Jump to content

Sylvaine

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Sylvaine
Sylvaine performing at Full Force in 2023
Sylvaine performing at Full Force in 2023
Background information
OriginOslo, Norway
Genres
Years active2013–present
LabelsSeason of Mist
MembersKathrine Shepard
Websitesylvainemusic.com

Sylvaine is the solo music project of Norwegian metal multi-instrumentalist Kathrine Shepard. The project began in Oslo in 2013 and has released four albums to date. In 2019, Shepard became the first woman to earn a nomination for best metal album at the Norwegian Grammy Awards.[3]

History

[edit]

Shepard was born in San Diego, California in the United States in 1991 to a Norwegian mother and an American father before her family moved to Oslo at a young age.[4] She is a classically trained vocalist and received a bachelor's degree in musicology from the University of Oslo.[5] The project's name Sylvaine was inspired by the word "sylvan" (meaning forest, woods) and the surname of French poet Paul Verlaine.[5]

Shepard self-released her first album Silent Chamber, Noisy Heart in 2014 after writing it in Oslo from late 2012 to early 2013. She moved to Paris, France to write her second album Wistful, which was released in 2016 on the label Season of Mist.[4] Alcest bandleader Neige played the drums on Wistful.[6] Shepard met Neige after an Alcest concert in 2012 and toured with Alcest in 2014.[7]

The third Sylvaine album Atoms Aligned, Coming Undone was released on 2 November 2018 and was preceded by the singles "Abeyance", "Mørklagt" and "L’Appel Du Vide". Neige also played the drums on the record.[8][9][10] Atoms Aligned, Coming Undone was nominated for a Norwegian Grammy Award for best metal album, with Shepard becoming the first female musician to earn a nomination in that category.[3]

In 2020, Shepard released the split EP Time Without End in collaboration with post-black metal artist Unreqvited.[11] The year before, she provided guest vocals on the song "L’île des morts" from Alcest's sixth album Spiritual Instinct.[12] Sylvaine's fourth album Nova was released in 2022.[13]

In autumn 2024, she toured Europe, supporting Faroese musician Eivør.[14] Her debut album Silent Chamber, Noisy Heart will be released as an anniversary version on the German label Eisenwald in November 2024, 10 years after its first release in 2014.[15]

Shepard is a multi-instrumentalist who can play guitar, bass, piano and synthesiser.[16] Her influences as a guitarist include Slowdive's Neil Halstead and Explosions in the Sky.[17]

Discography

[edit]

Studio albums

[edit]
  • Silent Chamber, Noisy Heart (2014)
  • Wistful (2016)
  • Atoms Aligned, Coming Undone (2018)
  • Nova (2022)

EPs

[edit]
  • Time Without End (with Unreqvited) (2020)[18]
  • Eg Er Framand (2024)

Singles

[edit]
  • Abeyance (2018)
  • Mørklagt (2018)
  • Nowhere, Still Somewhere (2022)
  • Mono No Aware (2022)
  • Nova (2022)
  • Dagsens Auga Sloknar Ut (2024)
  • Eg Er Framand (2024)

As a guest

[edit]
  • Background vocals on Alcest's Kodama (2016)[19] and L’île des morts (2019)[20]
  • Vocals on ISON's Meridian (2021)[21]
  • Vocals on MØL's Diorama (2021)[22]
  • Vocals on Carpenter Brut's Stabat Mater (2022)[23]
  • Background vocals on Schammasch's The Maldoror Chants: Old Ocean (2024)

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Sylvaine".
  2. ^ "Sylvaine spirits us away to share the guitar secrets behind her dreamy, shoegaze-inspired atmospheric metal sound". 22 June 2022.
  3. ^ a b "SYLVAINE: Ambient Multi-Instrumentalist Becomes First Ever Female Artist Nominated For Norwegian Grammy Award In The Metal Category; Atoms Aligned, Coming Undone Full-Length Out NOW And Streaming Via Season Of Mist - Earsplit Compound". 2019-02-26. Retrieved 2023-01-24.
  4. ^ a b Shepard, Katherine (April 20, 2016). "On Being a Musician in Oslo vs. Paris". Invisible Oranges. Archived from the original on April 22, 2016. Retrieved January 24, 2023.
  5. ^ a b "Sylvaine". HM Magazine. Retrieved 2023-01-24.
  6. ^ "Alcest: "Man soll meine Texte gar nicht verstehen" – laut.de – Interview". laut.de (in German). Retrieved 2023-01-24.
  7. ^ Chapman, Ryan (2016-05-27). "An Interview with Sylvaine". The Dreaming Metal Muse. Retrieved 2023-01-24.
  8. ^ "Sylvaine Gets at Mankind's Internal Struggles with "Abeyance" (premiere), PopMatters". PopMatters. 2018-08-08. Retrieved 2023-01-24.
  9. ^ Mortonpublished, Luke (2018-09-04). "Post-black metal visionary Sylvaine releases new song Mørklagt". loudersound. Retrieved 2023-01-24.
  10. ^ Injection, Metal (2018-10-01). "SYLVAINE Wonderfully Captures "L'Appel Du Vide" Through Heart-Wrenching Post Rock". Metal Injection. Retrieved 2023-01-24.
  11. ^ Wolfsbrunn, Stefan (2020-02-26). "Review: Unreqvited / Sylvaine - Time Without End". metal.de (in German). Retrieved 2023-01-25.
  12. ^ Shteamer, Suzy Exposito,Kory Grow,Hank; Exposito, Suzy; Grow, Kory; Shteamer, Hank (2019-12-11). "The 10 Best Metal Albums of 2019". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2023-01-24.{{cite magazine}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  13. ^ Mark McStea (2022-06-22). "Sylvaine spirits us away to share the guitar secrets behind her dreamy, shoegaze-inspired atmospheric metal sound". guitarworld. Retrieved 2023-01-24.
  14. ^ "Sylvaine - European Tour Dates Announced, Supporting Eivør". metalstorm.net. 2024-01-20. Retrieved 2024-11-01.
  15. ^ Alexandra Michels (2024-10-01). "SYLVAINE - Jubiläumsversion zu "Silent Chamber, Noisy Heart" kommt im November". RockHard (in German). Retrieved 2024-11-01.
  16. ^ "Songs to Live by: Sylvaine's Katherine Shepard". The Pit. 2019-06-19. Retrieved 2023-01-24.
  17. ^ Mark McStea (2022-06-22). "Sylvaine spirits us away to share the guitar secrets behind her dreamy, shoegaze-inspired atmospheric metal sound". guitarworld. Retrieved 2023-01-24.
  18. ^ "Time Without End on bandcamp.com". bandcamp.com. Retrieved 2023-01-25.
  19. ^ "Alcest's Kodama on discogs.com". discogs.com. Retrieved 2023-01-25.
  20. ^ "Alcest's Spiritual Instinct on discogs.com". discogs.com. Retrieved 2023-01-25.
  21. ^ "ISON's Meridian on bandcamp.com". bandcamp.com. Retrieved 2023-01-25.
  22. ^ "Møl's Diorama on discogs.com". discogs.com. Retrieved 2023-01-25.
  23. ^ "Carpenter Brut's Leathal Terror on discogs.com". discogs.com. Retrieved 2023-01-25.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Sylvaine&oldid=1254827633"