Attention: The flag is missing in this box!
ARCTURUS have continuously spearheaded the metal avant-garde of their Norwegian home land and far beyond until this day, ever since the band emerged from the bubbling cauldron of Oslo's creatively bursting, fast rising underground black metal scene with the two-track 7" "My Angel" in 1991.
With then-guitarist and formidable keyboard player Sverd taking the helm and forming the act's core together with MAYHEM drum-beast Hellhammer, ARCTURUS released a string of classic albums that were recorded with the notable inclusion of ULVER frontman Kristoffer "Garm" Rygg until 2003. The Norwegians' early material, which includes all recordings with Garm, has been reissued as lavish limited collectors' editions under the title "Stars and Oblivion – The Complete Works 1991 – 2002" with a wealth of rare and previously unreleased bonus materials in September 2021.
While the luxurious limited boxes have completely sold out within a short time, the artbook edition remains available – as long as stocks last. The 7-CD, 72-page hardcover artbook includes all four legendary albums of the "Garm-period": "Aspera Hiems Symfonia", "La Masquerade", "Disguised Masters", and "The Sham Mirrors" as well as another album that combines both early EPs "Constellation/My Angel" with the addition of 2 "My Angel" rehearsal-tracks. The sixth CD, entitled "X-Tapes" is a very special collection of ultra-rare and previously unreleased material from ARCTURUS' personal archives including private cassettes of rehearsals, drunken jams, and even two live tracks from 1995. The artbook also features a seventh CD, which contains synthesizer compositions from ARCTURUS mastermind Steinar "Sverd" Johnsen.
What sets this CD collection audibly apart from previous reissues is the careful remastering of all material by long-standing guitarist Knut Magne Valle that diligently maintains the original spirit but enhances the sound to contemporary standards.
To do these musical masterpieces justice, renowned Romanian artist Costin Chioreanu created a new cover for the artbook. ARCTURUS furthermore commissioned additional artbook pages, graphic designs, enhanced original artworks, and images for the bonus materials from Łukasz Jaszak. The 72-page hardcover artbook features an in-depth essay by music journalist Jeff Wagner, celebrated author of the book "Mean Deviation: Four Decades of Progressive Heavy Metal". To round things off.
"Stars and Oblivion – The Complete Works 1991 – 2002" constitute the definite collection of ARCTURUS classic early releases that created the foundation of this legendary Norwegian avant-garde metal band and that have stood the test of time. The artbook edition remains available only as long as stocks last.
Tracklist:
- "Aspera Hiems Symfonia"
- "La Masquerade Infernale"
- "Disguised Masters"
- "The Sham Mirrors"
- "Constellation/My Angel"
01. Raudt Og Svart
02. Icebound Streams And Vapours Grey
03. Naar Kulda Tar (Frostnettenes Prolog)
04. Du Nordavind
05. My Angel
06. Morax
07. Morax Anno 1996 EV.
08. Outro (Radiant Star Befallen)
- "X-Tapes"
01. Icebound Streams And Vapours Grey (Early rehearsal Version With Marius Vold on vocals, 1992)
02. The Bodkin (Early rehearsal version with Marius Vold on vocals, 1992)
03. Whence And Whither (Unreleased, live in Gjerstad, 1995)
04. The Bodkin (Unreleased, live 1995)
05. Intoxicated Jam (1997 Rehearsal)
06. The Throne of Tragedy (Unreleased raw instrumental, 1996)
07. The Chaos Path (With Simen Hestnæs on vocals, 1996)
08. Halvtonemarsjen (Unreleased instrumental, 1997)
09. The Deep Is The Skies (Originally recorded in 1997)
10. Cosmojam (Instrumental, originally recorded in 1997)
- "Sverd Solo Compositions"
7 Untitled Instrumental Tracks
Edition:
- Exclusive Complete Box incl. 3 gatefold LPs, 3 single sleeve LPs, (black vinyl), 7CD hardcover book with 72 pages, 4 posters,and round printed patch (600 copies available). Albums remastered by Knut Magne Valle.
NO FLAG!
