The Awakening (band)

Infobox musical artist
Name = The Awakening


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Origin = Johannesburg, South Africa
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Genre = Gothic rock Industrial rock
Occupation =
Years_active = 1995 – present
Label = Intervention Arts Massacre Records
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URL = [http://www.awakening.co.za/ awakening.co.za]
Current_members = Ashton Nyte (vocals, guitar) M. Palermo (bass) Rici7 (drums)
Past_members = Jenni Hazell (bass) Philip Booyens (guitar) Mark Sprawsen (guitar) Glenn Welman (guitar) Andre Liebenberg (bass) Catherine Stone (synthesizer) Kate Towsey (bass) Matthew Fink (synthesizer) Marcus Kusche (guitar) Garrick van der Tuin (drums)

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The Awakening is a gothic rock band from Johannesburg, South Africa, formed in 1995. The Awakening is a very well-known Goth band from South Africa. They have released 8 studio albums, 2 EPs and several singles that have had notable club rotation. Two music videos have been played on almost every music related channel in South Africa and on MTV Europe. The band quickly established themselves as "South Africa's national icon for all things dark in the world of music", with the combination of their gothic rock roots and their newer sound which they describe as "dark future rock" - a mixture of darkwave, new romantic and industrial. The band has since enjoyed cult status, and more chart success than most of their mainstream competitors. Since their beginning, The Awakening has been featured, reviewed or interviewed by almost every magazine, newspaper, website, campus and national radio station and music orientated television program in South Africa. They also have an active live show history, constantly playing clubs and in recent years, US and European tours.

Internationally, The Awakening has been achieving steadily growing support and exposure. After their second album titled "Request", The Awakening's albums have been available in the United States, United Kingdom, and Canada, with radio chart success, invitations to major festivals and media coverage. After the fourth album "The Fourth Seal of Zeen", The Awakening's popularity spread throughout Europe, and the CDs were released in Germany and Russia. The Awakening has so far been featured in leading alternative magazines such as Zillo, Orkus, HM, and Sonic Seducer. Also, their music has appeared on compilations of various International labels including COP International's "Dark Awakening", Cleopatra's "Unquiet Grave 2", Cold Fusion's "Moonlight Cathedral" among others.cite web |url= http://www.massacre-records.com/bands/bands.asp?bands=THE+AWAKENING |title= The Awakening Biography |accessdate= 2007-09-23 |author= Hartmann, Torsen |last= |first= |authorlink= |coauthors= |date=2006 |work= Massacre Records |publisher= |pages= |language= |doi= |archiveurl= |archivedate= |quote= ]

The Awakening has always been the effort of singer-songwriter and producer Ashton Nyte, who runs the label Intervention Arts. Nyte has also released four individual solo albums during The Awakening's career and has received a notable amount of media notice doing cabaret shows, acoustic performances, theatre pieces and appearances.

Biography

Beginning

Formerly, the guitarist-vocalist Ashton Nyte played in a band called Martyr's Image which was formed in early 1994, and disbanded in May 1995. Nyte asked the bassist Jenni Hazell to join him in his new project, which was tentatively entitled as "Children of the Torch". For a year they rehearsed Nyte's songs in Hazell's lounge with a drum machine. Finally, they were joined by a third live contributor, guitarist Philip Booyens, who joined in December of that year.

In the year 1996 the band changed its name to The Awakening and in February played its first show. In March, Nyte started work on the self-financed first studio album titled "Risen". They began recording at Mega Music Studios with producer Leon Erasmus. More concerts followed, and the recording went slowly due to financial limits. Hazell played bass on the album, Philip played guitar on a few songs and a vocalist called Cheryl added some ethereal female vocals to two of the songs. The result turned out to be a traditional, minimalist gothic rock arrangement. "Risen", however, was not finished yet, and in 1997 Nyte went to studio to record a cover of the song "The Sounds of Silence" by Simon and Garfunkel.

It was said that alternative radio stations became "hysterical" when they first heard "Sounds of Silence" during the release of "Risen" in April 1997. Gothic rock was said to be an unheard style of music in South Africa at the time, and The Awakening became notorious for a while. Philip Booyens left to pursue his career as engineer. Jenni Hazell married the former Martyr's Image drummer Wayne and moved to the provence of KwaZulu-Natal. AV replaced guitarist and Thaun became the new drummer. All three of them made a tour through three states of Africa.

