Vinterriket

Vinterriket arose as an exceptionally productive solo venture in ambient black metal, founded by Christoph Ziegler, whose parallel atmospheric endeavors included Nebelkorona and Atomtrakt while he also performed as keyboardist for Nocternity and participated in Graven. Launched in 1996 within Germany’s Baden Württemberg region, the project—whose name means “The Winter Realm” in Scandinavian—issued its opening demos in 2000. During the following two years nearly fifteen splits, EPs, and demos emerged, many pressed in limited quantities or housed in unusually elaborate packaging. The first full-length appeared in 2002 as ...Und die Nach Kam Schweren Schrittes and was succeeded by yet another extended run of EP and split material. A second album, Winterschatten, arrived the same year, with the third, Landschaften Ewiger Einsamkeit, following in 2004. Additional splits and EPs continued afterward. Der Letzte Winter came out in 2005, Lightschleier in 2006, and 2007 brought the project’s first DVD. In 2008 Ziegler released the album Gebirgshöhenstille, though the year’s most elaborate offering was the ornate boxed edition of the EP Firntann, which contained the customary items such as stickers, patches, and a shirt together with distinctive objects like wood, crystals, and pine cones.