VARAHA

Tech/Extreme Prog Metal • United States

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Varaha biography
VARAHA is an atmospheric metal band with black metal roots based in Chicago, USA, who were formed in 2013 and play a dark and sombre mixture of doom metal and post-metal reminiscent of AGALLOCH and ALCEST. Their initial line-up consisted of Fabio BRIENZA on vocals & guitar, Joel HOLLIS on guitar, Bryan GOLD on bass and David SWANSON on drums.

The band was named in honour of the third of the ten incarnations of the Hindu god Vishnu, who took the form of a boar in order to rescue the Earth from the bottom of the sea after a demon named Hiranyaksha had plunged it there. Varaha slew the demon after a fight which is believed to have lasted a thousand years before raising the Earth out of the water with his tusks.

VARAHA released their self-released and self-titled 3-track debut EP in February 2017. The EP included guest appearances by Bruce LAMONT on saxophone and Josie BOYER on cello, was recorded by Nick MORGAN and Mike LUST, and was mixed and mastered by Adam K. STILSON at Chicago, Illinois based Decade Music Studios. The EP was well received by the metal press, being highly praised in several magazine and on line music blog reviews.

The recording of their debut full length LP 'A Passage for Lost Years' was completed in August 2018, at which time the band signed to the Los Angeles, California based label Prosthetic Records for its distribution. The album was eventually released on April 26, 2019. Drummer David SWANSON left the band in the autumn of 2019 and was replaced by Chris AVGERIN.

During the early stages of the Covid-19 pandemic, VARAHA reunited with the cast of 'A Passage for Lost Years' to release a surprise quarantine single called 'Reves' in June 2020. Many of the guest performers from their debut album took part along with several new ones, and they all joined forces to collaborate remotely on what was essentially a revisited version of the first track on that debut album, called 'Severance'. The participants all recorded their respective parts at home in self-isolation using whatever recording gear they had available.

Bass player Bryan GOLD left VARAHA in the late summer of 2023, and was replaced by Usha RAJBAHNDARI.

VARAHA played regular live gigs in the Chicago area between early 2016 and late 2019, including the 2018 'Forever Deaf Fest' held in early December that year at Chicago's Beat Kitchen venue, which featured eleven local bands in total. Following the pandemic, the band didn't resume their liv...VARAHA is an atmospheric metal band with black metal roots based in Chicago, USA, who were formed in 2013 and play a dark and sombre mixture of doom metal and post-metal reminiscent of AGALLOCH and ALCEST. Their initial line-up consisted of Fabio BRIENZA on vocals & guitar, Joel HOLLIS on guitar, Bryan GOLD on bass and David SWANSON on drums.

The band was named in honour of the third of the ten incarnations of the Hindu god Vishnu, who took the form of a boar in order to rescue the Earth from the bottom of the sea after a demon named Hiranyaksha had plunged it there. Varaha slew the demon after a fight which is believed to have lasted a thousand years before raising the Earth out of the water with his tusks.

VARAHA released their self-released and self-titled 3-track debut EP in February 2017. The EP included guest appearances by Bruce LAMONT on saxophone and Josie BOYER on cello, was recorded by Nick MORGAN and Mike LUST, and was mixed and mastered by Adam K. STILSON at Chicago, Illinois based Decade Music Studios. The EP was well received by the metal press, being highly praised in several magazine and on line music blog reviews.

The recording of their debut full length LP 'A Passage for Lost Years' was completed in August 2018, at which time the band signed to the Los Angeles, California based label Prosthetic Records for its distribution. The album was eventually released on April 26, 2019. Drummer David SWANSON left the band in the autumn of 2019 and was replaced by Chris AVGERIN.

During the early stages of the Covid-19 pandemic, VARAHA reunited with the cast of 'A Passage for Lost Years' to release a surprise quarantine single called 'Reves' in June 2020. Many of the guest performers from their debut album took part along with several new ones, and they all joined forces to collaborate remotely on what was essentially a revisited version of the first track on that debut album, called 'Severance'. The participants all recorded their respective parts at home in self-isolation using whatever recording gear they had available.

Bass player Bryan GOLD left VARAHA in the late summer of 2023, and was replaced by Usha RAJBAHNDARI.

VARAHA played regular live gigs in the Chicago area between early 2016 and late 2019, including the 2018 'Forever Deaf Fest' held in early December that year at Chicago's Beat Kitchen venue, which featured eleven local bands in total. Following the pandemic, the band didn't resume their live performances until October 2023.

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