{"id":145668,"date":"2025-09-15T19:35:15","date_gmt":"2025-09-15T19:35:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/145668\/"},"modified":"2025-09-15T19:35:15","modified_gmt":"2025-09-15T19:35:15","slug":"i-started-going-to-rituals-when-i-was-13-my-mother-made-me-robes-and-i-had-my-own-staff-midsommar-metal-is-officially-a-thing-say-hello-to-forlorn","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/145668\/","title":{"rendered":"“I started going to rituals when I was 13. My mother made me robes and I had my own staff.” Midsommar metal is officially a thing: say hello to Forlorn"},"content":{"rendered":"

Paganism has long been a part of Megan Jenkin\u2019s life. Raised under the influence of her druidic mother, Megan is now a practicing witch and she honours her nature-based spirituality through metal as the frontwoman of folk horror metalcore<\/a> band Forlorn.<\/p>\n

\u201cI started going to rituals and ceremonies when I was about 13\/14\u201d, she explains. \u201cMy mother made me robes to wear, I had my own staff.\u201d Taking cues from her spiritual roots, Forlorn\u2019s debut album Aether doubles as an eight-track \u201cconceptual ceremony.\u201d Commonly, when engaging in spell-work or ritual, magical practitioners may call on the elements, invoking the energetic properties of earth, air, fire, water and sometimes spirit, also known as \u2018aether\u2019.<\/p>\n

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\u201dSometimes spirit doesn\u2019t really get a mention, but it\u2019s the one that encapsulates everything,\u201d Megan explains \u201cIt\u2019s this invisible, timeless force that\u2019s everywhere and nowhere. It felt like the perfect way to sum up the record\u201d.<\/p>\n

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Formed in 2019, Forlorn released the double-single Erased \/ Emotionless in February 2020, showcasing their unique blend of metalcore ferocity and stark, soulful post-metal. More singles followed – including a stunning cover of Type O Negative\u2019s Love You To Death – before the band finally released their debut EP, S\u00e6l, in February 2023. The EP showed an evolutionary leap from the rawer recordings they\u2019d first put out, but still pales in comparison to the conceptually weighty Aether.<\/p>\n

Five tracks on the record embody each of the elements, their transformative yet often destructive properties channelled through a juxtaposing mix, from the angelic sweetness of Megan\u2019s clean vocals to her raging, raw screams that seethe through storms of visceral riffage and violent, Spiritbox<\/a>-reminiscent melodies.<\/p>\n

Aether begins with Mother Of Moon, one of three haunting interludes that serve to capture what Megan calls the \u201cdeath cycle\u201d, a time commonly tied to winter and its seasonal celebrations of Samhain (the Witch\u2019s New Year) and Yule (the winter solstice). A hypnotic, drum-accompanied chant introduces the album with an \u201cambient offering\u201d to Hecate, a deity revered and worshipped by pagans.<\/p>\n

\u201cDuring that time period the Earth withdraws inside herself, and we enter the dark months of hibernation and reflection,\u201d Megan says. \u201cMother Of Moon is essentially us opening the circle, but asking her, as goddess and mother of witches, to cleanse us in preparation for the journey ahead.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Forlorn – Funeral Pyre [Official Video] – YouTube
\n\"Forlorn<\/p>\n

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More incantations arrive in Matrum Noctem, a disturbing nursery rhyme-esque interlude that translates to Mother\u2019s Night from Latin and refers to an ancient celebration held on December 20, the eve of the winter solstice, within which time people would honour and celebrate their female ancestors.<\/p>\n

As well as witchcraft and pagan tradition, Aether is deeply inspired by the literature, movies and aesthetics of folk horror. Forlorn are even sometimes categorised as \u2018Midsommar metal\u2019, a term derived from Ari Aster\u2019s immensely popular 2019 film Midsommar. Of course, the most famous example of folk horror is 1973\u2019s The Wicker Man.<\/p>\n

Its unsettling finale, where the virginal Sergeant Howie is set alight inside a wicker monolith to appease a Pagan community\u2019s deity for a bountiful harvest, finds its way into the fire-inspired Funereal Pyre, as well as the song\u2019s accompanying flame-filled music video<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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\u201cA lot of things are reborn and cleansed through fire\u201d, Megan says. \u201cFire also has divinatory powers. The concept we took from the film is of the human sacrifice being made in order for things to grow.\u201d<\/p>\n

Though the album might be thematically heavy, Megan is adamant that Forlorn not be seen as a gimmick, but instead a band conceived from their authentic beliefs and interests. For Megan, her spirituality and kinship for nature remains at the forefront of what she does. When not performing, she runs a dry flower business and is part of a witch coven.<\/p>\n

\u201cHow I create and craft music within the band is directly inspired by witchcraft and paganism,\u201d she explains. \u201cSo everything that I make, my flower crowns, any other props I want to use in the music videos, that\u2019s all crafted upon my altar, which is also my drying table for my business. Everything is massively connected for me, and a lot of what I learn at my Coven inspires the band.\u201d<\/p>\n

On top of producing an \u201cimmersive and captivating experience\u201d, Megan hopes that fans might even be moved to learn more about her beliefs. \u201cIt doesn\u2019t matter if listeners aren\u2019t necessarily spiritual or interested in paganism\/witchcraft. But hopefully people can take something away from us, whether it\u2019s to create something for themselves, or to pick up a book and learn more about British folklore and some of the amazing places that we have here.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ahead of Aether\u2019s London release show, Megan hosted a witchcraft workshop to share her knowledge. \u201cI started the session with a smoke cleanse, using a pheasant wing, which my mum was given when she was initiated into her druidic grove at Stonehenge,\u201d she says. \u201cThen I guided a group of people as we made spell bottles, which were Ostara (spring equinox) themed.<\/p>\n

“I brought herbs associated with that time of year, so everything was focused on rebirth and renewal. People could then take the bottles away as a memento, and as a chance for them to personally manifest what they\u2019d like to welcome into their lives over the next months.\u201d<\/p>\n

When asked what she would like to manifest with Forlorn, Megan considers it thoughtfully. \u201cMore abundance,\u201d she muses. \u201cI\u2019ve got visions of us playing much bigger venues. I\u2019d like us to tour with Rolo Tomassi, Spiritbox, and even work on something with Wardruna<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n

Aether is out now via Church Road<\/p>\n

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