Dornenreich is a black metal band from Tyrol, Austria. The name means realm of thorns (noun) or full of thorns (adjective) in German. Founded in 1996, the band has progressed in style from black metal on their first album, Nicht um zu sterben, to what the band describes as “a vision beyond (black) metal, neofolk and ambient” on their latest works. The music on their second album, Bitter ist's dem Tod zu dienen, released in 1997, can be described as symphonic black metal with some folk and some gothic influences.