Kyprian’s Circle is one of the names that still evokes great nostalgia in fans of the Finnish black metal scene. Although little known in 2023, the project for me personally is one of the most valuable and cult names of the 90s and undoubtedly occupies a stable part in my collection and playlists. The reason – every work of Kyprian’s Circle provides extremely authentic, melodic and pure compositions that caress the ear and transport the consciousness in a specific ritualistic atmosphere that is rarely found elsewhere.

The project was born in 1994 in the Finnish city of Lappeenranta in South Karelia, as its founder and until recently the only member was Kyprian. The very idea for the project was born years earlier, in 1991,  but a few years later the musician began to seriously shape as an idea the music of what we would all later know as Kyprian’s Circle.
The name was conceived as a symbol of the ritualistic and magical, with Kyprian himself admitting that he has always been fascinated by witchcraft, mysticism, darkness and creatures of the night.
And his music from the very beginning is a pure expression that does not fall into specific frameworks and gives complete freedom to his pure artistic mind.
The musician himself denies that his music falls into the „black metal“ category in full, describing it more as dark metal, as „something mystical and evil, dark and cold, like something unheard of until now“.

The first demo of the project is called „In the Mystique of the Moonbeams“ and was released in 1996. The demo was recorded and mixed at Sound Ateljee studios and upon its release received excellent reviews from the local underground, with Kyprian quickly winning over the audience with his authentic and unadulterated character. This particular demo will prove to be a classic in the future, influencing a good number of  musicians from the Finnish scene (and not only) in the following years.

Listen to  „In the Mystique of the Moonbeams“ here:

Kyprian’s Circle’s second demo, „Käärmeenkantaja“, appeared the following year,  and was featuring two guest musicians – an anonymous drummer and vocalist Vsondar, for whom this was the first and only appearance. With this demo, the sound of the project takes on a slightly different and melodic folklore path, which gives an even more special and mystical atmosphere to the record and subsequently became a trademark of Kyprian’s Circle’s works.

Listen to  „Käärmeenkantaja“ here:

After this demo, Kyprian finds pleasure in  collaborating with other musicians and considers continuing in this direction. Every subsequent Kyprian’s Circle record features him as the primary composer, lyricist, and guitarist, with the other roles filled by  like-minded guest musicians. This is why many people consider Kyprian’s Circle to be a band, when in reality it is a solo project. The amazing thing is that although he has included different people in his work since the first demo, the result always carries the core of Kyprian’s Circle and usually, if I don’t mention to someone about the band’s history and suggest that the vocalists and drummers are different on some of the records , he never gets that. Kyprian manages to guide the direction of the musical development of his project with ease, making no compromises with his ideas.
In a 1997 interview given to the Finnish fanzine Ichor, Kyprian said precisely that the project would  always be independent and would constantly have new people on its records, whom he himself called „visiting musicians“,  as it  undoubtedly adds to the mystique of Kyprian’s Circle.

On his third demo, „The Nightwind Tunes“, released in 1997, Kyprian collaborated with bassist Rami, drummer Abyssin and vocalists Nazgul and Shatraug, as well as Strigoica, who helped him with some of the lyrics.

Listen to the demo here:

Following the release of the three independent demos, the Shades of Autumn label invited Kyprian’s Circle to join the split titled „Enchanting Part II“, alongside Flauros, Fall of the Leafe, Withered Garden, Obsession and Arthame. The project participated with two tracks: „Kun puhui myrskyn henki“ and „Hän öisin saapuu“, which are part of the „Käärmeenkantaja“ demo.

An  year later, Kyprian’s Circle released the EP „Noitatulen vartija“ – the first work of the musician to be released in partnership with a label. The title was released with the help of the now defunct Finnish underground label Silverhorn Productions and was welcomed wildly from the black metal fans worldwide.
„Noitatulen vartija“ features bassist Sammy Roiha from Sound Ateljee studios, with whom Kyprian has been friends for many years, Abyssin on drums and Nazgul on vocals again, as on this record Toni Raehalme brings new nuances to the music with his keyborads. This is the last work of Kyprian’s Circle, after which the musician puts an  end to the project.

Hear the EP here:

In 2000, a track from the latter record („Helvetin pajassa on miekkamme taottu“) appeared on the compilation „Talvisota – Finnish Dark / Black Metal Compilation“ on Woodcut Records, and in 2018 the entire „Noitatulen vartija“ was reissued via label Werewolf Records in the form of limited edition LPs and CDs (who liked the EP can get it here:https://bit.ly/43KSSv9).

Like other bands, despite their valuable discography, Kyprian’s Circle never perform official live concerts. Kyprian shares the opinion that concerts are important for the black metal scene, although he states his personal position many times in the past that he does not want to go on stage with the project, unless it is a concert in the forest in front of the majesty of nature in a selected closed circle.

The Kyprian’s Circle page has long been closed for the musician, and he remembers the project with sweet nostalgia, as his love for music is still strong, although at least to date he has no intention of continuing in that direction (ahem, that might change).

And as in the 90’s, his message is simple: „Let the moonlight illuminate your black soul as it shines in mine“.