Sopor Aeternus and The Ensemble of Shadows

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Sopor Aeternus & the Ensemble of Shadows
Also known asSopor Aeternus, [1] Sopor
Origin Frankfurt, Hesse, Germany [2]
Genres Neoclassical dark wave, dark folk, neo-medieval, gothic rock
Years active1989present [1]
Labels Apocalyptic Vision [3] [4]
MembersAnna-Varney Cantodea [5]
Past membersHolger [3]
Website soporaeternus.de

Sopor Aeternus & the Ensemble of Shadows (Latin: sopor aeternus "eternal slumber"; [6] [7] also referred to or stylized as Sopor Aeternus or Sopor) [1] is a neoclassical dark wave musical project based in Frankfurt. [2]

Contents

Founding

The group was founded in 1989 by a non-binary [8] multidiciplinary artist who uses the pseudonym Anna-Varney Cantodea. [1] [9]

Discography

Demo tapes

The three demo tapes are often referred to as "Blut der schwarzen Rose" or "The Undead-Trilogy". [10] Only the first has been released.

Studio albums

EPs and remix albums ("sister albums")

Singles

Other releases

Related Research Articles

<i>Ich töte mich...</i> 1994 studio album by Sopor Aeternus and The Ensemble of Shadows

"...Ich töte mich jedesmal aufs Neue, doch ich bin unsterblich, und ich erstehe wieder auf; in einer Vision des Untergangs..." is the debut album by darkwave band Sopor Aeternus & the Ensemble of Shadows, and was released in 1994. The original pressing had no title, though the "...Ich töte mich..." line was printed in blackletter on the back cover; later editions identified the printed sentence as the official title. Originally released as a limited edition of 1,000, the album has been re-released at least three times.

<i>Todeswunsch</i> 1995 studio album by Sopor Aeternus & the Ensemble of Shadows

Todeswunsch – Sous le soleil de Saturne is the second album by darkwave band Sopor Aeternus & the Ensemble of Shadows and was released in 1995. Todeswunsch saw a fundamental change in sound, abandoning the heavily synthesized darkwave music for a sound akin to the Renaissance and neo-Medieval music. A limited pressing of 3,000 CDs was initially available, and the album has been re-released at least three times. An accompanying EP, Ehjeh Ascher Ehjeh, was released later that year.

<i>Ehjeh Ascher Ehjeh</i> 1995 EP by Sopor Aeternus & the Ensemble of Shadows

Ehjeh Ascher Ehjeh is the first EP by Sopor Aeternus & the Ensemble of Shadows, and was released in 1995 as a companion to the album Todeswunsch - Sous le soleil de Saturne. Only 3,000 copies were pressed. The title of the EP is the response God gave to Moses when He was asked for His name, as seen in the Bible The cover painting is a detail of Saint Jerome Writing by Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio.

<i>The Inexperienced Spiral Traveller</i> 1997 studio album by Sopor Aeternus & the Ensemble of Shadows

The inexperienced Spiral Traveller is the third album by darkwave band Sopor Aeternus & the Ensemble of Shadows, and was released in 1997. The inexperienced Spiral Traveller continued the Renaissance- and Baroque-inspired sound of "Todeswunsch - Sous le soleil de Saturne", but with tighter arrangements and the re-introduction of drum machines. A limited edition of 3,000 copies was initially available alongside the regular edition, and the album has been re-issued at least twice since.

<i>Voyager: The Jugglers of Jusa</i> 1997 remix album by Sopor Aeternus & the Ensemble of Shadows

Voyager: The Jugglers of Jusa is the first remix album by darkwave band Sopor Aeternus & the Ensemble of Shadows, and was released in 1997. It was released as a companion to The inexperienced Spiral Traveller , also released that year, and primarily features alternate versions of songs from that album. Only 3,000 copies of the album were pressed.

<i>Dead Lovers Sarabande (Face One)</i> 1999 studio album by Sopor Aeternus & the Ensemble of Shadows

Dead Lovers' Sarabande (Face One) is the fourth album by darkwave band Sopor Aeternus & the Ensemble of Shadows, and was released in 1999. It is the first concept album by the band, and the first of a two-album suite detailing the mourning of a lover who has recently passed. (Face One) was also the first Sopor Aeternus album to be released in multiple formats, including a double vinyl edition and an A5-sized boxed set edition; both were limited pressings, of 500 and 3,000 copies, respectively. It was also the first to be promoted with an accompanying video.

