Funeral (band)
Encyclopedia
Funeral are a Norwegian
funeral doom
band formed in 1991 by Thomas Angell and Anders Eek; soon afterward, Einar Frederiksen joined as bassist and songwriter and Christian Loos joined as guitarist. They are known as one of the pioneers of the funeral doom genre.
The following year they went to England and recorded ten tracks at Academy Studios without vocals (because of lack of a vocalist) and worked with such bands as My Dying Bride
, Anathema
and Cradle of Filth
. Later the band recruited Sarah Eick as their female vocalist and finished five of the ten tracks, resulting in To Mourn Is a Virtue, also known as "Demo '97" in 1997. The 5 track demo CD is very rare as there were only a few copies distributed to record companies, radio stations and serious fanzine
s world wide.
Again the band had to part with their vocalist. However, they quickly found a replacement and Hanne Hukkelberg
was placed on the line-up as she had a good knowledge of music and was suitable for the band. Funeral produced another demo in 1999 entitled The Passion Play, also known as "Demo '99", and it is once again rare as it was only distributed to record labels, radio stations and fanzines. In 2002 they released their album In Fields of Pestilent Grief through the Italian label Nocturnal Music.
2003 was a tragic year for Funeral as their bassist/songwriter Einar Frederiksen committed suicide on January 10 and the band was on hiatus for the rest of the year.
In 2004 four of the ten Academy-tracks (originally recorded in 1997) were partly re-written, and was Frode Forsmo's first work as Funeral singer. This was intended as a new demo, but ended up not being released, as totally new material was written.
2005 saw the band recording a new 9-track album.
In April 2006 the Finnish label Firedoom Records released the remastered and re-released version of Tragedies and Tristesse as a double album, with unreleased bonus-tracks taken from the Beyond All Sunsets Sessions and the Tragedies Sessions from 1994 and 1995. Included on the re-release there are unpublished pictures and poems, as well as new cover art.
Autumn 2006 saw Funeral sign with the Norwegian label Tabu Recordings.
October 28, 2006, tragedy again struck, as guitarist Christian Loos died. To yet again fulfill the line-up, Mats Lerberg was recruited as guitarist.
The album "From These Wounds
" was released on December 4, 2006.
2007 saw Kjetil Ottersen depart, later being replaced by Erlend Nybø.
On September 22, 2008 Funeral released another album, titled "As the Light Does the Shadow
".
On March 13, 2009, the band posted on Myspace that they had fourteen new songs with a total time of over 100 minutes in pre-production. On July 28, 2009, the band also posted on Myspace that there was a medley of songs from the upcoming album. Considering that there are 17 songs in the making, the band went on to state that a double album is possible. Roger Bjørge will be helping out with orchestration.
On April 26, 2010 it was announced on the Funeral website that they had parted ways with vocalist/bassist Frode Forsmo.
The album "To Mourn is a Virtue" was released on May 24, 2011, the first four tracks feature Frode Forsmo on vocals, the next four feature Oysten Rustad and the final track is a remastering of a song recorded at Academy studio in England for the 1997 demo with Sarah Eick.
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...
funeral doom
Doom metal
Doom metal is an extreme form of heavy metal music that typically uses slower tempos, low-tuned guitars and a much "thicker" or "heavier" sound than other metal genres...
band formed in 1991 by Thomas Angell and Anders Eek; soon afterward, Einar Frederiksen joined as bassist and songwriter and Christian Loos joined as guitarist. They are known as one of the pioneers of the funeral doom genre.
History
In 1993 the band recorded their first demo, entitled Tristesse, released the following year as a mini CD by an American record label. According to the official Funeral website this demo won them the title of "the most depressing band in the world". Funeral then made a decision to turn more symphonic and the result was shown on their demo Beyond All Sunsets. In 1994 the band became one of the first doom metal bands to recruit a female vocalist, Toril Snyen. In 1995 they released the album Tragedies, probably one of their more known albums. In the same year, they parted with Toril Snyen.The following year they went to England and recorded ten tracks at Academy Studios without vocals (because of lack of a vocalist) and worked with such bands as My Dying Bride
My Dying Bride
My Dying Bride are an English doom metal band formed in 1990. To date, My Dying Bride have released eleven full-length studio albums, three EPs, one demo, one box set, four compilation albums, one live album, and one live CD/DVD release. The band released their tenth studio album, For Lies I Sire,...
, 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...
and Cradle of Filth
Cradle of Filth
Cradle of Filth are an English extreme metal band, formed in Suffolk in 1991. The band's musical style evolved from black metal to a cleaner and more "produced" amalgam of gothic metal, symphonic black metal, and other extreme metal styles, while their lyrical themes and imagery are heavily...
. Later the band recruited Sarah Eick as their female vocalist and finished five of the ten tracks, resulting in To Mourn Is a Virtue, also known as "Demo '97" in 1997. The 5 track demo CD is very rare as there were only a few copies distributed to record companies, radio stations and serious fanzine
Fanzine
A fanzine is a nonprofessional and nonofficial publication produced by fans of a particular cultural phenomenon for the pleasure of others who share their interest...
s world wide.
