Emperor is a Norwegian black metal band formed in 1991, regarded as highly influential by critics and emerging black metal bands. The group split up in 2001, but reunited from 2005 to 2007 for a few festival dates and brief US tours, and again reunited in 2013 to 2014. Emperor reformed for the third time in 2016. The group was founded by Ihsahn (guitar/vocal) and Samoth.
Samoth is a Norwegian guitarist and multi-instrumentalist in the country's black metal scene. He is well known for his distinct guitar work and drumming in the band Emperor, as well as his formation of the death metal band Zyklon. In very early Emperor releases, he was called Samot, and with the formation of Zyklon he became known as Zamoth. Samoth was the owner of the record label Nocturnal Art Productions and had a close relationship with Candlelight Records.
Zyklon was a Norwegian blackened death metal band formed in 1998 by Samoth and Trym of Emperor, along with members of Myrkskog. Their style has been described as modern death metal with black and industrial undertones. After more than a two-year hiatus, the band officially split up in January 2010.
Shadows Fall is an American metal band from Boston, Massachusetts, formed in 1996. Although Shadows Fall has experienced several line-up changes, for most of its recording career, Shadows Fall has been composed of Jon Donais, Matt Bachand, Paul Romanko (bass), Brian Fair, and Jason Bittner (drums).
Charles Lee Benante is an American musician, best known as the drummer for thrash metal band Anthrax and crossover thrash band Stormtroopers of Death. Known as one of the pioneers of double bass drumming and credited for popularizing the blast beat technique, he is Anthrax's main composer and has released eleven studio albums with the band. Benante joined the reunited Pantera in 2022, replacing original drummer Vinnie Paul, who died in 2018.
Bård Guldvik "Faust" Eithun is a Norwegian musician, best known as the drummer of black metal band Emperor and the main lyricist of blackened death metal band Zyklon. A prominent member of the early Norwegian black metal scene, Eithun was sentenced to 14 years in prison for murder and church arson in 1994. He was released in 2003 and has since continued performing as a drummer for Emperor, Djevel, Blood Tsunami, Aborym and Scum. Eithun won the 2021 Norwegian Spellemann Award in the Metal category with Djevel.
Nathan Jonas "Joey" Jordison was an American musician. He was the original drummer and co-founder of the heavy metal band Slipknot, in which he was designated #1, and the guitarist for the horror punk supergroup Murderdolls.
Kjetil-Vidar Haraldstad is a Norwegian drummer in the black metal bands Satyricon and 1349. He was born in Øyer, Oppland.
Scum is a hardcore punk/black metal supergroup formed in 2002 with members from Amen, Emperor, Zyklon, and Turbonegro. All members are Norwegian except for American vocalist Casey Chaos. According to the band, their idea is to play "black metal with a real punk rock attitude".
Hordanes Land is the debut EP by Norwegian extreme metal band Enslaved. It was released in May 1993, through Candlelight Records, and was also released as a split album a few weeks later with Emperor's self-titled EP. It was a key release in the development of Viking metal.
Frost is the second studio album by Norwegian extreme metal band Enslaved. It was released in 1994, through Osmose Productions.
Candlelight Records is a British record label based in London, founded by former Extreme Noise Terror bass guitarist Lee Barrett in 1993. The record label originally specialized in black metal, but quickly expanded to various other forms of heavy metal, extreme metal and hard rock, including death metal and melodic death metal, thrash metal, symphonic metal, metalcore, gothic rock, post-rock and post-metal. Some of the company's flagship bands include Emperor, 1349, Blut Aus Nord, Ihsahn, Opeth, Christian Death, Orange Goblin, Burning The Oppressor, Winterfylleth, Zyklon, Abigail Williams, Insomnium, Havok, Obituary, Nachtmystium and Limbonic Art.
Dååth is an American death metal band from Atlanta. Their music incorporates styles such as death metal, industrial metal, and some traces of gypsy jazz.
Asgeir Mickelson is a Norwegian musician, artist, photographer and music reviewer. Although primarily known as a drummer, he is also a skilled guitarist and bassist.
Kjetil Tvedte Grutle, better known as Grutle Kjellson, is a Norwegian musician, best known as the bassist and vocalist of the Norwegian extreme metal band Enslaved. Kjellson and guitarist Ivar Bjørnson are the founding and only constant members of the band, as well as the main songwriters. He has released sixteen studio albums with Enslaved and won five Norwegian Spellemann Awards with the band.
Abigail Williams is an American black metal band, originally from Phoenix, Arizona, but now based in Olympia, Washington. Since their formation in 2004, the group has suffered near-constant changes to their line-up. The band even disbanded in 2007 for a short time before reforming and writing their debut full-length album. Shortly after an eight-week tour in support of their debut full-length album In the Shadow of a Thousand Suns (2008), vocalist Ken Sorceron would become the only original member remaining.
In the Shadow of a Thousand Suns is the debut album by American black metal band Abigail Williams. It was released on October 28, 2008 on Candlelight Records. A vast majority of the album was written and composed by lead vocalist Ken Sorceron, who played guitar on all the tracks, including bass and also co-produced the record.
Arve Isdal, also known as Ice Dale, is a Norwegian musician and producer, best known as lead guitarist for the extreme metal band Enslaved and the hard rock band Audrey Horne. He owns and runs Conclave & Earshot Studio in Bergen together with former-Enslaved band member Herbrand Larsen. In addition to working as a musician and producer, Isdal also teaches music production at Noroff.
In the Absence of Light is the second album by black metal band Abigail Williams. The album was released in North America on September 28, 2010. The album moves away from the symphonic black metal sound and keyboard usage featured on In the Shadow of a Thousand Suns to a more standard black metal sound.
Mike Heller is an American drummer known as a member of the industrial metal group Fear Factory, the technical death metal band Malignancy, the British heavy metal band Raven, and rock band The Lucid alongside bassist David Ellefson, guitarist Drew Fortier, and vocalist Vinnie Dombroski (Sponge). Heller also formed the band System Divide and is a session drummer with credits in many genres.
