Leaves' Eyes - History

History

Leaves' Eyes have often featured naturalistic themes in their music since the release of their 2004 debut album, Lovelorn. Many of the lyrics to this album were inspired not only by nature, but also by sagas and legends drawn from Norse mythology. The band was received well at Wave Gotik Treffen 2004, the band’s stage premiere.

Every band member had previous professional experience in other musical endeavors for years before joining Leaves’ Eyes, thus essentially making it a supergroup. Frontwoman Liv Kristine sang in the band Theatre of Tragedy in the mid 1990s. This Norwegian band was one of the first to feature a female voice in the metal scene, and their club hit Tanz der Schatten became synonymous with the direction and expression of a whole musical genre. In addition, Liv Kristine was present in the pop music scene and sang the songs to TV hits such as Tatort and Schimanski. The supporting members of the band hail from the death metal band Atrocity.

One year after Lovelorn, Leaves’ Eyes released the follow-up album Vinland Saga in 2005, inspired by Viking Leif Eriksson. The album's first single, Elegy, charted in Germany for four consecutive weeks. Television station ProSieben used Elegy as the official song for the TV series NUMB3RS.

In addition to their studio endeavors, Leaves’ Eyes also tours extensively. In the course of four years, the band traveled through four continents and 34 countries and played 222 concerts. As the band is composed of German, Norwegian, and Dutch members, Leaves' Eyes fans are diverse in ethnicity and culture. The Live DVD We Came with the Northern Winds - En Saga I Belgia entered the German DVD charts at number 11 in 2009. This exclusive package documented the history of the band and features the concert at the Metal Female Voices Festival in 2007. This headline show was performed with complex props, including a Viking longship on stage.

Njord was released in 2009, continuing the band's success in the charts. The album’s first single My Destiny soon became the successor to the anthem Elegy. Njord critically acclaimed as "an epic masterpiece". The album was done in a much more modern style than those previous, and featured symphonic metal tracks of increasing complexity with the help of the Lingua Mortis Orchestra directed by Victor Smolski. Many of the lyrics were inspired by the English traditional "Scarborough Fair". The band’s live performances were as equally successful throughout Europe and North America as their studio work. For the Special Fan Edition of Njord, Leaves' Eyes recorded the At Heaven's End EP in 2010.

One year later, Leaves’ Eyes released their fourth studio album, Meredead. Produced by Alexander Krull, the artists combined folk elements from previous albums to inspire the mood of Meredead. The opening track, "Spirits’ Masquerade", uses folk instrumentation to refine the album’s varied sound. The tracks Étaín and Sigrlinn lyrically recount the mysticism of past cultures and are supported by uileann pipes. The album also features more traditional-sounding songs, such as Nystev and Kråkevisa. The latter makes use of the Scandinavian nyckelharpa, or keyed fiddle. Also present on the album is a cover of To France, an interpretation of the tragedy and emotion of Mike Oldfield’s classic track. Maite Itoiz and John Kelly (Elfenthal), Carmen Elise Espenæs (Midnattsol), the Norwegian Anette Guldbrandsen, and Victor Smolski’s Lingua Mortis Orchestra once again provide supporting vocals and instrumentation.

The EP Melusine in 2011 was a special release in co-operation with German Sonic Seducer Magazine.

It was recently announced through an interview with Valkryian Music, that Leaves Eyes had began writing new material for their fifth studio album which they hope to release spring 2013.