Po aol | eee re : es a STH z TERRORIZER’S SECRET HISTORY OF... aii METAL laa Pee at) METALS MOST nt Se tala taal INCARNATION : La ne Csi CT TA PT Pie = ; / iS AT) MONEY ta Me aE» is eIN STORES 10/05/10” y a Sen TNE Cel 1Y Leas INCLUDES BONUS TRACK WE ARE GATHERED HERE TODAY AND VIDEO FOR THE HEALING MAY UT MI DA aU Satan sang CO AALS Cole UUUEAUN CD) 21ST HUSTLERS ~ DUNDEE 22ND CLASSIC GRAND - GLASGOW Pe ORIN ECO Pee ert] PO ee ect 26TH THE OLD BELL - DERBY Paya ate) PT MNO ee VRE aI PR aa Cea RMI Ee eto SITAR Naan Cy WWW.RISINGRECORDS.ORG WWW.MYSPACE.COM/RISINGRECORDSUK |mn eA ae) DEAD LAY WAITING NOT APPEARING) 0 GENERATE. Be INR Ke) apy Linas LIMITED EDITION DIGIPACK™ INCLUDES BONUS TRACK WHITED SEPULCHER (NEW RECORDING) AND VIDEO FOR THE SOULFUL DEAD OE ET) rN a UK TOUR 2010 PLus surrort THE DEAD LAY WAITING JUNE 2ND CHORDS - POOLE EI ORCI ele P Cora ako NO Pe ete eC ed Sea eee Crm aes TROP EKO eR itn) ren eee a 9TH FIBERS - YORK (TRIGGER THE BLOODSHED ONLY) Sarma rat emer GCC arte cee en 18TH THE WHITE HORSE - HIGH WYCOMBE 19TH MAN ON THE MOON - CAMBRIDGE Pm Utero encores a : STEN oOo sar THE DEAD LAY WAITING Pa or eat ee tac Tet CRT 23RD AUNTIE ANNIES - BELFAST 24TH AN CRU ISIN LAN - CORKRe Sea a|. WHAT'S ON THE CD |. MEMORIES OF CHUCK SCHULDINER . TASTE AND CENSORSHIP |. UNDERGROUND ETHICS: . THE 40 ALBUMS YOU MUST HEAR THE BIRTH OF DEATH METAL |. FLORIDA . SWEDEN 9. UNITED KINGDOM |. POLAND |. SOUTH AMERICA NADA EXHUMED ‘0 CONSUME CLASSIC FEATURES DRAGGED ‘SCREAMING FROM THE ARCHIVES 14, DEICIDE 18. NECROPHAGIA 20, MORBID ANGEL 32. CANNIBAL CORPSE 40. DISMEMBER 46. BOLT THROWER 48. BENEDICTION . VADER 5. DECAPITATED. GoRGUTS EXPLORING THE STYLES THAT DEFIVED THE GEWRE 68. TECHNICAL /PROGRESSIVE DEATH METAL 76. DEATHCORE 80, MELODIC DEATH METAL 3. DEATH/DOOM PUBLISHER en ee ed Po ee eae) eu a Pree co en erent Ps Pemerarcmennrennntti ey Reactors ed see erent at eae ars Peter aerate ied [eee eroeenenns PNM ane TT eee eed eerie nd SagZ AT rts ssishigy tl stat hs tack anand ere ta 4 US Senne Peretti increta erect rd Cette ett ets ee ted oa eerie Rey Ve eee oe a era) eed rect Deekciieet wear bie ete eres ee etn end CEU ESI) nner) ture creron a reer | eerie enya Street) Cetra ad Se) enn a 210 Cras reer eoterer) eee ere ete areas reed een Lat peer rad elcid Ppreoreeeaterenr ey err rete) eee etal Potted Se ae renee tineeterns or Seen are een Poetic teiates ee tameb tee td eta teed red 8. TRIBULATION tel cererny pene ts el ieaiet or) ered eer ces Panes THE BLOODSHED eres elect Cee aren eer eros acod ees SST eee loation OF Mina’ pee ett acuta! terry hit fo tt hand, gt a ie enna eerie Lasenesrneey Pres Sy Ss prerneretioes ed ieaasteoaaed erent eer eee) Peterlee eeu ee pra UE ‘Taken rom the Rising bum Emp! ore aay eemenret sy Perce e or aan Penden iter beueord Pear tateios Sada ets ae i. penta ee ett) repaid ee eee errr to ROP aeery ee ey eee een c Crmiel eshakeea tatucsael ed ae eas eed aed is ca G Hoa ~ Cae eter ed itckenthet ad Se etal ete ee ead E UN eed ‘ine spatuechinges sn ts bak ton reece ats ed ene ESneenyy Sennen Ren eerneren tense i eee rnd 17, NECROCEST a eaeerornad ‘Tle fom hl ot et sta, eens Pericurrcatateae htenaad pets eer ieeter ies Deere oso. The brs ere ites yams Perens rg Se ieee ee nr ocr)ATES Vac OD ae PHOBIA PRU ter Renee MCN aa cag oS Rise aU er tare CCL STON eT Terrrizers Secret Histories clo CB, The Coach House, Trnrs rive, Thatcham, Berks, REI9 408, UK (0r subseribo by phon agent. nlaly order me a copy of Terrorizrs Secret Histories which Is published by Dark Arts Ltd. every 3 months and is 5,99 per Issue Name: ‘customer Signature: Tol No Home devry?:/N Store Owner Please order the above publication with your wholesaler tday and contact the customer when the fir issue i received fr collection deliver te ‘Arts Lid. +48 (0}20 7729 7666WORLD DOWNFALL HE BIRTH OF D META SLAUGHTER. OF THE TINNOCENT BETWEEN CASSETTE REELS AND X-RATED ZOMBIE FLICKS, A Punerke gs aes Ben em i INeKo Lake wae et TUR TUM ON VISTI STEED Np aN LSeF ‘CHANNELS AND ENERGY DRINK-BRANDED TOUR PACKAGES IN ONE sed, Mercyful Fate and LOU ROL POLES AULD 8 UA gLR Ne MNEs eset Avaet wis’ ephower Ore R UNOS SMMC MERSIN jis icy ben me anay and en, CORUNA MAG OMe aT TOE ayer aR Mc: un’s Have No Fun’ EP, and 1 what I wanted t0 - far as my ovin band and mi : ‘APE VICTIM Interest me, This record changed my life 1983 was the golden year, the countdown Picture unvrappin period, Also Iwas listening to bands ike The to the birth ofa genre that made John The from