Borknagar's founder, Øystein G. Brun, described the artwork for
Urd as "an earthly expression...You can almost smell and feel the texture of the old Norse wooden carvings". Among the different layers of the album title is its connection to
Norse mythology.
Urd, which is the name of a
norn that represents the past when deciding the fates of persons. This entity is taken by Brun as a metaphor for a modern scientific discovery. Brun speculated that Urd "is an ancient expression of what we today know as
DNA. And I have always been very fascinated by the fact that parts and bits of our DNA actually derive from the very beginning of time. All living creatures are somewhat connected to the very first organic cell. That is some of the story behind the album title". Elaborating upon the interconnectedness of organisms through time, Brun has alluded to the
deep ecology of
Arne Næss as an inspiration on
Urd. "I just love how he [Naess] talks about nature, almost like in a childish but yet a very profound way. He professes the idea that every creature is connected and equally independent for survival. Some sort of revolt against the Christian dogma that mankind is the ruler of the earth. So based on this, I was inspired to turn my head down to earth to ponder about the 'roots' of mankind". == Track listing ==