Darkwoods My Betrothed
Encyclopedia
Darkwoods My Betrothed are a black metal
band from Kitee
, Finland
.
Formed in 1992 as Virgin Cunt, they set out to be the "most blasphemous black metal band in Europe", in a rather tongue-in-cheek sense. After recording a couple demos under this name, the band started to take themselves a lot more seriously and changed their name to Darkwoods My Betrothed. They recorded the demo Dark Aureolis Gathering in 1994, not too different from the band's roots in extreme black metal, but it started to show serious maturity in the song-writing and delivery; not only a traditional black metal shriek, the singers also did a wail-type of scream.
In 1995, Hammerheart Productions released Heirs of the Northstar, their first full-length album, which was a turning for the group. The band started to experiment with a slower-paced and more melodic viking metal
sound, and usage of "drunken Viking" style clean vocals mixed with the traditional black metal screams. The lyrics were also quite different from those in the demo days; rather than dark and Satanic rantings, bassist/lyricist Teemu started a powerful fascination with Odinism and the Gods of Valhalla, and anger towards Christianity.
1996 saw the release of Autumn Roars Thunder, this time under the Solistitium label. Though retaining the same anti-Christian and Odinistic rhetoric, the music itself moved away from the melodic viking approach and entered back into a faster, more black metal-oriented direction.
In 1998, the band returned with Witch-Hunts, a conceptual album which eschewed much of the melodic stylings of the previous two albums; the Viking metal sound was replaced with black metal. Due to numerous delays by the record label, it was released roughly one year after it was originally planned.
Black metal
Black metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. Common traits include fast tempos, shrieked vocals, highly distorted guitars played with tremolo picking, blast beat drumming, raw recording, and unconventional song structure....
band from Kitee
Kitee
Kitee is a town and a municipality of Finland.It is located in the province of Eastern Finland and is part of the North Karelia region. The municipality has a population of and covers an area of of which is water...
, Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
.
Formed in 1992 as Virgin Cunt, they set out to be the "most blasphemous black metal band in Europe", in a rather tongue-in-cheek sense. After recording a couple demos under this name, the band started to take themselves a lot more seriously and changed their name to Darkwoods My Betrothed. They recorded the demo Dark Aureolis Gathering in 1994, not too different from the band's roots in extreme black metal, but it started to show serious maturity in the song-writing and delivery; not only a traditional black metal shriek, the singers also did a wail-type of scream.
In 1995, Hammerheart Productions released Heirs of the Northstar, their first full-length album, which was a turning for the group. The band started to experiment with a slower-paced and more melodic viking metal
Viking metal
Viking metal is a subgenre of heavy metal music characterized by its galloping pace, keyboard-rich anthemic sound, bleakness and dramatic emphasis on lyrical themes of Norse mythology, Norse paganism, and the Viking Age...
sound, and usage of "drunken Viking" style clean vocals mixed with the traditional black metal screams. The lyrics were also quite different from those in the demo days; rather than dark and Satanic rantings, bassist/lyricist Teemu started a powerful fascination with Odinism and the Gods of Valhalla, and anger towards Christianity.
1996 saw the release of Autumn Roars Thunder, this time under the Solistitium label. Though retaining the same anti-Christian and Odinistic rhetoric, the music itself moved away from the melodic viking approach and entered back into a faster, more black metal-oriented direction.
In 1998, the band returned with Witch-Hunts, a conceptual album which eschewed much of the melodic stylings of the previous two albums; the Viking metal sound was replaced with black metal. Due to numerous delays by the record label, it was released roughly one year after it was originally planned.
Albums
- Heirs of the Northstar (1995)
- Autumn Roars Thunder (1996)
- Witch-Hunts (1998)
- Dark Aureoles Gathering (Compilation) (2000)
Band members
- Spellgoth - Vocals (BaptismBaptismIn Christianity, baptism is for the majority the rite of admission , almost invariably with the use of water, into the Christian Church generally and also membership of a particular church tradition...
, Black Death Ritual, Slave's Mask, Trollheim's Grott, Turmion KätilötTurmion KätilötTurmion Kätilöt is a Finnish industrial metal band founded in 2003 by MC Raaka Pee and DJ Vastapallo, who until the latter's departure, were the only studio lineup...
, Prevalent Resistance) - Julma aka Emperor Nattasett aka Pasi - Bass, Backing Vocals (BarathrumBarathrumBarathrum is a Finnish black doom band. They originate from Kuopio but have since re-located to Helsinki. The first letters of their full-length albums spell "HEIL SOVA" , which completes their original eight-album plan. However, there have been rumours about a new record ever since the Anno Aspera...
, Furthest Shore, Nattvindens GråtNattvindens GråtNattvindens Gråt was a Finnish band, mainly known for several of their members who have become famous in other bands, Tuomas Holopainen, Tapio Wilska and Sami Vänskä...
, Hellboozer Union) - Icelord - Guitars (WRTX)
- Larha - Drums (Black Death Ritual, DeathchainDeathchainDeathchain is a metal band from Kuopio, Finland, which incorporates elements of death metal and thrash metal. The band is currently signed to Dynamic Arts Records and toured Europe with Candlemass and Destruction in late 2005....
, Trollheim's Grott, Forgotten Horror) - Magician - Keyboards (WRTX)
Former band members
- Hexenmeister (Teemu) - Bass
- Erno Vuorinen - Guitar
- Ante Mortem - Guitar
- Hallgrim (Jouni) - Guitar
Trivia
- Tuomas HolopainenTuomas HolopainenTuomas Lauri Johannes Holopainen is a Finnish composer known best for symphonic metal music. He has also studied jazz and classical styles, but prefers to be influenced by harmonic film music....
of NightwishNightwishNightwish is a Finnish symphonic metal band from Kitee, Finland. Formed in 1996 by songwriter and keyboardist Tuomas Holopainen, guitarist Emppu Vuorinen, and former vocalist Tarja Turunen, Nightwish's current line-up has five members, although Tarja has been replaced by Anette Olzon and the...
was a frequent session keyboard player for the band, playing synth on all their full-length albums and, according to the band, he would continue to play with them if they need him. He also composed the music for a few songs, such as the last piece of Yggdrasil's Children Fall and Autumn Roars Thunder
- Interestingly enough, Erno "Emppu" Vuorinen got his musical career started in this band. He would be later known as the guitarist for the popular band Nightwish.