[Introduction] Noltem (USA)

Disclaimer: The band/solo artist knows about my blog. I do have permission to write about them and to use their/his picture. All links are placed, as well as the representative videos on YouTube.

Photo rights going to the Band itself - Noltem

Bandcamp / Bandcamp (Merch) / Deezer / Facebook / Instagram / Myspace / Spotify

Music Plaform's

Amazon / Apple Music / BigCartel / Temporal Dimensions Patches / Transcending Obscurity Records (Bandcamp)

First of all, as always, thank you to Noltem for giving me permission to write this introduction.

As the readers of this blog must know by now, I’m often on Spotify and switch through so many artists. And in this sense, I also found Noltem!

The Line Up is as such:

Max Johnson (Guitars, Bass, Keyboards (2003-present))

John Kerr (Drums, Vocals (2015-present))

Shalin Shah (Bass (2018-present))

The trio debuted with their demo in 2005, titled Hymn of the Wood. It was released on Ancient Wind, which apparently has since closed. Only 50 copies were released.

1. Rivers Held in Ice (06:00)

2. Hymn of the Wood (05:38) [instrumental]

3. The Final Dawn (06:08)

Full-Playtime: 17:46

As always, we were able to ask our questions, which we are happy to include.

Ceyla: "Is there any band that inspires you the most? Or, if there isn’t such a band, where do you draw your inspiration from?"

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M.J : "All three members of Noltem have very diverse musical tastes. There are definitely bands which we mutually appreciate and draw influence from. We're all big Agalloch and Opeth fans. For me personally, Opeth's first three albums have been formative. We're all very fond of early In Flames, Dark Tranquillity, Sacrilege, Eucharist, At the Gates, Dissection and similar bands from that scene. Obviously a lot of the classic black metal bands too. John and Shalin listen to some post-rock stuff that I'm not very familiar with, while Shalin and I incorporate influences that aren't very forward for John (traditional acts like Judas Priest or King Diamond, for example). I think the success of "Illusions in the Wake" can be attributed to the way we've taken these styles and arranged them into a cohesive 40-minute album."

You can definitely hear the influences of the bands mentioned above in the songs, but the sound of the songs is still very unique. Unique enough to let your imagination run wild.  Even if that's hard to imagine with some music genres.

In many ways, and also because of the themes of Nature, Depths and Pagan themes, you quickly find yourself in your own or even different world.

July 2015—to be precise, July 24—brought Noltem fans back the band in a new light with their EP Mannaz. This time, the EP was released independently and is available on their Bandcamp.

1. Into the Heights (06:31)

2. Windhall (07:34)

3. From Hill to Hollow (04:25) [instrumental]

Full-Playtime: 18:30

Of course, there was also the question of the festivals.

Ceyla: "Are there any festivals or events in Germany, or even worldwide, that you would like to attend? Some of them always offer opportunities to apply." 

Everyone has different ideas about which events they might be suitable for, so we are always curious to see what the answer will be.

M.J: "For the time being, Noltem is not a live act. Two of us live in Connecticut, while another is about 10 hours away in Pennsylvania. We don't get to meet up as often as we'd like to, which makes it hard to practice as a band. I would absolutely be open to playing a show if we received some sort of worthwhile offer. It would take a lot of work, but it's possible! I've always wanted to attend Prophecy Fest at Balver Höhle. Just being present would be incredible, but playing our music in that amazing setting would be dream for us."

As many of You know, i do love to recommend to different Festivals, like Dong Open Air, Full Force, Rock Harz, Summer Breeze, Turock Open Air , Party San Open Air, Frostfeuernächte, Dark Troll Festival and many many more. The only thing we could try would be to write to Graspop or, as always, share the Summer Breeze page.

Nonetheless, we're keeping our fingers crossed for the upcoming festival season for the band where they get the Chance to Play.

2021 was the year the band released their album Illusions in the Wake on their Bandcamp. To be precise, it was October 15th. This time, the band once again had a label behind them to help them release it: Transcending Obscurity Records.

1. Figment (08:32)

2. Illusions in the Wake (06:48)

3. Beneath the Dreaming Blue (07:49)

4. Submerged (01:55) [instrumental]

5. Ruse (08:48)

6. On Shores of Glass (07:00) [instrumental]

Full-Playtime: 40:52

If you wanna read some Reviews to there Album -> Metal Archives.

Of course, we always give artists and musicians the option to leave a message for the readers. These messages are always very heartwarming, even if you shouldn't mention them in metal. And yet, they are all absolutely lovely people.

Ceyla: "Is there anything you would like the readers of this blog to know about you and your music?"

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M.J: "We genuinely appreciate everyone's support. Our debut album came out almost 4 years ago, and we're still receiving a lot of compliments and praise. Noltem has always been a slow-moving beast, but we're working on our 2nd album and we're excited to share it with the world."

With this, we had another Honor to write about a Awesome Band and we hope to fascinate so much more People to look into there Music.

All named artists, as well as festivals and the entire discography, are linked throughout the article!