Shagrath | |
|---|---|
 Shagrath with Dimmu Borgir at Wacken Open Air 2018 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Stian Tomt Thoresen |
| Born | 18 November 1976 Jessheim, Akershus, Norway |
| Genres | Symphonic black metal |
| Occupation(s) | Musician |
| Instrument(s) | Vocals, guitar, bass, drums, keyboards |
| Years active | 1992–present |
| Website | dimmu-borgir |
Stian Tomt Thoresen (born 18 November 1976),[1][2][3] known professionally as Shagrath, is a Norwegian musician who is the vocalist, founding member and multi-instrumentalist of the band Dimmu Borgir.
Stian Thoresen was born on 18 November 1976 in Jessheim. He is a founding member, with Silenoz and Tjodalv, of Dimmu Borgir. When the band formed in 1993, Shagrath played drums, but switched to vocals before the release of the album Stormblåst in 1996. He has also played keyboards, guitar, and bass guitar. Shagrath played guitar in Fimbulwinter until the band split up in 1992. Fimbulwinter released one album, Servants of Sorcery, through Hot Records (Shagrath's record label) in 1994. Shagrath is the rhythm guitarist/songwriter and founding member of the hard rock band Chrome Division, which formed in 2004.
In late 2009, Shagrath and King ov Hell formed the black metal supergroup Ov Hell. In February 2010 the band released an album entitled The Underworld Regime. Shagrath has also played guest keyboards in the black metal band Ragnarok, and had a solo project named Starkness.
Shagrath has said this about his stage name: "Shagrath is an orc demon from the book Lord of the Rings. I chose the name thirteen years ago, so it's kinda crappy that Lord of the Rings has become so big now. Fortunately it [the name] didn't get that much attention in the movie, so it turned out all OK."[4] The Tolkien character Shagrat, an orc commander over Cirith Ungol, is however not a demon in Tolkien lore.
