Catamenia is a

Finnish Finnish may refer to: * Something or someone from, or related to Finland * Culture of Finland * Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland * Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people * Finnish cuisine See also ...

black metal Black metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. Common traits include fast tempos, a shrieking vocal style, heavily distorted guitars played with tremolo picking, raw (lo-fi) recording, unconventional song structures, and an emp ...

band founded in 1995 by

Riku Hopeakoski Riku is both a masculine Finnish given name and a unisex Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, Japanese footballer *Riku Hahl (born 1980), Finnish NHL hockey player *, Japanese footballer *Riku Heini (born 1990), Finnish ...

and Mika Tönning in Oulu. They have been signed to

Massacre Records Massacre Records is an independent record label based in Abstatt, Germany, that specializes in bands of the heavier genres of metal. The label was founded in 1991 by Torsten Hartmann. Connected to Massacre Records is the marketing and music wh ...

since their first full-length release '' Halls of Frozen North'' in 1998. As of 2010, they have released nine albums, one EP, and one DVD. They are known for frequent usage of wolves in their album art, but the band is named after a kind of bird. Catamenia also means “menstruation”, which the band did not know until a fan pointed it out to them after the release of their debut album.

History

They released their first

demo album Demo, usually short for demonstration, may refer to: Music and film * Demo (music), a song typically recorded for reference rather than release * ''Demo'' (Behind Crimson Eyes), a 2004 recording by the band Behind Crimson Eyes * ''Demo'' (Deafhe ...

in their first active year, simply titled ''Demo '95''. Their second demo, ''Winds'' released in 1996, led to a four-album contract with

in 1997. Their debut full-length

album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records co ...

'' Halls of Frozen North'' was recorded in Commusication Studios,

Beindersheim Beindersheim is a municipality in the Rhein-Pfalz-Kreis, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Community Parts Beindersheim is also home to the Wohnplätze Bentriteshof, Hubertushof, Lilienhof, Oberfeld-Hof, Peterhof and Sonnenhof.Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

, in 1997 with Gerhard Magin (

Crematory A crematorium or crematory is a venue for the cremation of the dead. Modern crematoria contain at least one cremator (also known as a crematory, retort or cremation chamber), a purpose-built furnace. In some countries a crematorium can also b ...

, Mystic Circle) and was released in 1998. A year later they recorded their second album, '' Morning Crimson'' (1999) in Sweden, at Sunlight Studios with Thomas Skogsberg (

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 ...

Dismember Dismemberment is the act of cutting, ripping, tearing, pulling, wrenching or otherwise disconnecting the limbs from a living or dead being. It has been practiced upon human beings as a form of capital punishment, especially in connection with ...

). The band's third album ''

Eternal Winter's Prophecy Catamenia is a Finnish black metal band founded in 1995 by Riku Hopeakoski and Mika Tönning in Oulu. They have been signed to Massacre Records since their first full-length release '' Halls of Frozen North'' in 1998. As of 2010, they have relea ...

'' was recorded in their home country in 2000 at Tico-Tico Studios with Ahti Kortelainen (

Kalmah Kalmah is a Finnish melodic death metal band from Oulu that formed in 1998. In less than a year after its formation, Kalmah was signed by Spinefarm Records. The word "kalmah" is Karelian and could be translated as "to the grave" or "to the dea ...

Eternal Tears of Sorrow Eternal Tears of Sorrow (commonly abbreviated to EToS) is a Finnish symphonic/melodic death metal band formed in Pudasjärvi. Biography The band was formed in 1994 by Jarmo Puolakanaho, Altti Veteläinen and Olli-Pekka Törrö, after vario ...

, Dawn of Relic). Their last album for Massacre Records was entitled ''

Eskhata Catamenia is a Finnish black metal band founded in 1995 by Riku Hopeakoski and Mika Tönning in Oulu. They have been signed to Massacre Records since their first full-length release '' Halls of Frozen North'' in 1998. As of 2010, they have relea ...

