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Nosferatu have grown to become one of the most commercially successful Second Wave Gothic Rock Bands worldwide and most certainly in England.

Having sold well over 100,000 units worldwide since their first commercial release in 1991, they have the credibility of being one of the few elite UK Gothic Rock bands to enjoy chart success. Their vast array of independent releases (7 singles, 9 albums and individual songs appearing on 36 different compilation albums) makes it a hard task for any collector to track down all of these recordings.

January 1988 Guitarist Damien DeVille (from Sutton, Surrey) leaves Ruislip based Glam Goth band "Sister Midnight" after arguments with new lead guitarist Neil Bufton (now of T-Rexstacy)

March 1988 Damien DeVille is given the telephone number of Vlad Janicek (former keyboard player of Goth band "The Dreaming") by Sister Midnight keyboard player Mark. DeVille who is looking to form a Hardcore Gothic Rock band to go with his Vampiric image & hearse telephones Vlad (from Harrow, Middlesex) to arrange a meeting to discuss the project. Vlad brings along his girlfriend Sapphire Aurora (from Northwood, Middlesex & former vocalist for "The Dreaming"). The three agree to Damien joining their band "Nosferatu" Damien would later claim he formed the band, untrue.

October 1988 After several months of song-writing, keyboard programming by Vlad & drum-machine programming by Damien, Nosferatu have enough songs to commence live performances. They rehearse in various studios across London & Middlesex and make their live debut on October 05th at The Rock Garden, Covent Garden, London.They are joined onstage by Mydey (who controls the tapes & keyboards) This concert is solely promoted by Damien & Vlad leafleting London Nightclubs such as Kit Kat, Badlands, Camden Electric Ballroom plus shops in Carnaby Street, Kensington Market & Hyper Hyper. 28 people turn up to see Nosferatu play a set that is plagued by poor onstage sound, plenty of feedback from Damiens guitar and a finale when Sapphires Drink is kicked over the guitarist's effect pedals. Disgusted by The poor sound, DeVille smashed his recently acquired Gibson SG guitar onstage.

December 1988 Nosferatu return to the live scene and play their 2nd concert, this time at "The Flag" in Wembley, London, supporting "King Called The Culprit" & Goth No-Hopers "Whiskey & The Devil". The event is promoted by Frank Drake of Flag Promotions (which is still very active and popular on The London Club Scene today). Despite a hostile welcome from the audience, Nosferatu play through their entire 45 minute set, once again joined for the 2nd and last time by Mydey (again on tapes & keyboards). After the concert, Sapphire leaves the band for the 1st time.

January 1989 Saphirre rejoins the band in time for their 1st Demo Recording Session at Second Sense Studios in Harrow, Middlesex (owned & run by BBC Top Of The Pops 2 Sound Engineer Andy Hewitt). Three songs are recorded and mixed over a period of 3 days, "Bloodlust", " Pathway Of Flowers" & "Merlin".

February 1989 With the mixed demos in the can, Nosferatu commence tape duplication and mail and hand-deliver demo cassettes to selected UK Indie Record Labels. Nick Jones of Karbon Records (who shares an office with Merciful Release at the time) is impressed with the band, but does not have the financial resources to allow them to be taken onboard his own label. Also, a licensing deal by The lead singer of 1960's band The Honeycombs is rejected by Nosferatu. Vlad points out that Flickknife Records have turned down Nosferatu for being too Gothic, whilst Flicknife have a coffin for the main door to their office which in itself is a contradiction.

July 1989 After numerous song-writing sessions, photo-shoots & rehearsals, Nosferatu take to the stage once more and play concerts at The Hastings Crypt (which is engineered by Alan "The Cat" Pelling (who started The Torture Garden Club), Wimbledon's William Morris Club & New Merlins Cave in Kings Cross, London. Their concert at The Kings Head in Fulham, London is cancelled as Vlad arrives too late to play. The band also embark on a night time trip to see Sir Francis Dashwoods Hellfire Club in West Wycombe, Bucks. Once again Sapphire leaves the band who then concentrate on their songwriting.

