Elysia was an American

deathcore Deathcore is an extreme metal subgenre that combines death metal with metalcore. The genre consists of death metal guitar riffs, blast beats, and metalcore Breakdown (music)#Heavy metal and punk rock, breakdowns. While there are some precursors ...

band from

Shingle Springs, California Shingle Springs (formerly, Shingle Spring and Shingle) is a census-designated place (CDP) in El Dorado County, California, United States. The population was 4,432 at the 2010 census, up from 2,643 at the 2000 census. It is located about from Sacr ...

. Originally called Elysium's Revenge, the band was started in 2003 while the members were in high school. Since 2003 they have released one EP and two full-length albums and have completed two US tours despite frequent line-up changes. Having settled into a more consistent line-up, the band released ''Lion of Judas'' on June 10, 2008, through

Ferret Records Ferret Music was an American independent record label turned Warner Music Group subsidiary, founded in 1996. The label is owned by metalcore band NORA's vocalist, Carl Severson, and based in West Windsor, New Jersey. Ferret recently started an i ...

. The band disbanded in 2008, but announced their reformation in 2013. In May of 2024, the band remastered and reissued Masochist with bonus tracks and an insight into the album by vocalist Zak Vargas. Elysia has toured and performed with bands including;

Arsonists Get All the Girls Arsonists Get All the Girls is an American heavy metal music, metal band from Santa Cruz, California. Founded in 2005, the band was noted for taking influence from varying genres, particularly in their early years for fusing deathcore with vari ...

Knights of the Abyss Knights of the Abyss are an American deathcore band from Glendale, Arizona, United States, formed in 2005. Biography Knights of the Abyss was formed in 2005 after drummer Andy Rysdam had left his former band Job for a Cowboy. They have record ...

Catherine Katherine (), also spelled Catherine and Catherina, other variations, is a feminine given name. The name and its variants are popular in countries where large Christian populations exist, because of its associations with one of the earliest Ch ...

Emmure Emmure () is an American metalcore band formed in 2003. Originally based in New Fairfield, Connecticut, before moving to Queens, New York, the group has released eight albums, with their first public release being a 2006 EP entitled '' The Co ...

Heavy Heavy Low Low Heavy Heavy Low Low is an American Grind band from San Jose, California. Biography Formed in early 2004 in San Jose, California, Heavy Heavy Low Low played shows throughout the West Coast and developed a significant following, becoming known ...

Impending Doom Impending Doom is an American Christian deathcore band from Riverside, California. The group has released six full-length studio albums and are currently a four piece with lead vocalist Brook Reeves as one of the two original remaining member ...

Suicide Silence Suicide Silence is an American deathcore band from Riverside, California, Riverside, California. The band was established in 2002, and has released seven studio albums, three EPs, and nineteen music videos. They were awarded the ''Revolver (ma ...

and This Is Hell. The group also performed at the

Saints & Sinners Festival Saints & Sinners Festival is a two-day hardcore and heavy metal music festival held yearly in New Jersey. It started in 2006 at the Asbury Park Convention Hall on October 28 and October 29. The first day had emo/screamo/post hardcore bands and At ...

in 2007.

History

Formation and early years

Elysia started as ''Elysium's Revenge'', while the band members were still in high school. The band gained notoriety in the Shingle Springs-Cameron Park area with their empty shows at the Shingle Springs Community Center. By the end of 2003, they shortened their name to ''Elysia'' and added a second vocalist, Justin Chambers, who helped them record their first EP. Months later, they penned "Incinerate," a song that became a staple in their setlist. In the spring of 2004 they recorded a second EP with the first occurrence of "Incinerate." The release show for this EP features Suffokate and

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. That summer and fall, they would write "Triumph" and "Filthy."

''Masochist''

Out of the Masochist writing sessions came their first full album,

Masochist Masochist may refer to: * Sadomasochism, giving or receiving pleasure from the receipt or infliction of pain or humiliation Music * The Prophet (musician) (born 1968), Dutch DJ and producer who has recorded of the masochist Albums * ''Masochist ...

. Originally planned for release on This City Is Burning Records, problems arose and it became a DIY effort. It was during this process that the band started to become more known, touring with killwhitneydead. Around this time, most of the band graduated, and Kevin Marquez left the band to move to

San Diego San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...

. After several band member changes, they toured along the west coast. In the spring of 2007, the band planned to rerecord the album for a re-release on

Tribunal Records Tribunal Records is a heavy metal and hardcore punk label that started in 1999. The label also has a subsidiary entitled Divebomb Records. Tribunal has hosted bands such as From the Shallows, Scarlet, and Century, while Divebomb hosts bands such ...

