Dead Skeletons (Iceland)
Dead Skeletons came into being in 2008 as part of an installation at the Reykjavík Art Museum by artist Jón Sæmundur Auðarson (Dead). Seeking a spiritual battle hymn for the exhibition and his Dead concept, Jón Sæmundur began recording the song Dead Mantra with Henrik Björnsson (Singapore Sling, Cult of One), later joined by Ryan Carlson Van Kriedt and Aislinn Van Kriedt (Sunsplit, A4) and Greg Barrett.

​The first track, “Dead Mantra,” quickly became an underground hit, leading to the release of the full-length LP Dead Magick on A Records in 2011. Dead Skeletons was conceived as an art band, emphasizing live art installations and performance art rather than conventional touring. Despite this, the band performed extensively across Europe and the USA, bringing their ritualistic sound and vision to audiences worldwide.

In 2013, the band embarked on their Dead Comet Tour, named after Comet ISON, which passed through our solar system that same year — and vanished, much like the band itself, as this became their last tour for some time.

In 2016, they released Live in Berlin on Fuzz Club Records, a live album recorded during their 2013 performance in Berlin, Germany.

​After years of silence, Dead Skeletons reunited in June 2025 in Moss, Norway, performing on both nights of the Lyse Nætter Festival and marking their long-awaited return to the stage. In May 2026, the band performed at Fuzz Club Eindhoven in the Netherlands, continuing this new chapter and once again bringing their hypnotic collision of music, visual art, and ritual to their audience. He who fears life cannot enjoy death.