My Life's Despair could be described as an Atmospheric Gothic/Doom/Death/Black Metal project with elements of Folk. The listener should really put their own label on style. Larshus is the sole musician in this project with enlisted help as needed. Female vocals are currently employed by RavenHair as needed.
My Life's Despair was envisioned in 1994. Larshus was playing drums in a band called Mourning, a melodic death/doom metal band, in San Diego CA. Death Metal was not very popular and received hardly any support from the city. Mourning was also unique in the sense that the band was not an A-Typical American Death Metal band. Mourning offered dynamics and range in speeds and emtions unlike the typical bands from that genre that had one speed, one emotion, and no dynamics. Larshus was influenced heavily by the style of the guitarist from Mourning, Orion Slevin. Orion played a more European style of metal guitar with majorclassical influences. Orion's lead's and lead rythyms were simply put, beautiful. Larshus has always paid tribute to the ex-Mourner by mimicking his guitar play .
At the end of 94', with lack of support in the sunshined filled city and rising costs in housing, Mourning became just a memory. It was at this time that Larshus began studying other instruments and recording as a solo project. He was quoted as saying after the break-up of the band he loved. "I knew then that I would never have this type of band again unless I do it all myself."
In the 90's My Life's Despair created a a great deal of "pieces", as the songs were called since Larshus considered them pieces of his life, with just a 4-track recorder. As you can expect, the quality of these pieces are sub-standard. During the turn of the millenium the recording process had switched to HDR and created in whatever free time was available. All the while Larshus kept playing drums for other bands. After the break-up of Down In The Lab in 2004, Larshus has decided to withdraw from the drama of life in a working band and concentrate his efforts on his long life project.
Here is a list of the bands Larshus had played in:
Mourning 94', melodic death/doom metal
Autumns End 95', black metal
Tri-Lambda 96', power-pop
The Secular 96'-00', gothic rock/metal
Down In The Lab 01'-04', gothic elctro-rock
