Moonspell

Gothic Metal

Moonspell is a Portuguese gothic metal band with elements of black metal. The group, founded in 1989 originally as Morbid God, was renamed Moonspell in 1992. With the release of their first album Wolfheart in 1995, the band quickly gained status and became one of the most recognizable metal bands from Portugal. The band started out as folk-tinged black metal. In 1992, still under the name Morbid God, they released the promo track Serpent Angel. In 1993, vocalist Fernando Ribeiro, drummer Mike Gaspar and bassist João Pedro released the demo Anno Satanæ under the name Moonspell, which caught the attention of French label Adipocere. It was for Adipocere that Moonspell released in 1994 a mini-album titled Under the Moonspell. The record was a considered a landmark in Portuguese metal and sold more than 5000 copies, becoming Adipocere's best-selling record at the time. Shortly after the release, they played with Cradle of Filth in a concert in Lisbon. Breakthrough (1995-1997) After the release of mini-album Under the Moonspell, Moonspell signed with Century Media for six CDs. Wolfheart was recorded in Germany with producer Waldemar Sorychta and was released in 1995 and was followed by a European tour. Although the album had little or no recognition at the beginning, it was later recognized as a milestone by heavy-metal reviews site Metal-Observer.com. During the tour, guitarist Mantus quit the band and was replaced by Ricardo Amorim. Irreligious came out in 1996 and was recor...