Benny Hilleke: Vocals
Stefan Keller: Guitar
Tobias Buck: Guitar
Benjamin Donath: Bass
Sebastian Heldt: Drums
On February 28th, 2020 NEAERA released their 7th album – it was their self-titled comeback record after a 7-year-hiatus – which caught everyone by surprise. Despite having been very well perceived the pandemic impeded the band’s long awaited and already scheduled return to the live stages. On February 29th, 2020, NEAERA played a successful and sold out release show in the band’s hometown, but it remained the only show for the record in years since Wacken, the Impericon festivals and other shows had to be postponed until further notice which was a huge setback for the ambitious quintet.
Sebastian Heldt (drums), Tobias Buck (guitar) and Stefan Keller (guitar) used the unfortunate state of the pandemic and the impossibility to play live shows to create something new. Together with Marcus Bischoff of German metalcore institution Heaven Shall Burn and old friend Tristan Hachmeister they unearthed a black metal project by the name of OUR LOSS IS TOTAL and released the bleak full-length record “I” end of 2022 through the project’s own label.
NEAERA decided it was time for new material and wanted to go back to an old school approach, like in the olden days, when songs were written together in a musty rehearsal room. Excitedly, the band started the writing process in September 2021. Yet, they decided to skip the first material because it just didn’t feel right and then started afresh with a freer, compelling and more daring style, trying to shake off old boundaries.
In 2022, the band played a Vainstream show as well as the postponed Wacken Open Air show – which was a reverberating success – and asked Janosch Rathmer (drummer of long-time friends and German post rock institution Long Distance Calling) to record the band’s new album ALL IS DUST.
The mixing and mastering were skilfully executed by Kristian Kohle at Kohlekeller Studios who adorned the songs with a powerful yet organic sound that perfectly fit the band’s vision of their new material and approach.
Aesthetically, though fully content with the previous works of Norwegian artist Terje Johnson, the band yearned for a new approach and asked Greek artist Giannis Nakos of remedyartdesign (Oceans of Slumber, Evergrey, Vomitory) to freely create something fitting for the album.
Lyrically, NEAERA shifted their approach a bit and put the individual, its survival and sanity in these testing times center stage – beside lyrics that tackle global and social clamour; a shift that might have been pandemic related.
2024 marks the 20th band anniversary and is the perfect timing to release the eighth studio album, ALL IS DUST. Nothing can stop the band this year with two video clips at hand and prestigious summer festivals confirmed such as Summer Breeze, Reload and Vainstream Rockfest, the latter being the album release show in front of 20.000 people!