Break through

Nyte invested to a small digital studio and began to write a follow-up for "Risen". The second album titled "Request" embraced the electronic and industrial sounds of 1980s new romantic movement. The band began to achieve more notice in the mainstream. The singles "Maree", "Rain" and "Before I Leap" saw relatively good success in the radiostations, and more tours followed. The new romantic influence impressed some record companies, and a music video was shot for "Rain" by director Katinka Harrod. The video was shot in the middle of winter and it was dangerous for Nyte who performed under icy water during filming, painted black and hosed clean for other scenes. However, the video brought more public exposure for the band, and the video was shown on television.

In November 1998 AV left The Awakening to pursue his own musical projects. However, two weeks later the guitarist Mark Sprawsen joined the band. All of a sudden the bassist Thaun left to move to United Kingdom in March 1999. This allowed Nyte to rethink the musical direction of The Awakening. Nyte left the previously unnamed record label to form his own, Intervention Arts. In order to reach the demands of international marketing, Nyte reissued the two previous The Awakening albums, remastered and with bonustracks and new layouts. The band was joined by drummer Glenn Welman, bassist Andre Liebenberg and keyboardist Catherine Stone. Finally, with a new five member line up, the band created its third album, "Ethereal Menace". Musically, the album utilizes aggressive, militant drum rhythm and the chunky guitars of industrial music. This style was later dubbed as "dark future rock" by Nyte.

"Ethereal Menace" was released ín July 1999, and achieved an enthusiastic reception: the single "The March" was successful and produced a musicvideo. It was shot by Eban Olivier's Concrete Productions, and the video ended on MTV Europe rotation. Also, the singles "In Etherea" and "Chains" achieved notable attention.

olo projects

In December, 1999, Nyte took a break from The Awakening to concentrate on his solo project. The previously unreleased The Awakening tracks were compiled to Nyte's first solo album "The Slender Nudes" in the mid 2000, about two months after the last The Awakening concert.

Nyte returned to The Awakening in September 2000, and the band released its darkest album yet, "The Fourth Seal of Zeen". The epic album displays a range of sounds between darkwave and classic gothic rock. "The Dark Romantics" is a gothic club dance floor anthem, and it has become a popular song in goth clubs, while "Stigma", "Zeen" and "Precious" combine dark electro and rock.

In November, after the release of "The Fourth Seal of Zeen", Ashton Nyte's solo group's live bassist Kate Towsey replaced Andre Liebenberg. Frankie Clark, who was also in Nyte's solo band, replaced Catherine Stone as keyboardist, since Stone moved to United States. The album widened the bands popularity to Europe.

In the year 2001, the line up changes continued when Matthew Fink replaced keyboardist. The Awakening toured, as did Nyte's solo group. Nyte also released his second solo album titled "Dirt Sense". In October, The Awakening became a six-piece when Marcus Kuschke joined as a guitarist. Kuschke had previously played on some concerts of Nyte's solo project called Cut the Rope, and he was known to be a talented guitarist.

During November 2001, The awakening recorded an ep titled "The Fountain". Musically it combined elements of the band's old and new style. The released was followed by a tour.

New era

In June 2002 The Awakening recorded its most aggressive album so far, "Roadside Heretics". Garrick van der Tuin replaced Glenn Welman as a drummer during Nyte's Dirt Sense tour in May 2001, and influenced the new harsher sound. Thematically, "Roadside Heretics" deals with discriminated and isolated people. Musically, the sound is guitar-driven, and utilized thick industrial guitars. According to the band, "Roadside Heretics" marked a new era for The Awakening, as they tried to capture their live energy to the sound. At the same time a compilation album titled "Sacrificial Etchings" was released, and it features few previously unreleased songs, such as "Vampyre Girl".

Nyte released his third solo album titled "Sinister Swing" in 2003. A year later in 2004 The Awakening began to work on its most ambitious album by far, titled as "Darker Than Silence", with lyrical themes about devastation and medication. Songs such as "One More Crucifixion", "Angelyn", and "The Needle and the Gun" achieved a positive reception world wide, and notable success on South African, United States, and German Charts. The success brought them a tour in the United States which was one of the highlights in the band's career so far.

