Tristania (band)
Encyclopedia
Tristania is a band from Norway
, formed in 1996 by Morten Veland
, Einar Moen and Kenneth Olsson. Tristania's music is usually classified as symphonic gothic metal
with doom/death metal
influences (especially on the early albums), due to its strong ties with the goth metal's history. The band name could be a reference to Norwegian
trist, which means "sad" or "depressing"; and/or the tristania
flower.
was initially recruited as a guest singer for the demo recording, but she later joined as a regular member. During the summer of 1997 different labels showed interest in the demo. Tristania signed with Napalm Records and released the EP Tristania.
Tristania's first full length album, Widow's Weeds
, was recorded at the end of 1997 and released early 1998. The album is symphonic metal with elements from a large variety of genres including gothic metal, death metal, classical music, and black metal. Two guest performers who were involved in Widow's Weeds would later get more prominent roles on Tristania’s albums; singer Østen Bergøy (who would later become a full band member) and violinist Pete Johansen
. Tristania got to do their first shows outside of Norway as support act for Lacrimosa
in Belgium and at the Mind over Matter festival in Austria in August 1998. Later the same year Tristania went on their first European tour, with Solefald
and Haggard
.
The band's second full length album Beyond The Veil
was released in 1999. As on the debut album, Moen and Veland wrote the majority of the music, but Moen and Hidle emerged as a songwriting team. Jan Kenneth Barkved appeared as an additional singer. Tristania followed up the release with their first headlining tour with The Sins of Thy Beloved
, Trail of Tears
and Antichrisis as support acts. The band also toured with Tiamat
and Anathema
in 1999. The band continued touring extensively in 2000. In December 2000 Veland and the rest of the band agreed on going separate ways, due to musical and personal differences.
World of Glass was released in September 2001, with guest contributions from Ronny Thorsen
, Johansen, and Barkved. The album added classical
and industrial
elements to Tristania's sound, and included the band's only cover version: "The Modern End," originally by Seigmen
. Bergøy, now a permanent member of the band, also began to write lyrics on this album and has since become the band's main lyricist. Kjetil Ingebrethsen joined the band prior to the World of Glass tour on extreme vocals. On that tour Tristania was supported by Rotting Christ
, Vintersorg
, and Madder Mortem
. More touring of Europe and Latin America followed in 2002.
In 2003-2004 Tristania took a break from performing live to focus solely on songwriting. Ashes was released on SPV/Steamhammer Records
in February 2005 and featured a stripped-down sound that de-emphasized the classical and operatic elements of the previous albums.
The band then toured Europe and Latin America (sometimes without Moen, who chose to remain at home and focus on songwriting) along with Nightwish
, Gothminister
, and Kreator
. After the tours, Ingebrethsen decided to leave the band as he wanted to continue his musical career at a lower level. The band decided not to recruit a replacement, and Hidle took over the growling vocals.
Illumination
was released in January 2007, with touring guitarist Svein Terje Solvang added as an official member. Vorph
of Samael
appeared as a guest singer and a string quartet appeared on several songs. Shortly after the release of the album, Vibeke Stene
suddenly decided to quit her musical career in order to focus on family and her work as a teacher. As a result, all planned touring activities were put on hold. After holding auditions for a singer with a voice different than Stene's, Tristania recruited singer Mariangela Demurtas from Sardinia
, Italy, who officially joined the band in October 2007.
Østerhus and Solvang both quit the band in 2008. Ole Vistnes joined as the new bassist and Gyri Losnegaard later joined as second guitarist. The new line-up featuring Demurtas on vocals debuted on February 29, 2008 at a festival appearance in Kiev, Ukraine. The next member to depart was drummer Kenneth Olsson, who was replaced by Tarald Lie; while singer Østen Bergøy scaled back to part-time status with the band due to family commitments. Kjetil Nordhus was added to the lineup on clean vocals. The band's sixth album, Rubicon
, was released on August 25, 2010.
After the Out of the Dark Festival in October 2 of 2011, the Hungarian Lambda Team has released a freeware PC game about Tristania, named Tristania 3D.
riff
s with dominant and eerie keyboard
and choirs. Doom metal
is another strong influence, which can be heard in the slow, melancholic riffing. Tristania put a lot of focus on opera
tic female vocals
, haunting choruses, and classical instrument
s such as pipe organ
, harpsichord
, flute
s and violin
s. On the band's early albums there was also a prominent focus on the death vocals of Morten Veland
. This combination of death vocals with female operatics and majestic gothic choruses is believed by many fans to have reached its pinnacle on their album Beyond The Veil
.