<i>Dead Lovers Sarabande (Face Two)</i> 1999 studio album by Sopor Aeternus & the Ensemble of Shadows

Dead Lovers' Sarabande is the fifth album by darkwave band Sopor Aeternus & the Ensemble of Shadows, and was released in 1999. It is the second of a two-album suite detailing the mourning of a lover who has recently passed. Like Face One, Face Two was also released in multiple formats, including a double vinyl edition and an A5-sized boxed set edition; both were limited pressings, of 500 and 3,000 copies, respectively.

<i>Songs from the Inverted Womb</i> 2000 studio album by Sopor Aeternus & the Ensemble of Shadows

Songs from the Inverted Womb is the sixth album of darkwave band Sopor Aeternus & the Ensemble of Shadows, released in 2000. The album is dedicated to the "memory and resurrection" of Little Seven, a boy who died "at the age of six". A double vinyl edition and a CD boxed set were also released in limited quantities of 666 and 3,000 copies, respectively.

<i>Es reiten die Toten so schnell</i> 2003 studio album by Sopor Aeternus & the Ensemble of Shadows

Es reiten die Toten so schnell is the seventh album by darkwave act Sopor Aeternus and the Ensemble of Shadows, and was released in 2003. A double vinyl edition and an A5-sized boxed set edition was released, in limited quantities of 666 and 1,999 copies, respectively. The double vinyl edition came with a poster, T-shirt, postcards, communion wafers and "authenticated" graveyard soil.

<i>Flowers in Formaldehyde</i> 2004 EP by Sopor Aeternus & the Ensemble of Shadows

Flowers in Formaldehyde is the second EP by darkwave band Sopor Aeternus & the Ensemble of Shadows, and was released in 2004 as a companion to the album La Chambre D'Echo - Where the Dead Birds sing. Only 2,000 CDs and 700 LPs were pressed.

<i>La Chambre dEcho</i> 2004 studio album by Sopor Aeternus & the Ensemble of Shadows

La Chambre d'Echo – Where the Dead Birds Sing is the eighth album by darkwave band Sopor Aeternus & the Ensemble of Shadows, and was released in 2004. La Chambre d'Echo saw the return of synthesizers and drum machines, while still focusing on chamber music-inspired darkwave music. John A. Rivers returned to produce the album alongside Anna-Varney Cantodea. An accompanying EP, Flowers in Formaldehyde, was released later that year. The album was introduced and promoted via a promotional video.

<i>Like a Corpse Standing in Desperation</i> 2005 box set by Sopor Aeternus & the Ensemble of Shadows

Like a Corpse Standing in Desperation is the title of a career-spanning rarities box set by darkwave band Sopor Aeternus & the Ensemble of Shadows that was released in 2005. The recordings span fifteen years of "original demos, rarities & documented failures." Re-issued for the first time are the out-of-print EP Ehjeh Ascher Ehjeh and remix album Voyager - The Jugglers of Jusa, along with the never before heard demo tape Es reiten die Toten so schnell... and the extensively bootlegged Flowers in Formaldehyde.

<i>Es reiten die Toten so schnell...</i> 1989 demo album by Sopor Aeternus & the Ensemble of Shadows

Es reiten die Toten so schnell... is the first demo tape by darkwave band Sopor Aeternus & the Ensemble of Shadows'. Es reiten... was issued in a hand-numbered limited edition of 50 copies in 1989. A further two demo tapes, Rufus and Till Time and Times Are Done, have not yet been released in any format. All three have been referred to as the "Undead-Trilogy".

<i>Les Fleurs du Mal</i> (Sopor Aeternus & the Ensemble of Shadows album) 2007 studio album by Sopor Aeternus & the Ensemble of Shadows

Les Fleurs du Mal – Die Blumen des Bösen is the ninth album by darkwave band Sopor Aeternus & the Ensemble of Shadows, and was released in 2007. Anna-Varney Cantodea has explained that the title is not a reference to Charles Baudelaire's 1857 collection of poetry of the same name, but that "it is related to Jean Genet's novel Notre Dame des Fleurs." A double vinyl edition and a CD boxed set were also released in limited quantities of 900 and 2,000 copies, respectively. The limited-edition pressings included a 40-page booklet of lyrics and illustrations, as well as a 112-page manga about the album.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trisol Music Group</span> Record label

The Trisol Music Group, GmbH, is a German business group and record label headquartered in Dieburg. Owning multiple sublabels, they specialize in producing musical works pertaining to darkwave, dark folk, gothic rock, deathrock, ethereal wave and other gothic genres of music. In general they are considered a major European label for works within the realm of Dark Alternative music.

