1994 - 1997
A predecessor of the band was formed by Marco Heubaum (guitars, keyboards), drawing inspiration from Bands like Tiamat and Paradise Lost. This band was already named Xandria, but due to musical dissension between the members, they parted ways in 1997.
1999 - 2009
In 1999 Marco Heubaum started Xandria again with new musicians. A demo was recorded in 2000, and they presented the five songs on the internet. After great success on different MP3 portals, they released their first album Kill the Sun in 2003, which reached #98 on the German music charts. The sophomore Ravenheart (2004), stayed on the charts for 7 weeks, reaching #36. In 2005 they released their third album India, which is more oriented to the symphonic metal. Their fourth album Salomé - The Seventh Veil, released in 2007, was a step away from the bombastic sound of the two predecessors and at least in Germany not such a big success as "Ravenheart" or "India".
2009
As of April 30th, 2008 the band announced that vocalist Lisa Middelhauve left the band due to personal reasons and that the band is searching for a new singer. On February 8th, 2009 an announcement on their website introduced the new singer, 28-year old Kerstin Bischof, but on February 18th 2010 the band announced that Kerstin will no longer be the bands vocalist because she decided to pursue her career outside the music business.
2010
In December 2010 it was announced on Xandrias web site that Manuela Kraller will be the new singer for the band.
The new album "Neverworld´s End" was released on February 24th 2012 (Europe) / March 6th 2012 (USA).
2013 - present
On the 25th of October 2013 the band announced Manuela's departure, who regrettably decided to continue a different musical path. Dutch singer Dianne van Giersbergen (also known from Ex Libris) was announced to become the new lead singer. In January 2014 the band announced the title for their upcoming album with Dianne called 'Sacrificium', which is set to be released on May the 2nd, 2014.
On 24 May 2022, the band posted a music video of their new song "Reborn", where []Ambre Vourvahis[] was announced as the new vocalist. Furthermore, Tim Schwarz was announced as the new bassist, and drummer Dimitros Gatsios and guitarist Rob Klawonn replacing departing longtime members Gerit Lamm and Philip Restemeier, respectively. On 7 September 2022, the band released another song, "You Will Never Be Our God"
Current members
Marco Heubaum – rhythm guitar (1994–present), keyboards (1997–present), vocals (1994–2001)
Ambre Vourvahis – vocals (2022–present)
Rob Klawonn – lead guitar (2022–present)
Tim Schwarz – bass (2022–present)
Dimitros Gatsios – drums (2022–present)
Euphoria
Xandria Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Serpent venom in me
O Euphoria, our goddess you are
Take the burden away to live in this hell
Say goodbye to the dreams, destroyed fantasies
Bitter nightfall at hand, will cover the land
Cross your mind - blinding
Anaesthesize - senses
Steal them all away
Caress you - grievous
Infest you - with lust
Ending soon - chaos
Servant life is waiting
Consume the drugs we sell to you
Keep you begging for more
And soon you will forget
The world you were longing for
Childish dreams - sinful
I have seen - passion
Fearlessly - chainless
All this hope is forever lost
O Euphoria, our goddess you are
Take the burden away to live in this hell
Say goodbye to the dreams, destroyed fantasies
Bitter nightfall at hand, will cover the land
Neverworld's End
We sell you a false dream for your own
So we can control your fantasies
There's no hideaway this world is ours
Give in to our plastic paradise
Endlessly travelling the plains of my dream
Slowly it's fading in my memory
O Euphoria, our goddess you are
Take the burden away to live in this hell
Say goodbye to the dreams, destroyed fantasies
Bitter nightfall at hand, will cover the land
O Euphoria, sweet lies that you are
Let the child fade away, just memories stay
O Chimaria, predacious heart
Take our souls with you, Forever repent
Neverworld's End
The lyrics of Xandria's song Euphoria are quite metaphorical, and they seem to describe a person being manipulated by external forces, represented by the serpent angel and the venom that it injects. The chorus, addressed to Euphoria, seems to plead for relief from the harsh reality of life, characterized as a "hell," and from the "burden" that it represents. The verses describe the gradual process of seduction and dependency that the person is subjected to, as they are first blinded and silenced by the forces that control them, then infused with desire and eventually made into "servant[s]" of the illusion they have been sold.
