My Dying Bride are an English
doom metal band formed in
Bradford. Since their inception in 1990, they have released 13 studio albums, three EPs, one demo, one box set, four compilation albums, one live album, and one live CD/DVD release.
Along with
Anathema
Anathema, in common usage, is something or someone detested or shunned. In its other main usage, it is a formal excommunication. The latter meaning, its ecclesiastical sense, is based on New Testament usage. In the Old Testament, anathema was a cr ...
and
Paradise Lost, My Dying Bride were a forerunner of the
death doom metal and
gothic metal genres during the early 1990s. These bands comprise "The Peaceville Three" as all were signed to
Peaceville Records
Peaceville Records is a British independent heavy metal record label. The label was founded by Paul "Hammy" Halmshaw (of the bands Instigators and Civilised Society) in Dewsbury, England in 1987, who was also a one-time drummer of Sore Throat. ...
at the time.
History
Early years (1990–1992)
My Dying Bride was formed in
Bradford,
West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire is a metropolitan and ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and Humber Region of England. It is an inland and upland county having eastward-draining valleys while taking in the moors of the Pennines. West Yorkshire came into exi ...
, England, in June 1990,
after guitarist
Andrew Craighan
Andrew Craighan (born 18 July 1970) is one of My Dying Bride
My Dying Bride are an English doom metal band formed in Bradford. Since their inception in 1990, they have released 13 studio albums, three EPs, one demo, one box set, four com ...
and drummer Rick Miah co-formed the band after they had split from Abiosis, joining vocalist
Aaron Stainthorpe
Aaron Stainthorpe (born 12 November 1968) is an English singer who is the lead vocalist for doom metal band My Dying Bride.
In December 2005, it was announced that Stainthorpe would lend his voice and some lyrics to a song with Sarah Jezebel ...
and guitarist Calvin Robertshaw while ending Abiosis. After six months of rehearsing, the band recorded and released their demo, ''
Towards the Sinister'', which was produced by Tim Walker of Voltage Records. Its title was taken from a line in the song "
Symphonaire Infernus et Spera Empyrium". The band then released their first single, "
God Is Alone
My Dying Bride are an English doom metal band formed in Bradford. Since their inception in 1990, they have released 13 studio albums, three EPs, one demo, one box set, four compilation albums, one live album, and one live CD/DVD release.
Al ...
", on a small French label called Listenable.
After the single had sold out almost immediately, they were picked up by
Peaceville Records
Peaceville Records is a British independent heavy metal record label. The label was founded by Paul "Hammy" Halmshaw (of the bands Instigators and Civilised Society) in Dewsbury, England in 1987, who was also a one-time drummer of Sore Throat. ...
, and they could release their first EP, ''Symphonaire Infernus et Spera Empyrium'',
which also featured their latest recruit, bassist
Adrian Jackson. The EP was soon followed by their first album, ''
As the Flower Withers
''As the Flower Withers'' is the debut studio album by Yorkshire-based doom metal band My Dying Bride. The artwork was designed by Dave McKean. This is the only full-length My Dying Bride album on which lead vocalist Aaron Stainthorpe utilizes ...
''.
''Turn Loose the Swans'' (1992–1994)
''As the Flower Withers'' was followed by a large tour in the UK and the mainland Europe, and in 1992 they recorded their next EP, ''
The Thrash of Naked Limbs
''The Thrash of Naked Limbs'' is the second EP by death/doom metal band My Dying Bride. This EP was also released as a vinyl record. By this time, the band was a 6-piece, having added session violinist and keyboardist Martin Powell as an off ...
''.
Another tour was planned, but cancelled when their current drummer had a bad fall while shooting the accompanying video. In 1993,
Martin Powell
Martin Powell is an English musician. In 1991, Powell auditioned for the position of bass player in the band My Dying Bride, but was turned down as the band had just filled the position. Upon informing the band he was also a violin and keyboard ...
joined as My Dying Bride's keyboardist and violinist, and they started the recording of their second studio album, ''
Turn Loose the Swans
''Turn Loose the Swans'' is the second album by the British doom metal band My Dying Bride, released in 1993.
