![]() | This article may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. The specific problem is: While not a requirement per se, references need to link, ideally, to an online repository so that an interested reader make check them with ease.(August 2021) |
Ulysses is a German progressive rock band from the early 1990s with an international line-up. They were part of a colourful scene of new bands, labels and magazines that emerged in Germany at that time. [1] Musically, they were less influenced by the German "Krautrock" phenomenon but initially oriented strongly towards the second generation of British progressive rock bands [1] (E.g. Marillion, IQ, Pendragon). Hegarty & Halliwell would have classified them as part of third wave of progressive rock bands, who can also be described as a second generation of neo-progressive bands. [2] So one might not wonder that most reviewers heard similarities to Marillion, Galahad and Änglagård in their music which is characterised by a strong emphasis on melodies and the integration of folkloristic elements, abrupt changes of moods (mostly melancholic and sombre) and partly complex and ever changing arrangements often moving towards a climax.
Ulysses was established in 1990 in Wiesbaden by bassist Ender Kilic, guitarist Mirko Rudnik and keyboarder Thomas Diehl. [3] Their name refers both to the ancient Greek hero Οδυσσέας and to James Joyce's best-known work Ulysses. [4]
Joined by Dane drummer Jasper Stannow and Australian singer Gerard P. Hynes, Ulysses recorded their first studio demos in December 1991. [5] [6] After Stannow left the band, Ulysses found their permanent drummer in Robert Zoom. With this line-up they recorded their debut album "Neronia" produced by renowned British musicians Clive Nolan (Arena, Pendragon, Shadowland) and Karl Groom (Threshold) in 1993. [7] Guest vocalist on two tracks was Tracy Hitchings (Quasar, Strangers On A Train, Landmarq). [7]
Ulysses' "Neronia" CD was released on Michael Schmitz's and Thomas Waber's renowned Inside Out Music label. A cassette edition was licensed to Metal Mind Production/Massacre Records.
With their new singer, Marc Jost, Ulysses promoted the Neronia album throughout Europe, [8] playing shows and festivals in Poland, [9] Germany and the Netherlands, and opening for Pendragon on their "The Window of Life" European tour in 1994. [10]
In 1995 Ulysses played in the final of Germany's oldest and best-known rock festival for young talent, the 1822-Rock Festival. [11]
Due to a looming naming rights dispute, Ulysses changed their band name to Neronia in 1995 [12] and after many line-up changes released their second album "Nerotica" in 2004.
At the end of 2011, the Ulysses album Neronia was voted into Germany's Prog Top 40 by the German rock magazine Eclipsed. [13]
In 2021, Ulysses reunited with most of the original line-up named Ulysses Resurrection Project.
A remastered and expanded 2CD set of the band's debut album was released in October 2023 on the Polish label GAD Records/chickadisc to mark the 30th anniversary of the first release. [14]