Korypheus is a Kyiv progressive metal band built on contrast. Clean and harsh voices share space with tight, djent-leaning grooves and melodical guitar work. The framework is myth, but the delivery is direct.
The project started in 2016 and has seen its fair share of line-up changes. Early roots sit closer to hard rock and classic metal. By the 2020 album “Over the Rainbow,” the sound pivots toward progressive structures.
A new guitarist brings rapid, Satriani-style passages and modern rhythm language. Bass and drums add a death-metal edge. The result is friction by design. Balancing clean choruses and harsh passages becomes both the mixing challenge and the band’s fingerprint.
“Gilgamesh” the third album, ties ancient stories to present tense. Songs draw on Mesopotamian sources and Greek echoes, archetypes that recur in daily life. Motifs travel between records, a theme introduced in song “Goliath” from ”Over The Rainbow” returns inside new album’s “Avatar”, a thread that links eras of the band.
Recording under war conditions forces a different process. Members work from different cities, sessions stop and start, and electricity is not a given. One vocal on “Avatar” comes straight from a concert take when a studio date was not possible.
Collaborations widen the palette. Laura Guldemond (Burning Witches) lifts “Sleeper” with a focused guest vocal. Yossi Sassi adds bouzouki textures to “Gilgamesh,” bringing a clear Middle-Eastern color that fits the album’s frame.
In 2023 Korypheus did an extensive run of live shows through Ukraine. But now live work pauses while a members serve in the army.
Looking ahead, Korypheus is building a new EP. Two tracks are already recorded, more are outlined, and a new video is planned for December.
Korypheus interview 30.10.2026
Producer: Janne Vuorela
www.instagram.com/korypheus_band
Picture: Korypheus
