Danish indie rock band Virak return with the re-release of their debut album Threads, via Forward Backwards Recordings. Originally issued in 2008 on CD only, the album is now available for the first time on digital platforms and vinyl LP. The release stands as a posthumous one by frontman, guitarist and songwriter Martin Ejlertsen, who also founded Black Light White Light in 2009. With four studio albums, that band built a global following through tours across the UK and US and support from outlets like CLASH Magazine, Louder Than War and Artrocker, with airplay on BBC Radio 6 Music by Lauren Laverne and DR.DK. Virak, active between 2002 and 2009, featured Martin Ejlertsen on vocals, guitar and keys, Christian Kühne on bass and keys and Peter Dyring Olsen on drums. Inspired by Mogwai, Spiritualized, Low, Elbow and Sophia, the band combined instrumental post-rock, slowcore, progressive rock with vocals and seventies acid rock.
Threads features the lead single ‘Where It All Begins‘ as a gut-wrenching ode to the end of something that could have been. Off-kilter guitar motifs paired with the band’s hauntingly beautiful vocal performance make for a stand-out moment on the album that is sure to strike a chord with fans of Radiohead, The Strokes and The Smashing Pumpkins. The album was recorded and produced by the band in Copenhagen with guest musicians from Under Byen, Slaraffenland, Amber and a gospel choir. Mixing took place in London at Alchemy Studio by Kenny Jones of Sophia and Bauhaus/The Smiths, while the 2026 edition is newly mastered in the US by Grammy-nominated engineer JJ Golden of Black Pumas. The re-release also sees the digital debut of the band’s earlier EP But Not As We Know It from 2004, co-produced by Signe Høirup Wille-Jørgensen of Speaker Bite Me / Jomi Massag
Martin Ejlertsen had this to say: “I am very happy and proud… that our music is now being released in formats it has deserved. In this way, I leave behind my music, which can live on—for the joy of my loved ones and hopefully also others, when I am soon no longer in this world. Thank you for listening.“
Stream Threads:
Follow Virak:
Bandcamp – Facebook – Soundcloud – Spotify