Again the band had to part with their vocalist. However, they quickly found a replacement and Hanne Hukkelberg
Hanne Hukkelberg
Hanne Hukkelberg is a singer-songwriter from Kongsberg, Norway.Hukkelberg started singing and playing instruments at the age of 3...
was placed on the line-up as she had a good knowledge of music and was suitable for the band. Funeral produced another demo in 1999 entitled The Passion Play, also known as "Demo '99", and it is once again rare as it was only distributed to record labels, radio stations and fanzines. In 2002 they released their album In Fields of Pestilent Grief through the Italian label Nocturnal Music.
2003 was a tragic year for Funeral as their bassist/songwriter Einar Frederiksen committed suicide on January 10 and the band was on hiatus for the rest of the year.
In 2004 four of the ten Academy-tracks (originally recorded in 1997) were partly re-written, and was Frode Forsmo's first work as Funeral singer. This was intended as a new demo, but ended up not being released, as totally new material was written.
2005 saw the band recording a new 9-track album.
In April 2006 the Finnish label Firedoom Records released the remastered and re-released version of Tragedies and Tristesse as a double album, with unreleased bonus-tracks taken from the Beyond All Sunsets Sessions and the Tragedies Sessions from 1994 and 1995. Included on the re-release there are unpublished pictures and poems, as well as new cover art.
Autumn 2006 saw Funeral sign with the Norwegian label Tabu Recordings.
October 28, 2006, tragedy again struck, as guitarist Christian Loos died. To yet again fulfill the line-up, Mats Lerberg was recruited as guitarist.
The album "From These Wounds
From These Wounds
From These Wounds is the fourth studio album by the Norwegian doom metal band Funeral. The Norwegian digipak version is limited and comes with the bonus track "Breathing Through You", which is originally written by former member Thomas Angell and later modified by Ottersen and Forsmo...
" was released on December 4, 2006.
2007 saw Kjetil Ottersen depart, later being replaced by Erlend Nybø.
On September 22, 2008 Funeral released another album, titled "As the Light Does the Shadow
As the Light Does the Shadow
As the Light Does the Shadow is the fifth studio album by the Norwegian funeral doom band Funeral. It was released on September 22, 2008. It is their first album to be released through Indie Recordings.-Track listing:# "The Will to Die" - 6:18...
".
On March 13, 2009, the band posted on Myspace that they had fourteen new songs with a total time of over 100 minutes in pre-production. On July 28, 2009, the band also posted on Myspace that there was a medley of songs from the upcoming album. Considering that there are 17 songs in the making, the band went on to state that a double album is possible. Roger Bjørge will be helping out with orchestration.
On April 26, 2010 it was announced on the Funeral website that they had parted ways with vocalist/bassist Frode Forsmo.
The album "To Mourn is a Virtue" was released on May 24, 2011, the first four tracks feature Frode Forsmo on vocals, the next four feature Oysten Rustad and the final track is a remastering of a song recorded at Academy studio in England for the 1997 demo with Sarah Eick.
Discography
- Tristesse - (demo, 1993)
- Tristesse - (EP, 1994)
- Beyond All Sunsets - (demo, 1994)
- TragediesTragedies (album)Tragedies is the first full length album by the Norwegian funeral doom/death metal band Funeral. Track one of the album, Taarene is sung in Norwegian, while the other four tracks are sung in English. The album contains three original tracks and two from the Beyond All Sunsets demo...
- (full-length, 1995) - To Mourn is a Virtue - (demo, 1997)
- The Passion Play - (demo, 1999)
- In Fields of Pestilent GriefIn Fields of Pestilent GriefIn Fields of Pestilent Grief is a studio album by the Norwegian funeral doom metal band Funeral. It was their first full-length studio album ever since their album Tragedies. Einar Fredriksen, who was then the bassist of Funeral, gave several reasons for the seven-year gap in between albums in an...
- (full-length, 2002) - From These WoundsFrom These WoundsFrom These Wounds is the fourth studio album by the Norwegian doom metal band Funeral. The Norwegian digipak version is limited and comes with the bonus track "Breathing Through You", which is originally written by former member Thomas Angell and later modified by Ottersen and Forsmo...
- (full-length, 2006) - Demo 2008 - (demo, 2008)
- As the Light Does the ShadowAs the Light Does the ShadowAs the Light Does the Shadow is the fifth studio album by the Norwegian funeral doom band Funeral. It was released on September 22, 2008. It is their first album to be released through Indie Recordings.-Track listing:# "The Will to Die" - 6:18...
- (full-length, 2008) - To Mourn is a Virtue - (full-length, 2011)
Current members
- Sindre Nedland - Vocals
- Erlend E. Nybø - Guitars
- Mats Lerberg - Guitars, backing vocals
- Anders Eek - Drums
Former members
- Frode Forsmo - Vocals, bass, lyrics (2006–2010)
- Kjetil Ottersen - Guitars, bass, synth/keyboards, programming, songwriting & lyrics (2001–2007)
- Einar André Frederiksen - Bass, vocals (1991–2003) (deceased)
- Christian Loos - Guitars (1991–2006) (deceased)
- Thomas Angell - Guitars (1991–1997)
- Idar Burheim - Guitars (1999–2003)
- Oysten Rustad - Vocals (2011)
- Hanne HukkelbergHanne HukkelbergHanne Hukkelberg is a singer-songwriter from Kongsberg, Norway.Hukkelberg started singing and playing instruments at the age of 3...
- Vocals (1999–2003) - Toril Snyen - Vocals (1994–1995)
- Sarah Eick - Vocals (1997 demo )