Elend
Encyclopedia
For the town in Germany, see Elend, Saxony-Anhalt
.
Elend was a dark ambient
/neoclassical
band formed in France
in 1993 by composers and multi-instrumentalists Iskandar Hasnawi of France
and Renaud Tschirner of Austria
. The band's name is German
for "misery." Their music can be described as a combination of contemporary classical music
and gothic
.
and industrial
elements in some of their pieces.
Elend's sound tends toward the aggressive, containing harsh atonal
dissonance, screaming and growled
vocals in a manner associated with certain types of contemporary classical music
. Vocalists, spoken-word passages and occasional rock-like song structures lend the music elements from art rock
and gothic rock
. Though Elend's music is not any form of metal
, Elend's members are associated with numerous metal acts and the metal record label Holy Records
, and their harsh sound has led to Elend's music being embraced by a metal-listening audience.
The Winds Cycle was originally intended to consist of five albums, however it was changed to a trilogy prior to the release of A World in Their Screams
. In an interview with a French magazine posted in June 2007 on their website, Iskander Hasnawi indicated that the costs and difficulties of recording the orchestral music associated with Elend have made it impossible to continue with the Elend project. Both composers will be continuing with personal projects, including L'Ensemble Orphique.
Elend, Saxony-Anhalt
Elend lies in the Bode valley in the High Harz in central Germany. This part of the valley is known locally as Elendstal . Elend is a municipality in the borough of Oberharz am Brocken in the district of Harz in the German federal state of Saxony-Anhalt and lies at a height of...
.
Elend was a dark ambient
Dark ambient
Dark ambient is a subgenre of ambient music that features foreboding, ominous, or discordant overtones. Although it had its roots in the 1970s, Dark ambient emerged in the 1980s and 1990s with the introduction of newer, smaller, and more affordable Effects units, synthesizer and sampling technology...
/neoclassical
Neoclassical (Dark Wave)
Neoclassical Dark Wave refers to a music genre within the Dark Wave movement. It is characterized by the use of ethereal atmosphere and angelic female voices but also adds strong influences from classical music. Neoclassical Dark Wave is distinct from the academic art music form known as...
band formed in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
in 1993 by composers and multi-instrumentalists Iskandar Hasnawi of France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and Renaud Tschirner of Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
. The band's name is German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
for "misery." Their music can be described as a combination of contemporary classical music
Contemporary classical music
Contemporary classical music can be understood as belonging to the period that started in the mid-1970s with the retreat of modernism. However, the term may also be employed in a broader sense to refer to all post-1945 modern musical forms.-Categorization:...
and gothic
Gothic rock
Gothic rock is a musical subgenre of post-punk and alternative rock that formed during the late 1970s. Gothic rock bands grew from the strong ties they had to the English punk rock and emerging post-punk scenes...
.
Stylistic overview
Early Elend albums utilized samplers and synths to create a dense and horrifying orchestral sound. In recent albums for the Winds Cycle, Elend's sound has broadened; they now rely almost entirely on acoustic instruments and chamber orchestras instead of synths, giving them a more full and natural sound. They have also included electronicElectronic music
Electronic music is music that employs electronic musical instruments and electronic music technology in its production. In general a distinction can be made between sound produced using electromechanical means and that produced using electronic technology. Examples of electromechanical sound...
and industrial
Industrial music
Industrial music is a style of experimental music that draws on transgressive and provocative themes. The term was coined in the mid-1970s with the founding of Industrial Records by the band Throbbing Gristle, and the creation of the slogan "industrial music for industrial people". In general, the...
elements in some of their pieces.
Elend's sound tends toward the aggressive, containing harsh atonal
Atonality
Atonality in its broadest sense describes music that lacks a tonal center, or key. Atonality in this sense usually describes compositions written from about 1908 to the present day where a hierarchy of pitches focusing on a single, central tone is not used, and the notes of the chromatic scale...
dissonance, screaming and growled
Death growl
A death growl, also known as death metal vocals, guttural vocals, death grunts, and harsh vocals among other names, is a vocalisation style usually employed by vocalists of the death metal and black metal music genre, but also used in a variety of heavy metal and hardcore punk subgenres.Death...
vocals in a manner associated with certain types of contemporary classical music
Contemporary classical music
Contemporary classical music can be understood as belonging to the period that started in the mid-1970s with the retreat of modernism. However, the term may also be employed in a broader sense to refer to all post-1945 modern musical forms.-Categorization:...
. Vocalists, spoken-word passages and occasional rock-like song structures lend the music elements from art rock
Art rock
Art rock is a subgenre of rock music that originated in the United Kingdom in the 1960s, with influences from art, avant-garde, and classical music. The first usage of the term, according to Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, was in 1968. Influenced by the work of The Beatles, most notably their Sgt...
and gothic rock
Gothic rock
Gothic rock is a musical subgenre of post-punk and alternative rock that formed during the late 1970s. Gothic rock bands grew from the strong ties they had to the English punk rock and emerging post-punk scenes...
. Though Elend's music is not any form of metal
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
, Elend's members are associated with numerous metal acts and the metal record label Holy Records
Holy Records
Holy Records is a French metal label run by Misanthrope frontman Phillipe De L'Argilière. Aside from Misanthrope itself, the label has not signed many French bands, but also corresponds with several Greek bands.-Current and former artists:*Am'ganesha'n...
, and their harsh sound has led to Elend's music being embraced by a metal-listening audience.
The Winds Cycle was originally intended to consist of five albums, however it was changed to a trilogy prior to the release of A World in Their Screams
A World in Their Screams
A World in Their Screams is the seventh album by neoclassical band Elend, and the third and final album in the Winds Cycle.Originally planned for release in the first quarter of 2006, it was announced on May 10, 2006 that the album's release would be delayed until late 2006 or early 2007 due to...
