Norwegian folk-rock innovators GÅTE have released "Strandvaskar," the second advance single from their upcoming sixth album, "Sigil," due September 25 via Season Of Mist.
Built around Hardanger fiddle and mystical electronics, the song draws on Norwegian coastal superstition: a body washed ashore must be given a proper burial, the belief holds, or the sea will return to reclaim what it lost. Rather than centering the person who finds the body, "Strandvaskar" names the drowned themselves, staging a quiet, unresolved exchange between the two — a voice with no sound that speaks, eyes that flicker and slowly fill with blue as the sea reclaims its own. The narrator is pulled toward the dead and pulls back, held less by horror than by fear, ultimately letting go rather than holding on.
Listen to "Strandvaskar" below.
"Sigil" is billed as GÅTE's most ambitious album yet, recounting ancient legend and folk narrative to ask what survives once illusion falls away. "Strandvaskar" follows lead single "Oskorsreia," released in July and inspired by the Nordic legend of the Wild Hunt, and April's "Sannsiger," which featured guest vocals from Maria Franz of Season Of Mist labelmates HEILUNG.
GÅTE will support the album with a ten-date fall run beginning October 23 in Trondheim and closing November 21 in Istanbul, Turkey — the band's first Turkish date — with new "Sigil" material sitting alongside fan favorites from across their catalog.
Pre-order: Sigil Pre-save: Spotify
"Sigil" is out September 25, 2026, via Season Of Mist.