, with

Jamie King Jamie King (born 1972) is an American creative director, choreographer, and producer. His work directing concert tours for pop stars has grossed over $2 billion as of 2011. Early career King started his career in entertainment as a dancer. He ...

as the producer. However, drummer Joey Rommel left the band right before they went into Castle Ultimate Studios to record. Because of this recording disruption, Elysia never re-released the album, although they are on a Tribunal Records sampler. They found drummer Jacob Durrett (now playing drums in Fate) to fill in for a 10-Day tour with Impending Doom and Moria. After returning home they found Steven Sessler to play drums, who is still a member of the band. Alex Porte left the band in the summer of 2007, less than a month before their first full US tour. With Zak Vargas as the sole original member, the band almost broke up, but continued due to contractual responsibility to perform. They toured with

and

, and during the tour got jumped for a second time. In the low point of the band, when they were about to break up, Elysia got signed to

. Elysia signed into a three-day mini-tour, and the day it started Mark Underwood, Alex's replacement, leaves the band. Once again, the fate of the band was at stake, but Zak agreed to continue, and they found a replacement guitarist. To save the band, after the mini-tour Zak talked Garrett Gilardi, a high-school friend, into joining the band again, as well as Jon joining the band again as the bassist.

''Lion of Judas''

In December 2007, the band sat down to write their second album, ''Lion of Judas'' released through

. They consider their new music to be "a new era for Elysia, so please do not expect the same band." They were on a tour with This Is Hell, where it concluded with a trip to

Salem, Massachusetts Salem ( ) is a historic coastal city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States, located on the North Shore (Massachusetts), North Shore of Greater Boston. Continuous settlement by Europeans began in 1626 with English colonists. Salem was one ...

where the new album was recorded with

Kurt Ballou Kurt Ballou (born February 1, 1974) is an American musician and record producer based in Massachusetts, best known as the guitarist for metalcore band Converge and for his recording and production work at his own GodCity Studio. Early and pe ...

for a week. They dropped off the tour with

Shai Hulud Shai Hulud is an American metalcore band formed in Pompano Beach, Florida, in 1995, and later based in Poughkeepsie, New York. The band is named after the giant sandworms in Frank Herbert's novel ''Dune''. The two mainstay members of Shai Hulu ...

and

Full Blown Chaos Full Blown Chaos is a metalcore band from Floral Park, Queens, New York. According to the band, their whole direction "is to keep a wide range of music, not to necessarily pigeonhole ourselves into metal or hardcore". They are well respected i ...

because of medical issues with Zak.

Disbanding and re-forming

After the drop-out of the last tour, there were hints of Elysia's then current state including their MySpace design removed and Zak's blog entries which included Elysia breaking up. Members including Zak, Steven, and Garrett looked into working together on a new project, but nothing surfaced. Through many sources, it was confirmed the band had reformed. Plans fell through with the other members, thus putting to rest of any plans of reformation. Zak Vargas would later form black metal outfit VRTRA.

Musical style, influences and lyrical themes

Elysia's lyrics cover a wide range of topics, such as

homophobia Homophobia encompasses a range of negative attitudes and feelings toward homosexuality or people who identify or are perceived as being lesbian, Gay men, gay or bisexual. It has been defined as contempt, prejudice, aversion, hatred, or ant ...

and failed

romantic love Romance or romantic love is a feeling of love for, or a Interpersonal attraction, strong attraction towards another person, and the Courtship, courtship behaviors undertaken by an individual to express those overall feelings and resultant ...

. The band admits that they sometimes had a hard time accurately portraying the meanings they wanted to put across, mainly because of "immaturity". For example, the lyrical content of "Incinerate" and "Filthy" has led to criticism of the band. They have also been banned from playing at venues because of their lyrics’ graphic violent content. Their sound has encompassed several facets of hardcore and metal. Their early material, to include ''Masochist'', was of the death core style. Their second and final album, ''Lion of Judas'', was of a style reminiscent of 90s hardcore in its sound; however, it continued the band's socially minded lyrical themes, albeit in a more seasoned manner. The band's first studio album ''

'' pulls heavily on

Metalcore Metalcore is a broadly defined fusion genre combining elements of extreme metal and hardcore punk, originating in the 1990s United States and becoming popular in the 2000s. Metalcore typically has aggressive verses and melodic choruses, combined ...

and

death metal Death metal is an extreme metal, extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. It typically employs heavily distorted and low-tuned guitars, played with techniques such as palm muting and tremolo picking; deep death growl, growling vocals; aggressive ...

influence (the two genres that make up death core). Although with breakdowns inspired directly from 90's hardcore rather than the typical metal core breakdown. Some of the band's influences include Entombed,

Immolation Immolation may refer to: *Death by burning *Self-immolation, the act of burning oneself * Immolation (band), a death metal band from Yonkers, New York *'' The Immolation'', a 1977 novel by Goh Poh Seng *'' Dance Dance Immolation'', an interactive ...

Dying Fetus Dying Fetus is an American death metal band from Greater Upper Marlboro, Maryland, formed in 1991. Various lineup changes throughout the years have left John Gallagher as the sole remaining original member, as well as the band's driving force. ...

