ENSLAVED released their debut album classic Vikingligr Veldi on this day in 1994 through Deathlike Silence (at that point, after the death of Euronymous, under control of the distributor Voices of Wonder).
Original press sheet:
UP TO DATE: ENSLAVED
Haugesund, Norway, 13.2.1994
The norwegian VIKING-metallers ENSLAVED are these days releasing their first full-lenght album through Deathlike Silence Prod./Voices of Wonder Rec.
This album contains 5 tracks of Epic, Majestic, Melancholic and symphonic-orientated metal. The "Viking-Metal" label is developed by the band itself, & describes something as banal as metal played by "modern" Vikings.
Enslaved's lyrics are concentrated around the ancient Norse folklore, religion and mysticusm, but you'll also find pieces of classic poetry in between...
The musical influences are mainly the more extreme oriented musicstyles of metal, but also bands like Pink Floyd, Tangerine Dream, Klaus Schultze and Motörhead have inspired ENSLAVED's work.
Now, a short briefing on ENSLAVED's history... It begins in early '91, where the line-up which still is the same was found. Before this the members of the band had known eachother and had been working together or separate in other metal-projects. This line up concists of the following:
* IVAR BJØRNSON: GUITARS, ELECTRONICS & PIANO. / Music & Lyrics.
* GRUTLE KJELLSON: BASS & VOCALS. / Lyrics.
* TRYM TORSON: DRUMS & PERCUSSION.
In '92 ENSLAVED recorded their one and only demo, "Yggdrasill", which got them a deal for 3 full-length albums. Then in November/December the same year, they recorded a Mini-Album called "Hordanes Land", which is available both on a 12" vinyl and a split-CD with Norwegian Black-metallers Emperor from Candlelight Rec.
In the spring/summer of '93 ENSLAVED recorded their upcoming album "VIKINGLIGR VELDI" in Grieghallen Studios, Bergen, Norway. They are now working on the next album, named "Frost". While the lyrics earlier (this includes the "Vikingligr Veldi" album) were in ancient Norse or Icelandic, ENSLAVED has now decided to have all lyrics in modern Norwegian. This is because we don't feel competent to express ourselves in a language we don't have enough knowledge about. But ENSLAVED is a Norwegian band, and will therefore keep the lyrics in our own lanaguage.
The release-date for the album "VIKINGLIGR VELDI" is 28th February. T-shirts have also been pressed... Contact Voices of Wonder through mail or by phone for prices, information, booking etc.
Watch out for new Viking-raids towards Europe in the future!! Tours are on their way if everything works out...
IVAR BJØRNSON