Stygian Steel Black Lotus Veil Vinyl

Stygian Steel originally started out as a one-man project by Norwegian bassist, guitarist and keyboard player E.R. (Erlend Rønning). »Black Lotus Veil« was originally only released digitally but is now available in all formats via High Roller Records.“Most of the material was written for another project I have, Stygian Ruin,” explains the multi-instrumentalist, “and through this project I’ve recorded and released two concept albums, »Stygia I« and »Stygia II«, that were inspired by Robert E. Howard’s universe. However, Stygian Ruin is more in the vein of ambient/black metal and I was left with a bunch of songs that needed more of a heavy metal varnish, so to speak.”Needing help, E.R. got in Abraxas d’Ruckus (of Magister Templi and Molten Gold) as a vocalist and R.K.V. on drums to record the material for »Black Lotus Veil«. Drummer R.K.V. also shares duties with E.R. in a death metal band called Dødskvad. “Both Abraxas and R.K.V. are great to work with,” he comments, “and I’m very happy with what they bring to the band. It wouldn’t have come to fruition without them.”“We aim to make heavy metal that is evocative, ambient, epic and arcane,” explains E.R. what he thinks Stygian Steel is all about.In other words, it’s epic doom metal in the broadest sense, with shades of Warlord, »Into Glory Ride« period Manowar, some early Candlemass, Manilla Road and Viking-era Bathory.“It’s hard to say, given this project’s fragmented beginnings,” reflects E.R., “other than the bands mentioned, I would say that Blue Öyster Cult is a big inspiration for me, especially »Secret Treaties« and »Imaginos«, in the sense that they’re pretty esoteric, high-concept albums. In the same vein, bands like Dark Quarterer, Magnum and Fates Warning would also fit the bill. I’m a sucker for both the epic and progressive, and I love albums that feel like a unified body of work.”»Black Lotus Veil« has just been the beginning, as the band is already working on the follow-up: “I had about nine or ten songs »Black Lotus Veil«, so there was quite a bit of material left over. We’ll carry some of that over into the next album, which is well underway and in pre-production.”