Insania | |
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 Insania in 2022. L–R: Klíma, Poly, Tudy, BlackDrum | |
| Background information | |
| Also known as |
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| Origin | Brno, Czech Republic |
| Genres | |
| Years active | 1987–present |
| Labels | Smile Music Records |
| Members |
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| Past members |
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| Website | insania |
Insania (stylized as 1N54N14 and also known as the Aristocracy of New Outlaws) is a Czech crossover/post-hardcore band from Brno. As of 2025, they have released ten studio albums, three EPs, and one live record.
Insania was founded in 1987 in Brno, in the former Czechoslovakia (present-day Czech Republic), by guitarist/singer Petr "Poly" Pálenský (Root) and drummers Martin "Malcev" Maleček and Martin "Vrba" Vrbík (Zeměžluč). [1] After several concerts, their activity was stopped by the secret state police in 1988. [1] [2] The band continued to rehearse under the name Skimmed, and after the 1989 Velvet Revolution, in 1990, they released their debut studio album, New Insanity, under the combined title of Insania and Skimmed.
In 1992, the group resumed its activity under the name Insania, and after issuing a demo titled R.U.Dead? the same year and the EP Vertigo a year later, in 1994, they issued their first studio album as Insania, titled Crossfade.
In 1996, Insania released their second album, God Is Insane ... Join Him!, which was followed by Virtu-ritual in 1998. Subsequent to a US tour in 1999, [3] the band published the album Recycling & Live in Seattle in 2000, [4] which includes five rerecorded tracks from Crossfade, nine live takes, two new songs, recorded in Seattle, and three remixes. [5] Around this time, they began calling themselves INSANIA & the Aristocracy of New Outlaws, so as to be distinguished from the Swedish power metal band Insania. [5] In addition, the following year, a 16-track remix album by various DJs, titled Tamto remixuje Insanii, came out. [5] Also in 2001, the group released the studio album Trans-Mystic Anarchy, which was followed by OUT in 2004. [2]
In 2007, Insania issued the album Rock 'n' Freud, which won an Anděl award in the Hard & Heavy category. [6] Until OUT, the band's lyrics had been a mix of English and Czech; all subsequent releases have been sung entirely in Czech. [7] [1] The band's next record was Kult hyeny (2010), and in 2013, they issued Zapal dům poraž strom..., which won two Anděl awards, in the categories Hard & Heavy and Punk & Hard Core. [6]
The band came out with the album Na počátku byl spam in 2017, and their latest, GRRRotesky (2022), [8] won Rock Album of the Year at the Anděl Awards. [6] [9] [10] [7] In March 2025, they released a music video for a new song, titled "Cukr a Bitch", from their upcoming, yet untitled album. [11]
On 1 April 2019, the band's frontman, Petr "Poly" Pálenský, published a book called Kacířův kancionál ("the heretic's hymnbook"), which combines poetry, lyrics inspired by the work of Insania, social commentary, and graphic elements. [12] [13] It includes motifs from religion, philosophy, and pop culture, and features historical and allegorical figures, such as Friedrich Nietzsche, Umberto Eco, God, the Devil, as well as coded references to the work of Jaroslav Foglar. The interactive publication includes hidden elements only accessible via a proprietary mobile app. [13]
Current
Past
Studio albums
EPs
Other albums