The Acacia Strain The Acacia Strain is an American deathcore band that was founded in 2001 and originally based in Chicopee, Massachusetts, but now based in Albany, New York. The group is currently signed to Rise Records and initially consisted of high school f ...

Converge Converge may refer to: * Converge (band), American hardcore punk band * Converge (Baptist denomination), American national evangelical Baptist body * Limit (mathematics) In mathematics, a limit is the value that a function (or sequence) app ...

and

Pantera Pantera () is an American Heavy metal music, heavy metal band formed in Arlington, Texas in 1981 by the Abbott brothers (guitarist Dimebag Darrell and drummer Vinnie Paul), and currently composed of vocalist Phil Anselmo, bassist Rex Brown, an ...

Band members

Final line-up *Zak Vargas – vocals *Alex Porte – guitars *Mark Underwood – guitars *Danny Lomeli – guitars (2006-2007) drums *Chris Lemos– bass guitar, backing vocals Former members *Justin Chambers – keyboard, vocals *Andre Vocino – guitar *Pat Guild – bass *John Sontag - bass *Kevin Marquez – drums *Joey Rommel – drums *Chris Cain– guitar *Jeremy Chavez – bass *Garrett Gilardi - guitar *Jon Malanowski – bass, backing vocals *Steven Sessler – drums Timeline ImageSize =width:800 height:auto barincrement:20 PlotArea =left:100 bottom:80 top:0 right:0 Alignbars =justify DateFormat =mm/dd/yyyy Period =from:01/01/2003 till:10/01/2008 ScaleMajor = increment:2 start:2004 ScaleMajor = increment:1 start:2003 TimeAxis =orientation:horizontal format:yyyy Legend =orientation:vertical position:bottom columns:4 Colors= id:vocals value:red legend:Vocals id:guitar value:green legend:Guitar id:bass value:blue legend:Bass id:drums value:orange legend:Drums id:keys value:purple legend:Keyboards id:backing value:yellow legend:Backing_Vocals id:studio value:black legend:Studio_album id:other value:gray(0.5) legend:EP/Demo id:bars value:gray(0.95) LineData= layer:back color:studio at:01/01/2006 at:06/10/2008 color:other at:12/01/2004 at:01/01/2005 at:03/01/2003 at:10/01/2003 at:07/01/2004 BackgroundColors= bars:bars BarData= bar:Zak text:"Zak Vargas" bar:Alex text:"Alex Porte" bar:Mark text:"Mark Underwood" bar:Andre text:"Andre Vocino" bar:Garrett text:"Garrett Gilardi" bar:Chris text:"Chris Cain" bar:Danny text:"Danny Lomeli" bar:Pat text:"Pat Guild" bar:Jon text:"Jon Malanowski" bar:Jeremy text:"Jeremy Chavez" bar:Chris2 text:"Chris Lemos" bar:Justin text:"Justin Chambers" bar:Kevin text:"Kevin Marquez" bar:Joey text:"Joey Rommel" bar:Steven text:"Steven Sessler" PlotData = width:11 textcolor:black align:left anchor:from shift:(10,-4) bar:Zak from:01/01/2003 till:10/01/2008 color:vocals bar:Alex from:01/01/2003 till:01/01/2007 color:guitar bar:Mark from:01/01/2007 till:05/01/2007 color:guitar bar:Garrett from:05/01/2006 till:04/01/2008 color:guitar bar:Chris from:04/01/2008 till:10/01/2008 color:guitar bar:Andre from:01/01/2003 till:04/01/2006 color:guitar bar:Pat from:01/01/2003 till:04/01/2006 color:bass bar:Jon from:04/01/2006 till:01/01/2007 color:bass bar:Jon from:10/01/2007 till:10/01/2008 color:bass bar:Jeremy from:01/01/2007 till:10/01/2007 color:bass bar:Justin from:01/01/2003 till:10/01/2004 color:keys bar:Justin from:01/01/2003 till:10/01/2004 color:vocals width:3 bar:Kevin from:01/01/2003 till:04/01/2006 color:drums bar:Joey from:04/01/2006 till:01/01/2007 color:drums bar:Steven from:01/01/2007 till:10/01/2008 color:drums bar:Danny from:01/01/2006 till:01/01/2007 color:guitar

Discography

As Elysia

Studio albums *''Masochist'' (2006) *''

Lion of Judas ''Lion of Judas'' is the second album by deathcore band Elysia. The album has a large change in style compared to the band's previous album, drawing heavy influence from Converge, Botch, and Cave In Cave In is an American rock band that ...

'' (2008) *''Masochist Deluxe Reissue'' (2024) EPs *''Killing Grounds EP'' (2004) Demos *''04 Demo'' (2004) *''Tease Her, Please Her, Stick Her in the Freezer'' (2005)

As Elysium's Revenge

EPs *''Demo'' (2003)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Elysia (Band) American deathcore musical groups American musical quintets Death metal musical groups from California Ferret Music artists Musical groups established in 2003 Musical groups disestablished in 2008 Metalcore musical groups from California