It marked a radical departure from the band's first full-length, ''As the Flower Withers''. Martin Powell's violin playing had become ...
''.
With the joining of Martin Powell, the usage of violin increased even more since their ''As the Flower Withers'' album. The album was released that year followed by a tour and another EP, ''
I Am the Bloody Earth
My Dying Bride are an English doom metal band formed in Bradford. Since their inception in 1990, they have released 13 studio albums, three EPs, one demo, one box set, four compilation albums, one live album, and one live CD/DVD release.
Al ...
''.
''The Angel and the Dark River'' (1995)
1995 saw the release of My Dying Bride's next album, ''
The Angel and the Dark River
''The Angel and the Dark River'' is the third album by the British doom/death metal band My Dying Bride. The 1996 re-release contains one bonus track "The Sexuality of Bereavement" and a bonus CD titled ''Live at the Dynamo''. The Live CD was rec ...
''. The album was followed with a successful tour with some of their first festival gigs, and soon after the fans saw the release of their first compilation album, ''
Trinity
The Christian doctrine of the Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the central dogma concerning the nature of God in most Christian churches, which defines one God existing in three coequal, coeternal, consubstantial divine persons: God th ...
'', a collection of songs from their first three EPs. In the end of 1995, My Dying Bride traveled on a three-month tour with
Iron Maiden
Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. While fluid in the early years of the band, the lineup for most of the band's history has consisted of Harri ...
.
''Like Gods of the Sun'' (1996–1997)
''
Like Gods of the Sun'' continued in the direction of ''The Angel and the Dark River'', in that it did not contain any growling vocals by Aaron Stainthorpe.
This was the fourth album of My Dying Bride, featuring songs like "A Kiss to Remember", "For You" and "For My Fallen Angel". "For My Fallen Angel" is strictly an orchestral composition with sections of violin and synth. It is also the last MDB album to feature a violin, until ''
For Lies I Sire''.
''34.788%...Complete'' and hiatus (1998–2001)
The somewhat experimental ''
34.788%...Complete'' was next, followed by ''
The Light at the End of the World''. My Dying Bride entered a hiatus after this, releasing two retrospective albums ''
Meisterwerk 1
''Meisterwerk 1'' is a compilation album by My Dying Bride, which features both album tracks and rare recordings. Its
companion piece - '' Meisterwerk 2'' - was released the following year. It is the second of four My Dying Bride compilation albu ...
'' and ''
Meisterwerk 2
''Meisterwerk 2'' is a compilation album by My Dying Bride, which features both album tracks and rare recordings. Its companion piece - ''Meisterwerk 1'' - was released the previous year. It is the third of five My Dying Bride compilation albums, ...
''. The ''Meisterwerk'' albums are compilations that contain previously released and rare material from My Dying Bride. At the end of the hiatus, Calvin Robertshaw left the band to become their tour manager and was replaced by
Hamish Glencross
Hamish Glencross is a Scottish guitarist best known for his work with the English metal band My Dying Bride. He also co-founded the short-lived Blackdoom Records with the band's other guitarist, Andrew Craighan.
Glencross had a brief acting ca ...
.
''The Dreadful Hours'' (2001–2004)
Originally released in 2001, ''
The Dreadful Hours
''The Dreadful Hours'' is the seventh album by My Dying Bride, released on 13 November 2001. It contains a remake of "The Return of the Beautiful" (renamed "The Return to the Beautiful") from the band's debut album, ''As the Flower Withers''.
''T ...
'' featured new material with the seventh release. The album was again engineered by Mags and co-produced by guitarist
Andrew Craighan
Andrew Craighan (born 18 July 1970) is one of My Dying Bride
My Dying Bride are an English doom metal band formed in Bradford. Since their inception in 1990, they have released 13 studio albums, three EPs, one demo, one box set, four com ...
. Between 2003 and 2004, the band's label,
Peaceville, re-released their entire back-catalogue in
digipak
Optical disc packaging is the packaging that accompanies CDs, DVDs, and other formats of optical discs. Most packaging is rigid or semi-rigid and designed to protect the media from scratches and other types of exposure damage.
Jewel case
...
format, with bonus tracks consisting of demos, remixes, and live performances added to each release (except "The Light at the End of the World").
