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Paganism has long been a part of Megan Jenkin’s 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 band Forlorn.
“I started going to rituals and ceremonies when I was about 13/14”, she explains. “My mother made me robes to wear, I had my own staff.” Taking cues from her spiritual roots, Forlorn’s debut album Aether doubles as an eight-track “conceptual ceremony.” 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 ‘aether’.
”Sometimes spirit doesn’t really get a mention, but it’s the one that encapsulates everything,” Megan explains “It’s this invisible, timeless force that’s everywhere and nowhere. It felt like the perfect way to sum up the record”.
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’s Love You To Death – before the band finally released their debut EP, Sæl, in February 2023. The EP showed an evolutionary leap from the rawer recordings they’d first put out, but still pales in comparison to the conceptually weighty Aether.
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’s clean vocals to her raging, raw screams that seethe through storms of visceral riffage and violent, Spiritbox-reminiscent melodies.
Aether begins with Mother Of Moon, one of three haunting interludes that serve to capture what Megan calls the “death cycle”, a time commonly tied to winter and its seasonal celebrations of Samhain (the Witch’s New Year) and Yule (the winter solstice). A hypnotic, drum-accompanied chant introduces the album with an “ambient offering” to Hecate, a deity revered and worshipped by pagans.
“During that time period the Earth withdraws inside herself, and we enter the dark months of hibernation and reflection,” Megan says. “Mother 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.”
More incantations arrive in Matrum Noctem, a disturbing nursery rhyme-esque interlude that translates to Mother’s 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.
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 ‘Midsommar metal’, a term derived from Ari Aster’s immensely popular 2019 film Midsommar. Of course, the most famous example of folk horror is 1973’s The Wicker Man.
Its unsettling finale, where the virginal Sergeant Howie is set alight inside a wicker monolith to appease a Pagan community’s deity for a bountiful harvest, finds its way into the fire-inspired Funereal Pyre, as well as the song’s accompanying flame-filled music video.
“A lot of things are reborn and cleansed through fire”, Megan says. “Fire also has divinatory powers. The concept we took from the film is of the human sacrifice being made in order for things to grow.”
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.
“How I create and craft music within the band is directly inspired by witchcraft and paganism,” she explains. “So everything that I make, my flower crowns, any other props I want to use in the music videos, that’s 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.”
On top of producing an “immersive and captivating experience”, Megan hopes that fans might even be moved to learn more about her beliefs. “It doesn’t matter if listeners aren’t necessarily spiritual or interested in paganism/witchcraft. But hopefully people can take something away from us, whether it’s 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.”
Ahead of Aether’s London release show, Megan hosted a witchcraft workshop to share her knowledge. “I 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,” she says. “Then I guided a group of people as we made spell bottles, which were Ostara (spring equinox) themed.
“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’d like to welcome into their lives over the next months.”
When asked what she would like to manifest with Forlorn, Megan considers it thoughtfully. “More abundance,” she muses. “I’ve got visions of us playing much bigger venues. I’d like us to tour with Rolo Tomassi, Spiritbox, and even work on something with Wardruna.”
Aether is out now via Church Road