2010-2025

ABOUT

Grey Aura are a conceptual black metal band from Utrecht, the Netherlands. The band’s members are Ruben Wijlacker, Tjebbe Broek, Sylwin Cornielje, and Seth van de Loo. Our aim is to create immersive art. We incorporate various art forms (literature, fine art and audio theatre) to achieve this goal.

2014: WAERACHTIGHE BESCHRYVINGHE...

Our debut album, ‘Waerachtighe beschryvinghe van drie seylagien, ter werelt noyt soo vreemt ghehoort’, was released by Blood Music on 2xCD in 2016 (first self-released in 2014). It is a nearly one-and-a-half-hour long album that deals with Willem Barentsz’ third and final voyage to find a north-eastern passage to Asia in 1596. Although the album is firmly rooted in mid-nineties black metal, it is an exercise in subtle experimentation. It contains elements of audio theatre and neoclassical composition. The album was created with a strong sense of historical accuracy, and its foreword was written by German polar reseracher Nikolas Sellheim. ‘Waerachtighe...’ was added to the permanent collection of the Dutch national library in The Hague in 2016.

2021: ZWART VIERKANT

Our sophomore album ‘Zwart vierkant’ was the result of six and a half years of sonic experimentation. We wrote and released two demos in order to fully develop our new sound. ‘Zwart vierkant’ takes an experimental approach to black metal, trading the music’s signature coldness for a delirious southern heat. The album contains elements of flamenco music, spoken word and jazz. Furthermore, ‘Zwart vierkant’ contains sound fragments of the Toledo cathedral, which were recorded by band members in 2018.

Zwart vierkant is conceptually based on Ruben Wijlacker’s debut novel ‘De protodood in zwarte haren’ (2019). The novel deals with fictional 20th-century artist Pieter ‘Pedro’ van der Laan, and his extreme obsessions with abstract art and Modernism.

2025: SLOTSTUK

This year sees the release of our third full-length album, ‘Zwart vierkant: Slotstuk’. It continues our journey into the intersection of abstract art and psychological disintegration.

Building on themes from ‘Zwart vierkant’, the new work delves into the second half of ‘De protodood in zwarte haren.’ Musically, the album explores abrasive textures, technical, caustic and dissonant riffs, as well as folk music, jazz and flamenco.

‘Zwart vierkant: Slotstuk’ will be released by Avantgarde Music on 28 March 2025.

IMAGE ARCHIVE

‘Grey Aura’s weirdness is oddly alluring, an unsettling case of art house delirium that one could perhaps ascribe to the effects of heat stroke or staring at the sun for too long.’
-WYATT MASHALL, STEREOGUM

‘Grey Aura continues to be a jewel in the crown of the Dutch underground.’
-BECKY LAVERTY, ROADBURN FESTIVAL

‘Netherlands’ Grey Aura has always had the reputational dichotomy of being one of the most genuinely interesting bands to pop up in the last couple of years whilst also being one of the best kept open secrets in avant-garde black metal.’
-SPUTNIKMUSIC

‘To say that Dutch musical explorers Grey Aura push the boundaries of black metal would be a tremendously unhelpful understatement.‘
-ANDREW GRAHAM , METAL TEMPLE

LIVE PERFORMANCES

16.09.2016. MEZZ (BREDA, NL)
17.09.2016. LITTLE DEVIL (TILBURG, NL)
11.10.2016. DB’S (UTRECHT, NL)
03.12.2016. INTO DARKNESS FESTIVAL (LEEUWARDEN, NL)
26.08.2018. BAARMOEDER (ODIJK, NL)
09.05.2018. DB’S (UTRECHT, NL)
15.06.2018. LITTLE DEVIL (TILBURG, NL)
14.04.2019. ROADBURN FESTIVAL (TILBURG, NL)
06.07.2019. MUSIC CITY (ANTWERP, BE)
27.10.2019. EKKO (UTRECHT, NL)
18.01.2020. NEXUS (BRAUNSCHWEIG, DE)
19.06.2021. RONDA, TIVOLI VREDENBURG (UTRECHT, NL)
03.09.2021. dB’s (UTRECHT, NL)
25.03.2022. EKKO (UTRECHT, NL)
24.04.2022. ROADBURN FESTIVAL (TILBURG, NL)
29.08.2022. WAALHALLA (NIJMEGEN, NL)
28.10.2022. VERA (GRONINGEN, NL)
29.10.2022. ALTE MEIEREI (KIEL, DE)
04.11.2022. ANTWERP MUSIC CITY (ANTWERP, BE)
27.01.2024. ASTRANT (EDE, NL)
15.08.2024. DB’S (UTRECHT, NL)
19.04.2025. ROADBURN FESTIVAL (TILBURG, NL)