In The Beginning
        URIZEN was born from the ashes of Colorado-based Black Metallers "Dunwich Horror" in a vague transitional period between 2001 and 2002. From the original lineup of "Dunwich Horror" remained Thomas and Daniel Drinnen (guitars and keyboards respectively) left with the arduous task of finding new members willing and able to help metamorphose the crude Black Metal ideas of "Dunwich" into the strange musical creature URIZEN. Fate would step in triumphantly: The story, quickly retold, finds the Drinnen brothers hundreds of miles from their Colorado home, standing in front of a concert venue (then-called "Dreamworld Music Complex") in Arlington, Texas to see Norway's Dimmu Borgir. As luck would have it, despite arriving at the concert hours ahead of time, Thomas and Daniel would have some company in the form of a tall, skinny Mexican: drummer extraordinaire Julio Escamilla. Information was exchanged and a few months later Julio would find himself on a Greyhound bus bound for Denver, Colorado. Here, the newly formed trio would hone their skills together, and begin work on the debut URIZEN LP "autocratopolis".

The Great Southern Migration
        Fall of 2003 would find URIZEN in its new home of DFW, Texas, a move that afforded the trio time to slowly craft their desired sound. The process would involve switching from screaming Black Metal style vocals to all clean singing (a role taken over by guitarist Thomas), incorporating a wider spectrum of musical influences and interests, and creating musical oddities that would bind the songs to the conceptual mold of "autocratopolis". Towards the end of summer 2004 the writing process for "autocratopolis" was nearing completion, and the Uri-Men set out to stage test the material at local venues all around the metroplex. Following a search for bassists in the surrounding areas, URIZEN acquired Louisiana-born Matt Garrison and began their campaign across Dallas, Arlington, and Ft. Worth. With growing acclaim in Dallas/Ft. Worth, URIZEN set out to put the finishing touches on "autocratopolis".

Welcome to the Tyrant City
        The album was conceived and created entirely by the UriMen themselves, from the recording, production, mixing and mastering to the photography and artwork. And in August of 2005, URIZEN's "autocratopolis" was released to a wanting crowd at the Ridglea Theater in Ft. Worth. Soon after, copies of the newly completed album were sent out into the world, garnering rave reviews in numerous national publications. "autocratopolis" in hand, URIZEN quickly gained momentum and put even more into their already scathing live performances. Recruiting long-time UriFriend Sam Damask as a second guitarist, the quintet created what would become their signature live performances, which included all-white jumpsuits, a heavy-duty metal keyboard apparatus, Santa, Cupid, flames, flags, and the now-famous URIZEN Robot!

The Universe Grows and Grows...
        For over a year after the release of "autocratopolis," URIZEN stormed stages all across the state of Texas and into Oklahoma, gaining a repuation for having, quite possibly, the most unique and entertaining musical live show around. It was also a time of change, as Sam relinquished his guitar duties to Matt, who then relinquished his bass duties to new UriMan, James Wicks. During this time of literal change, URIZEN was metaphorically growing and evolving as artists, and work soon began on the follow-up to their 2005 debut LP. From the beginning, it was clear that the new direction would be a definite departure from the sound of "autocratopolis," and in December of 2007, URIZEN unleashed the definitively odd and quirky "Universe" EP unto the world. Where will this ever-changing musical style take URIZEN next? Only time will tell!

Over the years, URIZEN has had the pleasure of sharing the stage with prestigious acts such as: Sonata Arctica, Finntroll, Ensiferum, Turisas, Eluveitie, Trivium, Kataklysm, Dying Fetus, Arsis, The Faceless, God Forbid, Tyr, Keep Of Kalessin, The Agonist, Within Chaos, Jacknife, The Destro, and many, many more!