The 1st March sees three new releases from the Dark Essence Record label. “Monument” from Extreme Metallers COR SCORPII and “Til Alle Heimsens Endar” from Black-Folk Metallers GALAR, whilst SULPHUR’s “Thorns in Existence”, which first appeared in Norway in November of last year, gets its worldwide release.
COR SCORPII was formed in late 2004 by former WINDIR/ULCUS keyboard player Gaute Refsnes, who, following the tragic death of Terje "Valfar" Bakken, and the subsequent WINDIR farewell concert, felt that the time was right to focus some of his own musical ideas into a new band. COR SCORPII, as the band came to be called, plays music that blends melody with aggression, and the first demo, "Attergangar", was recorded in 2005 and was an immediate success. "Attergangar” has been re-mastered by ENSLAVED’s Herbrand Larsen at the Conclave and Earshot Studios in Bergen, and has been included in “Monument” as a bonus, making the entire album twelve tracks in total - twelve tracks that are played with skill and emotion. The first edition of “Monument” comes in a limited slip case format.
GALAR comprises a permanent two-man line up with M. Kristiansen on screams, guitars and bass and A. B. Lauritzen on clean vocals, bassoon and grand piano. For “Til Alle Heimsens Endar” they have called upon a set of contributors for that draws on notable artists from a variety of musical disciplines including Phobos (GRAVDAL, AETERNUS, MALSAIN) on drums, Ricardo Odriozola on first and second violins, Hans Gunnar Hagen on viola, Siri Hilmen on cello, Morten Nome on double bass, and Cecile Langlie on female vox. It is GALAR’s ability to mix blast beats and grim vocals, with haunting melodies played on a-typical instruments that enables the band to create an atmosphere with their music that is redolent of both traditional folk and the extremes of black metal. The first edition of “Til Alle Heimsens Endar” comes in a limited slip case format.
SULPHUR rose from the ashes of the nineties Black Metal outfit TAAKERIKET at the turn of the millennium, intent on following a path that lay between death and black metal, with a liberal sprinkling of progressive mindset. Comprising current and former members of bands such as GORGOROTH, AETERNUS, ENSLAVED and VULTURE INDUSTRIES, is undoubtedly a force to be reckoned with. The SULPHUR of today is fiercer and more challenging then ever before. The musical landscapes that the band is willing to explore are limitless and the resulting album, “Thorns In Existence”, is an album with touches of avant-garde that is willing to challenge, thrill and destroy the listener. Production by Bjørnar Erevik Nilsen at the Conclave & Earshot Studios (HELHEIM, TAAKE, THE BATALLION etc.) ensures that the album has the powerful sound the music deserves.
The above releases can all be bought from the Dark Essence Records Web Shop at http://karismarecords.no/catalog/
DARK ESSENCE RECORDS
Dark Essence contact: post@karismarecords.no
Dark Essence Records: www.darkessencerecords.no
Dark Essence on MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/darkessencerecords
Dark Essence on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/darkessencerecords
COR SCORPII
GALAR
MySpace: www.myspace.com/galarmetal
SULPHUR
MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/sulphur666
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/SULPHURBAND