<i>A Strange Thing to Say</i> 2010 EP by Sopor Aeternus & the Ensemble of Shadows

A Strange Thing to Say is the third EP by Sopor Aeternus & the Ensemble of Shadows and is the first part of the trilogy A Triptychon of GHOSTS , which includes album Have You Seen This Ghost? and EP Children of the Corn. This is the first Sopor release since 2003's Es reiten die Toten so Schnell to not be produced by John A. Rivers. Instead, Patrick Damiani of the band Rome has co-produced the record.

<i>Have You Seen This Ghost?</i> 2011 studio album by Sopor Aeternus and The Ensemble of Shadows

Have You Seen This Ghost? is the tenth official studio album from Sopor Aeternus and The Ensemble of Shadows and the second part of the trilogy A Triptychon of GHOSTS , which includes the EPs A Strange Thing to Say and Children of the Corn.

<i>Children of the Corn</i> (album) 2011 EP by Sopor Æternus & the Ensemble of Shadows

Children of the Corn is the fourth EP from Sopor Æternus & the Ensemble of Shadows and the third and final part of the trilogy A Triptychon of GHOSTS , following EP A Strange Thing to Say and album Have You Seen This Ghost?.

<i>Poetica (All Beauty Sleeps)</i> 2013 studio album by Sopor Æternus & the Ensemble of Shadows

Poetica (All Beauty Sleeps) is the eleventh album by Sopor Æternus & the Ensemble of Shadows. The album consists of musical adaptations of Poe's poems, some of them already made by Cantodea in previous albums: "Dreamland" is found on Todeswunsch under the title of "Die Bruderschaft des Schmerzes"; "Alone" on Voyager: The Jugglers of Jusa; "The Sleeper" on Dead Lovers' Sarabande (Face One); and "The Conqueror Worm" on Flowers in Formaldehyde. However, all the musical arrangements were redone in the new versions.

<i>The Spiral Sacrifice</i> 2018 studio album by Sopor Æternus & the Ensemble of Shadows

The Spiral Sacrifice is the 13th album by Sopor Æternus & the Ensemble of Shadows. The album was released on February 8, 2018 on four different formats: on compact disc format with 128-page hardcover book ; on 3x12" black vinyl with an additional booklet ; on two tape versions wax-sealed, signed and hand-packaged by Anna Varney herself; and on a limited Supporter's Box edition including the compact disc version format, 3x12" pink vinyl, an extra 7" vinyl with two chamber music-like dark ambient mixes, a fold-out poster, a hand-numbered certificate of authenticity and a T-shirt. The Supporter's Box was initially intended to be limited to 500 copies, although Anna has since stated on her official Facebook page that only 485 were actually produced.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "SOPOR AETERNUS (official) | Listen and Stream Free Music, Albums, New Releases, Photos, Videos". Myspace.com. Retrieved 2016-08-01.
  2. 1 2 "Sopor Aeternus Official Italian Fan Club". Archived from the original on 2007-09-11. Retrieved 2007-08-20.
  3. 1 2 "SOPOR AETERNUS & The Ensemble Of Shadows". Soporaeternus.de. Retrieved 2016-08-01.
  4. "Apocalyptic Vision - CDs and Vinyl". Discogs.com. 2014-09-19. Retrieved 2016-08-01.
  5. "SOPOR AETERNUS & The Ensemble Of Shadows". 2010-06-12. Archived from the original on 2010-06-12. Retrieved 2016-08-01.
  6. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2008-05-10. Retrieved 2007-12-16.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  7. "tiscalinet.de". Home.tiscalinet.de. Archived from the original on 2007-12-11. Retrieved 2016-08-01.
  8. Elferen, Isabella van; Weinstock, Jeffrey Andrew (2015). Goth Music: From Sound to Subculture. New York: Routledge. p. 44. ISBN   9781317962977. Born male and never operated, Cantodea rejects fixed gender and regards herself as both/neither male and/nor female.
  9. "SOPOR AETERNUS & The Ensemble Of Shadows". Soporaeternus.de. Retrieved 2016-08-01.
  10. "Sopor Aeternus & the Ensemble of Shadows Russian Webpage - Music". Archived from the original on 2007-08-19. Retrieved 2007-09-07.
  11. "Various - Jekura - Deep The Eternal Forest (CD)". Discogs.com. Retrieved 2016-08-01.