Covenant

1986 Things were a little unusual in the Simmonson household in Helsingborg. Instead of the expected strains of classical music, different sounds fell on the neighbours' ears. No, it was not the boy of the house, dutifully practicing the piano or the violin; Mozart and Bach never sounded quite like this. The sounds escaping from the cellar, which had seen the comings and goings of at least a half dozen young men(including Eskil, the aforementioned young occupant of the house, and his friends Clas and Joakim), were, well, different. And louder. Much, much louder. One might also talk about the noise, at least from the neighbours' perspective. From the point of view of those in cellar, however, it was very different. For young men whiling away the hours behind behind piles electronic equipment, "noise" meant "progressive music". And progressive music has always been noisy. A permenant singer hadn't yet been chosen, so singing duties were shared by all the members. Occationally this would be Eskil, but only when no one else could or would step up to the plate. In quieter moments, the six young musicians might have conceded that they really had no idea what they were doing. But for one, such quiet moments were rare (as the neighbours could attest), and for another, noise isn't always a bad thing (which the neighbours might well protest) and on top of it: who cares (besides the neighbours)?

That same year, the as-yet-nameless band played their first live show. At a private party the sextet supplied the entertainment-and were rewarded with frenetic applause. "The audience consisted of about a dozen friends," Joakim would later recall. "They were probably just applauding to be polite, a few of them probably actually liked us-the rest were too drunk to have any idea what was going on."
1987-1989

No respite for the neighbours' eardrums: the occupation of the Simonsson cellar continues unabated, although the identity of the occupants changes. Clas, Joakim and Eskil come to remain the constant figures, while other participants came and go. The group plays a few shows, the band name of the evening being chosen by someone shortly before hitting the stage. The name changes as quickly as the lineup. However, the name Covenant is used at several of the early gigs. One name among many. For now.

1989-1990

Suddenly, silence reigns at the Simonssons': Clas, Eskil and Joakim are due for military service. But even with their music career on hold, the boys can scarcely restrain themselves: Joakim sneaks a keyboard into his locker and plays it whenever time permits. This dosen't remain a secret to his contemporary Stefen: Joakim has sent him a home-made cassete of the efforts of the Simonsson cellar-combo...a heads-up that will prove to be important later on...

1991

The Simonssons' neighbours, in anticipation of the return of random bursts of noise, have probably procured earplugs for themselves-for naught. Now it is the residents of a certain dormitory in the Swedish university town of Lund who must contest with the racket. Newly minted students Clas and Joakim share a small apartment; Eskil, also enrolled at Lund, occupies the apartment across the hallway. The result of this extraordinary serendipitous coincidence is an impromptu studio in Clas' room and, well, more noise. At least as far as the neighbors are concerned. Once again, the occupants of the aforementioned apartment view things somewhat differently: as time goes on, the production quality is becoming ever more focused. Eskil has permanently occupied the role of singer; the days of a rotating cast of musicians are over; and the name Covenant is here to stay.

1992

Memento Materia, a young Swedish independent label, is putting together their third label compilation Autumn Leaves, but the track listing is not yet complete. Asked if he knew any good bands, Stefen, a friend of the label head, remembers the keyboard-playing roommate in the Swedish military. There was this tape...to make a long story short: Joakim, Clas and Eskil get 'the call'. Covenant are more than happy to take part in the compilation, but the deadline is fast approaching and there's no time to waste. The trio grabs their newest track and pile into the car. During the 45 minute drive from Lund to Helsingborg, where Covenant will record the song in a small studio, they pen the lyrics to The Replicant. Covenant's first publicly released track turns out to be the one with most quickly written lyrics-and also the first in a series of songs that will take their inspiration from Ridley Scott's dark masterpiece "Blade Runner", itself based on the Philip K. Dick short story "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?"

Covenant, along with two other bands appearing on the Autumn Leaves compilation, are invited to perform at a small festival in Karlskrona-the first official Covenant show. As luck would have it, cheif lyricist Joakim is unable to attend the historic event; committed to an examination that day at University, his shoes are filled by a friend named Ragnar. Today, Ragnar works as a jewelry designer in Copenhagen, but in 1992 he was designing the stage show for Covenant: instead of the obligatory suits to today, Clas, Eskil, and Ragnar were decked out as Space Samurai in full costume (complete with masks!). The lightshow is constrained to the absolute minimum: a frenetic strobe blinking through a thick cloud of fog. The groundwork for a reputation as a spectacular live band is laid.
1993

Covenant's The Replicant left an impression at Memento Materia: the band's potential was obvious in every note and in every line, and a full-length album deal was the next logical step. Naturally, Covenant agrees. By this time, Clas' bedroom is no longer an appropriate venue in which to record, so the trio return to Helsingborg and set up "Studio Covenant" at a small studio complex near the city center. For five months Joakim, Clas and Eskil barricade themselves behind a vertible mountain of equipment, feverishly fine-tuning sounds and vocals: University can wait. A common thread runs through the Cryotank-sessions: Eskil and Joakim have both recently read a collection of short stories entitled "The strange beast of the North" by renowned Swedish author and professor of philosophy Lars Gustafsson. These stories leave a deep impression on both young men and come to serve as a guiding light of sorts for the album.

