Odes of Ecstasy is a Greek symphonic death metal and gothic metal band formed in Athens, Greece, in 1993 by Dimitris Bikos and Iosif Nikou.
History
The band was formed in November 1993. In 1994, guitarist Dimitris Panayiotidis joined the group. In December 1995, the band released a promo tape containing the single song "Theogony." During the summer of 1996, they recorded their first demo, Atheistic Emotions, which featured vocals by Christina Maniati. The demo contained three symphonic death metal songs, a cover of Black Sabbath's "Paranoid," and an ambient track featuring only female vocals, keyboards, and electric guitars. The release was announced as the "Promo of the Month" by the Greek edition of Metal Hammer magazine. Following the demo's release, Panayiotidis left the band for military service and was replaced by Nikos Baltas.
In 1997, the band released a single-song promo titled Words of Insanity, which led to a signing with the American label The End Records. That label released the band's first official album, Embossed Dream in Four Acts (1998), characterized by brutal male vocals, operatic female vocals, and classical music influences. A second album, Deceitful Melody, followed in 2000.
The band then entered a period of inactivity due to numerous line-up changes, largely caused by the mandatory military service of several members. In 2004, the band reformed with a new line-up and a different musical orientation. They performed several shows to promote new material, which appeared on the self-titled Odes of Ecstasy promo (2006) containing five songs. A full album was completed in October 2007.
Musical style and themes
The band's music is generally classified as symphonic death metal and gothic metal. Their lyrical themes have been described as encompassing poetry, darkness, and mythology.
Discography
- Theogony (Promo, 1995)
- Atheistic Emotions (Demo, 1996)
- Faithless/Never Again (Split with Nocturnal Howling, Daimonion, 1997)
- Words of Insanity (Promo, 1997)
- Embossed Dream in Four Acts (Album, The End Records, 1998)
- Deceitful Melody (Album, The End Records, 2000)
- Odes of Ecstasy (Promo, 2006)
- Odes of Ecstasy (Album, 2007)
Members
Current members include Nikos Baltas (vocals, guitar) and Nikos Simigiannis (drums). Former members include Iosif Nikou (bass), Dimitris Bikos (vocals, guitar), Savvas Dandoulakis (keyboards), Christina Maniati (vocals), Irini Tsiklou (keyboards), Giannis Fasoulakis (backing vocals, guitar), Giorgos Pagidas (bass), and Dimitris Panayiotidis (guitar).
