Kari Rueslåtten

Kari Rueslåtten (born October 3, 1973 in Norway) is a solo singer, who has also worked with other artists.

She posseses a unique voice which can be described as expressive and delicate and classy. She was the first full-time female singer in the wave of doom metal bands.

She made her debut in a local rock-band in 1985, before she attended music school (classical singing) in 1987. She was a co-founder of the doom metal band The 3rd and the Mortal, and released two albums with them before she left the band in 1995. Tuomas Holopainen of Nightwish has said that the sound of Rueslåtten's voice in The 3rd and the Mortal was a big inspiration when he founded the, now famous, Finnish symphonic metal band.

In 1995 Kari Rueslåtten contributed with female vocals on Storm, a folk metal side-project by the Norwegian black metal artists Fenriz and Satyr. As a side note, after the release of this album (Nordavind), the members of Storm were labelled by the Norwegian and surrounding press as a "fascist Black Metal" band, due to the steadfast loyalty to the Norwegian homeland and ethos maintained throughout the album. (Despite the fact that it was printed in the booklet that the album was entirely national-romantic, not political.) This was difficult for Rueslåtten, and she felt very misunderstood. She has later disassociated herself from the band. Satyr and Fenriz however stood strong, claiming they were merely patriots who loved their country.

In 1997 she made her debut as a solo-artist. Her music is now more pop-related.

Discography:
1995 - Demo Recordings
1997 - Spindelsinn
1997 - Demo Recordings (Re-Release)
1998 - Mezmerized
2002 - Pilot
2002 - Exile (single)
2005 - Other People's Stories
2007 - Other People's Stories (limited edition on vinyl)