Beyond the Black

Beyond the Black is a German symphonic metal/power metal band formed in 2014 in Mannheim. The current members are, as of 2023: Jennifer Haben, Kai Tschierschky, Tobi Lodes and Chris Hermsdörfer.

History
The band was formed in 2014 in Mannheim by Jennifer Haben (ex-Saphir) who after finishing the production of the first album engaged Nils Lesser (lead guitar), Christopher Hummels (rhythm guitar/backing vocals), Michael Hauser (keyboards), Erwin Schmidt (bass) and Tobias Derer (drums) as live musicians. They made their first appereances at the Wacken Open Air 2014 and on tour supporting Saxon and Hell.

On 13 February 2015 they released their first album, Songs of Love and Death, which became popular both in Austria and Germany, reaching the 12th place in German music charts and the 21st place in the Austrian charts.

From 13 May 2015, the band embarked on their first tour through Germany, followed by an appearance at the Wave-Gotik-Treffen on May 23, 2015.

It was announced via their facebook page on the 21st of December 2015 that their second album titled Lost in Forever would be released on the 12th of February 2016, feturing 13 new tracks, and the deluxe edition will feature 9 live songs (including an unreleased cover), an interview and interactive menu.

On July 15th, 2016 the band announced that Jennifer Haben and the rest of the band were parting ways. The band would continue with Jennifer Haben and new members which were announced in November 2016: Kai Tschierschky (drums), Tobi Lodes (rhythm guitar), Chris Hermsdörfer (lead guitar), Stefan Herkenhoff (bass) and Jonas Roßner (keyboards).

On January 13, 2017, the band's second album Lost In Forever was released as a Tour Edition with additional song material. Beyond the Black started touring internationally then with shows in the UK, Czech Republic, Poland, Russia and Japan. In 2017 the band also toured as a support act for Aerosmith and Scorpions.

In spring 2018, keyboardist Jonas Roßner left the band for private reasons. On August 31, 2018, their third album Heart of the Hurricane was released, followed by an extensive European tour as support for the Dutch symphonic metal band Within Temptation till the end of the year. In 2019, the band released a Black Edition of their album Heart of the Hurricane, which featured also three new songs, and went on a European headline tour, which has mainly sold out.

On June 19, 2020, Beyond the Black released their fourth album Hørizøns, reaching the bands highest chart positions to date. In the course of the release, the band announced a European co-headline tour together with the Swedish/Danish metal band Amaranthe.

Band members
Current members

Jennifer Haben - lead vocals, piano, acoustic guitar (2014-present)

Chris Hermsdörfer - lead guitar, backing vocals (2016-present)

Tobias Lodes - rhythm guitar, backing vocals (2016-present)

Kai Tschierschky - drums (2016-present)

Former members

Nils Lesser - lead guitar (2014-2016)

Christopher Hummels - rhytm guitar, backing vocals (2014-2016)

Tobias Derer - drums (2014-2016)

Erwin Schmidt - bass (2014-2016)

Michael Hauser - keyboards (2014-2016)

Jonas Roßner - keyboards, backing vocals (2016-2018)

Stefan Herkenhoff - bass, backing vocals (2016-2021)

Discography
Studio albums

Songs of Love and Death (2015)

Lost in Forever (2016)

Heart of the Hurricane (2018)

Hørizøns (2020)

Beyond the Black (2023)

Singles & EP's

In the Shadows (2015)

Lost in Forever (2016)

Night Will Fade (2017)

Forget My Name (2017 Version) (2017)

Heart of the Hurricane (2018)

Million Lightyears (2018)

Misery (2020)

Golden Pariahs (2020)

Wounded Healer (2020)

Human (2020)

W: O: A Acoustic Clash - The Lockdown Session (2020)

Wasted Years (2021)

Reincarnation (2022)

Is There Anybody Out There? (2022)

Winter Is Coming (2022)

Dancing in the Dark (2022)

Call My Name (2023)

Official website: https://beyond-the-black.com/
English Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beyond_the_Black