Lengsel
Encyclopedia
Lengsel is a progressive
black metal
band that formed in 1995 in Norway
. They released one album, called Solace
, on Endtime Productions
in 2000, which was subsequently licensed to Solid State Records
for an American release. The second album The Kiss, The Hope
was released on 2007. Their name means "longing" in Norwegian
; the idea of longing for home is a prominent theme on their debut release.
In 1999, guitarist Tor Glidje joined the band Extol
on bass. The following year, Glidje switched over to guitar for Extol at the departure of another member and John Mjåland joined the band on bass. When the guitarist returned, Glidje left Extol, but Mjåland stayed as bassist. In 2004, both of Extol's guitarists left the band and were replaced by Glidje and Ole Sveen, effectively merging both members and music of Ganglion with Extol. Several Ganglion songs, recorded under the Ganglion moniker, were incorporated into the Extol repertoire. Thus, all three members of Lengsel/Ganglion are current members of Extol. The remaining members of Extol also played in Ganglion at one point or another, so the merge was very logical.
In 2006, while Extol was on break, a resurrected Lengsel recorded their second, less positively reviewed full-length album, entitled The Kiss, The Hope
, and released it on the independent German label Whirlwind Records. It features more of a sludge/hardcore
feel than the attitude rock of Ganglion, and has very little in common with Solace.
Progressive metal
Progressive metal is a subgenre of heavy metal originating in the United Kingdom and North America in the late 1980s...
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....
band that formed in 1995 in 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...
. They released one album, called Solace
Solace (Lengsel album)
Solace is the first full length album by the Norwegian metal band Lengsel. An renowned and acclaimed album, Solace initially released on Endtime Productions as a digipak edition in 2000...
, on Endtime Productions
Endtime Productions
Endtime Productions is an independent record label based in Scandinavia. The label focuses on extreme metal music and helped notable groups such as Norway's Extol to gain fame and get a record deal with Century Media Records. Notable groups on the label's roster include Antestor, Drottnar and...
in 2000, which was subsequently licensed to Solid State Records
Solid State Records
Solid State Records is a Christian record label, a division of Tooth & Nail Records. Unlike Tooth & Nail, Solid State signs hardcore and metal bands. Like Tooth & Nail, Solid State is primarily a Christian label. However, they have signed several bands that don't label themselves as Christian,...
for an American release. The second album The Kiss, The Hope
The Kiss, The Hope
The Kiss, The Hope is the second full length album by the Norwegian metal band Lengsel, released on Whirlwind Records in December 2006. The album was a stylistical change on the band's musical direction, representing more of a sludge metal style....
was released on 2007. Their name means "longing" in Norwegian
Norwegian language
Norwegian is a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Norway, where it is the official language. Together with Swedish and Danish, Norwegian forms a continuum of more or less mutually intelligible local and regional variants .These Scandinavian languages together with the Faroese language...
; the idea of longing for home is a prominent theme on their debut release.
History
The group was formed in 1995. They released a selftitled demo in 1997. Shortly after releasing the critically acclaimed debut album Solace in 2000 on 3 labels, the band members took a break from Lengel. With the same line-up, they formed the band "Ganglion", and quickly departed from their black metal roots to a more rock oriented style, alienating many of their old fans in the process but creating a new fan base at the same time.In 1999, guitarist Tor Glidje joined the band Extol
Extol
Extol is a Christian progressive extreme metal band from Bekkestua, Norway, that was formed in 1993. In 2007, they announced they were splitting up to work on separate projects. The band is known for playing a variety of different styles of metal which include progressive death metal, melodic death...
on bass. The following year, Glidje switched over to guitar for Extol at the departure of another member and John Mjåland joined the band on bass. When the guitarist returned, Glidje left Extol, but Mjåland stayed as bassist. In 2004, both of Extol's guitarists left the band and were replaced by Glidje and Ole Sveen, effectively merging both members and music of Ganglion with Extol. Several Ganglion songs, recorded under the Ganglion moniker, were incorporated into the Extol repertoire. Thus, all three members of Lengsel/Ganglion are current members of Extol. The remaining members of Extol also played in Ganglion at one point or another, so the merge was very logical.
In 2006, while Extol was on break, a resurrected Lengsel recorded their second, less positively reviewed full-length album, entitled The Kiss, The Hope
The Kiss, The Hope
The Kiss, The Hope is the second full length album by the Norwegian metal band Lengsel, released on Whirlwind Records in December 2006. The album was a stylistical change on the band's musical direction, representing more of a sludge metal style....
, and released it on the independent German label Whirlwind Records. It features more of a sludge/hardcore
Sludge metal
Sludge metal is a subgenre of heavy metal that melds elements of doom metal and hardcore punk, and sometimes incorporates influences from southern rock, stoner rock and grunge. Sludge metal is typically abrasive; often featuring shouted vocals, heavily distorted instruments and sharply contrasting...
feel than the attitude rock of Ganglion, and has very little in common with Solace.
Band members
- Tor Magne S. Glidje - guitars, vocals
- Ole Halvard Sveen - drums, acoustic guitars, keyboards, vocals
- John Robert Mjåland - bass