In the beginning there was the void, a vast expanse of nothingness... until the elements of fire and ice combined to spark the first glimpse of creation... the huge chasm known as Ginnungagap where it all began... the first beings to emerge from the explosive meeting of the cold of Niflheim and the fire of Muspelheim ... the Frost Giants. The first was Ymir, gargantuan and mighty. He was slain by Odin and his brothers, who fashioned the nine worlds including Midgard from his dead flesh. The Frost Giants are regarded to be evil, treacherous, and cruel... harbingers of ill fate and bad luck, whose deadly breath freezes the life from those foolish enough to wander into their midst...

But in reality, it makes for a great band name, and great band names are getting fewer and fewer to come by.

In 2005, inspired by Norse mythology, folk metal and punk music, with American hardcore attitude, the form began to take shape in my own musical void. I was retired, for the most part, from scene life, past 30 and pushed out, left aside like trash on a curb. It was a younger man's game now, and I felt put out to pasture. The music wouldn't stop playing, though, and that's when I began to write. I thought, where is this music I am hearing in my head? I couldn't find it. I couldn't even play it myself. It took me years to learn and figure it out.

By the time I had the demos for The First Veil of Snow done, I was ready to record an album and I had a label ready to put it out. I gave up my singing gig in Machina Infernus to concentrate full time on Frost Giant, and sadly, that arrangement fell through, as did our common scheduling time. The recording sessions stalled. We were able to record the drums a few months later but lost them during a computer crash incident. And then, disaster. In May of 2011, I suffered a severely pinched nerve that left my picking hand in severe disarray. It took me a couple months to recover from before I was even able to pick up a guitar. Once I did, though, the writing began to flow. I had obtained the capability to record in my own home without having to depend on anyone else and so, the songs were coming out as fast as I could record them.

While Frost Giant is still awaiting the chance to record The First Veil Of Snow with a full band, I've decided not to sit idly by and let the new material I've been recording do nothing. I've partnered with Blasphemour Records to digitally release a 5-song EP titled "When Myth And History Merged Into Mystery". It contains two newer Giant songs, two demos from the First Veil sessions, and a cover song. Depending on how well it goes, a 7" vinyl release featuring two of those songs may be in the works.

For more on Blasphemour Records, www.blasphemour.com or www.blasrecs.com