1994

The first full-length Covenant album "Dreams of a Cryotank" sees release on Memento Materia and is hailed as a success throughout the electronic music scene. In particular, the song "Theremin" becomes an instant dance club classic. Meanwhile, the band is getting used to ever more regular live appearences...

1995

Covenant release the EP "Figurehead" on Memento Materia. A figurehead, as you may know, is the noble sculpture on the bow of a sailing ship, supposedly a worthy representation of the name of the vessel. Nomen est omen: Figurehead proves a perfect representation of the Good Ship Covenant-the first few signature notes guarantee a full dance floor every time. Even today, Figurehead is a standard weapon in every club DJs arsenal.

1996

The 1996 Olympic Games are held in Atlanta. Were there a category for "Electronic Music", Covenant would without a doubt be in the running for a medal-months of preparation in their Helsingborg training facility has the team in top form, as evidenced by their newest masterpiece: "Sequencer"

1997

By this point, Eskil, Joakim, and Clas have thousands of fans in the "Old World". Now, the trio from Helsingborg set their sights on conquering the "New World"- conquering in a positive sense, of course. The groundwork was laid the previous year with the licensing deal through 21st Circuitry. Now, a multi-part master plan goes into effect:

Part I: The "Theremin EP" is released in the USA. In fact, it is released only in the USA, and collectors have been tracking down this one ever since. Ever since the time of this release-in fact even earlier, as the track Theremin had already seen release on Dreams of a Cryotank-fans around the world have wondered who or what a Theremin is, as no definition can be found in many common dictionaries.
Part II: Covenant play shows in Germany, Belgium, Denmark, Norway and the UK. At long last Canada and the USA also find their ways on the literary. On the first North American tour Joakim and Eskil must make their way as a duo-although if Clas cannot be present in person, he is always there in spirit.
Upon Joakim and Eskil's return to Europe, the label has news: the first pressing of Sequencer has sold out. Off Beat reissue the album as Sequencer: Beta, featuring the extra track Luminal, and with a dark violet cover in place of the original orange. True devotees must of course have both in their collections...
Reunited once again, the full trio performs for the first time at the famous German Zillo festival to a jubilant crowd.
1998

In Greek legend, the beautiful herdwoman Europa is seduced by Zeus in the form of a handsome bull. 1998 marks the year that our electro trio seduces the world with their album Europa .

Here is a release that is unmistakably Covenant, full of hard beats, extravagant electronics, hypnotic vocals and catchy hooks. The album includes the single Final Man , which has already been packing dance floors for some months.
The upcoming Europa Tour is Covenant's first tour as headliner. The first leg takes Joakim, Clas, and Eskil all over the continent bearing the same name as their latest release. Traveling with the band as opening act are a couple of artists by the names Ronan Harris and Mark Jackson who call themselves VNV Nation -a band whose profile will increase by orders of magnitude as a result of this tour.
On the second leg of the tour, Covenant proves that the USA belongs in some sense to Europa as well, and Clas is even able to join the band for the final two US dates.
1999

"All Star" sports teams, made up of only the top players in a given division, are beloved by the public, and with a good reason. So if it works for sports, why not for music as well? 1999 sees the formation of the Electronic Dream Team when Off Beat's Stefen Herwig forms the label Dependent Records together with Covenant, VNV Nation, Suicide Commando and Velvet Acid Christ. The union of many with a single vision leads to a heretofore unprecedented synergy-the sky, at the very least, is the limit.

2000

A new millenium, a new year, and a new Covenant album: United States of Mind . The theme of the band's 4th album release can perhaps be best summed up by Eskil's lyrics to the song One World, One Sky : One World/One Sky/We Live/We Die.

2001

Back in Sweden, a number of changes are afoot. First off, the studio must move. The old place has become far too small for the enormous collection of equipment the band has assembled over the course of time. As luck would have it, the address stays the same: the new studio space is next door to the old one, but remains in the same complex.
Other moves are taking place as well: singer Eskil, rents an apartment in Berlin, having been quite taken in by the German capital. This has no discernable effect on the recording process, however, as preparations for the band's fifth full-length simply continue in parallel in Berlin and Helsingborg.