ANOREXIA NERVOSA Goes On Hiatus

Guitarist Stefan Bayle of the French black metallers ANOREXIA NERVOSA has issued the following update on the band's current status (translated from French):

"It's been a while since there has been any news from the ANOREXIA NERVOSA camp, and I think that it is time to give a progress report on the group.

"The departure of [vocalist] Hreidmarr was followed by a kind of 'crisis' period which we had not really anticipated. The length of time that the lineup was together, the personal sacrifice each member of the band had to make and the increasing difficulty in our ability to evolve/move on were several of the factors which, little by little, corroded the unit and the integrity of the group.

"I always regarded ANOREXIA as an entity, a clan where each individual shared the same values and evolved/moved forward with the same goal in mind. This is not really the case anymore today. Furthermore, none the singers whom we auditioned had the capacity of revive this 'spirit.' As a result, I have thus far felt incapable of composing a 'true' new album by ANOREXIA.

"We are extremely proud of all that we achieved, without compromise, and I do not want the group to become a sort of parody in any way, or I would compose the songs without heart, with the help of session musicians. ANOREXIA always covered a lot of different ground, an achievement that I hold dear and which has to be preserved. I have therefore decided to place the group in 'stand-by' mode. We all need to recharge our batteries, devote our time and energies to other activities and to find the faith which motivated us before. I prefer not to call this a split, because it may very well be that ANOREXIA will return one day. I simply cannot predict when or how this may happen.

"We wish to thank everyone who supported us during all this time. We experienced some truly great moments and we will be eternally grateful to you."