On later albums Tristania stepped back from the bombastic layer-over-layer production and focused more on balancing the various vocal styles. Østen Bergøy was added on clean male vocals (hollow baritone) for the album Beyond The Veil
, first as a guest singer and later as a full band member. After the departure of Veland, the death vocals were performed by guitarist Anders Høyvik Hidle and Kjetil Ingebrethsen (who joined the band officially for the album Ashes), and a variety of guest vocalists.
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...
, formed in 1996 by Morten Veland
Morten Veland
Morten Veland is a Norwegian musician. He was one of the founding members of the Norwegian gothic metal band Tristania and later founded Sirenia....
, Einar Moen and Kenneth Olsson. Tristania's music is usually classified as symphonic gothic metal
Symphonic metal
Symphonic metal is a term used to describe heavy metal music that has symphonic elements; that is, elements that are either borrowed from classical music or, as with progressive rock music, create a style reminiscent of it, e.g...
with doom/death metal
Death/doom
Death/doom, sometimes writes as death-doom or deathdoom, is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal. It combines the slow tempos and pessimistic or depressive mood of doom metal with the deep growling vocals and double kick drumming of death metal...
influences (especially on the early albums), due to its strong ties with the goth metal's history. The band name could be a reference to 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...
trist, which means "sad" or "depressing"; and/or the tristania
Tristania
Tristania is a monotypic genus, native to New South Wales, Australia, closely related to Cistemon. The genus had a number of species, but some have been reclassified as Lophostemon and Tristaniopsis....
flower.
Biography
Tristania was founded 1996 in Stavanger, Norway by Einar Moen (keyboards), Morten Veland (vocals/guitar), and Kenneth Olsson (drums). A few weeks later Anders Høyvik Hidle (guitars/vocals) and Rune Østerhus (bass) joined the band. In May 1997 the band entered the studio for the first time and recorded their demo in Klepp Lydstudio. Vibeke SteneVibeke Stene
Vibeke Stene is a Norwegian soprano singer. She is most often recognized as the former vocalist of the gothic metal band Tristania. Stene met the members of Tristania during her first years in high school. She joined the band shortly before they started recording their self-titled demo...
was initially recruited as a guest singer for the demo recording, but she later joined as a regular member. During the summer of 1997 different labels showed interest in the demo. Tristania signed with Napalm Records and released the EP Tristania.
Tristania's first full length album, Widow's Weeds
Widow's Weeds (album)
Widow's Weeds is the first full-length album by the Norwegian gothic metal band Tristania.-Track listing:All music by Tristania, all lyrics by Morten Veland# "Preludium..." – 1:09# "Evenfall" – 6:53# "Pale Enchantress" – 6:31# "December Elegy" – 7:31...
, was recorded at the end of 1997 and released early 1998. The album is symphonic metal with elements from a large variety of genres including gothic metal, death metal, classical music, and black metal. Two guest performers who were involved in Widow's Weeds would later get more prominent roles on Tristania’s albums; singer Østen Bergøy (who would later become a full band member) and violinist Pete Johansen
Pete Johansen
Pete Johansen is a Norwegian violinist born 11 May 1962, recognized for his many recordings in albums by gothic metal bands, in which he is distinguished for his peculiar style. The Scarr is his latest known project....
. Tristania got to do their first shows outside of Norway as support act for Lacrimosa
Lacrimosa (band)
Lacrimosa is a duo led by German Tilo Wolff, the main composer, and Finnish Anne Nurmi, currently based in Switzerland, but originally from Germany...
in Belgium and at the Mind over Matter festival in Austria in August 1998. Later the same year Tristania went on their first European tour, with Solefald
Solefald
Solefald is a Norwegian avant-garde metal/black metal band that was formed by members Lars Are "Lazare" Nedland and Cornelius Jakhelln in August 1995, with Lars singing and playing keyboard/synthesizer/piano and drums, and Cornelius singing and playing guitar and bass. The meaning of the band's...
and Haggard
Haggard (band)
Haggard is a German symphonic metal musical group founded in 1991. The group combines classical music and early music with doom metal.-Background:...
.
The band's second full length album Beyond The Veil
Beyond the Veil (album)
Beyond The Veil is the second full-length album by the Norwegian band Tristania. It is the last album to feature the band's former vocalist, guitarist and core songwriter, Morten Veland.-Track listing:...
was released in 1999. As on the debut album, Moen and Veland wrote the majority of the music, but Moen and Hidle emerged as a songwriting team. Jan Kenneth Barkved appeared as an additional singer. Tristania followed up the release with their first headlining tour with The Sins of Thy Beloved
The Sins of Thy Beloved
The Sins Of Thy Beloved is a gothic-doom metal band from Bryne, Norway.- Biography :The band was formed in November 1996 by Glenn Morten Nordbø, Arild Christensen and Stig Johansen. The band was initially called "Purgatory" but they soon decided to change their name to something less common...
