Leviathan (German band)

Leviathan
	;
	; Collage of live scenes from the band
	General information
origin	Bonn , Germany
Genre (s)	Melodic death metal , progressive metal
founding	2007
Website	www.leviathan-music.de
Founding members
Vocals , guitar	Jonas Reisenauer
guitar	Tobias Dahs
Drums	Tobias Parke
Electric bass	Tom Heinz
guitar	Paul Schröder (until 2010)
Current occupation
Vocals, guitar	Jonas Reisenauer
guitar	Tobias Dahs
Drums	Tobias Parke
Electric bass	Tom Heinz
Keyboard	Fabian Gocht (since 2008)
former members
guitar	Paul Schröder (2007-2010)

Leviathan is a metal band from Bonn . Musically, the band is assigned to progressive or symphonic melodic death metal .

history

The band was founded between 2005 and 2007, during which time Jonas Reisenauer ( vocals , guitar ) was looking for musicians to start a new band project. The initially stable line-up was formed in mid-2007 from Jonas Reisenauer, Tobias Parke ( drums ), Tom Heinz ( electric bass ), Tobias Dahs (guitar) and Paul Schröder (guitar). After the band to start their own musical idols such as Children of Bodom or In Flames coverte , they began in late 2007 with the work on his own material. After a long search, a suitable keyboardist was found in Fabian Gocht at the end of 2008, who from now on completed the line-up.

At the beginning of 2009 the band played their first live performance as part of the Toys2Masters band contest , in which the band finally took fourth place in November 2009. At the beginning of 2010, the first and so far only change of line-up followed. Paul Schröder moved his residence mostly to Austria and therefore had to leave the band, but he was not replaced, instead the band continued with two guitarists. In March 2010 the five Bonners went to the Big Easy Studio in Hennef to produce their first CD there. The result was the four-song EP From the Desolate Inside , which was self-released in May 2010.

After further concerts in West Germany, an appearance at Summer Breeze 2010 and good reviews in German metal magazines, From the Desolate Inside was z. B. was chosen as demo of the month in the German magazine Metal Hammer , the German label Bret Hard Records and the Twilight distributor became aware of Leviathan at the end of the year. In early March 2011 the band finally signed with Bret Hard Records / Twilight Vertrieb and in the same month they returned to Big Easy Studio to start working on their debut album. The debut album Beyond the Gates of Imagination Pt.1 was released worldwide on September 16, 2011.

style

music

According to their own statement, the band would prefer not to be assigned to any specific genre , as they consider genre categories to be too restrictive due to the many musical influences.

Most of the time, however, they are assigned to progressive or symphonic melodic death metal . The musical influences are very complex and range from progressive metal , folk metal and symphonic black metal to rather non-typical metal influences from soundtrack music or jazz . The music is also characterized by a technically well-versed style of playing, which shows parallels to musicians like Yngwie Malmsteen , John Petrucci or Steve Vai , especially with the guitars . In addition, the style of the band is characterized by the use of orchestra or orchestral samples . These are not only used for intros , as is often the case in metal , but mostly act in harmony with the other instruments of the band.

Texts

On their previous regular releases ( From the Desolate Inside and Beyond the Gates of Imagination Pt.1 ) the band realized textual concepts and concept albums . The texts are written in English , often even in ancient English.

The four songs of the debut From the Desolate Inside all deal thematically with personal problems. The search for the meaning of life ( Last Laugh at My Existence ), personal doubts ( When Only Despair Remains ) or the fight against paternalism ( Towards the Storm ) are discussed.

The debut album Beyond the Gates of Imagination Pt.1 , on the other hand, shows clear socio-critical references. On the concept album, the band goes into three acts on the topics "What are we doing?" ( Conduct ), "What are we?" ( Essence ) and "What are we striving for?" ( Ambition ), where "we" in this case refers to humanity as a whole. Much of the songs are directly related to real events, for example Beneath A Blackened Sky thematizes the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010 or Where Light And Death Unite the war from the perspective of a soldier who is forced to achieve the goals of his authorities to fight. Other titles deal with more philosophical motifs and topics. Servants of the Nonexistent critically follows the development of religion from its beginnings to modern times , while the text of Sway of the Stars deals with the subject of megalomania .

Discography

2010: From the Desolate Inside (EP)
2011: Beneath a Blackened Sky (EP)
2011: Beyond the Gates of Imagination Pt.1 (Album)
2013: The Crescent Moon (EP)