Vlad Tepes (band)
| Company type | Musical group |
|---|---|
| Industry | Music |
| Founded | 1993 in Brest, France |
| Headquarters | Brest , France |
| Products | Music albums, demos |
Vlad Tepes was a French black metal ensemble established in 1993 in Brest. The group took its name from Vlad III Dracula, the 15th-century ruler of Wallachia, and was affiliated with the Black Legions. Vorlok Drakksteim leads the side project Black Murder as its composer, whereas Wlad Drakksteim is responsible for Vlad Tepes' compositions. The band appeared in the 1995 publication The Black Plague - First Chapter (And Maybe Last One).
History
Following a self-issued rehearsal tape, the demo War Funeral March (1994) was distributed in the United States by Full Moon Productions. In 1995, they released March to the Black Holocaust, a split album alongside fellow Black Legions act Bèlkètre under Embassy Productions.
From May to July 1995, Vlad Tepes recorded their third official demo entitled Dans Notre Chute..., and later that November, they released Black Legions Metal, which included covers of tracks originally by Mütiilation, Bèlkètre, and Brenoritvrezorkre.
In 1996, the band issued a split album with Torgeist named Black Legions Metal through Drakkar Productions. That same year marked their last demo release, Morte Lune. Wlad Drakksteim later clarified that Vlad Tepes' output was intended as a tetralogy: birth (War Funeral March), ascent (Celtic Poetry), decline (Dans Notre Chute...), and demise (Morte Lune).
Influence
Musicians notably impacted by Vlad Tepes include guitarist Thurston Moore from Sonic Youth, bassist Matt Heyner, and guitarist Chris Brokaw. In 2008, Brokaw produced an acoustic rendition of Vlad Tepes' Drink The Poetry of Celtic Disciple, featured on his album Canaris. Subsequently, Wlad Drakksteim collaborated with him on an acoustic version of Ravens Hike. Both pieces were included in the 2015 compilation The Drakksteim Sessions.
In 2018, Thurston Moore was drawn to the Festival invisible in Brest following a private meeting arranged with Wlad Drakksteim. This encounter is portrayed in the graphic novel Underground by Arnaud Le Gouëfflec and Nicolas Moog. At the 2019 edition of Festival invisible, Moore, Brokaw, and Wlad Drakksteim performed together in an impromptu jam session.
Demos
- Rehearsal Winter '93 (Dec. 1993)
- War Funeral March (Demo 1, Aug. 1994, Tape, Full Moon Productions)
- The Return of the Unweeping (Trial demo, Sept. 1994)
- Celtic Poetry (Demo 2, Nov. 1994)
- Into Frosty Madness (Trial demo, Jan. 1995)
- Brouillons I & II (unofficial draft leaked tapes, May 1995)
- Dans Notre Chute... (Demo 3, Jul. 1995)
- The Return of the Unweeping II (Experimental demo, Oct. 1995)
- Black Legions Metal (cover demo, Nov. 1995)
- Morte Lune (Demo 4, Mar. 1996)
Splits
- March to the Black Holocaust (1995, split-CD with Bèlkètre; limited to 1000 hand-numbered copies; Embassy Productions TE002)
- Black Legions Metal (1996; Split-CD with Torgeist; Drakkar Productions DKCD002)
Re-releases
- War Funeral March (MCD official reissue in 1996; limited to 500 copies; Embassy Production TE003)
- Black Legions Metal (2004 official split-LP reissue; Drakkar Productions DKLP009)
- March to the Black Holocaust (2013 official reissue on CD/vinyl/tape formats; Drakkar Productions DKCD071, DKLP026, DK078)
- War Funeral March (2013 official reissue on CD/vinyl/tape including bonus Rehearsal Winter '93; Drakkar Productions DKCD072, DKLP027, DK079)
- Anthologie Noire (2013 semi-official double-CD release; Drakkar Productions DKCD075)
- The Return of the Unweeping, Celtic Poetry, Into Frosty Madness, Dans Notre Chute...'’, and Morte Lune (2013 semi-official vinyl/tape editions; Drakkar Productions DKLP029-032 and DK080-084; additionally Morte Lune on CD DKCD073)
- Winter, Celtic Poetry, Into Frosty Madness, Dans Notre Chute...'’, and Morte Lune (2014 official MCD/CD releases; Drakkar Productions DKCD083-090)
- The Return of the Unweeping - Collection (2014 CD compiling both demos; Drakkar Productions DKCD091)
- The Drakksteim Sessions (2015 double-CD containing splits and unreleased tracks including covers by Chris Brokaw and others; Drakkar Productions DKCD094)
- An Ode to Our Ruin (2017 official cassette release; Black Gangrene Productions)
Further reading
- Interview with Vlad Tepes featured in Petrified Magazine No. 3, 1994. [1]
- Vlad Tepes interview published in Kill Yourself Magazine No. 2, 1995. [2]
External links
- Explore Vlad Tepes on Discogs.com: [3]