Founding member Greg Chivers established Fornost Arnor in November 2005. In January 2006, the recording of the first EP In Darkness We Rise commenced with the help of newly recruited members, York Street and Jeremy J. Elvin. The bands style, in the early days, was more akin to a traditional symphonic black metal sound. One show was performed with this line-up at the Colchester Arts Centre, with the addition of Jay Price performing drum duties and the EP was never officially released. Due to Greg’s relocation in 2006, the band temporally disbanded.
No further activity was to occur until June 2008, when Greg made contact with an old college friend and drummer, Ant Deane. The two of them set about writing material for a new full-length album, the band’s first under the Fornost Arnor name. The debut album had a more progressive, sound compared to earlier recordings, yet also retained some of the more extreme elements of the original incarnation of the band. After the core of the ‘as yet to be titled’ debut album had been written, Greg and Ant called upon the services of Will Hall (lead guitar), and Sam Austen (bass guitar, vocals), completing the new-look line-up, and allowing the recording of the debut album to commence. Their input would be influential in the unique sound of the album, due to their different backgrounds within the metal scene.
December 2008 saw the recording process of the debut album (entitled Escaping The Abyss) begin, with the help of Same Wale, who undertook the mixing, mastering and programming duties. Recording took approximately nine months to complete, with Elle Torry and Jon Phipps, in addition to Sam Wale, performing guest vocals on the album.
With record labels unwilling to take on the release of the debut album (despite the band’s best efforts), the decision to self-release Escaping The Abyss was made, and the album was released on December 14th 2009 through Witch-King Records (established in October 2009 by Greg Chivers and Phil Robinson). Since its release, Escaping The Abyss has received extremely positive reviews in the metal press, both in the UK, and overseas, including Zero Tolerance, Rock Sound and Legacy (GER) magazines.
April 2010 saw the recruitment of James Last to the band's line-up, as the new drummer for the second album (and live performances). The follow-up to 2009’s Escaping The Abyss was written and recorded between November 2010 and April 2011, and, as with the debut album, was mixed, mastered and programmed by Sam Wale, and features guest vocal performances by Elle Torry and John Phipps. Entitled The Death of A Rose, the new album is a natural progression from the band's debut, with matured song writing and more progressive musicianship, yet retaining the familiar trademarks of the band's unique sound.