January 1990 With Sapphire rejoining the band, Nosferatu return once again to Second Sense Studios in Harrow and record three new songs "Emma Louise", "Anaal Nathract" & "False Gods". Marjorie Macklenenberg, a representative for a Dutch Television company films one of the recording sessions which is later broadcast on Dutch television. New manager Victor Taylor signs Nosferatu to his Agency and books several concerts for them

March 1990 Nosferatu embark on their last concerts with Sapphire Aurora which culminates in a Saturday Night Headline slot at The Prestigious "Fulham Greyhound", in Fulham, London.Vlad would play this concert with a 10 watt practice amp (kindly loaned to Mr DeVille by Carole Bohanan, President Of The Vampyre Society) as DeVille had recently blown Vlad's main amp by wiring live connections to earth.

April 1990 New Vocalist (and former Grenadier Guard) Gary Clark joins the band this month and is renamed "Incubus" by Vlad.

June 1990 Nightbreed Records release a compilation album "New Alternatives". It contains the Nosferatu track "Bloodlust". The band's first outing on vinyl.

July 1990 Nosferatu play numerous concerts in and around London including "Opera On The Green" in Shepherds Bush, "The Venue" in New Cross (supporting The Charlatans), Harlesden Mean Fiddler, The Railway Tavern in Hampstead, Islington Powerhaus & Brentford Red Lion (where they are joined by Felo De Se which is the embryonic "Children On Stun"). Nosferatu's live following is accelerating quickly, aided by Vlad's Fanzine "Grimoire". Incubus is carried on stage at concerts in a coffin which was built for DeVille. Incubus also preaches from a Pulpit onstage (an elaborate concept by Vlad, later copied by Marilyn Manson some 10 years later). Vlad also designs and builds a 3 piece wooden backdrop fitted with a Goats skull which exhales smoke and allows Nosferatu more props to liven up their onstage performances.

October 1990 Nosferatu tour the UK for the first time together with Every New Dead Ghost.They take in 7concerts and play in Newcastle On Tyne, Leeds, Birmingham, Leicester, Nottingham, Bradford & London. At the end of the tour Incubus leaves the band. Incubus would later go on to form Cure Tribute Band "The Cureheads".

April 1991 After months of advertising & auditioning, Nosferatu find a new vocalist, Louis DeWray who is based in Bordon, Hampshire.

May 1991: Nosferatu inclusive of founder member Damien DeVille on guitar, enter the studio to record their Debut EP "The Hellhound". Consisting of 6 new songs, this is produced on cassette and 12" vinyl.

September 1991: Nosferatu's record label "Possession Records" is formed and a UK distribution deal with York based APT follows. The debut EP "Hellhound" is released and receiving an excellent review in The NME, sales accelerate and a second run of the vinyl is quickly pressed up and sells out immediately.This debut single is very kindly financed by Vlads mother.

December 1991: Nosferatu play a 10 date UK tour to build the base for their next release. Support on most dates comes from Children On Stun They play in Hastings, Liverpool, Glasgow, Birmingham, Derby, Leeds, Cardiff, London & Leicester and are joined by Drummer Belle (now of Goth Rockers "Killing Miranda").Damien DeVilles 1967 Hearse is used as Tour Vehicle much to the amazement of The police, who give the band a road escort out of Derby after their concert !! Nosferatu also team up with The Sex Gang Children on their comeback London gig at The Camden Underworld which proves to be a sellout show ! They run into Tony James (of Generation X, Sigue Sigue Sputnik & Sisters Of Mercy) backstage

January 1992: Nosferatu record a wealth of new songs. Enough for their next single "Vampyres Cry" and its follow up "Diva". DeVille's boss Terence Morgan, M.D. of A.E.Morgan Publications, Epsom kindly agrees to finance Nosferatu's 2nd Single "Vampyre's Cry". He will also finance the "Diva", "Inside The Devil" & "Savage Kiss" singles and lend the band a total of nearly £15,000. Without which, they may never have progressed to International Release's.

February 1992: Nosferatu again with The Sex Gang Children play at The New Cross Venue to an audience of over 800 people. They are joined on drums once again by Belle.

