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Skepticism - Biography


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1997-

Biography

Starting out with a less original death metal sound on their first 7", Skepticism soon began to develop its own sound, a combination of slow doom metal and death metal with prolific use of keyboards, especially the organ. This style was first represented on the Aeothe Kaear demo from 1994, which was still up-tempo, compared to the material that was to follow. The debut album Stormcrowfleet took that style a step further, consisting of six long tracks with an average length of nearly ten minutes.

After this, the band released its first 'pair', an EP and album which are thematically connected. A touch less dark in sound, but more abstract in lyrics, Ethere and Lead and Aether are perhaps the best known Skepticism albums, especially for the track 'The March and the Stream', which appears in a different version on both releases, and which is considered by some to be one of the most depressing doom metal songs ever recorded.

In 1999, Aes was released, a one-track EP lasting almost 28 minutes, and an exercise in style for the band. Aes proves that Skepticism is capable of writing extremely long, flowing songs, that still manage to stay interesting and captivating. A variety of musical themes is explored before the song turns back upon itself and returns to the theme that it started with.

The bands latest releases were contained in the second 'pair', The Process of Farmakon (2002) and Farmakon (2003). These releases showcase a slight departure from the earlier material, by introducing elements of dissonance and experimentation in the otherwise consistent style.