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The Meads of Asphodel are an English
black metal Black metal is an extreme metal, extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. Common traits include Tempo#Beats per minute, fast tempos, a Screaming (music)#Black metal, shrieking vocal style, heavily distorted Electric guitar, guitars played with tr ...
band with pronounced
medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...
,
Arab Arabs (,  , ; , , ) are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in West Asia and North Africa. A significant Arab diaspora is present in various parts of the world. Arabs have been in the Fertile Crescent for thousands of years ...
,
punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...
, and
progressive metal Progressive metal (often shortened to prog metal) is a broad fusion music genre melding heavy metal music, heavy metal and progressive rock, combining the loud "aggression" and amplified electric guitar, guitar-driven sound of the former with t ...
influences from
Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and one of the home counties. It borders Bedfordshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Essex to the east, Greater London to the ...
, England.


History

The band was formed in mid-1998 by Metatron and Jaldaboath. The stated aim being to "create heavy guitar-based original Black Metal with Medieval/Eastern influences and a lyrical concept derived from Christ's mortality, Biblical Apocrypha, Fallen Angels and Death." Their demo releases ''The Bemoaning of Metatron'' and ''Metatron and the Red Gleaming Serpent'' gained them a good deal of critical attention in the underground metal press, even receiving mentions from such mainstream sources as ''
Kerrang! ''Kerrang!'' is a British music webzine and quarterly magazine that primarily covers rock, punk and heavy metal music. Since 2017, the magazine has been published by Wasted Talent Ltd (the same company that owns electronic music publication ...
'' magazine, and they soon signed to
Supernal Music Hyundai Motor Company, often referred to as Hyundai Motors, ( ) and commonly known as Hyundai (), is a South Korean multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Seoul, South Korea, which was founded in 1967. Currently, the company ow ...
after the release of their widely acclaimed final demo ''The Watchers of Catal Huyuk''. Their albums, particularly 2001's '' The Excommunication of Christ'' explore conceptual themes based around an anti-
Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...
interpretation of the
Bible The Bible is a collection of religious texts that are central to Christianity and Judaism, and esteemed in other Abrahamic religions such as Islam. The Bible is an anthology (a compilation of texts of a variety of forms) originally writt ...
and
Apocrypha Apocrypha () are biblical or related writings not forming part of the accepted canon of scripture, some of which might be of doubtful authorship or authenticity. In Christianity, the word ''apocryphal'' (ἀπόκρυφος) was first applied to ...
. Despite a fluctuating line-up, the band continues to release well-received music. One of the band's most consistent features is their use of guest musicians. Over the years they have had a large roster of guests including members of
Hawkwind Hawkwind are an English rock band known as one of the earliest space rock groups. Since their formation in November 1969, Hawkwind have gone through many incarnations and have incorporated many different styles into their music, including hard ...
, Sigh,
Amebix Amebix were an English punk rock band from Tavistock, Devon. A pioneer of the crust punk genre, Amebix's merger of anarcho-punk and post-punk with elements of heavy metal music, heavy metal, particularly early extreme metal, inspired musicians ...
, Mael Mordha,
Taake Taake () is a Norwegian black metal band from Bergen, formed in 1993 and originally named Thule. The band's one continuous member is Hoest, who writes all and records most of the music. Taake has released eight full-length albums and several EPs ...
, and an actual
Rabbi A rabbi (; ) is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi—known as ''semikha''—following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of t ...
.


Members

;Current members *Metatron –
Vocals Singing is the art of creating music with the voice. It is the oldest form of musical expression, and the human voice can be considered the first musical instrument. The definition of singing varies across sources. Some sources define sing ...
(1998–present) *J.D. Tait –
Guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...
s, keyboards, vocals (2002–present) *André Kjelbergvik Thung –
Drums The drum is a member of the percussion instrument, percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel–Sachs classification system, it is a membranophones, membranophone. Drums consist of at least one Acoustic membrane, membrane, c ...
(2012–present) ;Former members *Jaldaboath –
Guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...
s,
music programming Programming is a form of music Music production (music industry)#Modern production technology, production and performance using electronic devices and computer software, such as Music sequencer, sequencers and Music workstation, workstations or h ...
,
vocals Singing is the art of creating music with the voice. It is the oldest form of musical expression, and the human voice can be considered the first musical instrument. The definition of singing varies across sources. Some sources define sing ...
,
bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Wood * Bass or basswood, the wood of the tilia americana tree Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in th ...
, keyboards (1998–2002) *Urakbaramel – Drums (2002–2012) *Max Rael (
History of Guns History Of Guns are an English metamodern cross-genre group combining elements of Industrial, punk, electronica, ebm, edm, goth, rock, metal and avant-garde from Hertfordshire, England. They were a part of the early 00s underground UK indus ...
) – Keyboards,
programming Program (American English; also Commonwealth English in terms of computer programming and related activities) or programme (Commonwealth English in all other meanings), programmer, or programming may refer to: Business and management * Program m ...
(2001–2007) *Paul Carter – Keyboards (2003) *Deorth – Bass (2003) * Pope Richard Alan Weeks
Bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Wood * Bass or basswood, the wood of the tilia americana tree Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in th ...
(2015–2018) ;Session musicians and guests * Alan Davey
Bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Wood * Bass or basswood, the wood of the tilia americana tree Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in th ...
(2002–2014) *Mirai – Keyboards *
Huw Lloyd-Langton Richard Hugh "Huw" Lloyd-Langton (6 February 1951 – 6 December 2012) was an English musician, best known as the guitarist for the rock band HawkwindStrong, Martin C. (2003) ''The Great Rock Discography'', Canongate, , p. 466 at various times. ...
– Lead guitar (2000–2007) *The Mad Mullah –
drums The drum is a member of the percussion instrument, percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel–Sachs classification system, it is a membranophones, membranophone. Drums consist of at least one Acoustic membrane, membrane, c ...
(2002)


