Mortiis

Usually dressed in an elf, troll, or goblin costume (sometimes complete with bat wings and skull codpiece), the mysterious Mortiis was an indispensable force in the genesis of Norway's epic Viking metal sound. As the original bassist of Norwegian black metal pioneers Emperor, Mortiis was credited with stimulating the group's interest in blending furiously chaotic black metal with haunting synthesizer melodies often based loosely on Norwegian folk, thus laying the groundwork for a sound that would dominate underground metal over the next decade. However, for all his impact, Mortiis was only with the group for a very short time; he played on their 1992 Wrath of the Tyrant demo, a split release with Enslaved titled Hordanes Land, and a 7" single, "As the Shadows Rise," but never an official full-length album. Mortiis left Emperor rather abruptly in 1993 to pursue a solo career; still only 18 years old, he moved to Halmstad, Sweden, where he formed his own Dark Dungeon label. His 1993 solo debut, Født Til Å Herske, was a surprising departure from Emperor's relentless intensity, and in fact from guitar-oriented music altogether; instead, Mortiis worked primarily with electronic instruments, creating a sorrowful, sinister ambience with more than a hint of goth rock. Ånden Som Gjorde Opprör followed in 1994, as did the first of several side projects: a more industrial-tinged group called Vond, who issued an album titled Selvmord (later released in the U.S. as Slipp Sorgen Los). 1995 brought another new Mortiis album (Keiser av en Dimensjon Ukjent, or Emperor of a Dimension Unknown) and another side project, this one called Fata Morgana, who issued a self-titled debut. In 1996, Mortiis recorded a limited-edition series of five 12" EPs, whose material was subsequently collected as Crypt of the Wizard; 1997 brought yet another side project, the somewhat lighter Cinticele Diavolui.

No new Mortiis recordings appeared for a while, mostly due to negotiations with record companies. In 1999, Mortiis put an end to his side projects and signed to Earache, who promptly released his new project, the ambitious The Stargate, which featured heavy female vocals courtesy of Cradle of Filth's Sarah Jezebel Deva. Earache also reissued Født Til Å Herske and Crypt of the Wizard a short time later, and the proper international distribution of those records elevated Mortiis' profile and began to build a cult following for his music.

from Wikipedia:

Mortiis is a band from Notodden, Norway fronted by Håvard Ellefsen, who is also known as the namesake of the band. The name is a misspelling of the word 'mortis', which is the pronunciation used by the band. However, Mortiis started as the solo project of Ellefsen as a means to convey a story. This aspect was lost over time and Mortiis slowly formed into a band.

History

Era I

The title of Era I was never intentional. It came about in 2001 when Mortiis was set to release The Smell of Rain, which was such a departure from his earlier records that he wanted to brand it in a way to signify this. All works previous to The Smell of Rain were thereafter referred to as Era I as consequence. All of the Era I albums were composed entirely on synthesizers, creating a sound that Mortiis described as "dark dungeon music". The last album of this era,The Stargate, went a step further by introducing a wider range of instruments including acoustic guitars, flutes and dark vocals; mainly provided by Sarah Jezebel Deva.

Era II

The Smell of Rain created a divide among fans; the songs this time had an electropop feel to them, and frontman Ellefsen took to lead vocals for the first time. This would be the only release under the title of Era II. It was during this era that Ellefsen decided he needed to seek members to perform in a live setting, which later helped change how Mortiis as a band sounded.

Era III

With Era III came The Grudge, which took an even more drastic turn from previous eras and is said to have made the biggest impression of any of his albums. The Grudge took on a heavy industrial rock emphasis, combining grinding guitars and industrial programming. Some of the long time fans were again not too happy with this turn, but it helped gain Mortiis more new fans. In 2005, the Norwegian Culture Council selected The Grudge to be freely available for listening to the public in libraries across the country.

On April 16, 2007 Mortiis released a remix album titled Some Kind of Heroin, reworking material from The Grudge, via Earache Records. "Some Kind of Heroin" offers diverse remix material including interpretations by a wide range of contemporaries, such as Zombie Girl, Gothminister, Implant, XP8, PIG, The Kovenant, Velvet Acid Christ, Girls Under Glass, David Wallace, Kubrick, Flesh Field, Dope Stars Inc, In the Nursery among others.

The Great Deceiver was originally finished in 2008, and includes mixes by Chris Vrenna (NIN, Manson). Additional material has also been finished. In fact, enough material for another album was finished during 2009. Late 2009 and early 2010 earlier music has been partly reprogrammed and re-arranged for future live use.

Side projects

Cintecele Diavolui

DiscographyThe Devils Songs - Dark Dungeon Music (1996)

Fata Morgana

"Fata Morgana is basically me wanting to express musical ideas through another medium - that had no real concept, that didn't deal with something special, or had any message within".

DiscographyFata Morgana (1995)The Space Race / Robot City (1996)

Vond

DiscographyHavard-Vond 7" EP (limited to 1000 copies) (1993)Selvmord / Slipp Sorgen Los (1994)The Dark River (1996)Green Eyed Demon (1998)

Image

For nearly the entirety of the bands existence, frontman Ellefsen has altered his facial appearance using several alternatives before using a prosthetic mask and ear set. The original mask is based around that of Blix from the movie Legend. The studio who made Mortiis' mask asked for a character reference for the moulding. The mask was always coupled with ears. During Era I the mask covered his whole face, though by Era III it had an appearance whereby it seemed to be falling off and was stitched in place. The mask was dropped after the release of Some Kind of Heroin. Having stated in an interview that the mask has been shelved "for better or worse", as part of the significance of Some Kind of Heroin. He has also said that the mask now bears no direct reference to the music he is making. His choice to change from an established cult image, to a new direction is seen as his desire to produce art for himself, and not other people who want him to do certain things against his will.

Ellefsen's choice of dreadlocks (sometime after Era I), and various outfits helped produce the "Mortiis image". When asked as to what the mask represents he has answered, "I do not look upon myself as a goblin, or troll, or elf, or medieval. I am merely Mortiis." Mortiis has been known to repair his live clothes by using black tape to seal holes and tears. They often cover themselves in corn flour before going on stage.

When talking about the influence for the imagery that his band uses, Ellefsen has commented, "A lot of people do not get that you can do more than just look like you're waiting for a bus. I mean how dull is that? I grew up with Kiss, W.A.S.P. and Alice Cooper."

Remixes

Mortiis was credited for a number of remixes, though most are produced solely by Ellefsen. Most notable for the Alfa Matrix signed bands, Zombie Girl (on the album Blood Brains and Rock 'n' Roll) and also for another female fronted industrial metal act I:Scintilla who released their album "Optics" on the Belgian industrial label Alfa Matrix holding a bonus disc with a remix by Mortiis beside others by Combichrist, Clan Of Xymox. Mortiis provided remixes also for Italian Industrial Rock/Metal bands like Dope Stars Inc. and T3CHN0PH0B1A.