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Semnai was founded as Arbor Vitae in the autumn of 2005 by drummer Jari Ketola and keyboard player and songwriter Thomas Sundell, both members of a previous band that split back in 2000. The members of Semnai successively gathered until early spring 2006, when bass player Juha Ollikainen became the last member to join.
In October 2006, Arbor Vitae recorded a four-song demo EP called "The Plague", consisting mainly of new material but to some degree also of modified material that Sundell and Ketola brought with them from their earlier band. The tracks were "Eye for an Eye", "Journey of Many Ends", "The Plague" and "Paria".
In late August 2007, the band changed its name to Semnai, which literally means "the venerable" and is a euphemism for the Erinyes, the incorporations of vengeance in Greek mythology. The reason for changing the name was that the band felt a need for a simpler and shorter name that also better described the more aggressive style of music that had evolved since the recording of "The Plague".
Semnai plays progressive, melodic metal that combines aggression with melodies, growl with clean vocals and altering keys with altering meters. The lyrics are largely metaphorical with an emphasis on various aspects of human nature and everyday life.
In early October 2007, Semnai recorded a new demo titled "The Lotus Effect". It features four songs with a more rhythmic and aggressive style, yet still being faithful to the melodic style of "The Plague".
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