Background

Chapel's inspiration for the name Demians came from the novel Demian

Demian

Demian: The Story of Emil Sinclair's Youth is a Bildungsroman by Hermann Hesse, first published in 1919; a prologue was added in 1960. Demian was first published under the pseudonym "Emil Sinclair", the name of the narrator of the story, but Hesse was later revealed to be the author.-Plot summary...

by author Hermann Hesse

Hermann Hesse

Hermann Hesse was a German-Swiss poet, novelist, and painter. In 1946, he received the Nobel Prize in Literature...

, and his musical inspiration came from a variety of artists and sources, ranging from Radiohead

Radiohead

Radiohead are an English rock band from Abingdon, Oxfordshire, formed in 1985. The band consists of Thom Yorke , Jonny Greenwood , Ed O'Brien , Colin Greenwood and Phil Selway .Radiohead released their debut single "Creep" in 1992...

 to Tori Amos

Tori Amos

Tori Amos is an American pianist, singer-songwriter and composer. She was at the forefront of a number of female singer-songwriters in the early 1990s and was noteworthy early in her career as one of the few alternative rock performers to use a piano as her primary instrument...

 to ambient music

Ambient music

Ambient music is a musical genre that focuses largely on the timbral characteristics of sounds, often organized or performed to evoke an "atmospheric", "visual" or "unobtrusive" quality.- History :...

.

Chapel plays all instruments and performs all vocals on the first two Demians studio albums, though he performs live with a full band. All Demians releases have been self-produced and recorded in Chapel's home studios, the locations of which have changed from album to album.

Building an Empire

Demians' first studio album Building an Empire was released on May 19, 2008, on the InsideOut

InsideOut Music

Inside Out Music is a German independent record label based in Kleve, in the North Rhine-Westphalia region, and dedicated to the publication of progressive rock, progressive metal and related styles music albums.-History:...

 label, to positive reviews.
The success of Building an Empire led Chapel to assemble a live band with Gaël Hallier (drums) and Antoine Pohu (bass), and they subsequently were granted opening slots for several well-known rock and metal bands, including Porcupine Tree

Porcupine Tree

Porcupine Tree is a progressive rock band formed by Steven Wilson in 1987 in Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, England. Their music is difficult to categorise, being associated with both psychedelic rock and progressive rock, yet having been influenced by trance, krautrock and ambient due to Steven...

, Anathema

Anathema (band)

Anathema are an English band from Liverpool primarily known for their ever evolving sound. Beginning as pioneers of the death/doom metal sub-genre, their later albums have been associated with genres such as alternative rock, progressive rock, art rock, new prog, and post-rock.-History:Anathema...

, Marillion

Marillion

Marillion are a British rock band, formed in Aylesbury, England in 1979. Their recorded studio output comprises sixteen albums generally regarded in two distinct eras, delineated by the departure of original vocalist & frontman Fish in late 1988, and the subsequent arrival of replacement Steve...

, Steven Wilson

Steven Wilson

Steven John Wilson is an English musician, best known as the founder, lead guitarist, singer and songwriter of progressive rock band Porcupine Tree...

 & Aviv Geffen

Aviv Geffen

Aviv Geffen is an Israeli rock musician, singer, songwriter, producer, keyboardist and guitarist. He is the son of writer and poet Yehonatan Geffen and Nurit Makover, brother of actress Shira Geffen, and an alumnus of Rimon School of Jazz and Contemporary Music.Geffen was and is extremely popular...

, and Jonathan Davis

Jonathan Davis

Jonathan Houseman Davis is the lead vocalist and frontman for the nu metal band Korn. Davis was ranked 16th on Hit Parader 's list of "Heavy Metal's All-Time Top 100 Vocalists".-Early life:...

 of Korn

Korn

Korn is an American nu metal band from Bakersfield, California, formed in 1993. The current band line up includes four members: Jonathan Davis, James "Munky" Shaffer, Reginald "Fieldy" Arvizu, and Ray Luzier. The band was formed as an expansion of L.A.P.D.The band released their first demo album,...

. They toured throughout Europe, playing more than 40 shows in more than 12 countries.

Mute

The follow-up entitled "Mute" came out on June 28, 2010 in Europe and August 10, 2010 in the US on the InsideOut label recently associated with Century Media and EMI Music. Chapel once again performed all instruments and vocals on the album, with two guests, Gaël Hallier playing drums on "Swing Of The Airwaves" and "Hesitation Waltz", and Lepolair playing electronics on the song "Porcelain".

Very different from its predecessor, the album once again gathered excellent reviews worldwide, and brought the band's music to a wider audience.


Fred Mariolle officially joined Demians as a guitar player after the release of "Mute". In June 2011, the band announced that they have started working on their third album.

Discography

• Building an Empire (2008)
• Mute (2010)
• Untitled new album, TBA (2012)

Band members

• Nicolas Chapel - vocals, guitar
  Guitar
  The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
  
  , piano
  Piano
  The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
  
  , and all instruments on studio recordings
• Antoine Pohu - bass guitar
  Bass guitar
  The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
  
  
• Gaël Hallier - drums
  Drummer
  A drummer is a musician who is capable of playing drums, which includes but is not limited to a drum kit and accessory based hardware which includes an assortment of pedals and standing support mechanisms, marching percussion and/or any musical instrument that is struck within the context of a...
  
  
• Fred Mariolle - guitars