PRE-EMPEROR

PRE-EMPEROR

Dark Device – death metal from Norway formed in 1990. Currently, there’s no any recordings of Dark Desire. Barely being active under that name, they’ve changed it to Xerasia in the same year.

XERASIA(1990)

From left to right, BACK: Ronny Johnsen(Drums) and Finn Arne Nielsen(Bass, Vocals)

From left to right, FRONT: Tomas Haugen(Guitars) and Vegard Tveitan(Guitars, Keyboard)

Under their new name the band released a live rehearsal tape in 1990. It was distributed by the band itself. Interested people could send them an empty tape, and they would copy their demo on to it and return it. But, in the same year Finn left the band and Xerasia became Embryonic, Vegard taken on the role of vocalist. While Finn still was in Xerasia he wrote 2 songs(Morbid Silence and Throne of Blood) which ended up in «The Land of the Lost Souls» (Embryonic’s demo).

From left to right, BACK: Tobben(Bass) and Ronny Johnsen(Drums)

From left to right, FRONT: Vegard Tveitan(Guitars, Vocals) and Tomas Haugen(Guitars)

Unlike Xerasia, Embryonic was recorded at Notodden Lydstudio in November 1990. Håvard Ellefson(Mortiis) has contributed to the lyrics of the title track.

In 1991 they’ve changed their name to the more well known Thou Shalt Suffer(which in turn became the foundation for the Emperor)

line up, left to right: Tobben(Bass), Vegard Tveitan(Guitars, Vocals), Tomas Haugen(Guitars), Ronny Johnsen(Drums)

Fun fact: this photo was taken by tomas’s father – Jens Olav Haugen

In July they’ve released an EP «Open the Mysteries of Your Creation» and in October they also released a demo «Into the Woods of Belial». Around that time Vegard and Tomas dyed their hair black & they went by Ygg(Vegard) and Samot(Tomas). For TSS promo pictures they started wearing full-black outfits, spikes and corpsepaints which shows that they are slowly being influenced by BM

Listen to Xerasia – https://youtu.be/kfW33j0wbD0?si=jVEQnYYo98atAHRR

Listen to Embryonic – https://youtu.be/sG25ZHeR1u0?si=Ba9m_PZiTYJ4pPrw

Listen to Thou Shalt Suffer:

Open the Mysteries of Your Creation – https://youtu.be/pZhYDJ9ua8k?si=nT3bKDNjZrVBYwxZ

Into the Woods of Belial – https://youtu.be/eRo6Aqe7KUY?si=uNMV6TZIm4sVpHQS

More archive stuff coming soon!