Skepticism is a Finnish metal band formed in 1991. The band is often
stated to be one of the pioneers of the funeral doom sub-genre (atmospheric, slow and heavy music with
funeral dirge music nuances).
The first year of existence brought a few local gigs and the debut
release - a 7" EP. The final line-up was reached in early 1993 and consists of a drummer, guitarist,
organist and a vocalist. No changes in the line-up have taken place since then.
The second release - 'AEOTHE KAEAR' promotional tape was released in
late 1993. This release both stylistically set the course for Skepticism for the years to come and
brought a recording contract with an US label Red Stream. In the reviews of 'AEOTHE KAEAR'
Skepticism was also referred to as "Funeral Doom" for the first time.
The debut album Stormcrowfleet was released in 1995. Three re-recorded
songs from 'AEOTHE KAEAR' and three new ones are included. Stormcrowfleet is Skepticism at its purest
- slow paced and extremely massive. The album got a mixed response - it was renowned as a classic by
some and totally disappreciated by others.
On the following releases - 'ethere' miniCD and 'Lead and Aether' CD Skepticism
brought their sound even further. The simple and massive soundscapes of Stormcrowfleet had got a more
sophisticated form with more aggression and dynamical changes. Again the response was mixed but this time
the scene already knew what to expect.
In 1998 Skepticism released the 'aes' - a half an hour composition. The
minimalistic and holistic tendencies that had played a supporting part on the first two albums were
now in a major role. 'aes' may sound slightly lighter than it's predecessors but is still as Skepticism as ever.
After the release of 'aes' Skepticism devoted to songwriting and not much
was heard of the band for quite some time.
The four-year silence ended in 2002 with the release of 'The Process of
Farmakon' miniCD. The MiniCD features two re-arranged and re-recorded songs from the upcoming full length
album 'Farmakon.' Like the two first albums 'Farmakon' will feature six songs and - according to the band
- "be the most terrifying Skepticism album ever." After some delays 'Farmakon'
will be released in the summer of 2003.
In addition to preparing the two new releases Skepticism re-entered the
live venues for the first time in 8 years. This was also the first live show with the current line-up.
The first gig happened in January 2001 at a club in Turku, Finland. Occasional live shows have happened
after that prior to getting on the road for the Funeral Procession 2003 tour. During 2004 Skepticism
played a few gigs in Finland.
Five years were passed since the previous album when Skepticism released 'Alloy'
in 2008. 'Alloy' introduced six dynamic and powerful songs with clear sounds and high-quality production.
The release was followed by 'Exorcising the Funeral' European tour.
Between 2009-2014 Skepticism was composing new material and performing occasional
concerts mainly in European area.
Ordeal - Skepticism's new experiment was
recorded live in front of the live audience in January 2015. Album will
be released by
Svart Records
in May 2015. Band is planning to visit several festivals in 2015. For example
in US, Czech, Romania and Finland.
Companion released in 2021 - The latest album (by Svart Records) received great reviews, a few examples:
The Rolling Stone Magazine top-10
Decibel Magazine top-40
Inferno Magazine 3rd best Finnish metal album