The lyrics touch on themes such as addiction, conformity, and the loss of innocence. The image of the "plastic paradise" also seems to comment on the shallow and artificial nature of modern consumer culture. The references to "Neverworld's End" and "Chimaria" add a touch of fantasy and mystery to the song, hinting at the possibility of an alternate reality beyond the one that is being presented.
Overall, Euphoria can be seen as a cautionary tale about the dangers of putting one's trust in external sources of pleasure and validation, and about the importance of staying true to one's own dreams and values.
Line by Line Meaning
Serpent angel rape me
The singer is asking the serpent angel to overpower them sexually.
Serpent venom in me
The singer wants to be under the influence of the serpent venom.
O Euphoria, our goddess you are
Take the burden away to live in this hell
Say goodbye to the dreams, destroyed fantasies
Bitter nightfall at hand, will cover the land
The singer is praising Euphoria and hoping that she will free them from their miserable life. They feel like their dreams and fantasies have been crushed, and darkness will soon overshadow everything.
Forces come - silent
Cross your mind - blinding
Anaesthesize - senses
Steal them all away
The artist is describing how the forces are coming without making any noise and how they are blinding their mind. They feel like their senses are being anaesthetized and taken away from them.
Caress you - grievous
Infest you - with lust
Ending soon - chaos
Servant life is waiting
The artist is talking about how the caress from these forces is painful, and they are infested with lust. They believe that the end is near and that they are doomed to lead a life of servitude and chaos.
Consume the drugs we sell to you
Keep you begging for more
And soon you will forget
The world you were longing for
The singer is describing how the ones in control are making them consume drugs, which will make them forget about their true desires and keep them wanting more.
Childish dreams - sinful
I have seen - passion
Fearlessly - chainless
All this hope is forever lost
The singer says that their dreams were considered sinful, and they have experienced passion. They feel like there is no hope left and that they have lost everything they were fearless about.
Neverworld's End
This phrase seems to be an outro line, possibly referring to the artist accepting their fate and acknowledging that their world has ended.
We sell you a false dream for your own
So we can control your fantasies
There's no hideaway this world is ours
Give in to our plastic paradise
The artist is talking about how they are being sold a false dream by the ones in power, which is used to control their fantasies. They feel like there is no way to escape this world and that they are forced to accept this artificial paradise.
Endlessly travelling the plains of my dream
Slowly it's fading in my memory
The artist is travelling in their dreams, but slowly, the memory of those dreams is fading away.
O Euphoria, sweet lies that you are
Let the child fade away, just memories stay
O Chimaria, predacious heart
Take our souls with you, Forever repent
Neverworld's End
The singer is saying that Euphoria is nothing but sweet lies, and they want to forget the child like part of themselves and have only memories. They also mention Chimaria, who they consider a creature with a predacious heart. The singer wants their soul to be taken away by Chimaria, and they say that they will never reach the end of this world.
Contributed by Lily A. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@nachowithin
2019 and still loving it!
I think Manuela was the best voice for Xandria
@martinf6666
Yes, I think so too
@adegiare
I rarely go back to old albums but this particular one blew my mind back in the day. Love every track
@lizzyq7807
I agree. Not only is manuela's voice amazing, but this album is Symphonic. Wonderful album just wonderful! It's a damn shame Manuela only did one album with them.
@magnuswettermark8293
Agree totaly. This lady is totaly awesome. My favorite of their singers! 👍🤘
@rocker4life318
This album is a Masterpiece! Manuela the best Xandria Singer ever
@mordovian267
This is Xandria best album!
@carmillakraller
Estoy de acuerdo.
@xmaryHXCx
God this song is incredible.
@micahmaughan1101
+L. Rainfell agreed. love it. i'd never heard of this band til spotify...not a fan of the content, but the sound is incredible!