ANUBIS
Australian Progressive Rock sextet Anubis was formed in Sydney in March 2004 by vocalist/bassist Robert James Moulding and keyboard player/guitarist David Eaton, and were subsequently joined by Douglas Skene (guitars, also of Hemina), Dean Bennison (guitars), Steven Eaton (drums) and Nick Antoinette (bass).
This line-up released the albums 230503 (2009) and A Tower of Silence (2011) through Australian independent label Bird's Robe Records. With their richly layered keyboards and guitars, conceptual lyrics and vocal harmonies, Anubis have developed a reputation for releasing cinematic and evocative concept albums, with A Tower of Silence in particular becoming a minor breakthrough album in Europe, where it's still critically acclaimed.
Nick Antoinette parted ways with the group in early 2013 as the band were writing the Hitchhiking to Byzantium album which was subsequently recorded as a quintet with Robert Moulding handling all the bass parts. By the time of it's release in 2014, Anthony Stewart had joined the band on bass and they toured Australia and Europe in 2014/2015, with the live album Behind our Eyes taken from these shows. By the end of the Hitchhiking to Byzantium tour, Anubis had shared bills with both UK progressive heavyweights Anathema and 70's legends Uriah Heep.
2017's The Second Hand came about in the wake of that tour, with much of the album culled from jam sessions and group arranging sessions. It was recorded in the band's own studio and, like Tower before it, used many vintage instruments and amps, right down to one of only three working Mellotrons in Australia. Having been favourably received by the fan base and critics alike, the band toured Europe again in 2018 visiting the Netherlands, France, the United Kingdom and Germany, playing at the prestigious Night of the Prog festival at Loreley in July alongside Steve Hogarth of Marillion, Arena, Camel, Big Big Train, The Sea Within and Riverside.
The band also released the acoustic studio album Different Stories in May 2018 which featured reimaginings of pieces taken from the four full studio albums as well as an unreleased song from the 230503 sessions. Lights of Change - a double live album recorded on the European tour in 2018 features almost the whole set from Loreley and a complete concert recording of A Tower of Silence from the Netherlands.
In December 2019, the band announced their latest studio album Homeless that is to be released in March 2020 on LP, CD, download and steaming services.