Norther was formed by Toni Hallio and Petri Lindroos back in 1996. At that time the band was called Requiem. Not much happened, except for heavy training with help from Mika Järvi, a teacher in music.
When the school was out for good Hallio and Lindroos started to rehearse together with a bass player called Tuomas and a second guitarist called Roni. They practiced in Olari, Espoo, until 1997 when Tuomas decided to leave the band. The band was broke - yet only for a while.

A little bit later Hallio and Lindroos started to practice again. They played wherever possible: at home, at Hallio's grandmother's attic, in a cellar, in a youth center etc. During this period they met a fellow band called Gramary.

Finally in late 1997 Lindroos got a phone call from Alexander Kuoppala (Children of Bodom), who was a friend of Roni's. He told about a rehearsing place at the legendary Lepakko. The band was thrilled and took the place. The trio played for some years, at the same time searching for new members to complete the line-up; without success. At this point the band was informed that Lepakko was to be demolished. Roni also decided to leave the band. After the instant shock, the band managed to book a new rehearsing place from Nosturi and put umpteen of announcements all over the Internet and in a dozen music stores. Many kind applicants came, but none of them were suitable for the band.

In early 2000 Kristian Ranta came to test Hallio's and Lindroos' nerves; he was qualified. Them three started to practice like hell and things started to flow. Kristian invited a couple of his friends, Sebastian and Joakim Ekroos, to the band. The quintet was successful enough to offspring a demonstration CD, a new moniker (Norther) and a deal with Spinefarm Records. At the same time they played their first concert in Ruskeasuo, Helsinki. Nevertheless, because of the lack of playing capabilities both Sebastian and Joakim Ekroos had to leave. In replacement came Jukka Koskinen and Tuomas Planman. The line-up was now harder than ever and the band was finally ready to record their debut album in Sundi Coop Studio, Savonlinna.

OFFICIAL BIOGRAPHY (2002)