Arcturus - The Sham Mirrors - VINYL LP

LP (black vinyl) incl. Insert, padded inner sleeve and protection sleeve. With InchDisguised MastersInch released in 1999, Arcturus delivered a striking and for some even provocative afterthought to their previous works. The WHEN intro 'White Tie Black Noise' was followed by the new track 'Deception Genesis' and a re-recording of the classic 'Du Nordavind' before the Norwegians launched into an adventurous re-visiting of six InchLa Masquerade InfernaleInch tracks that got unapologetically treated with EBM, trip-hop, rap, ambient, and other musical means. Drawing up fresh angles onto their music, the re-imagined songs revealed the wide open mind of Arcturus.

After releasing their early EPs, My Angel (1991) and Constellation (1994), Norwegian avant-garde metal pioneers Arcturus unveiled their debut full-length album, Aspera Hiems Symfonia, in 1996. The band, named after the brightest star in the Northern Hemisphere, emerged from Norway's explosive black metal scene but quickly set themselves apart with their bold, experimental vision. The lineup for Aspera Hiems Symfonia featured prominent figures from the Norwegian extreme metal underground, including Garm (vocals, also of Ulver), Hellhammer (drums, known from Mayhem), and new additions Carl August Tidemann (guitar) and Hugh InchSkollInch Mingay (bass, also of Ulver), replacing Samoth from the earlier EPs. This talented ensemble blended the raw intensity of black metal with progressive and avant-garde elements, creating a sound that was both haunting and innovative.Aspera Hiems Symfonia stands out for it's daring departure from traditional black metal. Piercing vocal shrieks coexist with eerie, operatic melodies, while Sverd's cinematic keyboards weave atmospheric tapestries. Tidemann's technical guitar solos add a layer of sophistication, and the rhythm section, driven by Hellhammer's relentless precision and Skoll's dynamic basslines, provides a solid yet adventurous foundation. This fusion of aggressive roots with progressive experimentation-marked by unconventional song structures and a theatrical flair-established Arcturus as trailblazers in the Oslo metal scene and beyond, cementing their legacy as progressive innovators.

Gatefold LP (black vinyl) incl. Padded inner sleeve and protection sleeve. On their sophomore full-length InchLa Masquerade InfernaleInch (1997), Arcturus took their musical experimenting three ambitious steps further. The Norwegians succeeded in wedding a devilish concept loosely based on the characters of Faust and Mephistopheles with an eclectic range of surreal sound elements into an album that is rightfully considered a prime example of what later came to be known as avant-garde metal. From quoting Edgar Allan Poe in operatic paraphrases by frontman Garm (ULVER) or the additional high notes from the unmistakable I.C.S. Vortex (BORKNAGAR) via the spaced-out electronic samples, classical instrumentation, and an even increased use of psychedelic guitar riffage alongside more InchtraditionalInch black and death metal elements. Brilliant guitarist Knut Magne Valle replaced Carl August Tideman, which brought stability to this position of the band's line-up. Arcturus aimed dangerously high with InchLa Masquerade InfernaleInch - but remarkably pulled off the extremely difficult feat of forging such widely differing elements into a wildly fascinating, over the top listening experience that has stood the test of time and surely deserves to be labelled a InchmasterpieceInch.