The Frozen Autumn
Encyclopedia
The Frozen Autumn is an Italian darkwave
band, formed in May 1993, characterized by a blend of melancholic vocals, atmospheric gothic-wave and 80s-style electropop.
. The singer, keyboardist and synth programmer employed the talents of guitarist Claudio Brosio during early studio sessions and live performances, then in 1995 the first album, Pale Awakening, was released under the German Weisser Herbst Produktion label. The album was well-received by gothic-wave/dark-romantic fans across Europe, and in 1997 the follow-up was released, Fragments of Memories, this time by Milan
-based Eibon Records
.
In 1998 Merletto co-founded a side-project called Static Movement with Arianna, who provided guest vocals on the title-track from Fragments of Memories. The duo composed together for six months and in March 1999 the album Visionary Landscapes was released. The musical style of Static Movement was not dissimilar to The Frozen Autumn, however with only electronic instruments being used, the result was a more synthetic coldwave sound. The partnership proved fruitful for both parties and so Arianna became a permanent fixture in The Frozen Autumn line-up, Static Movement remaining their "concept research project".
After 18 months working on The Frozen Autumn's third album, Emotional Screening Device was released in April 2002 and hailed as the group's best album to date http://www.pandaimonium.de/FrozenAutumn.html. They decided to leave Eibon Records in 2003 and, while contemplating offers coming in from both Italian and foreign labels, spent over two years on the next album. Is Anybody There? was finally released in September 2005 by the Argentinean label Twilight Records and German label Pandaimonium through Xymox Control.
Merletto has since been working on his video art
which has in recent years become an integral part of the band's live shows, while in addition to playing concerts all over Europe and collaborating with various artists, the duo have (as of October 2006 http://www.frozenautumn.com/news.htm) begun the process of reprinting The Frozen Autumn's back catalogue. In 2009, "Pale Awakening", "Fragments of Memories" and "Visionary Landscapes" were re-printed through Twilight Records. At the same, The Frozen Autumn announced that Ashes is no longer their official fan club. In September 2009, a new official forum was created.
In December 2009, The Frozen Autumn published in their Facebook a "Manifesto against music killers", stating their position on music sharing over the Internet. In the same article they pointed out that they were exploited by someone who they thought as a good friend. http://www.facebook.com/topic.php?uid=53033606511&topic=11342.
In October 2010, four new songs from a new single: "Rallentears" will be performed live. It's on their new label: Calembour Records as a forerunner of their next album, called Chirality to be released in November 2011.
have been their main source of inspiration over the years http://www.darkulture.com/frozenautumn.html. In 2000 Diego and Arianna were invited by Clan of Xymox founder Ronny Moorings to do a remix of his new track, There's No Tomorrow, which was included on the single. They collaborated a second time when Moorings remixed Ashes, which featured as a bonus track on the 2005 album Is Anybody There?. Other favourite bands and artists of the duo include Dead Can Dance
, Cocteau Twins
, Xmal Deutschland
, David Sylvian
and Depeche Mode
.
Darkwave
Dark Wave or darkwave is a music genre that began in the late 1970s, coinciding with the popularity of New Wave and post-punk. Building on those basic principles, dark wave added dark, introspective lyrics and an undertone of sorrow for some bands...
band, formed in May 1993, characterized by a blend of melancholic vocals, atmospheric gothic-wave and 80s-style electropop.
History
The Frozen Autumn started life as the solo project of Diego Merletto, founded after several years of involvement with various darkwave groups in TurinTurin
Turin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...
. The singer, keyboardist and synth programmer employed the talents of guitarist Claudio Brosio during early studio sessions and live performances, then in 1995 the first album, Pale Awakening, was released under the German Weisser Herbst Produktion label. The album was well-received by gothic-wave/dark-romantic fans across Europe, and in 1997 the follow-up was released, Fragments of Memories, this time by Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
-based Eibon Records
Eibon Records
Eibon Records is an independent record label from Milan, Italy, founded in 1996. It is owned by Mauro Berchi and primarily focuses on very fringe underground music, noise/ambient and doom metal . It is also home to Berchi's own dark ambient group, Canaan...
.
In 1998 Merletto co-founded a side-project called Static Movement with Arianna, who provided guest vocals on the title-track from Fragments of Memories. The duo composed together for six months and in March 1999 the album Visionary Landscapes was released. The musical style of Static Movement was not dissimilar to The Frozen Autumn, however with only electronic instruments being used, the result was a more synthetic coldwave sound. The partnership proved fruitful for both parties and so Arianna became a permanent fixture in The Frozen Autumn line-up, Static Movement remaining their "concept research project".