Discography


Studio albums

* '' The Excommunication of Christ'' (
Supernal Hyundai Motor Company, often referred to as Hyundai Motors, ( ) and commonly known as Hyundai (), is a South Korean multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Seoul, South Korea, which was founded in 1967. Currently, the company ow ...
, 2001) * '' Exhuming the Grave of Yeshua'' (Supernal, 2003) * ''
Damascus Steel Damascus steel (Arabic: فولاذ دمشقي) refers to the high-carbon crucible steel of the blades of historical swords forged using the wootz process in the Near East, characterized by distinctive patterns of banding and mottling reminiscent ...
'' (Supernal, 2005) * ''The Murder of Jesus the Jew'' (Candlelight Records, 2010) * ''Sonderkommando'' (Candlelight Records, 2013) * ''Running Out of Time Doing Nothing'' (Godreah Records, 2019)


EPs and splits

* '' Freezing Moon/Jihad'' split with
Mayhem Mayhem most commonly refers to: * Mayhem (crime), a type of crime Mayhem may also refer to: People * Monica Mayhem (born 1978), Australian pornographic actress * Jason "Mayhem" Miller, American mixed martial arts fighter * Mayhem Miller (dr ...
(Supernal, 2002) * ''
In the Name of God, Welcome to Planet Genocide ''In the Name of God, Welcome to Planet Genocide'' is the first EP released by the black metal Black metal is an extreme metal, extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. Common traits include Tempo#Beats per minute, fast tempos, a Screaming (mu ...
'' EP (Firestorm, 2006) * ''
Life is Shit The Meads of Asphodel are an English black metal band with pronounced medieval, Arab, punk, and progressive metal influences from Hertfordshire, England. History The band was formed in mid-1998 by Metatron and Jaldaboath. The stated aim being ...
'' EP (Firestorm, 2007) * '' English Black Punk Metal/The Bones of This Land are Not Speechless'' split with Old Corpse Road (Godreah, 2010) * '' Taste the Divine Wrath'' split with Tjolgtjar (Eternal Death, 2015) * ''Imperial East-West Onslaught'' split with Rerthro (2018) * ''The Voiceless Dust of Ages'' EP (2018) * ''Tomb Songs From a Dying Bedlamite'' EP (Godreah, 2024)


Demos

* ''The Bemoaning of Metatron'' (demo, 1998) * ''Metatron and the Gleaming Red Serpent'' (demo, 1999) * ''The Watchers of Catal Huyuk'' (demo, 1999)


Live

* '' The Mill Hill Sessions'' (Godreah, 2004)


Compilations

* ''Britannia Infernus: A History of British Occult and Black'' (Godreah, 2002) * ''Daze of the Underground: A Tribute to Hawkwind'' (Godreah, 2003) * ''The Early Years'' (compilation of unreleased material from 1998–2002) (Godreah, 2009) * ''Swine of Hades'' (Godreah, 2011) * ''Voices from Valhalla: A Tribute to Bathory'' (Godreah, 2012) * ''The Meads of Asphodel'' boxed Set (Fallen-Angels Productions, 2013) * ''The Middle Ages'' (Sixsixsix Music, 2014) * ''Split Promo'' with The Wolves of Avalon (Sixsixsix Music, 2014) * ''We Worship Desaster: A Tribute to Desaster'' (Grom records, 2014) * ''Desolate Hymns for a Fallen God'' (Covers Album) (Azermedoth Records, 2015) * ''Tales From Bedlam'' (Valgriind, 2015)


Singles

* "All Things Bright & Shit" – Terrorizer Xmas Song (Terrorizer, 2006) * "The Song of a Hundred Roars" – Terrorizer Magazine Xmas Song (Terrorizer, 2009)


References


External links


Official Homepage

The Meads of Asphodel
Encyclopaedia Metallum Encyclopaedia Metallum: The Metal Archives (commonly known as Metal Archives per the URL or abbreviated as MA) is an online encyclopedia based upon musical artists who predominantly perform heavy metal music along with its various sub-genres ...

Supernal Music PageGodreah Records
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Meads of Asphodel English black metal musical groups Musical groups established in 1998 English musical quartets Candlelight Records artists