Ilium (band)
| Ilium | |
|---|---|
| Also known as | Iliad |
| Origin | Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia |
| Genres | Heavy metal, power metal |
| Years active | 1998–present |
| Labels | Steelheart, Adrenaline, Escape, Nightmare |
| Associated acts | Oracle, Riot, Balance of Power, Pyramaze, Avian, Masterplan, Dungeon, Lord, Vaticide, Dark Order, Dionysus, Stormwind, Treasure Land, Circle II Circle, |
| Website | ilium-store |
| Members |
|
| Past members |
|
Ilium is an Australian melodic power metal band formed in Newcastle in 1998 as Iliad. Founding mainstay is guitarist-songwriter, Jason Hodges. Upon Adam Smith (ex-Oracle) joining on guitar they changed their name and have released six studio albums, Sirens of the Styx (18 December 2003), Permian Dusk (25 November 2005), Vespertilion (17 April 2007), Ageless Decay (22 June 2009), Genetic Memory (26 August 2011), and My Misanthropia (14 March 2015).
Ilium were founded in Newcastle by former members of local power metal band, Oracle, with guitarist-songwriter Jason Hodges and vocalist Mark Snedden initially as Iliad in 1998. Hodges and Snedden were school friends and had formed Oracle in 1990. Iliad also included later Oracle members: Kris Arendse on guitar and Michael Noonan on bass guitar; as well as session musician, David Pearson on drums. They recorded a six-track demo which the band's website described as "ill-fated from the start, with an inappropriate producer and the band's lack of studio experience, coupled with plaguing health problems, the results were truly horrible". Hodges listed the group's inspirations as "Black Sabbath, Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, Helloween, Rage, Blind Guardian, Gamma Ray, Rush, Megadeth, Coroner, Scorpions, Rainbow, Ozzy Osbourne, [and] Dio".
Late in 1998 with the introduction of Adam Smith, also ex-Oracle, on guitar the group changed its name to Ilium. In 2002 they recorded a four-track eponymous extended play with Dungeon's vocalist and guitarist Lord Tim (aka Tim Grose) producing and adding backing vocals. Noonan left during recording sessions and Smith completed the bass guitar work. The EP included a cover version of Fleetwood Mac's "The Green Manalishi (With the Two Prong Crown)" in the vogue of Judas Priest's 1979 version. The other tracks were "Half-Life", "Semblance" and "Antigone" – the first two were solely written by Hodges, while the latter was co-written with Smith and Sneddon. Yet another ex-Oracle, Matthew Woodland, joined Ilium shortly before its release. The EP gained the attention of several labels, including Sentinel Steel boss Denis Gulbey, with Italian record company Adrenaline's metal label Steelheart signing the band.
...
Wikipedia