, Trail of Tears
Trail of Tears (band)
Trail of Tears is a Norwegian gothic/symphonic black metal band originally formed in 1994 by vocalist Ronny Thorsen, under the name of Natt...
and Antichrisis as support acts. The band also toured with Tiamat
Tiamat (band)
-Biography:Initially, the band played straightforward black metal under the name Treblinka. After having recorded the album Sumerian Cry in 1989, vocalist/guitarist Johan Edlund and bassist Jörgen Thullberg parted ways with the other two founding members, and subsequently changed the name to Tiamat...
and 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...
in 1999. The band continued touring extensively in 2000. In December 2000 Veland and the rest of the band agreed on going separate ways, due to musical and personal differences.
World of Glass was released in September 2001, with guest contributions from Ronny Thorsen
Ronny Thorsen
Ronny Thorsen is a Norwegian vocalist most notable for being the harsh vocalist, lyricist, and only constant member of the band Trail of Tears. He has also been a session vocalist for the bands Blood Red Throne and Scariot and was a guest for the band Tristania...
, Johansen, and Barkved. The album added classical
Classical music
Classical music is the art music produced in, or rooted in, the traditions of Western liturgical and secular music, encompassing a broad period from roughly the 11th century to present times...
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 to Tristania's sound, and included the band's only cover version: "The Modern End," originally by Seigmen
Seigmen
Seigmen was a Norwegian alternative rock band in the 1990s. The bandname is derived from a Norwegian brand of candies, "Seigmenn". The band went from a hard-edged grunge-like style to a more dynamic sound with more ambient parts and use of synthesizers and various audio-effects.-Members:* Kim...
. Bergøy, now a permanent member of the band, also began to write lyrics on this album and has since become the band's main lyricist. Kjetil Ingebrethsen joined the band prior to the World of Glass tour on extreme vocals. On that tour Tristania was supported by Rotting Christ
Rotting Christ
Rotting Christ is a Greek black metal band formed in 1987. They are noted for being one of the first black metal bands within this region, as well as a premier act within the European underground metal scene.- Line-up :...
, Vintersorg
Vintersorg
Vintersorg is a Swedish band from Skellefteå, formed in 1994 under the name Vargatron . Musically, Vintersorg has covered a wide number of heavy metal genres; while the band is mostly rooted in extreme metal styles, particularly black metal and Viking/folk metal, it has also expanded into...
, and Madder Mortem
Madder Mortem
Madder Mortem is a Norwegian progressive metal band. They were formed in 1993 as Mystery Tribe.-Current lineup:* Agnete M. Kirkevaag − Vocals * BP M...
. More touring of Europe and Latin America followed in 2002.
In 2003-2004 Tristania took a break from performing live to focus solely on songwriting. Ashes was released on SPV/Steamhammer Records
SPV GmbH
SPV GmbH is an independent German record label.Founded on January 1, 1984, it has slowly grown to be one of the largest independent distributors and record labels worldwide....
in February 2005 and featured a stripped-down sound that de-emphasized the classical and operatic elements of the previous albums.
The band then toured Europe and Latin America (sometimes without Moen, who chose to remain at home and focus on songwriting) along with Nightwish
Nightwish
Nightwish is a Finnish symphonic metal band from Kitee, Finland. Formed in 1996 by songwriter and keyboardist Tuomas Holopainen, guitarist Emppu Vuorinen, and former vocalist Tarja Turunen, Nightwish's current line-up has five members, although Tarja has been replaced by Anette Olzon and the...
, Gothminister
Gothminister
Gothminister is an industrial metal band from Norway. Formed in 1999, they have released four albums and have had success in Germany, playing many German music festivals, including Wave-Gotik-Treffen , the Dark Storm Festival, the M'era Luna Festival, and performing for over 10,000 people at the...
, and Kreator
Kreator
Kreator is a thrash metal band from Essen, Germany, formed in 1978, but formalized in 1982 under the name Tormentor. They originally performed a speed metal style with Venom influences. Their style of music is similar to their compatriots Destruction and Sodom, the other two big German thrash metal...
. After the tours, Ingebrethsen decided to leave the band as he wanted to continue his musical career at a lower level. The band decided not to recruit a replacement, and Hidle took over the growling vocals.
