Biography

The Norwegian duo Solefald plays what its members have described as "radical designer rock & roll" and, more abstractly, "red music with black edges." A more precise, technical term for their music might be post-black metal, as they have used their initial foundation in that genre as a jumping-off point toward developing their own, harder-to-categorize sound. In this sense, they are somewhat comparable to fellow Norwegian acts such as Arcturus, Dodheimsgard, and Fleurety, who have followed roughly similar paths over their careers. For their part, Solefald has peppered their metal-based music with reggae and electronic/dance rhythms, punk rock-style guitars, a heavy use of keyboards (beyond what is typical for black metal), and even occasional rap-like vocals (most notably on 1999's Neonism). Their lyrics also go beyond the genre's norms, touching on themes involving consumerism, fashion, and modern urban life in general -- as opposed to Satanism, Norwegian folklore, forests, and wolves, etc. -- often expressing a sarcastic sense of humor in the process. The duo consists of guitarist/bassist/vocalist Cornelius Jakhelln and drummer/keyboardist/vocalist Lazarre Nedland (also a member of Borknagar since 1999). They formed in 1995, releasing the demo Jernlov before signing to the Italian Avantgarde label, with whom they released their first two albums, The Linear Scaffold (1997) and the more experimental Neonism (1999). Their third full-length, Pills Against the Ageless Ills, was a concept album about a pair of long-lost brothers -- one a pornographer, the other a monk -- that came out on Century Media in the fall of 2001. That same year, Jakhelln published a book of metaphysical poetry through H. Aschehoug & Company, Norway's largest book publishing house, entitled Gebura Muse. ~ William York, Rovi