Einherjer
Encyclopedia
Einherjer is a 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...

 band from Haugesund
Haugesund
is a town and municipality in the county of Rogaland, Norway.-Location:Haugesund was separated from Torvastad as a town and municipality of its own in 1855. The rural municipality of Skåre was merged with Haugesund on January 1, 1958. Haugesund is a small municipality, only 73 km²...

, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...

, founded in 1993. Some of the band's album
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...

s are heavily folk
Traditional music
Traditional music is the term increasingly used for folk music that is not contemporary folk music. More on this is at the terminology section of the World music article...

 influenced, while others have a more traditional black metal
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....

 sound. Their lyrics retell Norse
Norse mythology
Norse mythology, a subset of Germanic mythology, is the overall term for the myths, legends and beliefs about supernatural beings of Norse pagans. It flourished prior to the Christianization of Scandinavia, during the Early Middle Ages, and passed into Nordic folklore, with some aspects surviving...

 legends, and each of their albums has its own theme. The band split up in early 2004 after releasing the album Blot
Blot (album)
Blot is the fourth full-length album by the Norwegian black/Viking metal band Einherjer. It was released on November 21, 2003, by Tabu Recordings.-Track listing:# "Einherjermarsjen" – 1:38# "Ironbound" – 3:41# "Dead Knight's Rite" – 5:34...

in December 2003, but later reformed .

In December 2004, all members of Einherjer's last lineup, including the band's founders Frode Glesnes and Gerhard Storesund, founded the thrash metal
Thrash metal
Thrash metal is a subgenre of heavy metal that is characterized usually by its fast tempo and aggression. Songs of the genre typically use fast percussive and low-register guitar riffs, overlaid with shredding-style lead work...

 band Battered together with bass guitarist Ole Moldesæther.

In September 2008, Einherjer announced that they would reunite to do some selected shows across Europe in 2009, including the Ragnarök
Ragnarök Festival
Ragnarök Festival is a pagan metal festival held annually in Germany since 2004 founded by Ivo Raab. It started out as a small one night festival with only regional bands in the town hall of Hollfeld. In 2005 it was decided to go for a festival featuring mostly Viking and pagan metal with the...

, Kaltenbach
Kaltenbach Open Air
Kaltenbach Open Air is a heavy metal festival held annually in Austria since 2003. Its sixth edition will take place in Spital am Semmering on July 18 and July 19.-2008:To be held on July 18 and July 19 in Spital am Semmering, Austria.*Asathor*Bereavment...

 and Wacken
Wacken Open Air
Wacken Open Air is a summer open air heavy metal music festival. It takes place annually in the small town of Wacken in Schleswig-Holstein, northern Germany...

 festivals. The band signed with Indie Recordings
Indie Recordings
Indie Recordings is a Norwegian independent record label specialising in heavy metal. The label was founded in 2006 by brothers Espen and Erik Solheim Røhne, who previously founded Tabu Recordings. Indie Recordings has its headquarters in Oslo, Norway...

 in December 2010; a new album was released in September 2011.

The band's name is taken from Norse mythology, where the term Einherjar
Einherjar
In Norse mythology, the einherjar are those that have died in battle and are brought to Valhalla by valkyries. In Valhalla, the einherjar eat their fill of the nightly-resurrecting beast Sæhrímnir, and are brought their fill of mead by valkyries...

 describes the slain warriors who have gone to Valhalla
Valhalla
In Norse mythology, Valhalla is a majestic, enormous hall located in Asgard, ruled over by the god Odin. Chosen by Odin, half of those that die in combat travel to Valhalla upon death, led by valkyries, while the other half go to the goddess Freyja's field Fólkvangr...

 and joined Odin
Odin
Odin is a major god in Norse mythology and the ruler of Asgard. Homologous with the Anglo-Saxon "Wōden" and the Old High German "Wotan", the name is descended from Proto-Germanic "*Wodanaz" or "*Wōđanaz"....

's table.

Current lineup

  • Frode Glesnes
    Frode Glesnes
    Frode Glesnes is one of the founders of the Norwegian Viking metal band Einherjer. He started as guitarist/vocalist, but decided to concentrate on the guitar duties. He did the lead vocals on Einherjer's last album, Blot. He started a new band with the other Einherjer members called Battered. He...

