Dauden I Mørke - Biography
Biography
Dauden i Mørke was founded in 2008 as the solo project of Daniel Kennedy (Deka1184) when the first song, "Frozen Planet", was written and recorded. Over the next two years, a handful of other songs were made, the most important of which being "A Martyr's Rede" which remains one of DiM's most popular songs to date. However, progress was slow and tedious as the intricacy of Deka1184's compositions quickly exceeded his guitar playing ability.
After many futile searches for a guitarist, the project seemed dead in the water. However, a young prodigy, Adam Shepard (Christgrinder) inquired about the project in 2010. He soon became the driving force behind DiM's guitar sound, enabling Deka1184 to write far more technical compositions for Christgrinder to record with relative ease. The vocal capacity of the band received a similar upgrade with the infusion of the illusive vocalist, artist, and occult practitioner Corinna Roberge (Mercurious). With such incredible talent added to the mix, the trio went on to create "Dread", the first track to showcase Christgrinder's quick and vicious guitar work as well as Mercurious's vast, overpowering vocal assault. With one composer, one guitarist, and one vocalist, the core lineup of Dauden i Mørke had been established.
A handful of experimental new songs were recorded and produced with the new members. At this point, there was enough material to release a demo. The demo was dubbed "Diremption Redemption", referring to the split nature of the release; half of the songs created while DiM was still a solo project and the other half with the full lineup.
With all the pieces in place, it was time for DiM to write their debut album. The time for experimentation was over and the creative reserves of Dauden i Mørke were unleashed with a vengeance. Syn was written and recorded over the course of a mere few months. This resulted in a remarkably cohesive debut album (hence, Syn, implying its cohesion, although the title track is a pun for the Norwegian meaning of the word). It was nebulous, sweeping, and atmospheric, with haunting melodies and soundscapes that caught international attention from the underground press.
The album caught local attention as well, and DiM were starting to piece together a live lineup. Bassist Doug Crewdson joined the band as well as a revolving door of drummers. Simultaneously, work on the next album had begun. Syn had proved to be a beautiful yet sterile end. With nowhere to go from there, Deka1184 plunged back into the murky cauldron of experimentation in his songwriting. The compositions were coming out well but they were nothing more than the sum of their parts. In much the same way, DiM could not pull together a live lineup. Doug had fallen gravely ill over the summer of 2011 and tragically passed away. The drummers had all proven unreliable and all options had been exhausted. Dismayed, DiM returned to the studio and continued to experiment. During this time, recording and production equipment were upgraded and Deka1184 founded Moonskull Recordings which went on to produce several local extreme metal acts. The new precision equipment was matched by the songwriting, which was far more fine-grained than in Syn. Christgrinder and Mercurious's technical skills had also increased accordingly, allowing new levels of guitar and vocal articulation to be achieved. Christgrinder influenced the songwriting process, resulting in a more riff heavy, guitar-centric sound. Many of the solos on the album were improvised by Christgrinder in the studio. Consistent with the new album's theme of a shakeup, Texan vocalist Joseph Davidson (Sphinx) joined the permanent line-up, adding a shrieky, harsh, and hollow vocal tone that complimented Mercurious full-bodied roar. All of these ingredients combined to create the bastard, tormented beast that is Nephilim. Nephilim was released on new years day, 2012.
As the name implies, the release was bipolar and corrupted, indicative of a band that had fallen from grace. Yet despite its eccentric nature, Nephilim eclipsed its predecessor in sheer ferocity. Blistering tracks such as the middle eastern "Slaying Ravana" and the electronic "Spawn of Subversive Desires" stood out sharply against the folk-inspired "Remnants of an Arcane War" and the sombre, heavy title track. "Stem of the Æther", perhaps the strongest track on the album, sharply defined the atmospheric, melodic space theme that had been interwoven throughout Syn. The variety of Nephilim is staggering. Despite being highly experimental, nearly every experiment was a success. Nephilim received rave reviews from the underground international press.
2012 was a quiet year for Dauden i Mørke as Deka1184 and Christgrinder had been working on various musical side projects. Yet near the end of the year, the band pulled itself together and refocused its efforts. Capitalizing on the melodic and atmospheric space theme that was pioneered in Syn and manifested fully in "Stem of the Æther", Dauden i Mørke set out to create a masterpiece that would be worthy of a music video. They wrote, recorded, and produced Diamondshards in the autumn of 2012. The music video achieved unanimous acclaim despite the unorthodox theme. This success propelled the band forward into the process of writing their next release.
