Band Biographies: Dividing The Element

Dividing The Element is a Zimbabwean metal band from the city capital, Harare. Chris Van and Sherlic White founded the band in 2012. After a few line-up changes over the years, the band settled on 4 members: Chris Van - guitar and vocals, Archie Chikoti - guitar, Nick Newbery - drums and Mat Sanderson- bass.

There was once a thriving rock scene in Zimbabwe pre-1980, but after Zimbabwean independence, things changed. Rock music died a slow, silent death in Zimbabwe and there was little hope for a modern day metal scene to be born much less grow. Chris had been a fervent supporter of heavy metal and had been writing his own songs for over a decade at the time. Fueled by passion, frustration and determination, Chris set out to form Dividing The Element with an initiative to instigate a metal scene within the country. Metal from Zimbabwe for Zimbabwe was the idea. To help bolster national influence, Chris made a decision to sing in Shona, the country's mother tongue. Over much time, persistence and patience, the flame began to catch fire and there is now a developing metal community in Zimbabwe.

Dividing The Element’s self-titled debut album was released on the 5th of May 2018 while participating in the Zimbabwean leg of one of the biggest underground metal movements to happen- Metal United World Wide. The album was recorded in Harare in a garage converted into a studio and was produced by Chris Van, mixed, and mastered by Gary Stautmeister.