Vibeke Stene

Vibeke Stene
Vibeke Stene performing with Tristania
Background information
Birth name	Vibeke Stene
Born	(1978-08-17) 17 August 1978
Origin	Sokndal, Rogaland, Norway
Genres	Gothic metal
Occupations	Singer
Instruments	Vocals
Years active	1996–2007; 2013-present
Labels	Napalm Records, SPV
Associated acts	Tristania, Green Carnation, Samael, Plutho, God of Atheists
Website	Vibeke Stene's Official Page

Vibeke Stene (pronounced vee-beh-keh) (born 17 August 1978) is a Norwegian spinto soprano.^[1] She is best known as the former vocalist in the gothic metal band Tristania.

In 2013, Stene came out of retirement with a pending solo album and a guest appearance in God of Atheists.^[2]

Early life

Stene was born in Sokndal, Rogaland, Norway to Steinar Stene and Sissel Bø Stene. She has two sisters named Ingvild and Maiken.^[3] She first performed for people outside her family at the age of three.^[4] She started taking singing lessons at the age of thirteen,^[5] and became more interested in classical singing.^[4] She took lessons until the age of twenty-three because she wanted to become her own teacher.^[4][5] Stene also worked as a teacher in all subjects.^[5]

Career

Musical background

Stene grew up in a home filled with music. In an interview, she stated that her influences were the people with whom she had performed personally.^[6] Before Tristania, Stene mostly performed classical vocals at various music schools.^[7] She also sang in choirs and performed in jazz, folk, and classical concerts as a solo artist with varying musicians, and admitted that "all the traveling with the band makes it impossible to let a serious choir depend on you".^[8] Stene has cited Tori Amos, Björk, David Bowie, Tom Waits and Diamanda Galás as "only a few of many singers that I think are very good".^[6]

Tristania's keyboardist, Einar Moen, stated in an interview that Stene "has a classical education actually - sort of an opera school or university degree. And she has also taken singing lessons since she was a little girl, so she's always sung."^[9] He also mentioned that when he met Vibeke, she wasn't into gothic metal, but more into rock and heavy metal.^[9]

1996-2007: With Tristania

Stene in 2006

Stene met the band members through a friend and afterwards at a music contest.^[5] She joined them at the age of 18 while still in school and also when Tristania was planning to record their first demo.^[7] At first she was meant to be a guest singer but became a permanent member later on.^[7] According to her, she did not know until she read an interview after Widows Weeds was released.^[10] On 27 February 2007, Stene left Tristania to finish her university degree which she started but did not finish in 2000, and also because she did not like the direction the music was going into.^[10][11]

In spring 2007, around the same time Stene left Tristania, the Finnish symphonic metal band Nightwish were going to announce the name of their new female vocalist. Due to Stene's recent departure from Tristania, it was widely discussed in the musical circles whether Vibeke would be inducted into Nightwish to replace Tarja Turunen. The rumor was quickly denied, however, when Stene said in an interview, "I am not the new singer in Nightwish."^[12]

While in Tristania, Stene released one demo, 5 albums, and 2 singles. The band became one of the leading acts in the late 90's. They toured throughout the American continent and in Europe. They also participated in some of the biggest European festivals.^[13]

2007-2012: Retirement

In 2011, Stene was featured in the song "Queen of Broken Hearts" by the electronic band Plutho. According to the members of Plutho, the song was recorded back in 1999, indicating that Stene had not come out of retirement at that time. According to a 2010 interview, Stene was asked if she would sing professionally again. She declared that when given a good offer, she would take it.^[14][15]

2013-Present: Comeback

On June 7, Stene announced through her official Facebook page that she was returning to the music scene. While an unknown album is on the way, it was announced that she was also participating in a Asgeir Mickelson extreme metal project called God of Atheists, which includes musicians such as Vortex from Dimmu Borgir, Ihsahn from Emperor, Trym Torson from Zyklon, among others.^[1][2]

Private Life

In 2007, Stene gave birth to a son named Gylve, and a few years later to a daughter.^[11][16]

Discography

References

External links

• Official website of Tristania