March 1992: Nosferatu set off on a 10 date tour of The UK in Damien DeVille's Hearse to support the release of their new single "Vampyres Cry" (noticeably reviewed in Melody Maker and NME). Nosferatu are contacted by a young journalist, Brian Warner (later to become known as Marilyn Manson) for a feature in the "Propaganda" Magazine which he edits. Hollywood journalist and fashion model Michelle Duncan is sent to Cardiff and interviews the band, which then receive a 5 page spread published in the magazine.

September 1992 Nosferatu book themselves into "Dance Attic Studios" in Putney, South London to rehearse for The "Diva" Tour. Unbeknown to the band, the studio turns out to be a Rehearsal Studio for Ballet Dancers, Choreographers and the like. The Clientele are not impressed when the band arrive in DeVilles hearse, unload Vlad's PA System into the studio and play Loud "Kick Arse" Gothic Rock 10 feet away from snooty women in leotards eating salmon & cucumber sandwiches in the posh restaurant. Nosferatu are even more surprised to see Richard Fairbrass (of Right Said Fred) peering into their rehearsal room when they are running through the "Diva Set". "Dance Attic" was at the time owned by Fred & Richard Fairbrass. After the rehearsal Nosferatu were told that they would not be welcome rehearsing there anymore. Right Said Fred.........Let's ban Nosferatu.........(sounds like a song)

October 1992: An additional 10 date UK tour is to support their new single "Diva". The first 500 copies are pressed in red vinyl and are so scarce and in demand that even the band cannot get hold of a copy . Nosferatu receive their first known Radio One Airplay as DJ Steve Wright plays "Diva" on his Show plugging their tour dates. John Peel also plays the single on Radio One. The Exeter concert is cancelled as the venue is double-booked. The Cranberries take Nosferatu's slot.

December 1992 saw Nosferatu gigging with Doctor and The Medics at Nottingham Rock City, playing to a capacity crowd. A meeting at Camden Underworld between Nosferatu and Dave Roberts of Sex Gang Children (acting as Los Angeles based Cleopatra Records A&R Man) is fruitful and Nosferatu sign a licensing deal with Cleopatra Records for their debut album "Rise". Cleopatra were originally interested in a compilation of all of the singles, but as the debut album "Rise" was just about to be recorded, they decided to release this. (The original compilation album materialized into "Legend"). This deal is buoyed up by the 5 page feature in USA's "Propaganda" magazine.

Louis DeWray & Damien DeVille book the band into Vonns Studio in Islington,North London, but decide to visit House In The Woods Studio, Bletchingley to check out the facilities. They bump into 2 of The Manic Street Preachers who are using the studio for demos. So impressed with the studio, they cancel Vonns and book House In The Woods.

January 1993 Nosferatu enter The House In The Woods Studio and record their debut album "Rise" with Doc Milton as Engineer & Elizabeth Everett who sings backing vocals on "Siren" "Alone" & "Inside The Devil". The album takes a little over 2 weeks to record & mix.

April 1993 Supported by a 13 date UK Tour (taking in Brighton, Stoke On Trent, Manchester, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds, Nottingham, Birmingham, Southend, Bristol, Cardiff, Southampton & London), the first of their recordings to enter the charts was the single "Inside The Devil", which reached Joint Number 131 (along with Duran Duran's "Ordinary World" and Metallica's "Sad But True") in The UKs National Gallup Chart in April 1993, which was a fantastic achievement for the band and for their own record label. Not many independent Record Labels manage to get into The National Top 200 UK Chart without major financial backing, let alone a single by a Gothic band! It was also the bands first release on compact disc. Sadly, Louis DeWray leaves Nosferatu this month. He would later go on to form the band "Ditzy Micro".

May 1993 saw the complete full release in the UK, Germany & USA of Nosferatu's debut album "Rise". Digitally mastered in Chris Birkett's (producer of "Nothing Compares To You" by Sinead O'Connor) studio in Kingston Upon Thames, it is a 12 track album and appears on vinyl, cassette and compact disc. This was to be the bands 1st official release in Germany with distribution by EFA, and in The USA via Los Angeles based Cleopatra Records with distribution by Caroline (who are really Virgin). To date this album has sold over 22,000 units worldwide and is Nosferatu's best selling release yet. It is still selling now.