''Songs of Darkness Words of Light'' (2004–2005)
2004's follow-up was ''
Songs of Darkness Words of Light''.
The band's next release came in May 2005, when they released the fancifully titled ''
Anti-Diluvian Chronicles'', a fully-fledged ''best of'' box set featuring three discs and thirty tracks.
''A Line of Deathless Kings'' (2006–2007)
The band spent the winter of 2005/2006 writing material for new studio album ''
A Line of Deathless Kings
''A Line of Deathless Kings'' is the ninth studio album by My Dying Bride. It was released on 9 October 2006.
A limited edition of the album comes in a hard clamshell case with a double-sided poster and five postcards, depicting the full-time m ...
''. The album was released on 9 October 2006. It was preceded by the EP ''
Deeper Down'' on 18 September. Shortly before the release of ''A Line of Deathless Kings'', Shaun Taylor-Steels announced his permanent departure from the band due to persistent problems with his ankle.
![My Dying Bride 12](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4c/My_Dying_Bride_12.jpg)
In early 2007, Jackson announced his departure and session-drummer
John Bennett from
The Prophecy
''The Prophecy'' is a 1995 American fantasy thriller film starring Christopher Walken, Elias Koteas, Virginia Madsen, Eric Stoltz, and Viggo Mortensen. It was written and directed by Gregory Widen in his feature directorial debut, and is the f ...
could no longer stay, citing a lack of time due to work commitments. Replacements were found in Lena Abé on bass and
Dan Mullins
Dan Mullins (born 15 June 1978) is an English metal drummer. He is most known for being the drummer of the death/doom metal band My Dying Bride. Mullins has cited drummers such as Buddy Rich, Mike Portnoy, Sean Reinert, and Paul Mazurkiewicz ...
on drums.
''For Lies I Sire'', ''Evinta'', ''The Barghest O' Whitby'' (2009–2011)
![Mydyingbride tuska 20090628](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/42/Mydyingbride_tuska_20090628.JPG)
In November 2008, My Dying Bride began work on their tenth studio album, entitled ''
For Lies I Sire'', which was released on 23 March 2009. Due to
Sarah Stanton's pregnancy, she had been replaced on keyboards by Katie Stone, she performed violin on ''For Lies I Sire''. Soon after the album's release, she was replaced by
Shaun MacGowan.
On 26 October 2009, My Dying Bride released an EP/DVD titled ''
Bring Me Victory''. Except for the title track and its video, it also includes a doom metal cover of the traditional song ''
Scarborough Fair'', a cover of "Failure" by
Swans
Swans are birds of the family Anatidae within the genus ''Cygnus''. The swans' closest relatives include the geese and ducks. Swans are grouped with the closely related geese in the subfamily Anserinae where they form the tribe Cygnini. Someti ...
and a live version of ''Vast Choirs'' (originally from
As the Flower Withers
''As the Flower Withers'' is the debut studio album by Yorkshire-based doom metal band My Dying Bride. The artwork was designed by Dave McKean. This is the only full-length My Dying Bride album on which lead vocalist Aaron Stainthorpe utilizes ...
), performed at
Graspop
Graspop Metal Meeting is a Belgian heavy metal festival held in Dessel each year since 1996, excluding 2020 and 2021 due to covid restrictions. Despite the small size of the festival grounds (upholding a perimeter of only ~4 km) the festiva ...
2008.
To commemorate the 20th anniversary of My Dying Bride's existence, the album ''
Evinta'' was released on 30 May 2011. ''Evinta'' featured some previous My Dying Bride material re-worked as neo-classical and ambient songs. Soon after, the band announced the release of the EP ''
The Barghest o' Whitby'', which was released 7 November 2011, and consists of a single, 27-minute track.
''A Map of All Our Failures'' and ''The Manuscript'' (2012–2014)
''
A Map of All Our Failures
''A Map of All Our Failures'' is the 11th studio album by English doom metal band My Dying Bride, released on 15 October 2012 via Peaceville Records. Limited editions of the album included a bonus track and a DVD featuring a 70-minute documentar ...
'' was released on 15 October 2012.
