Tharaphita

Photo: AllStarz promo photo

CountryEstonia
Formed1995
StatusActive
GenrePagan black metal
LabelWerewolf Promotion

Tharaphita are the Rakvere band who have been forging black metal, Estonian paganism and old-school heavy metal into one sound since the mid-1990s, singing mostly in Estonian. Active for more than three decades, they have released six studio albums, most recently Öise taevaga üheks in 2026.

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Tharaphita was formed in 1995 in Rakvere, in Estonia’s Lääne-Viru County, by singer and guitarist Ank, who had been playing in underground metal bands since 1991. The band was first planned as a raw black metal project under the name Ancestral Damnation. Bassist Massacra and drummer A.X. completed the first line-up, and the aim was to join black metal with pagan thinking, epic atmosphere and touches of heavy and thrash metal.

After a run of demos in the mid-1990s, the band released its debut album Raev in 1998, followed by Tumedate tunnete kütkeis in 2001. The line-up that would carry the band for decades took shape in these years, as Draconic (guitar synth, keyboards) joined in 1996, drummer Melu in 1997 and guitarist Benton in 1999. Primeval Force arrived in 2005 and Iidsetel sünkjatel radadel in 2007.

Bassist Brutalis joined in 2009, and the band, by then rehearsing in Tallinn, returned in 2014 with Ülestõus. That album was nominated for best metal album at the 2015 Estonian Music Awards, after which Tharaphita went quiet on the recording front for more than a decade.

The band celebrated its 30th anniversary in November 2025 and announced its comeback with the single “Surmaraud”. Their sixth studio album, Öise taevaga üheks, came out on 20 July 2026 through Werewolf Promotion, twelve years after Ülestõus.

Current line-up: Ank (vocals, guitar), Benton (guitar), Draconic (guitar synth, keyboards, backing vocals), Brutalis (bass), Melu (drums).