Khold

Khold is a Norwegian black metal band formed in Oslo in 2000 after the split-up of Tulus. The band plays mid-paced^[1] and somewhat "groovy"^{[citation needed]} black metal, and has a history of touring with bands such as Behemoth and Satyricon.^{[citation needed]}

History

Khold was formed in Oslo, Norway in 2000,^[1] by Sarke (drums) and Gard (vocals, guitar).^{[citation needed]} These two musicians came from the band Tulus, and Khold was formed because of a desire to be a "real band", with a steady, complete lineup and opportunities to play live shows.^{[citation needed]} They recruited two musicians to fit the empty slots: Rinn (guitar) and Eikind (bass guitar).^{[citation needed]} A demo was recorded, and late 2000 Khold was signed by Moonfog.^[2]

The first Khold album, Masterpiss of Pain, was released in 2001, with a critic referring to the album as a "fresh breath upon the black metal scene".^{[citation needed]} Later in the year, Khold went touring in Europe to support the album.

Khold's second album, Phantom, was released in 2002 on Satyr from Satyricon's Moonfog label. Since Khold at that time did not have a bass player after Eikind left the previous year,^{[citation needed]} former Tulus bassist Sir Graanug was hired for the Phantom sessions.^{[citation needed]} Brandr was then helping out for a couple of gigs until Grimd joined later in the year.^{[citation needed]}

In the same year, Khold joined forces with Satyricon on a Nordic tour.^{[citation needed]} They once again joined Satyricon for another six weeks on a European tour the following year.^{[citation needed]}

In late 2003, Khold recorded their third album Mørke gravers kammer, and also made a music video for the song "Dø". The album was released in 2004, through Candlelight Records. The following year, Khold went on yet another Norwegian tour.

Both Phantom and Mørke gravers kammer were nominated for the Alarm award in the respective years of their release.^{[citation needed]}

In 2005, Khold recorded their fourth album, Krek, which was released on 10 October by Tabu Records.

In 2006, Khold was put on a hiatus for an undetermined length of time.^{[citation needed]} The reason given was that the members needed time to think.^{[citation needed]} Gard and Sarke continued Tulus (as a project),^{[citation needed]} and Rinn built a studio to record/produce bands,^{[citation needed]} as well as continuing with Sensa Anima.^{[citation needed]}

Khold returned in 2008 with a new album, Hundre År Gammal, which was released on 9 June.

Style

Lyrical style

Drummer Sarke explained their lyrical style thus:

Our lyrics deal much about death and what surrounds death. Always the old way: sickness, mad people, ancient beliefs and so on. Hildr writes our lyrics and she does it very well. The reason we have Norwegian lyrics is because it fits our music better and gives us more inspiration to make dark, cold music.^[3]

Regarding the religious aspect often present in black metal, Sarke noted:

We are not into Jesus or whatever; we write our own stories. We can of course use the name God or Satan in our lyrics. If so, its just a part of a story. I can't understand why people still believe in that shit.^[3]

Musical style

Khold play their music in a raw and primitive manner, using only guitar, bass guitar and drums. The lyrics are all written in ancient Norwegian, with the intention of enhancing the songs' concepts.^{[citation needed]} Their music has been described as "black 'n' roll" by some.^[4]

Discography

• Masterpiss of Pain (2001)
• Phantom (2002)
• Mørke gravers kammer (2004)
• Krek (2005)
• Hundre år gammal (2008)

Personnel

Current line-up

• Gard – vocals, guitar
• Rinn – guitar
• Grimd – bass guitar (since 2002)
• Sarke – drums
• Hildr – lyrics

Former members

• Eikind – bass guitar (2000–2002)
• Brandr – bass guitar (for a couple of gigs in 2002)
• Sir Graanug – bass guitar on the Phantom album

References