In July 2005, Nyte released another solo album titled "Headspace" with his solo band called Ashton Nyte and the Accused. During the year 2006, The Awakening signed a management deal with German based MCM Music, and later in 2006 the band signed a record deal with the German label Massacre Records. Herman Kruger replaced their live drummer during that year.

In September 2006 The Awakening released its eighth studio album titled "Razor Burn". With the European distribution and marketing of Massacre Records it received more notice than the band's previous albums as well as positive review from alternative music press. Intervention Arts distributed the album for the rest of the world. Thematically, "Razor Burn" is a concept album with prevalent asylum theme and references to "Big Brother" and "the Machine". Also, the singles "Halo" and "Arrow" received positive reception. [cite web |url= http://www.awakening.co.za/ |title= The Awakening |accessdate= 2007-09-23 |author= Nyte, Ashton |last= |first= |authorlink= |coauthors= |date=2006|work= Awakening.co.za |publisher= |pages= |language= |doi= |archiveurl= |archivedate= |quote= ]

In 2008, The Awakening made a short summer tour in the U.S., performing notably with London After Midnight. The band is currently working its 9th studio album.

Music

The Awakening's music has evolved since its early years. While "Risen" strongly emphasizes on an older school of guitar-driven gothic rock, "Request", however, embraced electronics and the 1980s new romantic movement. "Ethereal Menace" started the age of "dark-future-rock" - which is, as Nyte describes, "a hybrid of hard electronics and chunky guitars, with a strong dancefloor undercurrent". Nyte himself states David Bowie and Kate Bush as his "personal heroes" yet points out that his musical taste is "very broad". cite web |url= http://www.tcu.hpsjr.fi/zinearkisto/z1/awakenig.html |title= Awakening |accessdate= 2007-09-22 | |author= Annika |date= 1999 |work= TCu-zine |publisher= Open Publishing |language= |quote= Interview with Ashton Nyte ]

The Awakening's music focuses more on the atmosphere and emotion. Structurally the songs aren't typically complex or progressive but rather minimalistic. While their newer songs tend to utilize chunky industrial guitars, the song structures rely on traditional rock rather than metal.

Nyte describes that "The Awakening's live performance is a ritual - type experience where both band and audience can look forward to that "sense of something special" based on our theatrical on-stage appearance and performance. The elements of passion, beauty, poetry and theatrics are the cornerstones of our live shows. I've played a variety of shows, with a varying line-up of live musicians and always try to add a little more to a live show than merely "playing the songs"".

Discography

tudio albums

* "Risen" (1997)
* "Request" (1998)
* "Ethereal Menace" (1999)
* "The Fourth Seal of Zeen" (2000)
* "Roadside Heretics" (2002)
* "Darker Than Silence" (2004)
* "Razor Burn" (2006)

Compilations

* Sacrificial Etchings (best of) (2003)

ingles and EPs

* Rain (1997)
* Maree (1997)
* Before I Leap (1997)
* The Sounds of Silence (1997)
* Sentimental Runaways EP(1999)
* In Etherea (1999)
* Chains (1999)
* The March (1999)
* The Dark Romantics (2000)
* The Fountain EP (2001)
* Complexion (2002)
* The Needle and the Gun (2004)
* Angelyn (2004)
* One More Crucifixion (2004)

Music Videos

* Rain (1997)
* The March (1999)

Members

Current line up

*Ashton Nyte – vocals, guitar, songwriter
*M. Palermo – bass
*Rici7 – drums

Former members

*Jenni Hazell – bass
*Philip Booyens – guitar
*Mark Sprawsen – guitar
*Glenn Welman – drums
*Andre Liebenberg – bass
*Catherine Stone – synthesizer
*Kate Towsey – bass
*Matthew Fink – synthesizer
*Marcus Kusche – guitar
*Garrick van der Tuin – drums
*Frankie Clark – bass
*Marcus van der Tuin – guitar

References

External links

* [http://www.awakening.co.za/ Official Homepage]
* [http://www.sonicbids.com/theawakening/ The Awakening's SonicBids Page]
* [http://www.ashtonnyte.com/ Ashton Nyte's solo project home page]
*MySpace|theawakeningband
*MySpace|ashtonnyteband|Ashton Nyte
* [http://www.last.fm/music/The+Awakening The Awakening] at Last.fm