Xandria

Xandria
Xandria at Metalfest in Pilsen, Czech Republic (2014)
Background information
Origin	Bielefeld, Germany
Genres	Symphonic metal, power metal
Years active	1997, 1999–present
Labels	Drakkar Entertainment (2003–2011) Napalm (2011–present)
Website	www.xandria.de
Members	Dianne van Giersbergen Marco Heubaum Gerit Lamm Philip Restemeier Steven Wussow
Past members	See below

Xandria is a German symphonic metal band, founded by Marco Heubaum in 1997.

Xandria was started as a project band in 1997 in Bielefeld, Germany by Marco Heubaum, the band's main composer and at the time vocalist, and a friend to play drums, but quickly disbanded after recording one demo.

The band was restarted with a different line-up in 1999. Marco stepped down from the role of vocalist and was joined by local musician Roland Krueger on bass. In 2000, they recorded one demo that was released on the internet and after its release current drummer Gerit Lamm joined the band. The female vocalist that recorded the demo left the band to follow other plans and was replaced by Lisa Schaphaus. At the same time, writing of the debut album started.

In 2002, the band signed to Drakkar Records and was joined by current lead guitarist Philip Restemeier. As work on the debut album progressed, the band started playing shows in and around Bielefeld. In the winter of 2002, the band entered the studio to record their debut album Kill the Sun. They released Kill the Sun in May 2003, and it reached No. 98 on the German music charts. To promote the album, the band played a few shows with Schandmaul and Subway to Sally. Then they went on a three-week tour of Germany with Tanzwut.

After playing some festivals in support of Kill the Sun, the band started writing their sophomore album. Recording of the album began in December 2003 at Pleasure Park Studios, with producer José Alvarez-Brill. Production on the album was finished in February 2004. Shortly after the recordings were completed, bassist Roland Krueger left the band and was replaced by Nils Middelhauve. Ravenheart was released on May 24, 2004, and it stayed on the charts for seven weeks, reaching No. 36.

In 2005 they released their third album, India, which reached No. 30 on the German charts. Xandria began recording their fourth album, Salomé – The Seventh Veil, on December 14, 2006. It was released on May 25, 2007 and reached No. 41 on the German charts.