Cult Of Luna

• Genre: Doom Metal
• Hometown: Umea

About

Cult of Luna -- the doom-based post-metal band from Umea, Sweden -- were formed from the ashes of hardcore punk outfit Eclipse in 1998. Starting with an aggressive and primarily doom/sludge sound on acclaimed early releases Cult of Luna (2001) and The Beyond (2003), CoL began incorporating more ambient tones and textures and elaborately orchestrated song structures into their esoteric style, making 2004's Salvation a hit in the mainstream press. Somewhere Along the Highway carved further into the post-metal dabbling of Salvation, falling slightly short of mastery, but in 2008 the limitless eight-piece returned to heavier form with the labyrinthine sleeper Eternal Kingdom. On this effort, Cult of Luna -- Klas Rydberg (vocals), Johannes Persson (guitars), Erik Olofsson (guitars), Fredrik Kihlberg (guitars), Andreas Johansson (bass), Anders Teglund (keys, samples), Thomas Hedlund (percussion), and Magnus Lindberg (drums) -- celebrate a decade-long career by experimenting with nonconventional instruments like horns and chimes, and building multilayered textures and sounds while still maintaining thick sludge riffing.

- Jen Guyre