Cellar Darling are a three-piece Swiss progressive metal band from

Winterthur , neighboring_municipalities = Brütten, Dinhard, Elsau, Hettlingen, Illnau-Effretikon, Kyburg, Lindau, Neftenbach, Oberembrach, Pfungen, Rickenbach, Schlatt, Seuzach, Wiesendangen, Zell , twintowns = Hall in Tirol (Austria), La ...

and

Lucerne Lucerne ( , ; High Alemannic German, High Alemannic: ''Lozärn'') or Luzern ()Other languages: gsw, Lozärn, label=Lucerne German; it, Lucerna ; rm, Lucerna . is a city in central Switzerland, in the Languages of Switzerland, German-speaking po ...

, founded in 2016. The group was formed by Anna Murphy (vocals, hurdy-gurdy, flute), Merlin Sutter (drums) and Ivo Henzi (guitars and bass). Cellar Darling incorporates heavy metal,

folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Folk Plus or Fol ...

, classical, and

progressive Progressive may refer to: Politics * Progressivism, a political philosophy in support of social reform ** Progressivism in the United States, the political philosophy in the American context * Progressive realism, an American foreign policy par ...

influences. Notably, the band uses a hurdy-gurdy and a

transverse flute A transverse flute or side-blown flute is a flute which is held horizontally when played. The player blows across the embouchure hole, in a direction perpendicular to the flute's body length. Transverse flutes include the Western concert flute ...

. The trio were previously part of the Swiss metal band Eluveitie.

History

Formation

In May 2016 three longtime members of Eluveitie announced their departure from the band. Anna Murphy - female singer and hurdy-gurdy player, Ivo Henzi - guitarist, and Merlin Sutter - drummer parted ways with Eluveitie in a highly publicised split. The exact details of the split were not cited in the press, but wide speculation ensued among fans. In June 2016 the trio announced the creation of Cellar Darling. The band quickly began working on new music for their debut release. On 23 September 2016 Cellar Darling launched a single called "Challenge" along with the b-side track "Fire, Wind & Earth". The single was self released and the video was created and directed by the band themselves. The musical style of the initial release was a concrete departure from the folk metal genre of their previous band. Cellar Darling played their first shows in December 2016, supporting Amorphis in Zurich,

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and

The Gentle Storm The Gentle Storm is a Dutch musical project by singer and lyricist Anneke van Giersbergen and composer and musician Arjen Anthony Lucassen, founder and leader of other musical projects such as Star One, Ayreon, Guilt Machine and Ambeon. The duo ha ...

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

, the

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"This Is The Sound" and signing to Nuclear Blast

In January 2017 the trio announced their signing to a German independent metal label

Nuclear Blast 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 ...

Records, and that their debut album would be released through the label the following summer. In May, it was announced that Cellar Darling's first album would be titled '' This Is the Sound'' and was to be released on 30 June 2017. A tracklist of the album was introduced. Cellar Darling released their second ever single called "Black Moon" on 19 May 2017, along with a music video. This was followed on 17 June 2017 with a third single, "Avalanche". Both videos were shot in Tenerife. The debut album was released on 30 June 2017 to widespread critical acclaim.

"The Spell"

On 2 November 2018 "Insomnia" was released, accompanied by a music video created by Costin Chioreanu. Cellar Darling's second album '' The Spell'' was released on 22 March 2019 on Nuclear Blast Records. "The Spell" is a concept album telling a story of "an unnamed girl who is birthed into a world that is full of pain, damaged and debilitated by the human beings that inhabit it".

Members

* Anna Murphy – lead vocals, hurdy-gurdy, flute, keyboards (2016–present) * Ivo Henzi – guitars, bass (2016–present) * Merlin Sutter – drums (2016–present)

Live musicians

* Nicolas Winter – bass (2017–present) *

Rafi Kirder Rafi Kirder is the bassist and vocalist for the Swiss band Deathrope under his alter persona Richland K. Harper. Career Kirder is best known for having been the bassist for the Swiss Pagan metal band Eluveitie, which he left on 4 June 2008. ...

– bass (2016) * Rachel G - bass (U.S. Tour 2022)

Guest musicians

*Shir-Ran Yinon – violin (2016–2017, 2018) *Brendan Wade – uilleann pipes (2016–2017) *Fredy Schnyder – piano (2016–2017)

Discography

Albums

* '' This Is the Sound'' (2017) * '' The Spell'' (2019)

Singles

* "Challenge" - 2016 * "Avalanche" - 2017 * "Black Moon" - 2017 * "Insomnia" - 2018

Music videos

* ''Challenge'' * ''Black Moon'' * ''Avalanche'' * ''Six days'' * ''Insomnia'' * ''The Spell'' * ''Death'' * ''Drown''

References

External links

* {{Authority control Celtic metal musical groups Swiss folk metal musical groups Musical groups established in 2016 Swiss heavy metal musical groups Melodic death metal musical groups 2016 establishments in Switzerland