THIS GIFT IS A CURSE Reign from the Shadows on New Single “Ascension”
Blackened and Sludgy Swedes Bend Boundaries on ‘Heir’
Though they bonded together after a chance encounter, for the past 16 years, This Gift Is A Curse have pushed the confines of underground metal to violent extremes. On their upcoming fourth album, the Swedish band extend their all-encompassing reign with a cold, hard fist. Heir claims metal’s crown of thorns behind an unruly arsenal of hardcore and sludge-encrusted black metal.
Today, This Gift Is A Curse are releasing the second single off Heir. “Ascension” serves as the album’s harrowing finisher, summoning the darkness that dwells within us all.
Heir comes out March 7, 2025 on Season of Mist.
Pre-order & Pre-save https://orcd.co/thisgiftisacurseheir
“Ascension” is a post-apocalyptic liturgy that delves into the arcane spectrum of the human soul. This Gift Is A Curse unleash a torrent of blackened riffs, cascading over relentless blast beats that echo the primordial chaos from which all darkness is spawned. Jonas A. Holmberg vocals tear through the soul with a visceral intensity, swallowing you inside a ritualistic trance. Livmødr’s Laura Morgan’s haunting chants weave through the aural onslaught, providing an otherworldly contrast that beckons the spirit to rise amidst the ashes and transcend into the realm of shadows.
Country: Sweden (SE)
Genre: Hardcore & Sludge-Encrusted Black Metal
FFO: Cursed, Oathbreaker, Trap Them, All Pigs Must Die
There’s an abyssal depth reaching far below – where light is devoured by shadow, and silence is torn asunder by cacophony. Down below, there thrives a beast most foul and majestic. This beast, known among the living as THIS GIFT IS A CURSE, has clawed its way through the bedrock – leaving a trail of desolation and awe in its wake. As 2025 dawns bleak and uncertain, the beast prepares to unleash its latest apocalypse, Heir.
Since its infernal birth, This Gift Is A Curse has been a harbinger of the end times for the conventional and the mundane. A cataclysmic fusion of black metal ferocity, sludge-laden doom, and a haunting ambience straight from the depths of the nether, has torn apart stages and souls alike. Now, with Heir, they stand poised to cast the world into a new age of darkness.
This Gift Is A Curse were founded in Stockholm by a fateful chance meeting of vocalist Jonas A. Holmberg and drummer Johan Nordlund in late summer 2008. The duo soon recruited guitarist Patrik Andersson and Lars Gunnarsson on bass. In March 2010 the Swedish four-piece entered the legendary Sunlight Studios (ENTOMBED, KATATONIA, TIAMAT, DISMEMBER and many more) and recorded their self-titled debut EP with the aid of producer Tomas Skogsberg. ‘This Gift Is A Curse’ (2010) was well received in the underground and led to the band being invited to perform many shows in their homeland and Europe. During the second half of 2011, This Gift Is A Curse recorded their first full-length ‘I, Gvilt Bearer’ at a secret location north of Stockholm. Their producer Magbjork (MELEEH, CHILDREN OF FALL) moved his studio to this specific location to allow the band to unlimited record possibilities. Released in 2012, the album caused a buzz that reached beyond the underground and quickly sold out its first pressings. More touring followed during the next two years. In 2014, This Gift Is A Curse teamed up with Magbjork once again to record ‘All Hail The Swinelord’ in an abandoned house close to Stockholm.
After the release in 2015, a few Scandinavian and European tours followed before the band decided it was time to go back into the void to write new music. This process started with the recruitment of a second guitarist in order to push the sonic experience even further. David Deravian, hailing from steel town Eskilstuna, joined the cursed ranks of This Gift Is A Curse in 2016, adding fresh creative blood and new musical input to the sonic pot. As the new material took form, the band not only booked studio time with the great W. Blackmon of the Overlook Studios in Gävle (SE), but also kept their roots by recoding parts of the album at Norra Begravningsplatsen in Stockholm. Including producer MAGBJORK to the whole process once again to get the right ‘grit and grievance’ into the sound. Afterwards, mastering was done by none other than Magnus Lindberg (CULT OF LUNA, TRIBULATION, ALCEST etc).
This Gift Is A Curse defies the transient trends of music, instead choosing to carve its path with the bones of the fallen. Their forthcoming album, ‘HEIR,’ is a relentless pursuit of the extreme, a mosaic of human suffering and the dark beauty that lies within. As the album prepares to sear its mark upon the world, one thing is clear: There will be no heirs to the throne of darkness that This Gift Is A Curse occupies. The crown is theirs alone, forged in the fires of creation and destruction, a beacon for those who dare to walk the shadows.
Line-up
Jonas A. Holmberg – Vocals
Patrik Andersson – Guitars, Vocals
David Deravian – Guitars
Lars Gunnarsson – Bass
Christian Augustin – Drums
Recording Studio
The Overlook Studio, Gävle, Sweden
Production Credits
Produced, Engineered & Mixed by William Blackmon at The Overlook Studio.
Mastered by Magnus Lindberg at Redmount Studios, Stockholm, Sweden.
Guitars recorded at Laard studios and House of Inge Studio. Engineered by Daniel Noring and TGIAC.
Bass recorded at Cold Barn with the help of Daniel Noring.
Vocals recorded at Cold Barn by TGIAC.
Guest Musicians
Laura Morgan (of Livmødr) – Vocals on Kingdom (Track 1), Old Space (Track 9) & Ascension (Track 10).
Cover Art
Jonas A. Holmberg / House of No Light .317 (Instagram)
Pre-order & Pre-save
https://orcd.co/thisgiftisacurseheir
Follow This Gift Is A Curse
Bandcamp: http://thisgiftisacurse.bandcamp.com/
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/thisgiftisacurse
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thisgiftisacurse/
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/7MoipbqoshfYNfckhzRtYC
Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/artist/this-gift-is-a-curse/405256386
Deezer: https://www.deezer.com/artist/1005843
TIDAL: https://tidal.com/browse/artist/3813169
Available Formats
Digital Download
CD Digipak
2×12″ Vinyl Gatefold – Black
2×12″ Coloured Vinyl Gatefold – Gold w/ Silver Splatters2x12″ Coloured Vinyl Gatefold – Red w/ Black Splatters