August 1993 Nosferatu hold auditions for a replacement vocalist in Survival Studios, Acton, London. Both Niall Murphy & Dominic LaVey are short-listed, with Niall Murphy (from West Drayton, Middlesex) taking the role as new Nosferatu Lead Singer.

September 1993 Nosferatu enter their favourite Surrey Haunt "The House In The Woods Studio" and record "Savage Kiss", "Time Of Legends" & "The Keepers Call" for the forthcoming single "Savage Kiss". They are joined by Joby Talbot on Saxophone, who later joins The Divine Comedy and composes the theme tunes for UK Television shows "Father Ted" & "The League Of Gentlemen".

October 1993 Halloween saw Nosferatu playing overseas at a successful 2 night stint at "The Gibus" in Paris. The trip nearly ends in disaster on the return journey as the clutch on DeVille's hearse gives up the ghost on a Paris motorway on a Sunday.

November 1993 Aided by an 11 Date UK Tour (taking in Newcastle, Nottingham, Leicester, Manchester, Leeds, Sheffield, Birmingahm, Exeter, Cardif, Southampton & London), the single "Savage Kiss" reaches Number 16 in The UK Independent Chart in December 1993. It was the bands highest chart position to date. Niall Murphy & Damien DeVille run into Screaming Lord Sutch who is staying at the same hotel as the band in Birmingham. Telephone numbers and business cards are exchanged, but sadly nothing comes from their meeting.

Whilst staying at a certain Sheffield hotel, Niall Murphy, Damien DeVille & Sean Todd (Roadie) find it amusing to wire up 2 Pyrotechnic explosives, dangle them out of the hotel window so they sit on the grass at the front of the hotel and detonate them with a 9 Volt battery. They then withdraw the pyro wires hastily and pretend to be asleep when the Hotel Management knock on the door.

January 1994: Cleopatra Records release a compilation of Nosferatu's early Recordings as an album titled "Legend".

February 1994 saw Nosferatu performing more overseas concerts in Belgium and Holland.

May 1994 A six date tour of Germany is played taking in Hamburg, Berlin, Leipzig, Ulm, Munich and Heidelberg. The Leipzig was the largest concert Nosferatu had played at the time. Nosferatu Headline this 3 day festival (with The Cocteau Twins and The Cranes headlining the other 2 nights) and playing to an audience of over 3,000 people per gig.

August 1994 Nosferatu return to "The House In The Woods Studio" in Bletchingley, Surrey and record their 2nd Studio album "The Prophecy", again with Doc "Octopus" Milton (former guitarist of Alien Sex Fiend) as Engineer & Co-Producer. The album takes 2 weeks to record and mix.The song "Savage Kiss" is re-recorded with the manic guitar solo moving place in the song as well as Niall Murphy's vocals being re-worked. 3 extra songs are recorded, "Sucker For Love" (which only appears on The US Pressings of the CD, "I Love The Dead" ( a fantastic Alice Cooper Cover version which has never been released) & "The Chauffeur" (which was never completed and now lies on a Big Country Reel of tape as they booked the studio immediately afterwards and the studio had no spare tape).

October 1994 Nosferatu's second studio album "The Prophecy" is Digitally Mastered at Youth's (of Killing Joke's) Butterfly Studios in Brixton, South London. Nik Fiend of Alien Sex Fiend makes an impromptu and unexpected appearance at the studio when Nosferatu are mastering.

November 1994 Their second studio album "The Prophecy" reaches Number 14 in The UK Independent Chart. This, their highest chart position yet, was achieved even though the 11 Date Prophecy Tour was cancelled (due to Damien walking out mid tour and leaving the band stranded) when they attempted to continue numerous legal threats forced them to abandon the tour.

1995 saw Damien hijack the band name and put out a new band using it. Ever dwindling fortunes over the years since have seen him convince Louis De Wray to rejoin in 2004 in an attempt to rekindle interest. The last album worth a listen was 1994's Prophecy.