Peter Espevoll is a Norwegian

vocalist 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 ...

who, in 1993, started the band

Extol Extol are a Christian metal band from Bekkestua, Norway that was formed in 1993. The band is known for playing a variety of different styles of heavy metal music, metal which include progressive metal, death metal, black metal and thrash metal. ...

, with whom he is most associated.

Background

Espevoll was the son of a missionary family, and spent a great deal of time in

Kenya ) , national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

in his life. While in Kenya, he and his brother Christer Espevoll grew an affinity for heavier music, with Peter citing

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

as his first interaction with the genre. Later, bands such as

Barren Cross Barren Cross is an American Christian metal band that was formed in Los Angeles in 1983 by high school friends Ray Parris (guitar) and Steve Whitaker (drums). The band released six albums from 1986 to 1994. They have reunited for a few shows in r ...

Stryper Stryper is an American Christian metal band from Orange County, California. The group's lineup consists of Michael Sweet (lead vocals, guitar), Oz Fox (guitar), Perry Richardson (bass guitar), and Robert Sweet (drums). Formed in 1983 as Roxx ...

Vengeance Rising Vengeance Rising was an American Christian thrash metal band from Los Angeles, California. Fronted by vocalist Roger Martinez, they originally formed as Vengeance in 1987, but changed their name in 1989 to avoid conflict with another band from t ...

Deliverance ''Deliverance'' is a 1972 American survival thriller film produced and directed by John Boorman, and starring Jon Voight, Burt Reynolds, Ned Beatty, and Ronny Cox, with the latter two making their feature film debuts. The screenplay was adapted ...

Tourniquet A tourniquet is a device that is used to apply pressure to a limb or extremity in order to stop the flow of blood. It may be used in emergencies, in surgery, or in post-operative rehabilitation. A simple tourniquet can be made from a stick and ...

, and

Living Sacrifice Living Sacrifice is an American Christian metal band formed in Little Rock, Arkansas in 1989. The band has released eight studio albums, out of which the first three were recorded under R.E.X. Records with their original vocalist Darren Johnso ...

would hold an influence in his life. Espevoll began his musical career after his brother Christer Espevoll and cousin David Husvik started

in 1993. The band went through several lineup changes with Husvik and Espevoll being the only two constants. Christer later left the band along with longtime guitarist

Ole Børud Ole Børud (born December 6, 1976) is a Norwegian singer, songwriter, instrumentalist, producer, and engineer known both for his solo recordings and as a member of the groups Arnold B. Family, Schaliach, Extol, and Fleshkiller. Børud, son of t ...

, who would later come back. The band disbanded in 2007, due to personal issues. During his time with Extol, he, his cousin,

Tor Magne Glidje Tor Magne Glidje (born September 27, 1977) is a Norwegian guitarist in Extol, Ganglion and Longing, a.k.a. Lengsel, where he is also the lead singer. He was also a part of Benea Reach. He is now playing in the band Mantric. Background Tor Magne ...

, John Robert Mjlånd, and Ole Halvard Sveen, all of the bands Extol,

Lengsel Lengsel was a progressive black metal band that formed in 1994 in Norway. They released one album, called ''Solace'', on Endtime Productions in 2000, which was subsequently licensed to Solid State Records for an American release. The second alb ...

, and

Mantric Mantric is a Norwegian progressive metal band from Oslo that formed in 2007. Background When the last remaining founding members of Extol, vocalist Peter Espevoll and drummer David Husvik, decided to end the band in 2007, the remaining mem ...

, formed a side-project called Ganglion. Ganglion released two EPs, one as a seven-inch. The project became inactive, as did Extol. Espevoll stated that the band ended due to personal issues, for Espevoll, it was to spend time with his family. Extol reformed in 2012 with the lineup of Espevoll, Husvik, and Børud. Espevoll stated the main reason to reunite the band was "to make the best music possible". During the band's hiatus, Espevoll spent some time in a Mental Facility, due to dealing with

stress Stress may refer to: Science and medicine * Stress (biology), an organism's response to a stressor such as an environmental condition * Stress (linguistics), relative emphasis or prominence given to a syllable in a word, or to a word in a phrase ...

and

anxiety Anxiety is an emotion which is characterized by an unpleasant state of inner turmoil and includes feelings of dread over anticipated events. Anxiety is different than fear in that the former is defined as the anticipation of a future threat wh ...

. The band released their fifth self-titled album in 2013. Espevoll's brother and Extol founder Christer Espevoll was supposed to record on the album, but was unable to perform on the album. In 2014, the band went on hiatus after performing some live shows with Ole Vistnes ( Shining,

Tristana Tristana may refer to: * ''Tristana'' (novel), a novel published in 1892 by Benito Pérez Galdós ** ''Tristana'' (film), a 1970 Spanish film directed by Luis Buñuel based on the eponymous novel * ''Tristana'' (song), a 1987 song recorded by the ...

) and Marcus B. ( Inevitable End,

Miseration Miseration is a Swedish death metal band formed in 2006. Their lyrics primarily deal with themes of inner struggles and religious conflict. The band is one out of a collection of collaborations with both former Crimson Moonlight guitarist Jani St ...

). During Extol's hiatus, Espevoll quit the band due to other commitments, leaving Husvik and Borud as sole members. In late 2020, Espevoll created a new project alongside filmmaker and musician Åsmund Janøy, called Hrada. The name is derived from an old Norwegian word that means “to create”. On April 30, 2021, Hrada signed with Mythic Panda Productions as their first signing. On June 17, 2021, the band released their debut single “Gospel Oak”.

Personal life

Espevoll is married and has two children.

Discography

Extol ;Studio albums * 1998: ''

Burial Burial, also known as interment or inhumation, is a method of final disposition whereby a dead body is placed into the ground, sometimes with objects. This is usually accomplished by excavating a pit or trench, placing the deceased and objec ...

'' * 2000: '' Undeceived'' * 2003: ''

Synergy Synergy is an interaction or cooperation giving rise to a whole that is greater than the simple sum of its parts. The term ''synergy'' comes from the Attic Greek word συνεργία ' from ', , meaning "working together". History In Christia ...

'' * 2005: '' The Blueprint Dives'' * 2013: ''

'' ;EPs * 1999: '' Mesmerized'' * 2001: ''

Paralysis Paralysis (also known as plegia) is a loss of motor function in one or more muscles. Paralysis can also be accompanied by a loss of feeling (sensory loss) in the affected area if there is sensory damage. In the United States, roughly 1 in 50 ...

'' ;Compilations * 1996: Northern Lights / Norwegian Metal Compilation (Rowe Productions 012) ;Videos * 2015: ''Of Light and Shade'' Ganglion * 2002: ''Ganglion'' (7") * 2003: ''Stripped''

References

External links

*
Official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Espevoll, Peter 1979 births Living people Musicians from Bærum Norwegian heavy metal singers Christian metal musicians 21st-century Norwegian singers Extol members