Summoning (band)

Summoning

Protector and Silenius
Background information
Origin Vienna, Austria
Genres
Years active 1993 – present
Labels Napalm
Associated acts Abigor
Die Verbannten Kinder Evas
Kreuzweg Ost
Ice Ages
Amestigon
Website summoning.info
Members Protector
Silenius
Past members Trifixion
Pazuzu

Summoning is an Austrian black metal band. Since their formation in 1993 they have released seven albums and two EPs on Napalm Records. Their lyrics make extensive use of J.R.R. Tolkien's Middle-earth writings and mythology.

Biography

Summoning was formed sometime in 1993 by Silenius (Michael Gregor), Protector (Richard Lederer) and Trifixion (Alexander Trondl). Before creating Summoning, Protector was playing drums in a thrash/death metal band called Marlignom[2] and had embarked on a four-year study of drums in music school. Silenius was in a doom metal band Shadow Vale (at 16 years old) and had a few years in music school studying piano. Before Summoning, Silenius was making music, together with Pazuzu (Ray Wells) in a band Cromm. Trifixion played in the band Pervertum.

Summoning recorded two demos (Upon the Viking's Stallion and Anno Mortiri Domini), as well as a split with the Austrian band Pazuzu (The Urilia Text) and a five-track promo tape for Lugburz. Nearly all songs from the demos were never released after or took place on CDs in a very different version.

The demos sold quite well in a record shop in Vienna called "Why not". Some time later Silenius got in contact with T.T. (Thomas Tannenberger), eventually leading to the birth of Abigor. Silenius ended up doing all vocals for Abigor releases (except the demos) as a permanent member until 1999. The first Abigor album was recorded for the young Napalm Records label, which led to Silenius managing to get a deal from Napalm for Summoning's debut Lugburz in 1995. At that time the members of Summoning were: Silenius – vocals, keyboards, bass; Protector – vocals, keyboards, guitar; Trifixion – drums (his last release with the band); Pazuzu lent some additional vocals and wrote some of the lyrics. Lugburz was more traditional black metal and very different from the band's later releases that would follow.

The band continued as a duo after the departure of Trifixion, releasing Minas Morgul in 1995. This was the band's first release in their new style, an epic and atmospheric style utilizing guitar purely as a background instrument and synth almost as a lead, using re-recorded early songs. Dol Guldur, in 1996, continued this style and saw an influence from Protector's darkwave project Ice Ages. It also credits J.R.R. Tolkien for lyrics. In 1997, the Nightshade Forests EP was released, and has since been included on the recent Dol Guldur pressings. After this, the band ceased all work for nearly two years, and also stopped work with many of their other music projects. But in 1999, Summoning returned with Stronghold which, while still in the classic Summoning style, focused more on guitar work to create melodic lines rather than keyboards and synthesizers than in previous releases.

In the year 2001 the follow-up Let Mortal Heroes Sing Your Fame was released. This release was a kind of combination between the old and new style of Summoning, with the keyboard lines being more epic and polyphonic while the guitars bore a similarity with the more complex and rock-esque guitar-style from Stronghold.[3] This time the band used more spoken-word samples to bring a more dramatic style to the songs and for the first time the band works with clear vocal choirs on the song "Farewell". The lyrical concept again was totally based on Tolkien's Middle-earth, but for the first time it was combined with some inspiration from Michael Moorcock's fantasy writings. In 2003, they released the Lost Tales EP, which consisted of leftovers from the Dol Guldur sessions.

2006 saw the release of Oath Bound, which consisted of all new material. The long break between Let Mortal Heroes Sing Your Fame and Oath Bound was due to struggles in the band members' personal lives, along with lack of ideas.[4] Oath Bound featured a "relaxed arpeggio style" guitar sound, which gave a more epic feeling to the sound of the album. The band also had higher-quality equipment available to them for the recording of the album and were able to create greater choir vocals than they had done before.[5] A 4-song mini CD was suggested for release in 2007 containing at least one song which didn't make it onto Oath Bound due to size issues, however, this idea was abandoned and Protector instead began work on music for a full-length release while waiting for Silenius to finish recording the next Kreuzweg Ost album.

In February 2012, the band announced on their website that they were in the process of writing new songs, and were hoping to have most of the songs complete by the end of the year. In December 2012 it was announced that all the guitars and Protector's vocal parts for the new album were complete and that the upcoming album would be entitled Old Mornings Dawn.[6] Old Mornings Dawn was released in June 2013 on Napalm Records and lyrically focuses mostly on nature themes, as well as J.R.R. Tolkien's Valinor.

Musical characteristics

On their debut album Lugburz, Summoning showed the musical traits of a more traditional, raw black metal band, although had a reverberated sound to the production. After this album, the band began to develop a slower, denser, and more epic sound to their music, showcased in such albums as 2001's Let Mortal Heroes Sing Your Fame, and in 2006's Oath Bound. Their trademark sound is characterized by very minimalistic and quiet guitars often low in the mix, heavily programmed and reverberated drums, multi-layered synthesizer and keyboard melodies mimicking a full orchestra which often dominates the rest of the mix apart from the saturated drums. Vocals are still sung in the traditional black metal fashion, however vocals are often heavily reverberated as well. Male voice choir sections also make an appearance on the albums Let Mortal Heroes Sing Your Fame (on the song Farewell) and Oath Bound (On the songs "Might and Glory" and "Land of the Dead").

Discography

Studio albums

(All released on Napalm Records)

EPs

Compilation albums

Split albums

Demos

Line-up

Guest musicians

Protector (Richard Lederer) is engaged in other projects

Silenius (Michael Gregor) is the creator and sole member of Kreuzweg Ost. Silenius also served as the vocalist for the Austrian black metal band Abigor between 1994 and 1999. Silenius Is also an active member in Amestigon, a pagan black metal band, as well as Shadow Vale, and Mirkwood, both of which are darkwave ambient projects.

References

  1. ↑ Summoning biography @ MusicMight
  2. ↑ Second page of About.com interview with Summoning
  3. ↑ Chronicles of Chaos interview
  4. ↑ First page of About.com interview with Summoning
  5. ↑ Summoning's official website
  6. ↑ Summoning's official website: news
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