On 13 May 2013, the band released a four-track EP, ''
The Manuscript''. Three of the four tracks from the EP were recorded at the same time as ''A Map of All Our Failures''.
A year later on 26 May 2014 the songs of this EP were re-released together with ''The Barghest O' Whitby'' as ''
The Vaulted Shadows'' compilation.
Guitarist Hamish Glencross had been fired upon returning from their U.S. 2014 Maryland Deathfest appearance, and original guitarist Calvin Robertshaw returned to the band.
''Feel the Misery'' and move to Nuclear Blast (2015–2019)
![Hammer of Doom X Würzburg My Dying Bride 5](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/23/Hammer_of_Doom_X_W%C3%BCrzburg_My_Dying_Bride_5.jpg)
On 18 September 2015, ''
Feel the Misery'' was released, with eight tracks. In March 2017, the band signed with
Nuclear Blast Records
Nuclear Blast is a record label and mail order record distributor with subsidiaries in Germany, the United States and Brazil. The label was founded in 1987 by Markus Staiger in Germany. Originally releasing hardcore punk records, the label mov ...
. The same year, drummer Dan Mullins left the band, and was replaced with
Shaun Steels
Shaun 'Winter' Taylor-Steels (born Shaun Steels, 22 August 1970) is a British heavy metal drummer and bassist. Steels, born in Normanton, West Yorkshire, is of Scottish and Norwegian descent on his mother's side of the family.
Steels replace ...
, who had been in the band from 1999 to 2006, and had played on ''
A Map of All Our Failures
''A Map of All Our Failures'' is the 11th studio album by English doom metal band My Dying Bride, released on 15 October 2012 via Peaceville Records. Limited editions of the album included a bonus track and a DVD featuring a 70-minute documentar ...
'' in 2012 as a session member.
In 2017, after cancelling four festival appearances, Aaron Stainthorpe explained that the band was working on a new album, and had therefore not disbanded. In a My Dying Bride Facebook post on 18 September 2018, Aaron Stainthorpe explained that the band cancelled those shows due to the cancer of his 5-year-old daughter, who is presently in remission.
On 4 December 2018, the band announced that Shaun Steels had been replaced by
Jeff Singer
Jeff Singer (born 31 March 1971) is a British drummer, currently for the bands My Dying Bride (2018–present), Soldierfield (2012–present) and Kill II This (who reformed in 2016), and formerly for the bands China Beach (1992–1994), Blaz ...
due to "unresolvable drumming issues" and that the drum tracks for the new album had been completed by Singer.
On 24 May 2019, the band released 'A Harvest of Dread', a deluxe 12-inch 92-page hardback book five-disc set of rarities, early works, previously unheard pre-production demos, band favorites, and live audio. Also in 2019, Calvin Robertshaw had left My Dying Bride for a second time, and was replaced by Neil Blanchett on guitars.
''The Ghost of Orion'' (2020–present)
My Dying Bride's 13th album, ''
The Ghost of Orion'', was released on 6 March 2020. It was released five years after their previous effort, ''
Feel the Misery'', which is the band's longest gap between studio albums to date.
Beforehand, the album's first single, "Your Broken Shore", was released on 20 January, followed by a second single, "Tired of Tears", on 7 February.
Later in 2020, the band released their 7th EP, ''
Macabre Cabaret''.
Band members
upVocalist Stainthorpe in 2015
Current
*
Aaron Stainthorpe
Aaron Stainthorpe (born 12 November 1968) is an English singer who is the lead vocalist for doom metal band My Dying Bride.
In December 2005, it was announced that Stainthorpe would lend his voice and some lyrics to a song with Sarah Jezebel ...
–
vocals
Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or withou ...
*
Andrew Craighan
Andrew Craighan (born 18 July 1970) is one of My Dying Bride
My Dying Bride are an English doom metal band formed in Bradford. Since their inception in 1990, they have released 13 studio albums, three EPs, one demo, one box set, four com ...
–
lead guitar
Lead guitar (also known as solo guitar) is a musical part for a guitar in which the guitarist plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs and chords within a song structure. The lead is the featu ...
* Lena Abé –
bass
*
Shaun MacGowan –
violin
The violin, sometimes known as a '' fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone ( string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument ( soprano) in the family in regu ...
