Basilisk - Biography
Biography
The band was formed in November 1996. In the search for his own sound, a style developed due to the different characters that could not be classified into a musical genre. Elements from Gothic and Melodic Metal as well as influences from Heavy Metal of the 80s and 90s, vocals, whose spectrum ranges from soft and whispering to hard and aggressive and the partly English, partly German lyrics characterize the unmistakable sound of BASILISK. Due to the different musical elements, Basilisk is most likely to be classified as DARK METAL. The line-up at that time consisted of Sixten (vocals / keyboard), Rudy (guitars), Siggi (bass) and Ry (drums). At the end of 1997 they went to the studio to record the first demo CD "in the room of lights".
The year 1998 was mainly marked by 12 club concerts. Among other things in the opening act of "Crematory" in the fully occupied Atlantis (Herbolzheim) and in the equally well-attended WOM (Balingen). The first place in a newcomer competition in Nussplingen confirmed that the band was on the right course. The band also had a few concerts in the spring of 1999, the gigs with "Ever Eve" in Leonberg and the appearance as headliner at the Blumberger Rocknacht are definitely highlights. At the newcomer contest in the Animal House in Donaueschingen, Basilisk was able to prevail and take first place.
Due to the extremely positive feedback, Basilisk appeared in 2000 in the opening act for "My Dying Bride" and "The Gathering". A festival at the Universal DOG in Lahr, together with "Farmer Boys", "Weissglut", "Ever Eve" and "Shock" followed. Many will still have fond memories of the concert with "Phantoms of Future" in the "Forum Fabrik" in Villingen-Schwenningen.
At the end of 2000 Frank replaced the previous bass player Siggi and enriched the tonal spectrum with his clear vocals. At the same time Tommy joined the band, who took over the keyboards from then on. Singer Sixten could now fully concentrate on his role as front man and lead singer.
In December 2001 the second album "... between light and shadow" was released with 8 tracks in the new line-up.
In 2002 there were 11 concerts on the program, including "Tankard", "Ashes You Leave" and "Chinchilla".
At the concert in October 2002 with "Sacred Sin" from Portugal, the foundation stone was laid for a distribution deal with the Portuguese label "Nebula Records" and the booking agency "Icon Music Agency"; both subcontractors to Dark Music Productions.
The album "... between light and shadow" was now distributed worldwide in 2003 by Nebula Records. A very successful 10-day promotional tour through Portugal followed at the end of 2003, including concerts in Lisbon, Portimao and Leiria.
Unfortunately, the booking agency didn't get any gigs as hoped, so theCooperation was terminated and Basilisk theBooking took it into its own hands again.
In 2005 and 2006 there were relatively few concerts on the program. Basilisk used the short break from live to release the album "Dark Seasons" with 13 tracks in May 2006.
In November of the same year the mini EP "Empor" was released on the market just in time for the band's 10th anniversary. This milestone birthday was celebrated with a small self-organized festival in November 2006. From then on, Basilisk and Singer Sixten went their separate ways.
The band decided to change the line-up as follows:
Frank (bass / vocals), Tommy (keyboards / vocals),
Rudy (guitars / vocals) and Ry (drums).
From then on there was no longer a real front man.
By dividing the vocal parts, the songs experienced a greater tonal variety, which was consistently received positively by the fans.
After a development phase and relatively few concerts from 2007 to 2009, the album "Rote Tränen", which was released in May 2010, was the logical consequence.
Due to family changes of the individual band members, the live activities were scaled back somewhat in the following years. However, the appearances in 2010, 2011 and 2012 on the Tuttlingen market square deserve special mention. At these open airs, a touch of the South Side Festival should also be felt in the city.
In 2014 there was enough new song material to start recording the current album "Traumland". This disc, like the last two albums, was recorded by the company itself.
In January 2015, Basilisk signed a promotion and sales deal with Bob Media and Echozone, respectively.
For the 20th anniversary of the band, Basilisk and FC Brigachtal organized the Heavy Halloween Festival for the first time in October 2016. And in October 2017 a second time.
In September 2018, bassist and singer Frank announced that he had to leave the band after 18 years. To combine the band activities with work and family was unfortunately no longer possible in the long run. In October the official farewell concert took place in "Delta - The Animal House" in Donaueschingen.
Shortly afterwards the search for replacements on the lower strings and for the clean vocals began. In January 2019 they found the right musician in Diddi. As the bass player of Epitome of Frail, there have not only been a few concerts together in the past, but also a "rehearsal room neighborhood". With the new motivated and capable colleague, it was immediately to the revision of the existing material and the writing of new songs - but there was still a voice missing for the clean vocals. The search continued and after some people sang, the decision was made in May 2019 for Ela, who knew Basilisk well from the early days and was also active behind the scenes for Epitome of Frail and other bands. The actual bassist, who played and sang in various rock bands, got her voice through gospel music,
With a female voice for the melodies, the well-known sound changed - but without having to compromise on dynamics and force. Due to Ela's timbre, which, unlike many female colleagues from relevant Gothic and Symphonic Metal bands, is not in the soprano range, many Basilisk songs could remain unchanged in the program.
