A Hill to Die Upon
| A Hill to Die Upon | |
|---|---|
| Origin | Monmouth-Galesburg, Illinois, United States |
| Genres | Blackened death metal, melodic death metal |
| Years active | 2004–present |
| Labels | Bombworks |
| Associated acts | Dödsmarsch, Maugrim |
| Website | ahilltodieupon |
| Members | Adam Cook R. Michael Cook Nolan Osmond Tanner Jones Brent Dossett |
| Past members | Adam Gross Andreas Larsen Drew Webster Elisha Mullins Josh Christianson Josiah Levi Wiwe Rauff Ravn "Jokull" Furfjod Ryan Lamb Steve Southard Mike Pingel |
A Hill To Die Upon is a blackened death metal band from the Monmouth-Galesburg area of Illinois, United States, formed in 2004 by the brothers Adam and R. Michael Cook. The brothers initially founded the band as hardcore project, but eventually started listening to death and black metal, which led them to transform their band's sound. Over the years, various musicians have filled out the band's lineup, which currently consists of the Cook brothers, Nolan Osmond, Tanner Jones, and Brent Dossett. Signed to Bombworks Records, A Hill to Die Upon has released three albums – Infinite Titanic Immortal in 2009, Omens in 2011, and Holy Despair in 2014, all to a positive critical reception. In 2013, the band also released a stand-alone single, "Manden med Leen". Musically, the band is compared primarily to Behemoth as well as Immortal, Naglfar, and Old Man's Child, all of which the brothers cite as among their major influences. The brothers are Christian, but they distance themselves from calling A Hill to Die Upon a Christian metal band. Lyrical themes include mythology, war, philosophy, and despair, with references drawn from the Bible and numerous literary works and authors.
Adam and R. Michael Cook founded A Hill to Die Upon as a hardcore and metalcore band in 2004 in Monmouth, Illinois. Michael explains that he and Adam simply wanted to play extreme music, and hardcore was easier to play than metal. He concedes that had they tried to play metal at the time, they "would have sucked." Also, in 2004, the hardcore scene was very strong in the Midwest, enabling the brothers, as a two piece band, to play some live shows in Illinois and Iowa. Had the brothers played extreme metal at the time, they would have been the only band in the area and thus would have struggled to book shows. The brothers played their first show in Burlington, Iowa, performing mostly Norma Jean and As I Lay Dying cover songs. Over time, they started listening to death and black metal, and as a consequence gradually took their band in a faster, darker, and more aggressive direction.
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