Review by Lumina on February 10, 2026.

If a young person says you have "aura", it means that you are cool. In Gen Z/Alpha slang, this particular word is usually positive, except for the times when somebody is suffering from "aura loss" — for example, when their shoe is untied. Seems strange to you? To me as well. A contemporary dictionary says that "aura" is "a feeling or particular quality that is very easy to notice and seems to surround a person or place." My question before listening to this album was: does "Aura", the second album by the Polish band Varnheim, have an aura that would make me embrace their music more, or, unfortunately, have they fallen into "aura debt" since 2019 and their self-titled debut?

Since the very start of the album, it is clear that Varnheim abandoned the slow-paced songs in order to push with aggression and brutality. The drums are more forceful and less monotonous than before. The songwriting changed a lot — and for the better. No more repetitiveness can be found. At times, melodies shine through the suffocating wall of sound; however, these are not earworms and don’t ruin songs with excessive melodicity. Let’s take my favorite track, "Aura IV", as an example. After the refrain is repeated, the melody kicks in. It is handled so well that it doesn’t ruin the climate of the song; it even amplifies the nihilism and desolation. But the best part is the guitar solos. Though not as great or complex as on their next album, they are still well-executed. In "Aura IV", the song builds tension and almost releases it when the solo is played — almost, because some brutality still lingers until the song ends.

The atmosphere is, as said, nihilistic and desolate throughout the whole album. The feeling of hopelessness is highlighted, especially thanks to the deep vocals, which cannot be compared to any I’ve heard in a while. I must admit that this performance by Aiden is one of the most powerful I have heard lately. Moreover, melodies help paint the feeling of desolation. This happens, for instance, in "Aura II", when the melody and guitar solo are played in a very well thought-out manner. They show only a glimpse of light in this album full of darkness. The sound doesn’t resemble any particular band, unlike the self-titled debut, where the clear inspiration from Mgła could be heard. Apart from the titling style, there’s almost nothing that resembles that Polish band. Varnheim plays a modern version of black metal that stands apart from bands drawing mainly from the second wave.

I read some interviews with Varnheim, and I am impressed by the fact that there are quadruple vocals on this album. These appear in "Aura IV", which is the best track in terms of vocal performance. Not only are these sung in Polish, but Aiden and guest vocalist Jakub "Kosa" Kossakowski also show a great variety of skills. Not only can growls be heard, as in the other tracks, but there are also screams and clean singing. My favorite part was the refrain, thanks to the latter — it was the most hopeless moment of that musical journey. Another thing that surprised me was the bass sound. It was heard very clearly throughout the whole album and brought a great amount of power when listening on speakers. As said before, the quality of guitars and drums has also evolved since their previous album.

Even though the lyrics haven’t been released publicly, it’s clear they take a nihilistic and hopeless approach, which is deeply reflected in the music. Track number four has Polish, very interesting lyrics. The refrain can be translated as: "I drink with my mouth the anger coursing through my veins / my suffering locked in my lungs." If you’re Polish, that’s very interesting material to analyze. The rest of the lyrics are in English, and because I wasn’t able to hear everything, I won’t try to interpret them.

Answering the question from the beginning: "Aura" is a great step forward that makes Varnheim excel in the Polish underground. The quality of the music has increased greatly, which makes "Aura" a highly enjoyable album. I give it 9, because "Aura IV" is the best song here, and the other songs (which are very good) remain in its shadow. Also, "Void", their next album, is slightly better in quality.

Rating: 9 out of 10