Varg²™

With a thirst for provocation and a wicked command of the studio, Varg2TM has risen to infamy over the last decade as one of today’s most vital producers and recording artists.

First coming to prominence running Stockholm’s Northern Electronics label with Anthony Linell, Varg2TM’s early releases fused misanthropy with techno’s primal parts. Marked by a prolific work rate and a perceptive ear for collaboration, in 2016 his anarchic operaCons gave rise to the Nordic Flora Series. The series saw Varg2TM put trap and EDM into orbit with ambient and electro-acoustic experimentation to devastating effect. This fed directly into the creation of his label Cease 2 Exist, which was inaugurated in 2020. Giving space to explore frenetic hyperpop crossed with trap, and all the while nodding to Sweden’s EDM culture, Varg2TM has made perfect sense of his incomprehensible mix of collaborators and tastes. He’s at home working with Sweden’s rap vanguard—Yung Lean, Bladee, Thaiboy—just as he is working with everyone from Eartheater, Skrillex, and Rx Papi to Alessandro Cortini, CTM, and Blackhaine. With a singular vision, Varg2TM wears his lust for life and chaos on his sleeve.

Building on his first frenzied EP for YEAR0001—the recent Lonestar Pandemonium EP—as well as his manic curation with Cease 2 Exist, Varg2TM now presents the sixth and final instalment of the Nordic Flora Series. Entitled Nordic Flora Series Pt.6: Outlaw Music, the album distils everything that has led to this point. Like an austere vandal, Varg2TM has only increased the turbulence with Outlaw Music. Twisting cutting edge aesthetics with his taste for wry melancholy, his masterful productions feature a slew of guests. Thaiboy, Skrillex, and Ecco2K appear across the album’s brightest tracks, while darker yet delicate moments tap Rx Papi, Eartheater, and Matti Bye for input.

With Outlaw Music at the apex, Varg2TM’s Nordic Flora Series is bold and ambitious, but most of all it’s maniacally tender through all the anxiety. If it seems evasive, you probably can’t relate to it.