Danheim

Olsen was born in Copenhagen in 1985 and produced mostly in the electronic genre until 2016, when a strong interest in Norse mythology led him start combining that with his music.[2] His stage name approximately means Danish Home, taken from the Old Norse language word 'heim', meaning home.[5]

Since 2016, Danheim has released eight records on his own independent label.[6] His style has been described by reviewers as 'Brian Eno doing the soundtrack for Game of Thrones'[3] or 'inspired folk music, with dark undertones'.[7] Lyrically, his music deals with such tales from Germanic mythology such as Hrungnir's fight with Thor, the story of Fimbulwinter and much more.[7]

In his 2019 release Hringrás, Danheim recorded the last three minutes of a track using only parts of dead plants and animals, as well as some real human bones.[8]

In 2019, Danheim also contributed music to the soundtrack of three episodes from the second half of the sixth season of the History Channel series Vikings.[9] One of the actors from the show, Georgia Hirst, enjoyed Danheim's contributions to the score so much that she released a social media video praising his music.[10]

As of July 2023, his YouTube channel had 555,000 subscribers and received more than 220 million video views.[11]

In March 2020 Danheim released his third full-length album of 11 tracks, Skapanir.[12] He decided to release the album earlier than planned, to help entertain his fans under lock-down or in isolation due to the 2020 Coronavirus/COVID-19 Pandemic.[13] Reviewers praised the album's 'visceral and hypnotic' composition, and noted the varied instrumentation that produced a 'multidimensional Viking soundbath'.[14] Teemu Esko of Kaos Magazine called Skapanir 'versatile and touching, while rich and immersive'.[15]

In early 2023, Danheim created a community called Valknuden, which could help users share and learn information about Viking culture and mythology.

• Wardruna
• Heilung
• Neofolk
• Nytt Land
• SKÁLD