. In an interview with a French magazine posted in June 2007 on their website, Iskander Hasnawi indicated that the costs and difficulties of recording the orchestral music associated with Elend have made it impossible to continue with the Elend project. Both composers will be continuing with personal projects, including L'Ensemble Orphique.
Current
- Alexandre Iskandar Hasnaoui: Various instruments (1993—present)
- Renaud Tschirner: Various instruments (1993—present)
- Sébastien Roland: KeyboardsKeyboard (computing)In computing, a keyboard is a typewriter-style keyboard, which uses an arrangement of buttons or keys, to act as mechanical levers or electronic switches...
, programming, engineering (1997—present) - David Kempf: ViolinViolinThe violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
(2000—present) - Esteri Rémond: Soprano vocals (2003—present)
- Laura Angelmayer: Soprano vocals
- Shinji Chihara: Violin, viola
- Klaus Amann: Trumpet, Horn, Trombone
- Simon Eberl - Industrial Landscapes and Noises
Past
- Nathalie Barbary: SopranoSopranoA soprano is a voice type with a vocal range from approximately middle C to "high A" in choral music, or to "soprano C" or higher in operatic music. In four-part chorale style harmony, the soprano takes the highest part, which usually encompasses the melody...
vocals (1995—2003) - Eve-Gabrielle Siskind: Soprano vocals (1994—1995)
Albums
- Officium Tenebrarum
- Leçons de TénèbresLeçons de Ténèbres (album)Leçons de Ténèbres is the debut album of the neoclassical band Elend. It was the first in the Officium Tenebrarum trilogy.The lyrics to four songs are texts adapted from John Milton's Paradise Lost.-Track listing:#"Leçon de Ténèbres" — #"Chanting" — #"Into Bottomless Perdition" —...
(Holy RecordsHoly RecordsHoly Records is a French metal label run by Misanthrope frontman Phillipe De L'Argilière. Aside from Misanthrope itself, the label has not signed many French bands, but also corresponds with several Greek bands.-Current and former artists:*Am'ganesha'n...
, 1994) - Les Ténèbres du DehorsLes Ténèbres du DehorsLes Ténèbres du Dehors is an album by neoclassical band Elend. It is the second in the Officium Tenebrarum trilogy.The album was remastered and re-released in April 2001 with a bonus track called Birds of Dawn with a red-tinted cover, instead of the original blue.-Track listing:#"Nocturne" —...
(Holy RecordsHoly RecordsHoly Records is a French metal label run by Misanthrope frontman Phillipe De L'Argilière. Aside from Misanthrope itself, the label has not signed many French bands, but also corresponds with several Greek bands.-Current and former artists:*Am'ganesha'n...
, 1996, reissued 2001 with a bonus track) - The UmbersunThe UmbersunThe Umbersun is the fourth album by neoclassical band Elend. It is the third and final album in the Officium Tenebrarum trilogy.-Track listing:#"Du Tréfonds des Ténèbres" — 10:44#"Melpomene" — 10:26#"Moon of Amber" — 6:12#"Apocalypse" — 9:14...
(Music for NationsMusic For NationsMusic For Nations was a British independent record label focusing mainly on rock and metal. They were a subsidiary of the larger label distributor Zomba Records who in turn is owned by BMG....
, 1998)
- Leçons de Ténèbres
- Winds Cycle
- Winds Devouring MenWinds Devouring MenWinds Devouring Men is the fifth album by neoclassical band Elend. It is the first album in the Winds Cycle trilogy. The special edition was released in a digipak with a bonus track called "Silent Slumber: A God That Breeds Pestilence"....
(Holy RecordsHoly RecordsHoly Records is a French metal label run by Misanthrope frontman Phillipe De L'Argilière. Aside from Misanthrope itself, the label has not signed many French bands, but also corresponds with several Greek bands.-Current and former artists:*Am'ganesha'n...
/Prophecy ProductionsProphecy ProductionsProphecy Productions is a German record label located in Zeltingen-Rachtig, founded by Martin Koller in 1996. It proclaims being a "label for eerie emotional music", which roughly comprises artists with a dark metal, black metal, or neofolk background, but a unique and unconventional approach to...
, 2003) - Sunwar the DeadSunwar the DeadSunwar the Dead is an album by neoclassical band Elend. It is the second album in the Winds Cycle.-Track listing:#"Chaomphalos" — 4:24#"Ardour" — 5:10#"Sunwar the Dead" — 4:31#"Ares in Their Eyes" — 6:02#"The Hemlock Sea" — 5:40...
(Holy RecordsHoly RecordsHoly Records is a French metal label run by Misanthrope frontman Phillipe De L'Argilière. Aside from Misanthrope itself, the label has not signed many French bands, but also corresponds with several Greek bands.-Current and former artists:*Am'ganesha'n...
/Prophecy ProductionsProphecy ProductionsProphecy Productions is a German record label located in Zeltingen-Rachtig, founded by Martin Koller in 1996. It proclaims being a "label for eerie emotional music", which roughly comprises artists with a dark metal, black metal, or neofolk background, but a unique and unconventional approach to...
, 2004) - A World in Their ScreamsA World in Their ScreamsA World in Their Screams is the seventh album by neoclassical band Elend, and the third and final album in the Winds Cycle.Originally planned for release in the first quarter of 2006, it was announced on May 10, 2006 that the album's release would be delayed until late 2006 or early 2007 due to...
(April 23, 2007)
- Winds Devouring Men