Nile is a death metal band from South Carolina, USA. Their music and lyrics are inspired by Ancient Egyptian mysticism, history, religion and art.

Statistics

• Genre: Death metal
• Country: United States
• Status: Active
• Time: 1993-

Biography

Nile's music is mostly written by founding member and guitarist Karl Sanders. It combines traditional death metal with elements of Middle Eastern music, incorporating traditional Egyptian instruments into some of the songs. Nile's music is also characterized by its extreme complexity and speed, for which the band has received acknowledgement from many music fans and journalists.

The lyrical content is based on Karl Sanders' interest in Egyptology. Lengthy sleeve notes are included with both the Black Seeds of Vengeance and In Their Darkened Shrines albums, explaining the inspiration or source for the lyrics of each song. Also, some of the songs are based on the fictional work of H. P. Lovecraft, an author who has inspired many bands from various genres.

Karl Sanders has also released one solo album called Saurian Meditation featuring current and former members of Nile and David Vincent of Morbid Angel/Genitortures fame. The music combines elements of oriental, middle eastern, trance, and dark ambient themes using many egyptian and other non-traditional instruments.

Many people mistake members of Nile as being Egyptian or having ancestors of that nationality. None of them are Egyptian in any way or form, nor do any of them hold degrees in Egyptology (despite them studying the texts as a hobby). They are all American-born of caucasian descent with the exception of drummer George Kollias, who is Greek.

Discography

Studio Releases

• Festivals Of Atonement [EP] - (1995)
• Amongst The Catacombs Of Nephren-Ka - (1998)
• Black Seeds Of Vengeance - (2000)
• In Their Darkened Shrines - (2002)
• Annihilation of the Wicked - (2005)

Live And Other Releases

• Nile [Demo] - (1994)
• Ramses Bringer Of War [Demo] - (1997)
• In The Beginning... [Compilation featuring 'Festivals Of Atonement' EP & 'Ramses Bringer of War' Demo] - (2000)

Band Members

Current Members

• Karl Sanders - Guitar, Vocals - (1993-)
• Dallas Toler-Wade - Guitar, Vocals - (1996-)
• George Kollias - Drums - (2004-)
• Joe Payne - Live Bass - (2005-)

Former Members

• Jon Vesano - Bass, Vocals - (2001-2005)
• Chief Spires - Bass, Vocals - (1993-2001)
• Pete Hammoura - Drums, Vocals - (1993-2000)
• Tony Laureano - Drums - (2000-2004)
• Derek Roddy - Drums - (2000)
• John Ehlers - Guitars - (1996-1997)

External links

• Nile Official Homepage
• Nile Lyrics
• Official Nile Chat Site
• Relapse Records - Nile's Record Label