'', released in 2002, recorded in Oulu, Finland at SoundMix Studios with producer

Mika Pohjola Mika Pohjola ( (born December 1, 1971) is a Finnish-born jazz pianist and composer who resides in Stockholm. He is one of the most prolific Scandinavian jazz musicians in his generation. Biography Childhood in Helsinki, Finland 1971-87 Mika ...

(

The Black League The Black League was a heavy metal band from Finland. They were formed in 1998 by Taneli Jarva, three years after his departure from Finnish metal band Sentenced. The Black League's first two full-lengths carry on the spirit from Taneli's work ...

). After the release and promotion of ''Eskhata'', Catamenia renewed their contract with Massacre Records for three more albums, citing good working relations. Catamenia faced many line-up changes during the rehearsal of their fifth album, but their line-up steadied and again were a six-piece for its release. Catamenia recorded their fifth album ''

Chaos Born Catamenia is a Finland, Finnish black metal band founded in 1995 by Riku Hopeakoski and Mika Tönning in Oulu. They have been signed to Massacre Records since their first full-length release ''Halls of Frozen North'' in 1998. As of 2010, they hav ...

'' at Neo Studio in Oulu, Finland with Kari Vähäkuopus and Immu Ilmarinen ( Burning Point, Embraze, Afterworld, Sentenced). ''ChaosBorn'' combines melodics and aggressive metal. After praise from media and their fans for ''ChaosBorn'', '' Winternight Tragedies'' was stated as their sixth studio release, again with Mastervox Studios and producers Kakke Vähäkuopus and Immu Ilmarinen. While working on ''Winternight Tragedies'', the band encountered problems with collaboration, distance and lack of practice. As a result, line-up changes were made. Vocalist Mika and bassist Timo were replaced by new vocalist O.J. Mustonen and bassist Mikko Hepo-oja. The album features raw, aggressive and angry songs while still keeping the melodious background intact. In 2006, their seventh album, '' Location:COLD'' was released. Later that year, a DVD entitled, '' Bringing the Cold to Poland'', was released featuring live recordings at the Stodola Club in

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

. Drummer Veikko Jumisko departed from Catamenia in Spring 2007 because he was not able to join the tour anymore. The US tour was postponed until 2008, because of promotion problems. A short Canadian tour called Brothers of Cold took place in May 2008. In May 2008, Olli Mustonen left the band for undisclosed reasons. It is believed since he missed the Canadian tour, he was deemed unreliable. Ari Nissilä will take over lead vocals from now on. In December 2009 Catamenia started the recording of their upcoming album called ''

Cavalcade A cavalcade is a procession or parade on horseback, or a mass trail ride by a company of riders. The focus of a cavalcade is participation rather than display. Often, the participants do not wear costumes or ride in formation. Often, a cava ...

''. It was released via Massacre Records on February 26, 2010. In September 2010, Ari Nissilä, Toni Kansanoja, Mikko Nevanlahti and Kari Vähäkuopus decided to leave the band, but already in early October, there were new members attached to the band - bassist Mikko Hepo-oja, drummer Tony Qvick and guitarist Sauli Jauhiainen. Later on the band attached new singer Juha-Matti Perttunen and keyboardist Jussi Sauvola to the band. Their most recent album, ''The Rewritten Chapters'' was released on April 27, 2012.

Discography

Albums

* ''Halls of Frozen North'' (1998) * ''Morning Crimson'' (1999) * ''Eternal Winter's Prophecy'' (2000) * ''Eskhata'' (2002) * ''Chaos Born'' (2003) * ''Winternight Tragedies'' (2005) * ''Location: COLD'' (2006) * ''VIII – The Time Unchained'' (2008) * ''Cavalcade'' (2010) * ''The Rewritten Chapters'' (2012)

Demos/EPs

* ''Demo '95'' (1995) * ''Winds'' (1996) * ''Shape Edition'' (1999)

Compilations

* ''Massacre's Classix Shape Edition'' (1999) * ''The Best of Catamenia'' (2013)

Videography

Video

* "Morning Crimson" (music video) (1999) * "Kuolon Tanssi" (music video) (2003) * "Tuhat Vuotta" (music video) (2006) * '' Bringing the Cold to Poland'' (DVD) (2006) * "Location: COLD" (music video) (2006) * "Cavalcade" (music video) (2010)

Cover songs

* "Fuel for Hatred" (

Satyricon The ''Satyricon'', ''Satyricon'' ''liber'' (''The Book of Satyrlike Adventures''), or ''Satyrica'', is a Latin work of fiction believed to have been written by Gaius Petronius, though the manuscript tradition identifies the author as Titus Petr ...