Illumination
Illumination (Tristania album)
Illumination is the fifth full-length album by the Norwegian band Tristania. It was released on January 22nd, 2007, and is the last album to feature Vibeke Stene on vocals, Rune Østerhus on bass, Svein Terje Solvang on guitars and Kenneth Olsson on drums...
was released in January 2007, with touring guitarist Svein Terje Solvang added as an official member. Vorph
Vorph
Michael Locher is a Swiss musician who provides vocals and plays guitar for Swiss industrial/black metal band Samael. He co-founded the band in 1987 with his brother Alexandre Locher on drums. Michael's musical influences include Slayer, Iron Maiden, Motorhead, Venom, Bathory, and early Possessed...
of Samael
Samael (band)
Samael is a industrial black metal band formed in 1987 in Sion, Switzerland.-Biography:Although much of their music from the mid-1990s onwards has incorporated electronic sounds which would best define their genre as industrial metal, they are an early 2nd Wave black metal band and an innovator for...
appeared as a guest singer and a string quartet appeared on several songs. Shortly after the release of the album, Vibeke Stene
Vibeke Stene
Vibeke Stene is a Norwegian soprano singer. She is most often recognized as the former vocalist of the gothic metal band Tristania. Stene met the members of Tristania during her first years in high school. She joined the band shortly before they started recording their self-titled demo...
suddenly decided to quit her musical career in order to focus on family and her work as a teacher. As a result, all planned touring activities were put on hold. After holding auditions for a singer with a voice different than Stene's, Tristania recruited singer Mariangela Demurtas from Sardinia
Sardinia
Sardinia is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea . It is an autonomous region of Italy, and the nearest land masses are the French island of Corsica, the Italian Peninsula, Sicily, Tunisia and the Spanish Balearic Islands.The name Sardinia is from the pre-Roman noun *sard[],...
, Italy, who officially joined the band in October 2007.
Østerhus and Solvang both quit the band in 2008. Ole Vistnes joined as the new bassist and Gyri Losnegaard later joined as second guitarist. The new line-up featuring Demurtas on vocals debuted on February 29, 2008 at a festival appearance in Kiev, Ukraine. The next member to depart was drummer Kenneth Olsson, who was replaced by Tarald Lie; while singer Østen Bergøy scaled back to part-time status with the band due to family commitments. Kjetil Nordhus was added to the lineup on clean vocals. The band's sixth album, Rubicon
Rubicon (Tristania album)
Rubicon is the sixth full-length album by the Norwegian band Tristania. It is the first Tristania album to feature female vocalist Mariangela Demurtas, who replaced former frontwoman Vibeke Stene.- Overview :...
, was released on August 25, 2010.
After the Out of the Dark Festival in October 2 of 2011, the Hungarian Lambda Team has released a freeware PC game about Tristania, named Tristania 3D.
Music
On their early albums the band's sound was based on melodic death metalMelodic death metal
Melodic death metal is a heavy metal music style that combines elements from the New Wave of British Heavy Metal with elements of death metal. The style was developed during the early and mid-1990s, primarily in England and Scandinavia...
riff
RIFF
The Resource Interchange File Format is a generic file container format for storing data in tagged chunks. It is primarily used to store multimedia such as sound and video, though it may also be used to store any arbitrary data....
s with dominant and eerie keyboard
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...
and choirs. Doom metal
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...
is another strong influence, which can be heard in the slow, melancholic riffing. Tristania put a lot of focus on opera
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
tic female 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...
, haunting choruses, and classical instrument
Musical instrument
A musical instrument is a device created or adapted for the purpose of making musical sounds. In principle, any object that produces sound can serve as a musical instrument—it is through purpose that the object becomes a musical instrument. The history of musical instruments dates back to the...
s such as pipe organ
Pipe organ
The pipe organ is a musical instrument that produces sound by driving pressurized air through pipes selected via a keyboard. Because each organ pipe produces a single pitch, the pipes are provided in sets called ranks, each of which has a common timbre and volume throughout the keyboard compass...
, harpsichord
Harpsichord
A harpsichord is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It produces sound by plucking a string when a key is pressed.In the narrow sense, "harpsichord" designates only the large wing-shaped instruments in which the strings are perpendicular to the keyboard...
, flute
Flute
The flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening...
s and violin
Violin
The 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....
s. On the band's early albums there was also a prominent focus on the death vocals of Morten Veland
Morten Veland
Morten Veland is a Norwegian musician. He was one of the founding members of the Norwegian gothic metal band Tristania and later founded Sirenia....
