Draconian

Originally formed as a trio in the Swedish town of Saffle during spring 1994, the group then operating under the name Kerberos blended elements of death metal, melodic metal, and a trace of black metal. By year’s end Anders Jacobsson had joined on vocals, prompting both a new moniker, Draconian, and a shift in direction. Their earliest recorded material surfaced as the 1996 demo Shades of a Lost Moon, drawn from the band’s first round of composition. Plans for a follow-up demo collapsed in 1997, as did initial attempts to complete a debut album, leaving the musicians to refine their approach across further demo sessions. A limited EP, the two-track Frozen Features, appeared in 2000, yet it was the 2002 effort Dark Oceans We Cry that defined their mature style, introduced Lisa Johansson’s vocals, and secured a contract with Napalm Records.

After years of development the band issued its first official full-length, Where Lovers Mourn, in 2003. Momentum from the 2005 successor Arcane Rain Fell enabled a detour into catalog work, resulting in The Burning Halo, a collection that reworked tracks from the 1999 Closed Eyes of Paradise demo alongside fresh material and cover songs. Work on the next studio album began in 2007; Turning Season Within arrived the following year and was soon trailed by the single “No Greater Sorrow.” Johansson’s final recorded contribution came with the 2011 release A Rose for the Apocalypse, whose last shared stage appearance occurred at Metal Female Voices that October. Heike Langhans, formerly of Inferium, entered the lineup in 2012. Following European festival appearances, the refreshed ensemble delivered Sovran in autumn 2015, featuring additional vocals from Jacobsson and guest Daniel Änghede of Crippled Black Phoenix.