arise from thorns
Biographies
arise from thorns
a biography as written by Scott LooseTrevor and I started this project in January of 1997 under the name "To Dance By Moonlight." At this time all that we knew was that it was going to be based on acoustic guitar work and diverse percussion. To Dance By Moonlight (TDBM) was really in a rough draft form because there was only the two of us during the writing process. At the same time that TDBM was being created, we had another project called "Arise From Thorns" (AFT) that was kind of like progressive epic metal. AFT also only consisted of Trevor and myself but it was two very different styles of music. We finally combined the two bands into one under the name "Arise From Thorns" and took out the metal aspect of our sound. We decided it was time to do something new.
Trevor and I began recording at Neptune Studios, in Occoquan, Virginia in March of 1997. We recorded two songs, "Ivy" and "Moss Castle." Shortly thereafter, my sister Michelle came into one of our practice sessions and began playing piano to the songs we were working on. It was then that we felt we were on to something and AFT became a three piece in May of 1997.
Together we wrote and recorded through the months of August to November. I had originally intended on doing the vocals for the album and Michelle was going to do some background vocals. At this point, Trevor and I had never heard her sing. She was so shy she would make us leave the room when she sang her parts, but after hearing her voice it was clear that she should be singing on the majority of the album. The self titled album "Arise From Thorns" was released in April of 1998.
The debut album was distributed world wide and we received great reviews. (For detailed reviews see the "Press Release" section.) From London to Norway to Belgium and the United States, people seemed to appreciate our music. The response was overwhelming to us, as we never thought that people would pay attention to our CD! The song "Remember the Stars" received the most praise and it appeared on several compilation CD’s in Italy and the United States.
In the summer of 1998, we were joined by friend and bassist Chad Peevey. For the first time we started to play various clubs in the Northern Virginia area. Chad left for school in the fall of 1998 and Michelle, Trevor and I moved into a house in rural Stafford County, Virginia and began working on new material. In November of 1998, bassist Chris Welborn joined AFT and we practiced and wrote new material for several months.
In February of 1999, Michelle and I joined a local epic doom metal band called "While Heaven Wept" (WHW). Michelle and I played several shows with WHW in Maryland and New York. Meanwhile, AFT began recording new material and we played frequently throughout Northern Virginia, Washington D.C. and Maryland.
During the recording, April - August 1999, Tom Phillips (founder of While Heaven Wept) joined AFT and helped with the production of the new album, "Before An Audience of Stars." In September of 1999 Tom began playing electric guitars live and we became a five piece band. In November 1999, the second full length album from Arise From Thorns was released.
For information on obtaining the debut self-titled CD or the new release "Before An Audience of Stars" please email Siouxxxi@aol.com. Or write: AFT, P.O. Box 1077, Dale City, Virginia, 22193, USA.
Trevor Schrotz
Trevor began playing drums in 1995. Since then he has played in Fell On Within and Arise From Thorns. Trevor studies classical and jazz percussion with a great instructor from the U.S. Army band, William Messerschmidt .Trevor's contributions to Arise From Thorns include lyrics, drums and percussion, and voices on Disc I, including Restoration (track 1), Ivy (track 2), and Remember the Stars (end of track 4), and chanting on Fire of Night (track 7). Trevor's influences range from Fates Warning and Dream Theater (progressive metal) to Chick Corea, Sting, and Phil Collins/Genesis (jazz and rock), to Dead Can Dance (world music).
E-Mail: Arisethorn@aol.com
Michelle Loose
Michelle began playing piano and singing at a young age. Her natural ear for pitch combined with her intense love of music has produced the powerful front of Arise From Thorns. Michelle also tracked vocals on a portion of the Fell On Within album. It was then that everyone realized her natural gift of singing. Michelle, although never formally trained, only began to seriously study the piano in May of 1997 by teaching herself. Her influences include Tori Amos, Dead Can Dance, Bjork, and a secret love for heavy grooves like Pantera and Anathema.
E-Mail: Siouxxxi@aol.com
Scott Loose
Scott began playing guitar at age 10. He has studied formally with a number of teachers and independently, striving to be the best. Scott has played with such bands as While Heaven Wept, Fell On Within, As The Sea Parts, and a few other garage-type bands. Scott's influences include progressive metal like Dream Theater, Fates Warning, and Queensryche, as well as classical music including Chopin, Beethoven, and Bach. Scott is also an avid fan of underground metal from Northern Europe like Anathema, My Dying Bride, Bal Sagoth, Cradle of Filth, and others.
E-Mail: aswampalis@aol.com
Chris Welborn Chris has been playing bass guitar for eleven years, performing in various hard rock/metal bands. In 1992 he was a founding member of the local progressive metal band Division, but he left the band in 1994 after the birth of his son. In 1996 he joined Popp Culture, a top 40 cover band headed by John Popp, producer of the G.Gordon Liddy radio show. In November 1998, Chris joined AFT, bringing with him a wide variety of influes including: Steve Harris, Geezer Butler, John Entwistle, Jaro Pastorious, John Myung and John Pattitucci
Tom Phillips Tom Phillips began playing guitar in the summer of 1983 and started to compose original material almost immediately. Raised on AOR and progressive rock, his style is melodic and emotive yet technically proficient. He is best known for his work with While Heaven Wept, the band he founded in 1989, but has performed and/or recorded with the likes of Solstice (U.K.), Twisted Tower Dire, Grey Division Blue and Grand Belial's Key. Some of his primary influences include Journey, Marillion, Queensryche, Fates Warning, Candlemass, Ulrich Roth, Richie Blackmore, Chopin, Wagner and miscellaneous space rock.
Email: plomerus@hotmail.com
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