A biography of 'Dawn of Ashes'

'Dawn of Ashes' is an American heavy metal band. Its lyrics and style have caused it to be classified as a 'black metal' outfit. The main focus of the group's lyrics is on the horrific themes of torture, death and mutilation. There is some musical cross-over with industrial music as well. The powerful metal guitars and drums add to the industrial sounds so as to create a powerfully dark brew.

Early days

'Dawn of Ashes' was formed in 2001. Their name reflects the ideas of death, failure and re-birth. At this stage, they were very much an industrial or 'aggrotech' band, rather than a metal outfit. Based in Los Angeles, California, the group honed its sound for five years before releasing a début demonstration album in 2005. The album was called 'Sacred Fever' and offered 14 tracks, beginning with
'Ripped Apart' and closing with 'Reflection of Evil'. This was self-released by the band, which followed it up with another demonstration extended play (EP) later in the same year. It was known as 'Dawn of Ashes' and it contained five songs.
'Disembowel Your Enemy' and 'Sacred' were the respective opening and closing songs of the record.

Record deal and albums

After 'Sacred Fever', the band was signed by NoiTekk and subsequently by COP International and Russia's Gravitator Records. Two full-length albums were subsequently released by the band,
'In the Acts of Violence' (2006) and 'The Crypt Injection' (2007). The latter included songs such as 'Slasher' and 'Psycho Therapy' as well as the title track which gives the album its name. In 2010, the band released their third album 'Genocide Chapters' via the label Metal Blade Records. This album was a conscious departure from their earlier electronic/industrial roots. It further marked them out as a 'true' black metal act. Music website Thisisnotascene.com described 'Genocide Chapters' as a "Decent album, and it is interesting to see where their [Birth of Ashes] continued evolution will take them next."

Current line-up

The band's line-up currently consists of four musicians. Kristof Bathory plays on the keyboards and handles the vocal duties. He is a founder member of the band and he is the only current member to have been with the band since its inception in 2001. The other three members of the band operate under suitably horrific sounding pseudonyms. Bahemoth, who has been with the band since 2005, also plays on the keyboards while Othuum has been the band's bass player since 2008. Volkar Kael plays guitar for the band and has been a member since 2008.