Edenbridge (band)

Edenbridge is a symphonic metal band from Austria. Established in 1998, the band has so far published eight studio albums.

History

Debut album and formation (1998)

Edenbridge was formed in 1998 by guitarist and keyboardist Lanvall, his girlfriend – vocalist Sabine Edelsbacher – and bassist Kurt Bednarsky. The line-up was completed when drummer Roland Navratil joined the band. Edenbridge quickly set to work, and entered the recording studio in 1999, signing a recorded contract with Massacre Records the same year. In autumn the following year, their debut album Sunrise in Eden was released.

Arcana (2000–2001)

The band added a second guitarist, Georg Edelmann, to its line-up in February 2000, but his stay with the band was to be a short one. When he left in January 2001, he was replaced by Andreas Eiblar. Under this line-up, Edenbridge released the album Arcana (2001).

Aphelion and parting with Kurt Bednarsky (2002-2003)

During a tour in 2002, Edenbridge's bassist and founding member Kurt Bednarsky left the band. In December 2003, the album Aphelion was released.

First live concert album and Shine album release (2004)

Their next album, recorded live and entitled A Livetime In Eden, was released in August 2004, followed shortly by Shine in October. At that time, a new bassist, Frank Bindig, joined the band. In December the same year, guitarist Andreas Eibler left the band on friendly terms and was replaced by Martin Mayr.

The Grand Design and first cover single (2006)

The Grand Design (2006), their fifth studio album, was recorded at Lanvall's studio Farpoint Station (one of many Star Trek references surrounding Edenbridge) and was released on 19 May 2006. The single "For Your Eyes Only" was released on 21 April featuring the album track "Evermore" and a cover version of the James Bond theme of "For Your Eyes Only" (originally performed by Sheena Easton), the first cover the band have ever recorded.

Napalm Records worldwide deal, The Grand Design release in North America (2007)

Edenbridge has signed a worldwide deal with Napalm Records. Also, on 30 January 2007, Edenbridge released the new album, The Grand Design, in the USA and Canada.

MyEarthDream and first orchestral arrangements (2008)

Edenbridge released their new album MyEarthDream in April 2008. The album features the Czech Film Orchestra (comprising 65 musicians from the Prague Philharmonic Orchestra and the Czech State Opera Orchestra), with arrangements by Enrique Ugarte.^[1]

New line-up and LiveEarthDream release (2008–2009)

On 13 November 2008 Edenbridge announced the departure of their bass player Frank Bindig. In a press statement from the band, they stated that "...Frank Bindig has decided to leave Edenbridge due to his other projects. Edenbridge wish Frank all the best for the future!". In April 2009, the band announced Simon Holzknecht as their new bass player and Dominik Sebastian as a new guitar player.^[2] A few days later, on 4 May 2009, Edenbridge released LiveEarthDream, which was recorded on various concerts in 2008. Limited to 1,000 copies, it could only be ordered exclusively through their fanshop.

Solitaire (2010)

The band announced the title of their new album: Solitaire. It was released on 2 July 2010. Solitaire did not enter the Austrian charts but peaked at position 95 in Germany.^[3] In February 2010, Edenbridge announced that bassist Simon Holzknecht had left the band due to personal reasons.^[4]

Website update, The Bonding release (2012–2013)

At the beginning of 2012, Edenbridge updated their website for the first time in nearly a year, citing personal reasons for the band's recent hiatus. It was also announced that the band was working on a new album for release in 2012.^[5] In 2012, the band also offered the opportunity for fans to help sponsor the new album's orchestra recordings, as this can become very expensive. In late 2012, all orchestra and drum recordings had been completed.^[6] Bassist Wolfgang Rothbauer who formerly played for Disbelief and Zombie Inc. joined Edenbridge in 2013.^[7] The eighth studio album The Bonding was released in June 2013.

New side project Voiciano (2014)

Lanvall and Sabine announced their first side project Voiciano in February 2014. Unlike Edenbridge, Voiciano focuses exclusively on acoustical music. Voiciano released their first album Everflow in 2014.

A Decade and a Half... The History So Far, 15th anniversary (2014–2015)

In November 2014 the band announced their first video album, called A Decade and a Half... The History So Far to celebrate their 15th anniversary. The video album contains early beginnings of the band, tour and studio documentaries and live concerts from 1998 to 2014. The album was released on 8 May 2015.

The Great Momentum (2016–present)

In June 2016, the band announced their next studio album, The Great Momentum, scheduled to be released in February 2017. They have already announced some songs that will be included in the album: "A Turnaround in Art", "The Die Is Not Cast", "Return to Grace", "Only a Whiff of Life", and the 12-minute epic "The Greatest Gift of All".^[8]

Band members

Discography

Studio albums

• Sunrise in Eden (2000)
• Arcana (2001)
• Aphelion (2003)
• Shine (2004)
• The Grand Design (2006)
• My Earth Dream (2008)
• Solitaire (2010)
• The Bonding (2013)

Live albums

• A Livetime in Eden (2004)
• LiveEarthDream (2009)

Compilation albums

• The Chronicles of Eden (2007)

Singles

• "Shine" (2004)
• "For Your Eyes Only" (2006)
• "Higher" (2010)

Video albums

• A Decade and a Half... The History So Far (2015)

Notes

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Edenbridge.

• Official website
• Official MySpace profile