The new line-up now consisted of Tommy (keyboards / vocals), Rudy (guitars / vocals), Ela (vocals), Diddi (bass) and Ry (drums).
Source: http://www.basilisk.de/band-history/
The year 1998 was mainly marked by 12 club concerts. Among other things in the opening act of "Crematory" in the fully occupied Atlantis (Herbolzheim) and in the equally well-attended WOM (Balingen). The first place in a newcomer competition in Nussplingen confirmed that the band was on the right course. The band also had a few concerts in the spring of 1999, the gigs with "Ever Eve" in Leonberg and the appearance as headliner at the Blumberger Rocknacht are definitely highlights. At the newcomer contest in the Animal House in Donaueschingen, Basilisk was able to prevail and take first place.
Due to the extremely positive feedback, Basilisk appeared in 2000 in the opening act for "My Dying Bride" and "The Gathering". A festival at the Universal DOG in Lahr, together with "Farmer Boys", "Weissglut", "Ever Eve" and "Shock" followed. Many will still have fond memories of the concert with "Phantoms of Future" in the "Forum Fabrik" in Villingen-Schwenningen.
At the end of 2000 Frank replaced the previous bass player Siggi and enriched the tonal spectrum with his clear vocals. At the same time Tommy joined the band, who took over the keyboards from then on. Singer Sixten could now fully concentrate on his role as front man and lead singer.
In December 2001 the second album "... between light and shadow" was released with 8 tracks in the new line-up.
In 2002 there were 11 concerts on the program, including "Tankard", "Ashes You Leave" and "Chinchilla".
At the concert in October 2002 with "Sacred Sin" from Portugal, the foundation stone was laid for a distribution deal with the Portuguese label "Nebula Records" and the booking agency "Icon Music Agency"; both subcontractors to Dark Music Productions.
The album "... between light and shadow" was now distributed worldwide in 2003 by Nebula Records. A very successful 10-day promotional tour through Portugal followed at the end of 2003, including concerts in Lisbon, Portimao and Leiria.
Unfortunately, the booking agency didn't get any gigs as hoped, so theCooperation was terminated and Basilisk theBooking took it into its own hands again.
In 2005 and 2006 there were relatively few concerts on the program. Basilisk used the short break from live to release the album "Dark Seasons" with 13 tracks in May 2006.
In November of the same year the mini EP "Empor" was released on the market just in time for the band's 10th anniversary. This milestone birthday was celebrated with a small self-organized festival in November 2006. From then on, Basilisk and Singer Sixten went their separate ways.
The band decided to change the line-up as follows:
Frank (bass / vocals), Tommy (keyboards / vocals),
Rudy (guitars / vocals) and Ry (drums).
From then on there was no longer a real front man.
By dividing the vocal parts, the songs experienced a greater tonal variety, which was consistently received positively by the fans.
After a development phase and relatively few concerts from 2007 to 2009, the album "Rote Tränen", which was released in May 2010, was the logical consequence.
Due to family changes of the individual band members, the live activities were scaled back somewhat in the following years. However, the appearances in 2010, 2011 and 2012 on the Tuttlingen market square deserve special mention. At these open airs, a touch of the South Side Festival should also be felt in the city.
In 2014 there was enough new song material to start recording the current album "Traumland". This disc, like the last two albums, was recorded by the company itself.
In January 2015, Basilisk signed a promotion and sales deal with Bob Media and Echozone, respectively.
For the 20th anniversary of the band, Basilisk and FC Brigachtal organized the Heavy Halloween Festival for the first time in October 2016. And in October 2017 a second time.
In September 2018, bassist and singer Frank announced that he had to leave the band after 18 years. To combine the band activities with work and family was unfortunately no longer possible in the long run. In October the official farewell concert took place in "Delta - The Animal House" in Donaueschingen.
Shortly afterwards the search for replacements on the lower strings and for the clean vocals began. In January 2019 they found the right musician in Diddi. As the bass player of Epitome of Frail, there have not only been a few concerts together in the past, but also a "rehearsal room neighborhood". With the new motivated and capable colleague, it was immediately to the revision of the existing material and the writing of new songs - but there was still a voice missing for the clean vocals. The search continued and after some people sang, the decision was made in May 2019 for Ela, who knew Basilisk well from the early days and was also active behind the scenes for Epitome of Frail and other bands. The actual bassist, who played and sang in various rock bands, got her voice through gospel music,
With a female voice for the melodies, the well-known sound changed - but without having to compromise on dynamics and force. Due to Ela's timbre, which, unlike many female colleagues from relevant Gothic and Symphonic Metal bands, is not in the soprano range, many Basilisk songs could remain unchanged in the program.
The new line-up now consisted of Tommy (keyboards / vocals), Rudy (guitars / vocals), Ela (vocals), Diddi (bass) and Ry (drums).
Source: http://www.basilisk.de/band-history/