Elis was a symphonic metal band from Vaduz, Liechtenstein, formed in 2003 a… Read Full Bio ↴Elis was a symphonic metal band from Vaduz, Liechtenstein, formed in 2003 after the split of Erben der Schöpfung in 2002. They split up in 2012. The final members of the band were Pete Streit (guitars), Chris Gruber (guitars), Tom Saxer (bass, harsh vocals), and Max Naescher (drums). Former members included Sabine Dünser, Franco Koller, René Marxer, Jürgen Broger, Sandra Schleret, and Simone Christinat.

Elis began their musical career under the name Erben der Schöpfung in 2000. In 2001, they released their first single Elis as well as their debut album Twilight. The band has appeared live at the Wave Gotik Festival in Leipzig, among others, has held on to favorable positioning on the DAC-Charts, and has remained well represented in the scene's press. Germany's Orkus Magazine, for example, featured Erben der Schöpfung as their top newcomer act of the month. This choice was later more than confirmed by the publications readership, who extended the honor by choosing the band as their Newcomer of 2001.

Following their split with Oliver Falk, the band re-emerged in 2003 under the new alias Elis. Produced at Mastersound Studio by Alexander Krull (Atrocity, Leaves' Eyes), "God's Silence, Devil's Temptation" was simultaneously released on Napalm Records with the re-release of Erben der Schöpfung's 2001 debut Twilight.

Soon after the release of their debut album, Elis focused their energy on writing new material for their second offering. Between their song writing and recording duties, they found time to tour in a headlining capacity with label mates Eisheilig and The Vision Bleak. The tour took them to Germany, Switzerland, and Belgium.

In March 2004 they returned to the studio, under the guidance of band manager and producer Alexander Krull once more, to record the twelve new tracks featured on their second album. Released in October 2004, Dark Clouds in a Perfect Sky, showed a maturation of the band's sound. A video clip for the album's opener, Der letzte Tag, was included with the release as well.

The Dark Clouds tour took place in April 2005. Elis played in Germany, Austria, and Belgium, and were supported by Visions of Atlantis and Lyriel. The band offered a preview of the new material during festival performances at the Wave-Gotik-Treffen and M'era Luna Festival. Further opportunities for the fans to experience the new album live were planned for October, as the band embarked on a European Tour with Atrocity, Leaves' Eyes, and Battlelore. This tour ended with a performance at the Metal Female Voices Fest 3. This concert wasn't just the last of this little tour, it also was the last concert with guitarist Jürgen Broger, who left the band amicably soon after.

The third release from Elis, a concept album titled Griefshire was planned for release in late 2006 or early 2007. The band wanted to complete a tour with Leaves' Eyes and Atrocity, but unfortunately on July 8, 2006 Sabine died of a cerebral hemorrhage. An announcement on the band's official website has stated that the album would be released in Sabine's memory. A further announcement in September stated that the band would continue with a new singer.

Griefshire was released in Europe on November 24, 2006 on Napalm Records. The North American release date was January 16, 2007. On December 28, 2006 it was finally announced that the new female singer is the Austrian metal singer Sandra Schleret, former vocalist of Dreams of Sanity and Siegfried, and guest singer on some Samael's albums.

After that, they started a tour that took them for the first time to Mexico (as guest stars for the Festival Oscuro event in August of 2007).

In order to show how Sandra's voice would appear on the next studio album, the band released the Maxi-CD Show Me The Way on November 2, 2007 in Europe and on November 6, 2007 in the United States, that features Sandra Schleret on the two new versions of the song Show Me The Way as well as three non-album tracks from Griefshire recording sessions, still with Sabine Dünser's voice.

Latest album Catharsis was released on November 27, 2009 by Napalm Records.

Sandra Schleret left the band in summer 2011.

Her replacement was Simone Chrisinat.

In late February 2012, Simone Christinat announced to the rest of the band that she would would be departing from the band, due to increased stress. A few days later, the band opted to call it quits.

Official site: www.elis.li

Black Angel
Elis Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

I was walking through the night
Suddenly I remarked a sound in the winds
An angel like voice singing a tale

Through the cold and stormy night
Flies an angel
The black angel
White skin, red lips and long black hair,

Her wing is broken
The guardian angel

Listening breathless to her voice
Which has touched me right there in my heart
I felt the tears run down my face

Through the cold and stormy night
Flies an angel
The black angel
White skin, red lips and long black hair,
Her wing is broken
The guardian angel

The storm drags on her clothes
Like an invisible warrior
Her wing broke with a sound
So disgusting that it froze my heart

Her voice became weaker
Losing this fight of blackness

Overall Meaning

The song "Black Angel" by Elis describes a poignant moment of encounter with an angel whose duty to protect and watch over human beings has left her in a state of distress. The lyrics suggest that the singer was walking through a dark and stormy night when he or she heard a voice singing in the wind. As the voice grows louder, the singer realizes that it is an angel with a broken wing. The angel, described as having white skin, red lips and long black hair, is struggling to fly in the storm.

The lyrics speak of the singer's reaction to the angel's plight. Despite the challenging circumstances, the angel continues to sing a tale that moves the singer deeply. The lyrics suggest that the angel's voice touched the singer's heart so deeply that the tears ran down his or her face. The last verse describes how the storm is taking its toll on the angel, with her clothes being torn and her voice growing weaker. The message that the song conveys is one of empathy and compassion for those who bear the burden of protecting others.

Line by Line Meaning

I was walking through the night
The singer was walking at night

Suddenly I remarked a sound in the winds
The singer heard a sound in the wind

An angel like voice singing a tale
The singer heard a voice that sounded like an angel singing a story

Through the cold and stormy night
The night was cold and stormy

Flies an angel
An angel is flying through the air

The black angel
This angel is black

White skin, red lips and long black hair,
The angel has white skin, red lips, and long black hair

Her wing is broken
The angel's wing is broken

The guardian angel
This angel is a guardian

Listening breathless to her voice
The artist was listening to the angel's voice with great intensity

Which has touched me right there in my heart
The angel's voice had a profound emotional impact on the singer