Vesperian Sorrow is an American symphonic black metal band from Austin, Texas, United States, founded in 1994. They were known as Unholy Descent until they changed their name to Vesperian Sorrow in early 1999. Their lyrics tend to be less extreme than most black metal bands that cover themes of Satanism and Anti-Christianity. They cover instead the cosmos, sorrow, sadness and darkness. Their name, Vesperian Sorrow, directly references this and translates to "sadness or sorrow in the evening hours."