Borknagar founder Øystein G. Brun has checked in with the following update:

"Friday night, I drove the 800 km from the woods of Örebro in the midst of Sweden to the shores Bergen, in one intense drive. Through the endless woods of Sweden, wintry Oslo, over the stormy (!!) mountains of Hemsedal and finally waiting my way through a billion of tunnels here in west, as many of them were under construction / upgrade work. Quite an ordeal for an tired old fart, but I was indeed smiling all the way back home.

The new Borknagar album is finally done. I am so proud of what we have achieved musically this time around. Hard work always pays off, and this time we all pushed it to the extreme.

I want to share my sincere gratitude to everybody involved in this production so far. First and foremost this goes to my brothers in music Lars, Simen, Jostein and Bjørn. And not to forget my always supportive family making all this possible.

Moreover, I would like to thank Jens, Linus and Tony at Fascination Street Studio, Marius at Strand Studio and John Ryan from Cruachan. Thank you for being a part of this journey!

Now, onward!"

Borknagar recently announced that vocalist Andreas "Vintersorg" Hedlund has left the band. They issued the following statement:

"Due to personal reasons, Andreas 'Vintersorg' Hedlund has decided to step down as the lead vocalist of Borknagar. The decision is based on mutual understanding, respect and in a friendly manner with the rest of the band. Borknagar would like to express their sincere gratitude for the musical brotherhood we have shared throughout the years and wish Andreas the very best in his future endeavours. There is no drama to this situation, and our friendship will remain. No one should be too surprised if Vintersorg reappears as a guest vocalist on a future record.

As a natural consequence, I.C.S Vortex will take a step forward into the role as the band´s lead vocalist, and will, together with Lars Nedland, carry on Borknagar's legacy of vocal brilliance."

Founder / mastermind Øystein G. Brun comments:

"It is with a lot of respect, gratitude and good memories I see one of my brothers in music set sails for new shores. Times are changing, and we both saw this coming for a while. Even though we are splitting as partners in Borknagar, I am happy to say that we have decided to carry on our musical brotherhood in Cronian. A new album will be released whenever time allows for that."

Andreas "Vintersorg" Hedlund issued the following statement:

"Time has come to make some tough decisions and let reality set the rules. It is with both a light and heavy heart I leave Borknagar as the lead vocalist. The light part is that it´s done in an amicable way and that this is the right thing to do for me, in respect for the fans and Borknagar. The heavy part is that it’s hard to leave something this meaningful and beautiful. My situation after the accident makes it hard to tour, and my job situation complicates things further. So in a way I’m not 'leaving' as such, it’s more like I’m putting some oil into the Borknagar machinery so the band can keep their busy schedule, get out on the road and meet you guys. Borknagar will always have a special place in my heart and mind, and I hope that I can do some guest performances further down the road. The guys in the band are fantastic musicians and persons and I wish them the best of luck. However, Cronian is not dead and may shake its head before you know it."