) − on ''Winternight Tragedies'' * " I Wanna Be Somebody" ( W.A.S.P.) − on ''Location: COLD'' * "From Out of Nowhere" ( Faith No More) - on ''VIII - The Time Unchained'' * "Viivakoodit" (

Apulanta Apulanta is a Finnish rock band, founded in 1991 when its members were in their mid-teens. In September 2009, Apulanta members established an independent label, Päijät-Hämeen Sorto ja Riisto ("Päijänne Tavastian Oppression and Exploitation ...

) - on ''VIII - The Time Unchained'' * "Synti Voittaa" (

Shitter Limited A toilet is a piece of sanitary hardware that collects human urine and feces, and sometimes toilet paper, usually for disposal. Flush toilets use water, while dry or non-flush toilets do not. They can be designed for a sitting position popu ...

) - on ''VIII - The Time Unchained'' * "Angry Again" ( Megadeth) - on ''Cavalcade'' * "Farewell" ( Sentenced) - on ''Cavalcade'' * "

Born to Be My Baby "Born to Be My Baby" is a song by American rock band Bon Jovi. It was written by Jon Bon Jovi, Richie Sambora, and Desmond Child. It was released on November 24, 1988 as the second single from their fourth studio album ''New Jersey''. It pe ...

" ( Bon Jovi) - on ''The Rewritten Chapters''

Band members

Current

* Juha-Matti Perttunen - harsh vocals (2010–present) * Riku Hopeakoski −

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 ...

backing vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are ...

(1995–present)

keyboards 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 ...

(2001-2002) * Sauli Jauhiainen - rhythm guitar (2010–present) * Mikko Hepo-oja - bass, backing vocals (2005–2006, 2010–present) * Jussi Sauvola - keyboards (2011–present) * Toni Qvick - drums, clean vocals (2010–present)

Former

* Ari Nissilä - guitar (2000–2010), harsh vocals (2008-2010), clean vocals (2002) * Mikko Nevanlahti - drums (2008–2010) * Toni Kansanoja - bass, low grunts (2006–2010) * Kakke Vähäkuopus - clean vocals (2006–2010), rhythm guitar (2010) * Olli-Jukka Mustonen − harsh vocals (2005–2008) * Mika Tönning − harsh vocals (1995–2003) * Sampo Ukkola − guitars (1997–1999) *

Timo Lehtinen Kalmah is a Finnish melodic death metal band from Oulu that formed in 1998. In less than a year after its formation, Kalmah was signed by Spinefarm Records. The word "kalmah" is Karelian and could be translated as "to the grave" or "to the de ...

− bass (1995–2003) (

) * Heidi Riihinen − keyboards (1995–2000) * Tero Nevala − keyboards, backing (2003–2006) * Toni Tervo − drums (1995–1999) * Kimmo 'Sir' Luttinen – drums (1999–2001) (

, Impaled Nazarene) * Veikko Jumisko − drums (2003–2007) * Janne Kuzmin - drums (2001-2002) * Pietu - drums (2002-2003) * Mikko Nevanlahti - drums (2007-2010)

Guest and session musicians

* Antti Haapsamo − harsh vocals on ''Location: COLD'' * Sir Luttinen − drums on ''Eternal Winter's Prophecy'' * Janne Kusmin − drums on ''Eskhata''

Timeline

References

External links

Catamenia official site

Catamenia
at

Catamenia
at MySpace
Catamenia
at Metal from Finland {{DEFAULTSORT:Catamenia Finnish black metal musical groups Musical groups established in 1995 Finnish melodic death metal musical groups Massacre Records artists