| Fen | |
|---|---|
| Origin | The Fens |
| Genre | Black metal |
| Years Active | 2006 - Present |
| Website | http://www.myspace.com/fenband |
| Members | |
| The Watcher (guitar, vocals) | |
| Grungyn (bass, backing vocals) | |
| Theutus (drums) | |
| æőelwalh (Synths, backing vocals) | |
| Releases | |
| Ancient Sorrow - 2006 Label:Northern Silence | |
| Malediction Fields - 2009 Label:CODE666 | |
| Towards the shores of the End - 2011 split release with De Arma | |
| Epoch - 2011 Label:CODE666 | |
Fen are a british black metal outfit formed in 2006 from the Fens of East Anglia. Their myspace page reports that they "draw the listener into a windswept and desolate landscape, bereft of hope". In 2006 they recorded the Ancient Sorrow EP (released on both CD and Vinyl) and January 2009 saw the release of the first full length album "The Malediction Fields" under the CODE666 record label. In 2011 they released the album EPOCH (also CODE666 records), gaining positive reviews in leading magazines Metal Hammer (8/10) and Terrorizer magazine. The album was launched at the Bull & Gate venue in London with support from the old Corpse Road on the 11th of February 2011.
Fen have played at many festivals and with other class acts, including at the Infernal Damnation Festival, the Damnation Festival 2010 (alongside acts such as Sabbat and Lawnmower Deth) and tours with Negura Bunget and Wodensthrone
EPOCH was released in a standard jewel CD case and as a strictly limited artbook edition (limited to 799 copies) with 40 pages of photography from the landscapes that have inspired the music and two bonus tracks (The wind whispers of Loss & ...From the Mists).
The band features original members The Watcher, Grungyn and Theutus. In 2007 Draugluin joined on Synths, in 2010 Draugluin was replaced by Æðelwalh previously of Wodensthrone.
Releases: edit
Ancient Sorrow - Northern Silence EP - 2006
(Desolation Embraced, The Gales Scream of Loss, Under the Endless Sky)
The Malediction Fields - CODE666 - 2009
(Exiles Journey, A Witness to the passing of Aeons, Colossal Voids, As Buried Spirits Stir, The Warren, Lashed by Storm, Bereft)
Towards the Shores of the End - Fen / De Arm (Split Release)
(Soilbound, Ageless Thenody, Towards the Shores of the End, Bereft (acoustic reprise)
Epoch - CODE666 - 2011
(Epoch, Ghosts of the Flood, Of Wilderness and Ruin, The Gibbet Elms, Carrier of Echoes, Half Light Eternal, A Warning Solace, Ashbringer, *The Wind Whispers of Loss, *... From the mists)
References and Reviews:
edit
Reviews of Epoch:
Ultimate Metal (collection of reviews) - http://www.ultimatemetal.com/forum/code666/645565-fen-epoch-reviews.html
Metal Hammer Magazine - February 2011
Trebuchet Magazine - http://www.trebuchet-magazine.com/index.php/site/article/fen_-_epoch/
Shellshock - http://www.shellshock.co.uk/product_info.php?selected_cat=CODE051&artist=Fen&Label_filter=Code666
Blabbath - http://www.cackblabbath.co.uk/2010/12/02/fen-epoch/
Reviews of Malediction Fields
Metal Review: http://metalreview.com/reviews/4878/fen-the-malediction-fields
Metal Crypt: http://www.metalcrypt.com/pages/review.php?revid=4688
Metal Rage: http://www.metalrage.com/reviews/2685/fen-the-malediction-fields.html
Ultimate Metal (collection of reviews): http://www.ultimatemetal.com/forum/code666/450876-fen-malediction-fields-reviews.html
Metal Archives: http://www.metal-archives.com/review.php?id=220219
Chronicles of Chaos: http://www.chroniclesofchaos.com/reviews/albums/2-6026_fen_the_malediction_fields.aspx
Blistering.com http://www.blistering.com/fastpage/fpengine.php/link/1/templateid/15482/tempidx/4/menuid/2
Other Reviews / Sites
Full page feature in Metal Hammer (UK) magazine March 2011 "FEN: expansive brits redefine the black metal landscape"
Terrorizer magazine March 2011 - 7.5 review of Towards the Shoes of the End
Aural Music site - http://www.auralmusic.com/
De Arma Split Review http://halifaxcollect.blogspot.com/2011/02/fen-de-arma-towards-shores-of-end.html
MTUK Metal Zine Review http://www.metalteamuk.net/jan11reviews/cdreviews-fende.htm
Sea of Tranquility Review: http://www.seaoftranquility.org/reviews.php?op=showcontent&id=10502
Avant Garde Metal Review http://avantgarde-metal.com/content/reviews2.php?id=592
LAST FM Page - http://www.last.fm/music/Fen