After many futile searches for a guitarist, the project seemed dead in the water. However, a young prodigy, Adam Shepard (Christgrinder) inquired about the project in 2010. He soon became the driving force behind DiM's guitar sound, enabling Deka1184 to write far more technical compositions for Christgrinder to record with relative ease. The vocal capacity of the band received a similar upgrade with the infusion of the illusive vocalist, artist, and occult practitioner Corinna Roberge (Mercurious). With such incredible talent added to the mix, the trio went on to create "Dread", the first track to showcase Christgrinder's quick and vicious guitar work as well as Mercurious's vast, overpowering vocal assault. With one composer, one guitarist, and one vocalist, the core lineup of Dauden i Mørke had been established.
A handful of experimental new songs were recorded and produced with the new members. At this point, there was enough material to release a demo. The demo was dubbed "Diremption Redemption", referring to the split nature of the release; half of the songs created while DiM was still a solo project and the other half with the full lineup.
With all the pieces in place, it was time for DiM to write their debut album. The time for experimentation was over and the creative reserves of Dauden i Mørke were unleashed with a vengeance. Syn was written and recorded over the course of a mere few months. This resulted in a remarkably cohesive debut album (hence, Syn, implying its cohesion, although the title track is a pun for the Norwegian meaning of the word). It was nebulous, sweeping, and atmospheric, with haunting melodies and soundscapes that caught international attention from the underground press.
The album caught local attention as well, and DiM were starting to piece together a live lineup. Bassist Doug Crewdson joined the band as well as a revolving door of drummers. Simultaneously, work on the next album had begun. Syn had proved to be a beautiful yet sterile end. With nowhere to go from there, Deka1184 plunged back into the murky cauldron of experimentation in his songwriting. The compositions were coming out well but they were nothing more than the sum of their parts. In much the same way, DiM could not pull together a live lineup. Doug had fallen gravely ill over the summer of 2011 and tragically passed away. The drummers had all proven unreliable and all options had been exhausted. Dismayed, DiM returned to the studio and continued to experiment. During this time, recording and production equipment were upgraded and Deka1184 founded Moonskull Recordings which went on to produce several local extreme metal acts. The new precision equipment was matched by the songwriting, which was far more fine-grained than in Syn. Christgrinder and Mercurious's technical skills had also increased accordingly, allowing new levels of guitar and vocal articulation to be achieved. Christgrinder influenced the songwriting process, resulting in a more riff heavy, guitar-centric sound. Many of the solos on the album were improvised by Christgrinder in the studio. Consistent with the new album's theme of a shakeup, Texan vocalist Joseph Davidson (Sphinx) joined the permanent line-up, adding a shrieky, harsh, and hollow vocal tone that complimented Mercurious full-bodied roar. All of these ingredients combined to create the bastard, tormented beast that is Nephilim. Nephilim was released on new years day, 2012.
As the name implies, the release was bipolar and corrupted, indicative of a band that had fallen from grace. Yet despite its eccentric nature, Nephilim eclipsed its predecessor in sheer ferocity. Blistering tracks such as the middle eastern "Slaying Ravana" and the electronic "Spawn of Subversive Desires" stood out sharply against the folk-inspired "Remnants of an Arcane War" and the sombre, heavy title track. "Stem of the Æther", perhaps the strongest track on the album, sharply defined the atmospheric, melodic space theme that had been interwoven throughout Syn. The variety of Nephilim is staggering. Despite being highly experimental, nearly every experiment was a success. Nephilim received rave reviews from the underground international press.
2012 was a quiet year for Dauden i Mørke as Deka1184 and Christgrinder had been working on various musical side projects. Yet near the end of the year, the band pulled itself together and refocused its efforts. Capitalizing on the melodic and atmospheric space theme that was pioneered in Syn and manifested fully in "Stem of the Æther", Dauden i Mørke set out to create a masterpiece that would be worthy of a music video. They wrote, recorded, and produced Diamondshards in the autumn of 2012. The music video achieved unanimous acclaim despite the unorthodox theme. This success propelled the band forward into the process of writing their next release.