     (previously Grimar) – 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...

    , vocals
    Singing
    Singing is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...

     (1993–2004, 2008–)
  • Gerhard Storesund (previously Ulvar) – drums
    Drum kit
    A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....

    , keyboards
    Keyboard instrument
    A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...

     (1993–2004, 2008–)
  • Aksel Herløe – 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...

     (also bass guitar on Blot) (1999–2004, 2008–)

Previous members

  • Rune Bjelland (previously Nidhogg) – vocals (1993–97)
  • Audun Wold (previously Thonar) – bass guitar, keyboards, guitar (1993–97)
  • Stein Sund
    Stein Sund
    Stein Sund is a bass guitarist from Karmøy who was a long time member of the Norwegian viking metal band Einherjer.He has several projects up and running such as Thundra, Evig Natt, and Dwelling Souls.-References:...

      – bass guitar (1996–97, 1999)
  • Ragnar Vikse – vocals (1997–2000)
  • Erik Elden – bass guitar (1998)

Session and touring musicians

  • Tchort
    Tchort
    Terje Vik Schei , better known by his stage name Tchort, is a Norwegian musician. He is known for his time spent playing bass for the black metal band Emperor and for leading the progressive metal band Green Carnation...

     – bass guitar (1998–99)
  • Jon Lind
    Jon Lind
    Jon Lind is an American songwriter and performer.- Biography :Jon Lind was raised in New York City. He studied classical guitar at the Mannes College of Music. His first break was in the 1970s where he worked with Bob Cavallo. At this period he met Maurice White who recorded two of his songs. He...

     – bass guitar (2000)

Discography

  • Leve Vikingånden
    Leve Vikingånden
    Leve Vikingånden is the first official release by the Norwegian heavy metal band Einherjer, following their 1993 demo Aurora Borealis. It was released on 7 inch vinyl and only 1500 copies were made. Both of its songs have Norwegian language lyrics and were rerecorded for the band's 1995 EP Far Far...

    (EP) (1995)
  • Aurora Borealis (MCD) (1996)
  • Dragons of the North
    Dragons of the North
    Dragons of the North is the first full-length album by the Norwegian Viking metal band Einherjer. The lyrics of the seventh track, "Slaget ved Harfsfjord" , are taken from Torbjørn Hornklove's 9th century account of the Battle of Hafrsfjord...

    (1996)
  • Far Far North
    Far Far North
    Far Far North is a three-song EP released by the band Einherjer in 1997. The final two tracks are rerecorded versions of songs from the band's 1995 EP Leve Vikingånden. Those two songs have Norwegian language lyrics, while the title track has English lyrics.-Track listing:# "Far Far North"# "Når...

    (EP) (1997)
  • Odin Owns Ye All
    Odin Owns Ye All
    Odin Owns Ye All is the second full-length album by the Norwegian Viking metal band Einherjer. Its songs form a brief, but complete, narrative of the earth based on Norse mythology. The opening tracks tell the story of the giant Ymir, his death at the hands of Odin and his brothers, and the...

    (1998)
  • Norwegian Native Art
    Norwegian Native Art
    Norwegian Native Art is the third full-length album by the Norwegian viking metal band Einherjer. It was released on September 11, 2000, by Native North Records.-Track listing:# "Wyrd of the Dead" – 4:51 # "Doomfaring" – 4:45 # "Hugin's Eyes" – 4:15...

    (2000, re-released in 2005)
  • Demo recordings (2002)
  • Blot
    Blot (album)
    Blot is the fourth full-length album by the Norwegian black/Viking metal band Einherjer. It was released on November 21, 2003, by Tabu Recordings.-Track listing:# "Einherjermarsjen" – 1:38# "Ironbound" – 3:41# "Dead Knight's Rite" – 5:34...

    (2003)
  • Norrøn
    Norrøn
    Norrøn is the fifth full-length album by the Norwegian Viking metal band Einherjer and the first after the band reunited. Is is planned for release through Indie Recordings on September 9, 2011.- Track listing :-Reception:...

    (2011)
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