Eluveitie
Formed: 2002
From:
Switzerland
Last Known Status: Active
Eluveitie Interviews and Features
Below are our features and interviews with Eluveitie.
Interview
Eluveitie Discusses New Album "Ategnatos"
Folk and pagan metal has come a long way over nearly three decades. Bands like Skyclad and Cruachan are often credited with creating or pioneering the genre, but as time goes on, many bands across Europe have taken the style and found commercial success with it too. One such band would be Eluveitie, from the Swiss city of Zurich. Since 2002, the band led by Chrigel Glanzmann has put out several high quality albums and become revered as one of the sub-genre's best and most engaging bands.
At their recent show in Bristol with Lacuna Coil and Infected Rain, I caught up with Chrigel Glanzmann to discuss the band's new album, "Ategnatos," the history and mythology behind it, how good fortune led to Lamb Of God frontman Randy Blythe to appear on the album and more. You can watch the interview in full below, with a transcription to follow. More...
Interview
Anna Murphy Of Eluveitie Talks "Origins"
Eluveitie. In 2014, it’s more than just a band name (especially if you can pronounce it correctly). It’s a symbol, a trademark, a familiar signature on a distinct masterwork born of an eclectic labor of passion.
It wasn’t always this way. When Nuclear Blast signed the underground Swiss octet in 2008, the “folk metal” subgenre had barely begun to make itself a rising force outside of Europe. Seemingly overnight, all that changed with the furious shred of a violin, the insane interlocking precision of flutes and whistles, and the solemn drone of a hurdy-gurdy (“Time to buy a dictionary,” puzzled many a stumped metal fan), all packed in a cannonade of melodic death metal riffage.
This apparently instant success, of course, was in fact the result of several years of uncertainty and perseverance, a far cry from the humble project launched by frontman and mandolinist Christian “Chrigel” Glanzmann in 2002. That evolving journey has continued to this day, throughout a massive world tour for the acclaimed 2012 album “Helvetios,” an extended break, and now, perhaps the group’s finest hour, “Origins.” (reviewed here)
Following Eluveitie’s first-ever performance on U.S. soil in support of the album, at the Baltimore Soundstage on Friday, September 19th, I caught up with hurdy-gurdy specialist and backing vocalist Anna Murphy backstage. Though fearless leader Chrigel had opted to hit the sack, several of Anna’s bandmates decided to join us, including drummer Merlin Sutter, guitarist Rafael “Rafi” Salzmann, guitarist Ivo Henzi, and - last but not least - bassist Kay Brem, who made a belated appearance bearing some vital information. More...
Feature
Celebrating Women In Metal
In the spirit of International Women’s Day, it seems only appropriate and empowering to take a moment to focus on the fierce and powerful women in metal that inspire us every day.
Whether they are rocking it out in a corset or not, their presence on the stage is always captivating. Sometimes they are blowing our minds with their vocal escapades, or dominating their instruments as skillfully as any man, but continuously these women are pioneers in a genre that has traditionally been predominantly men.
Back in the ‘60s during the classic rock days, artists such as Janis Joplin and Grace Slick paved the way for the Valkyries of our modern day music. Later, women such as Pat Benetar and Joan Jett would take the baton and run hard with it!
Nowadays women in metal have provided valuable insights into reshaping aspects of the genre and fusing them with their unique ideas and talents. It’s not possible for a man to hit the airy lyric soprano range that often we are graced with in bands like Nightwish or Leaves Eyes without going into falsetto. Other women have used their hands to virtuosity, and left us in awe with their keyboards, strings, basses or drums.
International Women’s day is about celebrating the strides women have made whether economic, socially, or political. But let us not forget the massive accomplishments we’ve made towards metal music, and how we made our mark on a genre that shows that men and women truly can work towards something better.
We at Metalunderground.com are well aware of the sirens of the scene, and all the triumphs they have contributed that have made Metal the diverse genre it is. More...
Interview
Interview With Chrigel Glanzmann Of Eluveitie
As with most acts that helped popularize entire genres and subgenres, Switzerland's Eluveitie has found itself in a rare position vis-à-vis the so-dubbed "folk metal" movement: that of reluctant leader, the inspirational force with casual indifference to the trend that exploded around them. For this reason, the new LP "Helvetios" whisks the band yet a few echelons higher than the crowd and freshly re-stamps their inimitable brand of mournful, grinding Celtic fury. On the eve of the album's North American release, Eluveitie offered direct support to headliners Children Of Bodom at Montreal's Metropolis. It was here that band founder, songwriter, and frontman Chrigel Glanzmann made himself available for a few questions. More...
Interview
Eluveitie's Vocalist Chrigel Talks New Album
Swiss metallers Eluveitie are the new kids on the folk metal block, but they've already made a big impact with releases such as "Slania" and their recent all-instrumental disc "Evocation I - The Arcane Dominion." The band has now released a new Celtic themed death metal experience in the form of "Everything Remains As It Never Was." While the album keeps up the epic folk elements, it focuses more on the human tales behind the stories of legend.
Front man Christian "Chrigel" Glanzmann explained, "When you are dealing with history you get hard facts like this war started then and ended then, end of story. Stuff like that is very dry but I think you should always keep in mind that in the end its people like you and me who stand behind such historical incidents and write history. That is the strong focus of the lyrics." Chrigel recently spoke with me about the many different recording studios used for the album, their recent use of an electronic bagpipe for live shows, and his own surprising taste in music. More...
Interview
An Interview With Eluveitie's Chrigel Glanzmann
Eluveitie is a band from Switzerland known for their unique instruments and Gaulish vocals. In April they released their first acoustic album, "Evocation I," through Nuclear Blast, and are currently on tour throughout Europe. Labeling them is a difficult task, as founder and resident death growler Chrigel Glanzmann rejects some of the commonly used descriptors like celtic or pagan. But fans of those genres will find something familiar in the pipes, whistles, mandola, and even hurdy gurdy that Eluveitie uses in their compositions. I recently spoke with Chrigel about Eluveitie’s unusual style, and his work and interest in Helvetian history and the ancient Gaulish language. More...
