In Times Before the Light
| Untitled | |
|---|---|
 |
In Times Before the Light is the debut studio album by the Norwegian black metal band The Kovenant, and was released in 1997 through Mordgrimm.
Album history
In Times Before the Light is the first album The Kovenant (at that time called Covenant) created back in 1995. The only members at the time were Nagash and Blackheart. The album is considered to be symphonic black metal and provided Covenant a good fan base in Norway. The album was created when Nagash and Blackheart were of young age, at least 17 years old. The release was significantly delayed due to loss of album artwork in shipment to the record company.[1]
A re-recorded version of In Times Before the Light was released in 2002 through Hammerheart Records due to Nagash and Blackheart (now 'Lex Icon' and 'Psy Coma') citing that they were not satisfied with the original release. Covenant were also forced to change their name to The Kovenant due to a dispute with a Swedish electronic band of the same name. The outcome is significantly different from the original; an industrial version of the original symphonic black metal album. The remixed tracks are longer, various elements were added to them and many parts were re-recorded.
The album was re-released in January 26, 2007 through VME/Head Not Found as In Times Before the Light 1995, with tracks from their 1994 demo From the Storm of Shadows as bonus content.[2] The material was remastered by Tom Kvalsvoll.
On October 29, 2011, Nagash did a one-time only performance of the entire album at the Aurora Infernalis III festival in Arnhem, Netherlands.[3] Except for Nagash, no other members of the current incarnation of the band participated.
Track listing
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Towards the Crown of Nights" | 05:50 |
| 2. | "Dragonstorms" | 04:58 |
| 3. | "The Dark Conquest" | 06:54 |
| 4. | "From the Storm of Shadows" | 05:13 |
| 5. | "Night of the Blackwinds" | 03:40 |
| 6. | "The Chasm" | 03:44 |
| 7. | "Visions of a Lost Kingdom" | 03:26 |
| 8. | "Through the Eyes of the Raven" | 05:00 |
| 9. | "In Times Before the Light" | 05:59 |
| 10. | "Monarch of the Mighty Darkness" | 05:54 |
| Total length: | 50:38 | |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Towards the Crown of Nights" | 06:29 |
| 2. | "Dragonstorms" | 05:19 |
| 3. | "The Dark Conquest" | 07:39 |
| 4. | "From the Storm of Shadows" | 05:34 |
| 5. | "Night of the Blackwinds" | 03:56 |
| 6. | "The Chasm" | 04:39 |
| 7. | "Visions of a Lost Kingdom" | 05:56 |
| 8. | "Through the Eyes of the Raven" | 05:04 |
| 9. | "In Times Before the Light" | 06:04 |
| 10. | "Monarch of the Mighty Darkness" | 06:15 |
| Total length: | 56:55 | |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 11. | "In Times Before the Light" | 06:25 |
| 12. | "Visions of a Lost Kingdom" | 03:05 |
| 13. | "From the Storm of Shadows" | 06:08 |
| Total length: | 66:35 | |
Personnel
- N. Blackheart - vocals, drums, keyboards
- T. Blackheart - guitars, bass, keyboards
2002 Remix
Guests
- Sensei Bogus - Bass (additional), Programming (additional)
Other
- Pål Espen Johannessen - Engineering
- Psy Coma - Producer, Recording
- Bjørn Boge - Producer, Mixing, Engineer, Additional Recording, Drum Editing
- Tommy Svensson - Artwork, Layout
- Peder Klingwall - Photography
2007 Remastered
- N. Blackheart - vocals, drums, keyboards
- T. Blackheart - guitars, bass, keyboards
- Kharon - Bass (on tracks 11-13)
Other information
- Engineered by Sire Johannesen; produced by both Covenant & Sire Johannesen
- Digitally mastered at The Exchange; executive production by Noctis Irae
- All symphonies arranged & composed by Covenant during the period 1992-1995
- All poetry penned by Covenant between the years 1993-1995
- Cover painting by Alex Kurtagić
- Logo by Christophe Szpajdel
- Portraits taken by Close Up
- Art design conceived by Covenant
- Layout and design executed by Digitalis