. This combination of death vocals with female operatics and majestic gothic choruses is believed by many fans to have reached its pinnacle on their album Beyond The Veil
Beyond the Veil (album)
Beyond The Veil is the second full-length album by the Norwegian band Tristania. It is the last album to feature the band's former vocalist, guitarist and core songwriter, Morten Veland.-Track listing:...
.
On later albums Tristania stepped back from the bombastic layer-over-layer production and focused more on balancing the various vocal styles. Østen Bergøy was added on clean male vocals (hollow baritone) for the album Beyond The Veil
Beyond the Veil (album)
Beyond The Veil is the second full-length album by the Norwegian band Tristania. It is the last album to feature the band's former vocalist, guitarist and core songwriter, Morten Veland.-Track listing:...
, first as a guest singer and later as a full band member. After the departure of Veland, the death vocals were performed by guitarist Anders Høyvik Hidle and Kjetil Ingebrethsen (who joined the band officially for the album Ashes), and a variety of guest vocalists.
Albums
- Widow's WeedsWidow's Weeds (album)Widow's Weeds is the first full-length album by the Norwegian gothic metal band Tristania.-Track listing:All music by Tristania, all lyrics by Morten Veland# "Preludium..." – 1:09# "Evenfall" – 6:53# "Pale Enchantress" – 6:31# "December Elegy" – 7:31...
(1998) - Beyond The VeilBeyond the Veil (album)Beyond The Veil is the second full-length album by the Norwegian band Tristania. It is the last album to feature the band's former vocalist, guitarist and core songwriter, Morten Veland.-Track listing:...
(1999) - World Of Glass (2001)
- Ashes (2005)
- IlluminationIllumination (Tristania album)Illumination is the fifth full-length album by the Norwegian band Tristania. It was released on January 22nd, 2007, and is the last album to feature Vibeke Stene on vocals, Rune Østerhus on bass, Svein Terje Solvang on guitars and Kenneth Olsson on drums...
(2007) - RubiconRubicon (Tristania album)Rubicon is the sixth full-length album by the Norwegian band Tristania. It is the first Tristania album to feature female vocalist Mariangela Demurtas, who replaced former frontwoman Vibeke Stene.- Overview :...
(2010)
Current members
- Mariangela Demurtas – Vocals (2007–present)
- Kjetil Nordhus – Clean vocals (2010–present)
- Anders Høyvik Hidle – Harsh vocals/Guitars (1996–present)
- Gyri Smørdal Losnegaard – Guitars (2009–present)
- Ole Vistnes – Bass/Backing vocals (2009–present)
- Einar Moen – Synth/Programming (1996–present)
- Tarald Lie Jr. – Drums (2010–present)
Former members
- Vibeke SteneVibeke SteneVibeke Stene is a Norwegian soprano singer. She is most often recognized as the former vocalist of the gothic metal band Tristania. Stene met the members of Tristania during her first years in high school. She joined the band shortly before they started recording their self-titled demo...
– Vocals (1997–2007) - Østen Bergøy – Clean vocals (2001–2010)
- Morten VelandMorten VelandMorten Veland is a Norwegian musician. He was one of the founding members of the Norwegian gothic metal band Tristania and later founded Sirenia....
– Harsh vocals/Guitars (1996–2000) - Kjetil Ingebrethsen – Harsh vocals, Occasional acoustic guitars (2001–2006)
- Svein Terje Solvang – Guitars (2004–2008), Harsh vocals (2006–2008)
- Rune Østerhus – Bass (1996–2009)
- Kenneth Olsson – Drums (1996–2010)
Live/session members
- Østen Bergøy – Clean vocals (1997–2001)
- Kjetil Nordhus – Clean vocals (2009–2010)
- Gyri Smørdal Losnegaard – Guitars (2009)
- Kjell Rune Hagen – Bass (2005–2008)
- Ole Vistnes – Bass/Backing vocals (2008–2009)
- Jonathan A. PerezJonathan Pérez (musician)Jonathan Alejandro Pérez is a Chilean drummer who is currently based in Kristiansand, Norway. He is known for his work with the Norwegian gothic metal and symphonic metal bands Trail of Tears and Sirenia.-Career:...
– Drums (2005) - Tarald Lie Jr. – Drums (2006–2010)
Official websites
- Official website
- Kjetil Ingebrethsen's message regarding his departure
- Tristania at Encyclopaedia MetallumEncyclopaedia MetallumEncyclopaedia Metallum: The Metal Archives is a website which lists bands from various forms of heavy metal music...