Gannondorf is an avant‑garde black metal project from the San Diego/Escondido, California area, with members who have been playing together since 2008. The band began as a fusion of black metal and video‑game‑inspired themes. In August 2011, they formed Gravespell, playing what they called blackened death metal, with a melodic and atmospheric sound punctuated by moments of brutality, blended with the raw power of black metal. The debut EP Buried at Sea was released in July 2012, followed the next year by their full-length Gaia Terminus.
A two-song Gravespell EP called Ignis recorded at Studio West in San Diego, featuring "Ignis" b/w "Imprisoned," was released in May 2016, from a full-length called Frost Crown.
They have been known as Gannondorf since 2020. Their current music blends experimental, gothic, and extreme‑metal elements, drawing on dark, apocalyptic, and fantastical themes. Their full-length The Nightmare Institution dropped in 2024, an eight‑track, hour‑long album sporting technical guitar work, atmospheric horror‑driven aesthetics, and genre‑blending approach.