Shining is a Swedish black metal band formed in 1996 by Niklas Kvarforth in Halmstad, Sweden. The band's music contains depressive undertones, which include personal and suicide-themed lyrics. The band's name does not refer to the book The Shining or the film based on it, but rather according to Kvarforth, it means "the path to enlightenment".
History
Kvarforth is the main composer and vocalist of the band and started the band when he was twelve. By the time Kvarforth was fourteen, Shining had released their first EP Submit to Selfdestruction on which he played guitars and bass. It was not until the band released their first album, Within Deep Dark Chambers, that Kvarforth became the band's vocalist. The band released two more albums Livets ändhållplats and Angst, Självdestruktivitetens Emissarie, before splitting up in August 2004. Their fourth album, The Eerie Cold, was supposed to be their last, but the band reformed later the same year with a new line-up capable of live shows. Kvarforth disappeared in July 2006 and a rumor was spread he was presumed to have committed suicide. On 23 August 2006 the band posted a statement on their website declaring Kvarforth had disappeared. The band was said to continue with a new singer named “Ghoul,” as one of the wishes from Kvarforth. At a concert that took place on 3 February 2007, at Diezel in Halmstad, Sweden, “Ghoul” was revealed to be Kvarforth. The concert was violent in nature, with Kvarforth occasionally fighting the audience and the guest vocalists. The band released their fifth album in 2007, Halmstad , a reference to Kvarforth's hometown. A compilation album entitled, 8½ - Feberdrömmar I Vaket Tillstånd, was released that featured re-recorded songs from 2001-2002 and different vocalists for 5/6 tracks. The band's ninth album entitled, IX - Everyone, Everything, Everywhere, Ends, was released on 21 April 2015. The band's tenth album, X - Varg Utan Flock, was released on 5 January 2018.
Music
Musically, Shining went from black metal with doom influences on their earlier work to a more progressive extreme metal sound with extensive use of clean guitars, pentatonic scales, guitar solos, different vocal styles and often tempo shifts and odd time signatures. Shining's music also contains several movie samples from films such as Prozac Nation, She's So Lovely, and American Psycho. Shining openly promotes suicide and self-harm in all its forms in their lyrics. The founder of the band, Niklas Kvarforth, has claimed, with contentment, there have been some cases of people committing suicide at least partially under the influence of Shining's music. Vocalist Niklas Kvarforth wanted to "force feed" his listeners "with self-destructive and suicidal imagery and lyrics". In the beginning he used the term "suicidal black metal" for his music to separate himself from the "mediocre worms". However, he stopped using the term in 2001 because it had begun to be used by a slew of other bands, who he felt had misinterpreted his vision and were using the music as a kind of therapy rather than a weapon against the listener as Kvarforth intended. He said that he "wouldn't call Shining a black metal band" and called the "suicidal black metal" term a "foolish idea". In a 2014 interview, Kvarforth insisted that "metal is bullshit" and insisted that Shining's music is accurately described as "evil fucking music."
Members
Current members
Niklas Kvarforth – guitars, keyboards, lead vocals, bass
