantic and say yes, but focusing on actual subject matter aids my composing process better, if there’s lyrics. That said, there’s a subconscious element to songwriting. There’s loads of music I feel I can ‘place’, music that in my mind evokes the composer’s native landscape, but in a way that feels like a product of the composer’s environment rather than something they deliberately added. I love that, even if it turns out that it’s some kind of bias on my part. It’s to be expected in classical and folk music, but I hear it in a lot of black metal too, even ignoring the language. I hear distinct Finnish and Ukrainian black metal sounds, for example. Then again, classical and folk sensibilities definitely seeped into some forms of black metal. But if anyone perceives Fyrdsman as sounding “English”, it’s that subconscious thing.
With The Free Man telling a continuous narrative, should listeners approach the album as a full journey rather than a set of individual tracks?
I did structure the order of the album with that ‘arc’ in mind, but I also like to think each song stands in its own right.
Fyrdsman moves from fragile clean textures to full black-metal intensity. What guitars, amps, and recording setup shaped the sound of The Free Man, and what does your current rig look like?
Electric guitars and bass were tracked at home. I used my Schecter KM 6 for the heavy parts and modded Fender HSS Strat for the cleans. Everything was re amped at Priory Studios, with main rhythm guitars going through a Marshall JVM410H and a Peavey 6505, and the clean tones split between the Marshall and a Vox AC50CPH. The cab was an Engl 4×12 with Vintage 30s. Bass was my Yamaha BB434, a blend of a clean DI into a Darkglass Microtubes 900 and Ampeg 4×10, plus two tones I dialled from the Neural DSP Darkglass plugin. Acoustic parts were a Takamine GD90CE. My current rig is similar: the same Marshall head with a 1960A cab, a few pedals, a handful of other guitars, and the usual modest home recording setup with interface, DAW and assorted plugins, sound banks etc.
Since the album deals with rebellion and revenge in medieval England: if you had to fight in a medieval battle with only one piece of musical gear, what would you bring and how would it help you survive the war?
On the actual battlefield? I guess the most obvious answer is some kind of brass instrument as they were used for signalling, but my embouchure is terrible, so I’d be screwed!
“The Forger” follows a narrative steeped in vision and vengeance. Its protagonist encounters a ghostly figure—an apparition that pushes him toward a darker path. That shift is mirrored in the sound itself: beginning with sparse, crystalline guitar work before rising into surging intensity, collapsing into reflective passages, and ultimately detonating into full black metal chaos. It’s a journey that feels deliberate, never indulgent.
At its core, Fyrdsman is the solo endeavor of Tim Shaw, who blends rich atmosphere with intricate riffwork. Drawing from English history, folklore, and romanticism, the project carries a distinct identity—one that feels both grounded and mythic. The Free Man will also see a limited CD release, with just 200 hand-numbered digipaks available, reinforcing its crafted, almost artisanal appeal.
“The Forger” is more than just a preview—it’s a statement of intent. Fyrdsman isn’t chasing trends or adhering to genre constraints; it’s carving its own path through atmosphere, history, and emotion. If this opening chapter is any indication, The Free Man promises a listening experience that is as immersive as it is unrelenting.
In the end, Fyrdsman reminds us that black metal, at its most powerful, isn’t just about extremity—it’s about expression. And in “The Forger,” that expression burns bright.
Bandcamp: https://fyrdsman.bandcamp.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Fyrdsman
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Categories: Fyrdsman, Interviews
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