The Long Road North

The Long Road North is the eighth studio album by Swedish post-metal band Cult of Luna (their ninth if including Mariner (2016), their collaborative album with Julie Christmas). The album was released on 11 February 2022 through Metal Blade Records.[2] It peaked at No. 14 on the German albums chart.

The Long Road North
Studio album by
Cult of Luna
Released11 February 2022 (2022-02-11)
Recorded2021
StudioSecond Home Studio and Sandås Silence
GenreSludge metal, progressive metal, post-metal[1]
Length69:00
LabelMetal Blade
ProducerCult of Luna
Cult of Luna chronology
A Dawn to Fear
(2019)		 The Long Road North
(2022)

Promotion

To promote the album, on 1 December 2021, Cult of Luna released the song "Cold Burn" prior to the release of The Long Road North, with a music video created using Unreal Engine, in collaboration with North Kingdom and Arctic Game Lab.[3] The band also released the song "Into the Night" on 13 January 2022.[4] In support of The Long Road North, Cult of Luna have embarked on a 2022 tour through Europe in February and March, and will continue the tour in October.[2] One of the concerts in the tour included their 'Beyond The Redshift' festival on 12 March 2022, co-headlined with bands such as Alcest, Brutus, and Svalbard.[5]

Reception

The album was generally well received critically, earning two positive reviews in Louder Sound.[6][7] At Metal Injection, Ben G. labeled The Long Road North "a superb album that is more mature, nuanced and consistent than their 2019 masterpiece, A Dawn to Fear, but also maybe a bit less transcendental."[8] Ellis Heasley of Distorted Sound explained in a review, "Even by their supremely lofty standards, The Long Road North is yet another triumph for the band. Nearly 70 minutes feels like no time at all, with the album working best when given your undivided attention. Once it’s over, you'll no doubt be quick to take this 'long road' all over again."[9]

Accolades
Publication List Rank
Metal Hammer The Best Metal Albums Of 2022 So Far
–[10]

Track listing

All tracks written by Cult of Luna, except where noted:

The Long Road North track listing
No.TitleLength
1."Cold Burn"9:41
2."The Silver Arc"7:37
3."Beyond (I)"3:07
4."An Offering to the Wild"12:43
5."Into the Night"6:58
6."Full Moon"3:06
7."The Long Road North"10:02
8."Blood Upon Stone"11:39
9."Beyond (II)" (co-written by Colin Stetson)4:07
Total length:69:00
Japanese edition bonus disc: The Raging River (Disc 2)[11]
No.TitleLength
1."Three Bridges"8:45
2."What I Leave Behind"5:57
3."Inside of a Dream" (featuring Mark Lanegan)3:20
4."I Remember"8:08
5."Wave After Wave"12:22
Total length:38:41

Personnel

Band members

  • Thomas Hedlund – drums and percussion
  • Andreas Johansson – bass guitar
  • Fredrik Kihlberg – guitar and vocals
  • Magnus Lindberg – guitar, drums and engineering
  • Johannes Persson – guitar and vocals
  • Kristian Karlsson – keyboards, vocals and engineering

Additional personnel

  • Mariam Wallentin – vocals on 'Beyond (I)'
  • Christian Mazzalai (Phoenix) – guitar on 'Blood Upon Stone'
  • Laurent Brancowitz (Phoenix) – guitar on 'Blood Upon Stone'
  • Colin Stetson – bass saxophones, tubax, flutes and lyricon on 'Beyond (II)' and 'An Offering to the Wild'
  • Erik Olofsson – artwork and graphic design
  • Henrik Oja – additional engineering
  • Daniel Berglund – additional engineering
  • Ted Jensen – mastering

Charts
Chart performance for The Long Road North
Chart (2022) Peak
position
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[12] 93
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[13] 186
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[14] 16
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[15] 14
Scottish Albums (OCC)[16] 52
UK Independent Albums (OCC)[17] 17
UK Rock & Metal Albums (OCC)[18] 5

References
  1. "Album review: Cult Of Luna – The Long Road North". Kerrang!. 9 February 2022. Retrieved 19 February 2022.
  2. Kennelty, Greg (5 November 2021). "CULT OF LUNA Announces New Album The Long Road North". Metal Injection. Retrieved 5 November 2021.
  3. Kennelty, Greg (1 December 2021). "CULT OF LUNA Drops Churning New Song "Cold Burn"". Metal Injection. Retrieved 19 February 2022.
  4. Kennelty, Greg (13 January 2022). "CULT OF LUNA Drops Gently Slow-Burning New Single "Into The Night"". Metal Injection. Retrieved 19 February 2022.
  5. Selzer, Jonathan (15 November 2021). "Cult Of Luna's boundary-breaking Beyond The Redshift festival returns to London in 2022". Metal Hammer. Louder Sound. Retrieved 19 February 2022.
  6. Deller, Alex (10 February 2022). "Cult Of Luna's The Long Road North: "cerebral and exhilaratingly heavy"". Metal Hammer. Louder Sound. Retrieved 19 February 2022.
  7. Dalton, Stephen (12 February 2022). "Cult Of Luna's clobbering drums and shuddering riffs thrill on The Long Road North". Metal Hammer. Louder Sound. Retrieved 19 February 2022.
  8. Kennelty, Greg (10 February 2022). "Album Review: CULT OF LUNA The Long Road North". Metal Injection. Retrieved 19 February 2022.
  9. "ALBUM REVIEW: The Long Road North – Cult Of Luna". Distorted Sound. 8 February 2022. Retrieved 19 February 2022.
  10. "The Best Metal Albums Of 2022 So Far". Metal Hammer. 7 May 2022. Retrieved 9 May 2022.
  11. "Cult of Luna / ザ・ロング・ロード・ノース". Tower Records.com. Retrieved 29 January 2023.
  12. "Ultratop.be – Cult of Luna – The Long Road North" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 20 February 2022.
  13. "Ultratop.be – Cult of Luna – The Long Road North" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 20 February 2022.
  14. "Cult of Luna: Long Road North" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved 20 February 2022.
  15. "Offiziellecharts.de – Cult of Luna – The Long Road North" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 20 February 2022.
  16. "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 20 February 2022.
  17. "Official Independent Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 20 February 2022.
  18. "Official Rock & Metal Albums Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 20 February 2022.
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