,
keyboard
Keyboard may refer to:
Text input
* Keyboard, part of a typewriter
* Computer keyboard
** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping
** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware
Music
* Musi ...
s
* Neil Blanchett –
guitar
The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected strin ...
*
Dan Mullins
Dan Mullins (born 15 June 1978) is an English metal drummer. He is most known for being the drummer of the death/doom metal band My Dying Bride. Mullins has cited drummers such as Buddy Rich, Mike Portnoy, Sean Reinert, and Paul Mazurkiewicz ...
- drums
Former
* Calvin Robertshaw – rhythm guitar
* Rick Miah – drums
*
Martin Powell
Martin Powell is an English musician. In 1991, Powell auditioned for the position of bass player in the band My Dying Bride, but was turned down as the band had just filled the position. Upon informing the band he was also a violin and keyboard ...
– violin, keyboards
* Adrian Jackson – bass
* Bill Law – drums
*
Shaun Taylor-Steels – drums
* Sarah Stanton – keyboards
* Katie Stone – violin, keyboards
* Hamish Glencross – rhythm guitar
*
Jeff Singer
Jeff Singer (born 31 March 1971) is a British drummer, currently for the bands My Dying Bride (2018–present), Soldierfield (2012–present) and Kill II This (who reformed in 2016), and formerly for the bands China Beach (1992–1994), Blaz ...
–
drums
Former live
* Yasmin Ahmed – keyboards
* John Bennett – drums
* David Gray – drums
* Robb Philpotts – rhythm guitar
Timeline
Discography
* ''
As the Flower Withers
''As the Flower Withers'' is the debut studio album by Yorkshire-based doom metal band My Dying Bride. The artwork was designed by Dave McKean. This is the only full-length My Dying Bride album on which lead vocalist Aaron Stainthorpe utilizes ...
'' (1992)
* ''
Turn Loose the Swans
''Turn Loose the Swans'' is the second album by the British doom metal band My Dying Bride, released in 1993.
It marked a radical departure from the band's first full-length, ''As the Flower Withers''. Martin Powell's violin playing had become ...
'' (1993)
* ''
The Angel and the Dark River
''The Angel and the Dark River'' is the third album by the British doom/death metal band My Dying Bride. The 1996 re-release contains one bonus track "The Sexuality of Bereavement" and a bonus CD titled ''Live at the Dynamo''. The Live CD was rec ...
'' (1995)
* ''
Like Gods of the Sun'' (1996)
* ''
34.788%...Complete'' (1998)
* ''
The Light at the End of the World'' (1999)
* ''
The Dreadful Hours
''The Dreadful Hours'' is the seventh album by My Dying Bride, released on 13 November 2001. It contains a remake of "The Return of the Beautiful" (renamed "The Return to the Beautiful") from the band's debut album, ''As the Flower Withers''.
''T ...
'' (2001)
* ''
Songs of Darkness, Words of Light'' (2004)
* ''
A Line of Deathless Kings
''A Line of Deathless Kings'' is the ninth studio album by My Dying Bride. It was released on 9 October 2006.
A limited edition of the album comes in a hard clamshell case with a double-sided poster and five postcards, depicting the full-time m ...
'' (2006)
* ''
For Lies I Sire'' (2009)
* ''
Evinta'' (2011)
- also categorized as a remix album
A remix album is an album consisting of remixes or rerecorded versions of an artist's earlier released material. The first act who employed the format was American singer-songwriter Harry Nilsson ('' Aerial Pandemonium Ballet'', 1971). As of 200 ...
* ''
A Map of All Our Failures
''A Map of All Our Failures'' is the 11th studio album by English doom metal band My Dying Bride, released on 15 October 2012 via Peaceville Records. Limited editions of the album included a bonus track and a DVD featuring a 70-minute documentar ...
'' (2012)
* ''
Feel the Misery'' (2015)
* ''
The Ghost of Orion'' (2020)
References
External links
Official website
{{Authority control
1990 establishments in England
Articles which contain graphical timelines
English doom metal musical groups
English gothic metal musical groups
English death metal musical groups