Junius is an American

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

band from

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

that formed in 2003. The band is composed of lead vocalist and guitarist Joseph E. Martinez, and drummer Dana Filloon. Thus far, they have released four EPs and three full-length albums. The band name is taken after '' Junius'', the pseudonym of a political writer who lived during the late 18th century.

History

Formation and first years (2003–2008)

Junius's first releases were two EPs on Radar Recordings, '' Forcing Out the Silence'' (2004) and '' Blood is Bright'' (2006). In 2007, they reissued the EPs on a single

self-titled An eponym is a person, a place, or a thing after whom or which someone or something is, or is believed to be, named. The adjectives which are derived from the word eponym include ''eponymous'' and ''eponymic''. Usage of the word The term ''epon ...

CD. This album was also released on Radar Recordings. During this time, the group cycled through several bass players before finding a permanent bass player, Joel Munguia, who is first credited on the band's third EP '' The Fires of Antediluvia'' which was released in May 2007.

''The Martyrdom of a Catastrophist'' (2009–2011)

Their first proper full-length, '' The Martyrdom of a Catastrophist'', was released on November 10, 2009 through the label The Mylene Sheath in the US and Make My Day Records in Europe. The album is inspired by the writings of theorist

Immanuel Velikovsky Immanuel Velikovsky (; rus, Иммануи́л Велико́вский, p=ɪmənʊˈil vʲɪlʲɪˈkofskʲɪj; 17 November 1979) was a Jewish, Russian-American psychoanalyst, writer, and catastrophist. He is the author of several books offering ...

and took the group nearly three years to complete. Junius produced ''The Martyrdom of a Catastrophist'' at the legendary A&M Records studios in Hollywood (now known as

Henson Recording Studio The Jim Henson Company Lot, formerly A&M Studios, is a studio property located just south of the southeast corner of North La Brea Avenue and Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood. Originally established by film star Charlie Chaplin, the property serv ...

) over the course of a year, somewhat guerilla-style, during off-hours when the studio wasn't booked (the band has joked that they were bumped out by everyone from

Akon Aliaune Damala Badara Akon Thiam (; born April 16, 1973), known mononymously as Akon, is a Senegalese-American singer, record producer, and entrepreneur. He rose to prominence in 2004 following the release of " Locked Up" (featuring Styles P) ...

Bruce Springsteen Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen (born September 23, 1949) is an American singer and songwriter. He has released 21 studio albums, most of which feature his backing band, the E Street Band. Originally from the Jersey Shore, he is an originat ...

—literally). The album was recorded by Kevin Mills and Tom Syrowski (

Weezer Weezer is an American rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1992. Since 2001, the band has consisted of Rivers Cuomo (vocals, guitar, keyboards), Patrick Wilson (drums, backing vocals), Scott Shriner (bass guitar, keyboards, backing v ...

AFI AFI may refer to: * ''Address-family identifier'', a 16 bit field of the Routing Information Protocol * Ashton Fletcher Irwin, an Australian drummer * AFI (band), an American rock band ** ''AFI'' (2004 album), a retrospective album by AFI rele ...

) and mastered by Dave Collins (

Danny Elfman Daniel Robert Elfman (born May 29, 1953) is an American film composer, singer and songwriter. He came to prominence as the singer-songwriter for the new wave band Oingo Boingo in the early 1980s. Since the 1990s, Elfman has garnered internation ...

Black Sabbath Black Sabbath were an English rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy met ...

). It also includes a 24-page book featuring art by Drew Speziale (

Circle Takes the Square Circle Takes the Square is an American screamo band from Savannah, Georgia. It is composed of founding members Drew Speziale and Kathleen Stubelek, as well as Caleb Collins. Their debut release was a 6-track self-titled EP released in 2001, foll ...

) and illustrator Matt Gauck. On May 20, 2011, it was announced that Junius would be covering the song "Firehead" by

Hum Hum may refer to: Science * Hum (sound), a sound produced with closed lips, or by insects, or other periodic motion * Mains hum, an electric or electromagnetic phenomenon * The Hum, an acoustic phenomenon * Venous hum, a physiological sensation ...

. The song was included on the tribute cover album ''Songs of Farewell and Departure: A Tribute To HUM'', which was released on September 6, 2011. Junius released a split EP with the band

Rosetta Rosetta or Rashid (; ar, رشيد ' ; french: Rosette ; cop, ϯⲣⲁϣⲓⲧ ''ti-Rashit'', Ancient Greek: Βολβιτίνη ''Bolbitinē'') is a port city of the Nile Delta, east of Alexandria, in Egypt's Beheira governorate. The Ro ...

which contained the track "A Day Dark with Night" on September 27, 2011.

''Reports from the Threshold of Death'' (2011–2014)

On October 25, 2011, Junius released their second full-length titled '' Reports from the Threshold of Death''. It was released and distributed via

Prosthetic Records Prosthetic Records is an American record label specializing in heavy metal recordings, founded in Los Angeles, California in 1998 by E.J. Johantgen and Dan Fitzgerald. Prosthetic Records released the first two albums by Lamb of God and Animals ...