the far side a Exploited, GHH and Discharge. I really thought Baptists ofall those who stumbled out from the aggression and enengy of these early punk ff the circle of light and into the blackness, fe Fo longer exists and taking out a SBP bands was incredible and wanted to bring a the dark, razor-wielding Central European hast ed cassettes, fh more metal dirction ith a similar syle. As thrash of Hellhammer, Sodom and Bulld ng passed and fanzines massactng the for my friends, they stayed the same and the occult heavy metal of Western Europ sh language in a way that would disgust really got heavier, War Cry went on to be a nom, Bathory, Mercyful Fate and Angel N-Dub. Imagine hearing something so fast ley Crie-type poser hand after singer Rich the bloody-nosed punk of Dischag devil that i made you want to tear of and I lef loited and En ut Judas Priest t-shirt and drop-kick it would say you couldn’ have hit the North and South Am he w . Fcomect combination of ba Nasty Savage, Pentagram and Slayer, Celtic Fro ut ith Death Strike and Mi alist Mike Br the clas of 1982 awoke like a doom cult o preach their morbi Orland Die Like A D stan’ through Mary Figs i ‘ ine Sona USS AS Tg so fara 90, ht he shane AM CITT CUTEST TTT Ta matin ound he A ee TER eT Lae ath Strike and Funeral Bitch, the latter named Master. “He knew 1 was listening . ser P a ore and more to Motorhead and more ee re things and though this woul Es Cesta ggazar tye Cen a retary MATA a TRU Tee eae TITS Ca eee any PRS OT RSL aS 7 78 WORLD DOWNFALL: THE BIRTH OF DEATH METAL esa Lee Tee WM BS Te ae Lae aT ee ta peels e218 Mn ‘utft Poison, who formed in 1983 and bashed ut an orgy of eight clttery, Hellhammering. proto-death demos between 1984 and 1987, f *From that point on, US fanzine writers fspecilly would start ro use it regulary although in the beginning it seemed just a synonym for very extreme metal” I's not worth putting too much stock in the phrase. As Uli suggests, “death meta? was Shorthand for anything fast, sepulchral and Hei with is origin in many bands Exploring similar themes, From 1983 onveards, everyone B25 clearly cribbing from the same revision notes as pre-Celtc Frost thrash metallers Hllhammer, who declared themselves sath Finds’ on their debut demo and then éelebrated thle follow-up the same year with a “Triumph Of Death. In 1984 they with, ofall people, Running Wild and Helloween layed “Death Meta’ on the ttlar spit. ‘Over the Atlantic the same year, Posessed staked their claim with a demo and track of the same name, the song re= appearing on the catalytic "Seven (Churches album in 1985, Kam Lec’s own Mantas suffered "Death By Meta (later reissued as the first Death demo the same year) and Necrophiagi's demo declared ‘Death Is Fun; In 1985, Death Sirike released “Fuckin’ Death pre-Repulsion outfit Genocide Unleashed ‘Violent Death’ and even the UK's own Warhammer romped around in an ‘Abattoir (OF Death In short, whoever first sandwiched those two words Prenat Ream Together in the right order doesn't necessary get to sit atthe top table. “les really not so important who invented really, si?" agrees Paul Speckmann of the infinite mor nice typewriters premise. “For me, this music was a way to vent my anger toward society, my ‘and the injustice inthe world. ca say who invented the music: Iam just happy to know that Iwas personaly involved in the inception ofthe gente. Death Strike and Master certainly had a major influence on ‘many ofthe so-called heavyweights of the genre out there today “Tthink even in general history that when someone comes out with a certain fea that Some kind ofa thing happens and a lot of other people, that are usually not even connected, almost simultaneously come out ith very similar ideas,” muses Mike Browning "And at that time fanzines and tape-trading ere huge, so there was a definite connection Ietween alot ofthe people and bands and everyone got along grt, there was really robody actually tryin other back then, iw than competitive like decade or 8. Also al sound came the heavier imagery, which is ‘only a natural progression I believe. One thing {have to also mention is that before Morbid Angel were called Morbid Angel we had fist called the band Ic, then Death Watch, then Heretic before filly seting on the name Morbid Angel, so we also used the word Death’ in a band’s name back in 1983, Though tape-trading ensured that the early ‘ouput of Death Strike, Mantas etal was spread far and wide, it was a gossamer thin web of contacts and