After 18 months working on The Frozen Autumn's third album, Emotional Screening Device was released in April 2002 and hailed as the group's best album to date http://www.pandaimonium.de/FrozenAutumn.html. They decided to leave Eibon Records in 2003 and, while contemplating offers coming in from both Italian and foreign labels, spent over two years on the next album. Is Anybody There? was finally released in September 2005 by the Argentinean label Twilight Records and German label Pandaimonium through Xymox Control.
Merletto has since been working on his video art
Video art
Video art is a type of art which relies on moving pictures and comprises video and/or audio data. . Video art came into existence during the 1960s and 1970s, is still widely practiced and has given rise to the widespread use of video installations...
which has in recent years become an integral part of the band's live shows, while in addition to playing concerts all over Europe and collaborating with various artists, the duo have (as of October 2006 http://www.frozenautumn.com/news.htm) begun the process of reprinting The Frozen Autumn's back catalogue. In 2009, "Pale Awakening", "Fragments of Memories" and "Visionary Landscapes" were re-printed through Twilight Records. At the same, The Frozen Autumn announced that Ashes is no longer their official fan club. In September 2009, a new official forum was created.
In December 2009, The Frozen Autumn published in their Facebook a "Manifesto against music killers", stating their position on music sharing over the Internet. In the same article they pointed out that they were exploited by someone who they thought as a good friend. http://www.facebook.com/topic.php?uid=53033606511&topic=11342.
In October 2010, four new songs from a new single: "Rallentears" will be performed live. It's on their new label: Calembour Records as a forerunner of their next album, called Chirality to be released in November 2011.
Inspiration
The Frozen Autumn have stated that labelmates Clan of XymoxClan of Xymox
The band Clan of Xymox, also known as Xymox, formed in the Netherlands in 1981. Clan Of Xymox featured a trio of songwriters - Pieter Nooten, Ronny Moorings and Anke [also Anka] Wolbert - and gained success in the 1980s, releasing their first two albums on a prestigious independent UK label, a...
have been their main source of inspiration over the years http://www.darkulture.com/frozenautumn.html. In 2000 Diego and Arianna were invited by Clan of Xymox founder Ronny Moorings to do a remix of his new track, There's No Tomorrow, which was included on the single. They collaborated a second time when Moorings remixed Ashes, which featured as a bonus track on the 2005 album Is Anybody There?. Other favourite bands and artists of the duo include Dead Can Dance
Dead Can Dance
Dead Can Dance are an ethereal neoclassical duo formed in Melbourne, Australia, in August 1981, by Lisa Gerrard and Brendan Perry. The band relocated to London in May 1982 and disbanded in 1998. Their 1996 album Spiritchaser reached No. 1 on the Billboard Top World Music Albums Chart...
, Cocteau Twins
Cocteau Twins
Cocteau Twins were a Scottish alternative rock band active from 1979 to 1997, known for innovative instrumentation and atmospheric, non-lyrical vocals...
, Xmal Deutschland
Xmal Deutschland
Xmal Deutschland , often written as X-Mal Deutschland, was a musical group from Hamburg, Germany. Founded in 1980 with a completely female line-up, they became successful outside their native country. The lead singer of the band is vocalist Anja Huwe...
, David Sylvian
David Sylvian
David Sylvian is an English singer-songwriter and musician who came to prominence in the late 1970s as the lead vocalist and main songwriter in the group Japan...
and Depeche Mode
Depeche Mode
Depeche Mode are an English electronic music band formed in 1980 in Basildon, Essex. The group's original line-up consisted of Dave Gahan , Martin Gore , Andy Fletcher and Vince Clarke...
.
Discography
- Pale Awakening (1995) - reprint in 2009
- Fragments of Memories (1997) - reprint in 2009
- Visionary Landscapes (1999) - From Diego and Arianna's side-project, Static Movement - reprint in 2009
- The Pale Collection (2000) - Re-printed version of Pale Awakening including a remix of This Time and one new recording, a cover of Decoded FeedbackDecoded FeedbackDecoded Feedback is a Canadian musical project which incorporates styles of electro-industrial and aggrotech. The duo currently releases music on the North American distributor Metropolis Records, and the European record label Out of Line.-History:...
's Bio-Vital. - Emotional Screening Device (2002)
- Is Anybody There? (2005)
- Chirality (2011)
Members
- Diego Merletto (1993–present) - Vocals, synthesizers, samplersSampler (musical instrument)A sampler is an electronic musical instrument similar in some respects to a synthesizer but, instead of generating sounds, it uses recordings of sounds that are loaded or recorded into it by the user and then played back by means of a keyboard, sequencer or other triggering device to perform or...
, programming and effects - Arianna a.k.a. Froxeanne (1998–present) - Vocals, synthesizers, samplers, programming and effects
- Claudio Brosio (1994–1998) - Guitar
- Stefano Nieri (2007–2011) - Guitar from "Act Noir"
- "The Count" (2009–present) - Synths, samplers, programs, fx from "Nabla Operator"