Aesma Daeva - The New Athens Ethos (MP3@320)

Released 2003

Artist/Band Info:
Country of origin: United States
Location: Minneapolis, Minnesota
Genre: Symphonic Metal

Current Members:
Lori Lewis
Chriss Quinn
John Prassas
Tim Klatt

Previous Members:
Melissa Ferlaak
Rebecca Cords
Craig Ohren
Eden Taylor
Earl Root

Track Listing:
01. The Origin of the Muse 08:16
02. My Lost Melody 01:40
03. The Sons of Heaven 05:38
04. Aviva I 01:20
05. Atma 05:03
06. Artemis 06:39
07. A Gathering of Shades 00:36
08. Sirens 01:21
09. I Have Sailed With Odysseus 06:57
10. The Dawn of New Athens 16:43
11. The Garden I Long For 03:44
12. Hymn Of The Sun 05:16
13. El Eros De La Belleza Frigida 17:00
14. Odeath 03:24

Aesma Daeva formed out of the early collaboration of Nick Copernicus (production) and John Prassas (guitars, composition) in La Crosse, Wisconsin circa 1998 . Their original projects, Copernicus' "0dark:30" and Prassas' "162" saw them working together on a remix of the 162 song "Darkness" for COP International compilation disc Diva-X-Machina II. As their project began taking a new shape, classically trained guitarist John Prassas and Nick Copernicus then enlisted the help of another classically trained artist, Rebecca Cords. Along with a second new track "Stay," Aesma Daeva caught the eye of Accession records of Germany, who published their first full length album "Here Lies One Whose Name Was Written In Water". At this point, Aesma Daeva, the operatic, symphonic, metal band, took official shape. The original female operatic vocals were performed by Rebecca Cords, all composition and guitar was performed by John Prassas, with production and other work done by Nick Copernicus.

After the release of their first album, Rebecca Cords departed from the band and Melissa Ferlaak (along with two other temporary vocalists) began recording with Aesma Daeva for their second album "The Eros of Frigid Beauty." After the release of Aesma Daeva's second album "The Eros of Frigid Beauty" in 2002, demand for live music soon drove John Prassas to find musicians capable of portraying the complex music best on a stage.

In January 2002, John Prassas asked Earl Root to play guitar at his side, Craig Ohren to offer drum assistance (while also tweaking some older songs' drum pieces), and Melissa Ferlaak to sing for live performances. The band started off playing a small venue: June 2002 saw them debuting at a small St. Paul, Minnesota club, but things quickly increased Aesma Daeva's prestige as they played Metalfest in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Such metal magazines as Unrestrained!, Terrorizer, and Metal Maniacs deemed Aesma Daeva "One of the Highlights of Metalfest 2002." Later, in August 2002, Aesma Daeva journeyed to Mexico for Festival Obscuro IV (presented by Dilemma Entertainment) to play along such acts as Tristania, Maldorar, and HIM.

2004 saw some line-up changes that included replacing Craig with drummer Tim Klatt and adding performing bass player Eden Taylor, who in 2005 was replaced by Christopher Quinn. The line-up has begun to solidify.

In the Autumn of 2005, Root of All Evil records put out Ex Libris, a collection of outtakes from the past few years, as a stop gap release to satiate fans' enthusiasm for the band's next album. It is limited to 200 copies and features several videos of live performances taken from a March 2005 show in addition to a unique polariod taken by each band member.

On October 11, 2005, it was announced that singer Melissa Ferlaak was leaving to join the Austrian band Visions of Atlantis. Her final show with Aesma Daeva was in December 2005 at the Star Central club in Minnesota. The concert was filmed for the DVD, Last Rites, which is currently set for a March 2007 release.

The band's fourth album Dawn Of The New Athens, featuring new vocalist Lori Lewis and produced by Neil Kernon, was released in January 2007. Some of the new songs that were previously performed live with Melissa appear on the album, including "The Tisza" and "Since The Machine". These tracks were recorded with Lori singing the leads.

In early 2007 Lori began to tour with Therion to help them support their current release "Gothic Kabbalah". She holds double duty as a touring musician for Therion and as the lead singer for Aesma Daeva.

The band toured the US and Canada in the fall of 2007 with Therion in support of Dawn Of The New Athens.

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*** IF YOU LIKE THE MUSIC BUY THE ALBUM OR (AT THE VERY LEAST) SEED FOR AS LONG AS POSSIBLE SO OTHERS CAN ENJOY IT TOO ***

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