Këkht Aräkh, one of the most exciting figures in Black metal today, has announced a new album today. Morning Star is his first album in four years, after 2021's Pale Swordsman. The album is out March 27th via Sacred Bones Records.

Along with the album announcement, the artist also dropped "Three Winters Away", the album's first single. Listen and watch the video below.

"Three Winters Away" was written by Aräkh, whose real name is Dmitry Marchenko and also goes by Crying Orc, in 2024. The Ukranian artist recorded all the instruments by himself in Spring 2025, except for the drums, which were handled by the Swedish artist who goes by Spira Me.

Lyrically, the song reflects on the changes Marchenko has experienced since the release of Pale Swordsman in 2021. "The meaning stays very much open. It doesn't reveal whether those changes were for better or for worse… leaving space for listeners to interpret the story in their own way", he says.

The artist also states that Morning Star arrives at a moment of more emotional maturity for him, both as a person and as an artist. If Pale Swordsman was all about fusing aggressive Black metal moments with textured sound passages and romantic lyrics, the new album "explores a different emotional palette — rawer, more honest, and more personal".

Morning Star includes features from Swedish electronic producer Varg²™, rapper Bladee, and experimental project VS-55.

Morning Star is out March 27th. Pre-order here. Tracklist below.

1. Wänderer
2. Castle
3. Lament
4. Genom sorgen (ft. VS–55)
5. Angest
6. Mörker över mörker
7. Three winters away
8. Drömsång
9. Raven king
10. Vigil
11. Eternal martyr (ft. Bladee)
12. Trollsång (ft. Spöke)
13. Land av evig natt l
14. Land av evig natt ll
15. Gates
16. Morning star
17. Outro (ft. Varg2™)