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Velvet Darkness They Fear | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 18 August 1996 | |||
Recorded | Commusication Studio, Beindersheim, Germany, July 1996 | |||
Genre | Gothic metal, death-doom, symphonic metal | |||
Length | 52:00 | |||
Language | English, Early Modern English, German | |||
Label | Massacre | |||
Producer | Pete "Pee Wee" Coleman | |||
Theatre of Tragedy chronology | ||||
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Singles from Velvet Darkness They Fear | ||||
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Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
Allmusic | [1] |
Chronicles of Chaos | [2] |
Velvet Darkness They Fear is the second studio album by the Norwegian gothic metal band Theatre of Tragedy. It was released in 1996 by Massacre Records. The album was issued in the US by Century Media Records in 1997.
In 2021, it was elected by Metal Hammer as the 14th best symphonic metal album of all time. [3]
Velvet Darkness They Fear continued Theatre of Tragedy's particular brand of gothic metal, first heard in their first album, Theatre of Tragedy , defined by alternating and occasionally overlapping male death growls and sung female vocals. This style, which was copied later by many metal bands, is generally known as 'Beauty and the Beast'. [4] [5]
Velvet Darkness They Fear also continued the use of Raymond Rohonyi's Early Modern English lyrics. "Der Tanz der Schatten", which is written in German, is the exception. The songs themselves rarely have a clear story, but death, undeath, demons and similar supernatural elements are all prominent. The lyrics to the songs are referred to within the sleeve notes as 'plays', 'poems' and one 'soliloquy', depending on the parts the singers play.
The fifth track, "And When He Falleth", includes a section of Jane Asher and Vincent Price's dialogue from the film The Masque of the Red Death .
The album sold over 125,000 copies.[ citation needed ]
All lyrics are written by Raymond Rohonyi, except "Der Tanz der Schatten" by Rohonyi, Gerhard Magin and Tilo Wolff; all music is composed by Theatre of Tragedy, except where indicated
No. | Title | Music | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Velvet Darkness They Fear" | 1:05 | |
2. | "Fair and 'Guiling Copesmate Death" | 7:05 | |
3. | "Bring Forth Ye Shadow" | Theatre of Tragedy and Pål Bjåstad | 6:49 |
4. | "Seraphic Deviltry" | 5:09 | |
5. | "And When He Falleth" | Theatre of Tragedy and Pål Bjåstad | 7:09 |
6. | "Der Tanz der Schatten" | Theatre of Tragedy and Pål Bjåstad | 5:27 |
7. | "Black as the Devil Painteth" | 5:27 | |
8. | "On Whom the Moon Doth Shine" | 6:15 | |
9. | "The Masquerader and Phoenix" | 7:35 | |
Total length: | 52:00 |
Lacrimosa is a Swiss gothic metal band led by German musician Tilo Wolff, who is also the main composer, and Finn Anne Nurmi. They are currently based in Switzerland, but originally from Germany. Originally counted among the bands of the Neue Deutsche Todeskunst genre, Lacrimosa are most commonly associated with the gothic metal genre.
Theatre of Tragedy was a Norwegian band from Stavanger, active between 1993 and 2010. They are best known for their earlier albums, which influenced the gothic metal genre.
Symphonic metal is a cross-generic style designation for the symphonic subsets of heavy metal music subgenres. It is used to denote any metal band that makes use of symphonic or orchestral elements. The style features the heavy drums and guitars of metal with different elements of orchestral classical music, such as symphonic instruments, choirs and sometimes a full orchestra, or just keyboard orchestration.
Liv Kristine Espenæs is a Norwegian singer who has performed and composed songs mostly for various subgenres of heavy metal music. She started her career in the music industry as a vocalist for the gothic metal band Theatre of Tragedy, and is the former lead vocalist for the symphonic metal band Leaves' Eyes. She is known for her work in close association with her then-husband and leader of the German band Atrocity, Alexander Krull. Currently she is a singer of a German band Midnattsol alongside her younger sister Carmen Elise Espenæs. She also released a number of solo albums in various genres.
Gothic metal is a fusion genre combining the aggression of heavy metal with the dark atmospheres of gothic rock. The music of gothic metal is diverse with bands known to adopt the gothic approach to different styles of heavy metal music. The genre originated during the early 1990s in the United Kingdom originally as an outgrowth of death-doom, a fusion of death metal and doom metal. Lyrics are generally dark and introspective with inspiration from gothic fiction as well as personal experiences.
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Musique is the fourth studio album by the Norwegian metal band Theatre of Tragedy, released in 2000. The title on the album's cover,, is the pronunciation of the English word "music" transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet.
Assembly is the fifth studio album by the Norwegian metal band Theatre of Tragedy, released in 2002. It continued the group's move from gothic to a more electronic and pop style of music. This style was described as similar to "Siouxsie and the Banshees jamming with Ace of Base".
Theatre of Tragedy is the first studio album by the Norwegian gothic metal band Theatre of Tragedy. The album was issued in the US by Century Media Records in 1998.
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Hein Frode Hansen is a Norwegian heavy metal drummer. He was the original vocalist of the power metal band Serpent, formed in 1989. In 1990 he started playing drums in the death metal band Phobia. Both bands broke up in 1991. From 1993-2010 he co-founded and played in Theatre of Tragedy, and with them released seven studio albums, two live albums and several studio EP's. Hansen has started a new project with Kristian Sigland, called The Black Locust Project.
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Closure: Live is a 2001 album by the Norwegian gothic metal band Theatre of Tragedy. Recorded live at the Metal festival in Katowice 2000, the CD has ten audio tracks and, on special editions, two multimedia video tracks.
"Der Tanz der Schatten" is a 1996 single by Theatre of Tragedy. The title translates to "The Dance of the Shadows."
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Forever Is the World is the seventh and final studio album by the Norwegian gothic metal band Theatre of Tragedy. It was released on 18 September 2009, on AFM Records. The album was produced by the Zeromancer singer Alexander Møklebust and mastered by Bjørn Engelmann.
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