. In support of ''Reports'' upcoming release, Junius replaced

Ghost A ghost is the soul or spirit of a dead person or animal that is believed to be able to appear to the living. In ghostlore, descriptions of ghosts vary widely from an invisible presence to translucent or barely visible wispy shapes, to rea ...

on the 2011

Enslaved (band) Enslaved is a Norwegian extreme metal band formed by Ivar Bjørnson and Grutle Kjellson in Haugesund in June 1991. They are currently based in Bergen. The band's lineup has changed many times over the years, and Bjørnson and Kjellson have been ...

Alcest Alcest is a French post-black metal band from Bagnols-sur-Cèze, founded and led by Neige (Stéphane Paut). It began in 2000 as a black metal solo project by Neige, soon a trio, but following the release of their first demo in 2001, band membe ...

tour. In 2012 following ''Reports'' release, Junius toured across Europe, Scandinavia, and the UK with

Katatonia Katatonia are a Swedish heavy metal band formed in Stockholm in 1991 by Jonas Renkse and Anders Nyström. The band started as a studio-only project for the duo, as an outlet for the band's love of death metal. Increasing popularity led them to ...

and

hitting 20+ countries. Junius released their first music video for the track "All Shall Float" which debuted on ''Alternative Press'' on February 4, 2012. And on April 10, 2012, Junius debuted their second music video for the track "Betray the Grave" on ''Noisecreep''. In an interview with ''Blistering'', the band stated that the follow-up to ''Reports from the Threshold of Death'' is currently in its "conceptual stages", and that they wish to continue to tour throughout 2012. After completing their 2013 North America tour, the band set to work on completing a new EP. It was announced on their official website that the EP would be title '' Days of the Fallen Sun'' and that it would be released on February 18, 2014 through Prosthetic Records. According to Repasch-Nieves, the band has begun the writing process for their third full-length studio album with the hope of a late 2014 release.

''Eternal Rituals for the Accretion of Light'' (2017–present)

On March 3, 2017, Junius released their third full-length titled ''Eternal Rituals for the Accretion of Light''. It was released and distributed via

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

released Junius first music video "The Queen's Constellation
Hear Junius' Crushing New Post-Metal Epic
directed by Josh Graham on January 27, 2017. Junius' second video "Clean the Beas
Junius
was released by Clrvynt on February 14, 2017. The final video, "A Mass for Metaphysician
Junius: Exklusive Video-Premier 'A Mass For Metaphysicians'
was released on February 28, 2017 by Metal Hammer Magazine. Martinez wrote all of the songs on his own before working them out in the studio with Filloon on drums; this album also features guests like Drew Speziale of Circle Takes the Square, who provides alternately soft and screamy backing vocals on several tracks. ''Eternal Rituals ''is based around ''Initiation'', the semi-autobiography of Hungarian mystic, yoga practitioner and reincarnation expert Elisabeth Haich. Martinez used the book as a rough blueprint to tell the story of a soul's "path to transcendence," beginning with an initiation and ending with the total obliteration of self—a lift-off into ego-death. The album is the band's heaviest to date, full of chugging guitars and whooshing synths that climaxes with "Black Sarcophagus," their prog-doom thesis statement. "It's just another hero's journey through self-awareness, determination, struggle, humility, pain, suffering, passion, love, telepathy, and ultimately transcendence to GOD-MAN status," says Martinez.

Discography

;Studio albums *'' The Martyrdom of a Catastrophist'' (2009) *'' Reports from the Threshold of Death'' (2011) *'' Eternal Rituals for the Accretion of Light'' (2017) ;Extended plays *'' Forcing Out the Silence'' (2004) *'' Blood is Bright'' (2006) *'' The Fires of Antediluvia'' (2007) *'' Junius / Juarez'' (Split release with Juarez) (2010) *'' Junius / Rosetta'' (Split release with

) (2011) *'' Days of the Fallen Sun'' (2014) Compilation album *'' Junius'' (2007)

Members

;Current members *Joseph E. Martinez –

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 without ...

lyrics Lyrics are words that make up a song, usually consisting of verses and choruses. The writer of lyrics is a lyricist. The words to an extended musical composition such as an opera are, however, usually known as a "libretto" and their writer, a ...

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 stri ...

synths A synthesizer (also spelled synthesiser) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis and f ...

(2003–present) *Dana Filloon –

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

(2003–present) ;Past members *Michael Repasch-Nieves –

(2003–2015) *Joel Munguia – bass (2006–2018) *Ira Bronson – bass (2006) *Keiffer Infantino – bass (2004–2006) *Dave Soucy – bass (2004) *Will Benoit – bass (2003–2004) ;Touring members *Drew Speziale –

(2016–present) *Justin Forrest Trujillo –

(2012–present)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Junius (Band) American post-metal musical groups American post-rock groups American art rock groups Rock music groups from Massachusetts Heavy metal musical groups from Massachusetts Musical groups established in 2003 Musical groups from Boston Musical quartets American space rock musical groups 2003 establishments in Massachusetts