Dimmu Borgir is a Norwegian symphonic black metal band from Jessheim, formed in 1993. The name is derived from Dimmuborgir, a volcanic formation in Iceland, the name of which means "dark cities" or "dark castles/fortresses" in Icelandic, Faroese and Old Norse. The band has been through numerous lineup changes over the years; vocalist Shagrath and rhythm guitarist Silenoz are the only original members who still remain, with lead guitarist Galder being a longstanding member.
Troll is a Norwegian symphonic black metal band.
The Kovenant is a Norwegian industrial metal band from Hamar. The band originally formed as a symphonic black metal act known as Covenant in 1993, but in 1999 were forced to change their name to The Kovenant due to a dispute with a Swedish electronic band of the same name. The band's name change also marked a change in sound/style as well, as the band from there on began to focus more on an aggrotech/industrial metal sound heavily influenced by Europe's EBM scene. Despite their style change, The Kovenant did however later reissue their early albums under The Kovenant name.
Spiritual Black Dimensions is the fourth studio album by Norwegian symphonic black metal band Dimmu Borgir. It was released in 1999 by Nuclear Blast Records. A deluxe edition was released in 2004 with bonus material. There is also a digipak edition of this album which contains no bonus tracks. The digipak has reflective/holographic cover art. This release featured keyboardist Mustis and the clean vocals of ICS Vortex, as well as the departure of long-time drummer Tjodalv, guitarist Astennu, and bassist Nagash.
In Times Before the Light is the debut album by Norwegian black metal band Covenant, released in 1997 through Mordgrimm.
Nexus Polaris is the second studio album by the Norwegian metal band Covenant, and was released in 1998 through Nuclear Blast.
Enthrone Darkness Triumphant is the third studio album by Norwegian symphonic black metal band Dimmu Borgir, released on 30 May 1997 through Nuclear Blast. It was the band's first release through Nuclear Blast. This is the last release to feature keyboardist Stian Aarstad and the first with bassist Nagash.
Manes is a band from Trondheim, Norway, formed in 1993. They started out as a two-piece band composed of Sargatanas and Cernunnus. They have been signed to Candlelight Records, Hammerheart Records and the Italian experimental label Code666. The band's earlier works, up to and including Under Ein Blodraud Maane (1999), were somewhat atypical Norwegian black metal and were highly lauded by fans of the genre. However, as of Vilosophe (2003) and How the World Came to an End (2007) the band completely changed its sound to a hybrid of jazz, trip hop, electronica and metal with clean sung vocals and many progressive overtones. In spite of being highly acclaimed by critics this subsequent change of direction alienated most of their original fan base.
Witchcraft is a Swedish doom metal band founded in 2000.
Chrome Division is a Norwegian rock band formed in 2004. The current lineup consists of founding member Shagrath on rhythm guitar, along with Eddie Guz as the vocalist, Mr Damage on lead guitar and Tony White on drums. The band has released five albums through Nuclear Blast: Doomsday Rock 'n Roll in 2006, Booze, Broads and Beelzebub in 2008, 3rd Round Knockout in 2011, Infernal Rock Eternal in 2014, and One Last Ride in 2015. The band announced that their fifth album would be their last.
Vile is an American death metal band, formed in 1996 in Concord, California by guitarist-producer Colin E. Davis and singer Juan Urteaga, recruiting the rest of the band from the ranks of disbanded groups such as Lords of Chaos, Entropy, Sporadic Psychosis and Thanatopsis. Vile toured the United States and Europe several times since their inception in 1996 including with Cannibal Corpse in 2004. Their most recent tour was of Japan in December 2013.
Nocturnal Breed is a Norwegian thrash metal band, formed in Oslo in 1996 by singer/bassist Kenneth Svartalv and guitarist Sven Atle Kopperud.
Lord Kaos is an Australian black metal band that formed in Sydney in 1994. For several years the group was the most prominent act of its style in the country with one founding member going on to record and perform with several Norwegian black metal bands including Dimmu Borgir. While Lord Kaos only released one album, the group was a considerable influence on the local heavy metal music scene as not only arguably the first but one of the few bands to record and perform Norwegian-style symphonic black metal.
Hammerheart Records is a Dutch independent record label specializing in death metal, black metal, doom metal and folk metal bands from around the world. The label was founded in 1995 and is currently located in Valkenburg aan de Geul. It is incorporated in the Netherlands as Hammerheart Holdings B.V. In 2010, the label changed its name back to Hammerheart Records again and started signing new bands.
Mirrored Hate Painting is the second studio album by the Norwegian black metal band Carpe Tenebrum. It was recorded in winter 1998 at The Abyss Studio and released in 1999 through Karmageddon Media. Stylistically the album is similar to Dimmu Borgir'sSpiritual Black Dimensions, albeit heavier and less symphonic. The album has an arguably obscure atmosphere because of the atypical cover artwork, the poetic lyrics and the bizarrely edited speech samples between some of the songs. The band again used a drum machine although Nagash is listed as the drummer.
Astennu is the professional name of Australian heavy metal musician Jamie Stinson. His name is derived from a creature in Egyptian mythology.
Universal is the fourth studio album from Norwegian black metal band Troll.
The Last Predators is the third studio album from Norwegian black metal band Troll.
Stian André Hinderson, also known under the stage names Nagash and Lex Icon, is a Norwegian metal musician. He plays guitar, bass, drums, keyboards and does vocals. He is primarily known for his work with the black metal bands Dimmu Borgir and The Kovenant.
