ATER is an enigmatic band that was born in Santiago, Chile in 2010, out of the mind of Fernando Bühring @fernando.ater. Originally named ¨Aeons Collide¨ to later be re-named ¨ATER¨ in 2013. The original lineup featured drummer Matias Acuña, currently of Follakzoid and guitarist Yeray Santos.
ATER went on to become an international band lead by funding member, Chilean multi-instrumentalist Fernando ¨Feroz¨ Bühring.
Since ATER´s inception Feroz begun writing and collecting riffs, and after several years of experimentation, ATER’s debut album “Eternal Gray Spiral” was conceived. Written and produced by Feroz in his home studio in Santiago, he then relocated to Los Angeles, California, where the mix was finished and finally, the album was self-released in January 2018.
Despite pretty much not promoting the album, for not knowing any better, “Eternal Gray Spiral” still got some traction and has engaged with very passionate fans and by now has been streamed over 200.000 times (Spotify)
After meeting at a MESHUGGAH show in Los Angeles, days after the release of ¨Eternal Gray Spiral¨, ATER was joined by the talents of Josh “Sol” Seguin and Stephan “Kalani” Seguin, playing guitar and drums, respectively. This marks a turning point for the band, now becoming able to perform live. Feroz begun taking charge of vocals as well as continuing playing bass for ATER. And so, they move away from being an instrumental project to become a full band. They immediately start playing local shows in the LA Metal scene, quickly creating a buzz.
With a new lineup and a new vision, Fernando leads the composing process of new album titled ¨SOMBER¨, combining sounds from Black and Death Metal to Progressive and Heavy Meshuggah-inspired syncopated grooves. Pushing the boundaries of the instrumentation by bringing the tuning down to low earth-shattering frequencies, all topped with demented-sounding low growl vocals, reminiscent of bands like Septicflesh, Hate and Belphegor, plus the heavy ambience and clean sections that became ATER´s signature with the first album ¨EGS¨(for short).
SOMBER was recorded during the Covid Pandemic and was mixed by Feroz in a temporary studio in Mexico City where he was hiding during restricted times. The album was then mastered by non other than Ted Jensen of Sterling Sound (Mastodon, Gojira, Korn).
Tagged by fans —who already have seen them live— as “Blackened Thall,” the new album “SOMBER” can be described as one of the heaviest, darkest and most extreme works ever created in Metal. Every song on the album carries a story, creating an immersive experience for the listener from beginning to end, thanks to the album’s clever songwriting, unique structuring and heavy, dark ambience.
ATER’s sophomore album “SOMBER” is ready to see the light in 2024. The band worked closely with renowned artist Erik Burton Kirchner who created the artwork for the album. He managed to portray the darkness of the music and brought the entire work to new heights.