the world wasn't anywhere near as suffocatingly small a it feels in 2010 ‘When we started in 1983/1984, we werent even aware of other bands doing this kind of stuff, we were just trying to top our heroes Venom and didn't really believe that I would be of any interest to anybody.” says Hildenbrand, by way ofa reminder ofthe cultural and actual distance between Baden- attemberg, in the southwest corer of and sun-kised Orlando, Floh-wee ed when we got int trading. in early 85, and found out 1 couple of unaties spread about the globe that seemed to have similar intentions and so- Bn away became a par of that scene. In our Hocal surroundings, there was just a very small Bscene’ for hard rock/heavy metal, but most Bor those guys sill thought anything beyond jtorhead wasnt really musie and Venom ere just totally deranged Hust as it was a perfect time and a perfect Btorrn of musical influences, it was a perfect ime for lyrical ones, The “video nasties’ moral nic that gripped the UK mid-#0s was the Begafeserapings from a larger, global iceberg, one driving everyone simultaneously towards the same conclusion. "When we where starting, back Inthe 80s, ‘expands Kat Lee, an unabashed horror junkie it was also when home VHS rental was in its First boom. So many of us would get together with our band members on weekends and hit the video rental stores, and we all went right into the hortor section! We rented anything ‘with a cover that said "BANNED" or “GORE” or EVIL of "MONDO" or “EXTREME HORROR’ aces Of Death, Cannibal Holocaust’ ‘Evil Dead’, “Texas Chain Saw Massacre’ ‘Dawn OF The Dead’, Gates OF Hell ~ these were our carly Bibles, this i where we leamed about hore, death, gore and Satant If Black Sabbath were the musical ‘equivalent of Hammer Horror and Venom the ‘equivalent of “The Exorcist,” says Poison’ Uli Hildenbrand, “we wanted tobe the soundtrack to zombie(sasher movies The more violent ‘nes which you weren't actualy allowed to Pre UBC M ste Ae dae Meme 18 ee sce = they scemed pretty much theultimate extreme in their genre, and since the death metal bands were also trying to be the most extreme, i seemed quite natural.” We all agreed not to be afraid ofthe ‘ontraversy,” continues Kam Lse the 80s, the PMIRC [censorship body] was waging war against metal” and the bigger metal bands were running with thei tails between their legs and pleading not to be tagged” as evil All because they feared thelr record sales would fll. The ionic thing was, didn't harm record sales, it id just the opposite, i boosted the sales! But stl those hands kept on saying how they weren't evil, and so some of them started to ty and change their image by writing fucking bollocks like metal ballads, Hahaha Fucking metal ballads Iwata je! We early death rmetllers picked up where the ‘heavy metal bands dropped their balls, we picked wp the axes (guitars) and war hammers (@eumstieks) and swords microphones) and we went to war! We forged forth with hate, anger, evil black heats fll of blood, guts and gore, and we dida't give a fuck what anyone thought! GROWING PAINS By the end ofthe “0s, a network of enthusiastic and eager teens hod transformed into a ral Force. Necrophagia released their ‘Season OF The Dead’ debut in 1987 and a Kam Lee-ess Death did the same with “Scream Bloody Gore, the same year. Autopsy Afeatrng Kam’s replacement on rans in Death, Chris Refer), init (the progenatrs of the Swedish scene) and Impetigo Formed, and Possessed gave up the ghost. In 1988 Death OF Putrefaction, posthumously releasing Repulsion’s‘Horified’ demo discography’ in 1989 through their own imprint on Earache Morbid Ange! released ‘Altar OF Madness Jn 1989, sans Mike Browning, whose contributions tothe band would later surfage fs the aborted 1986 album “Abominations OF Desolation’ in 1991, Across 1987-89, many of today’s top-tier death dealers took thei first Pfalering steps, set on a course to populate festival billings, clog up shelf space, strain the Beapacity of iPods and, in tun, inspire more young bands to arm themselves with guitars fad talentless daubings of zombies, ‘Well, for me it was always great to meet and see people inthe scene back then doing this genre of music, Those early pioncers, from the frst wave as well 35 the second wave are all rue godfaters and greators of the gente that fs the staple’ of what ath metal has become. ike to think back hen - before the competitive nature took over ~ that we all were good friends and we generally supported each other | {personally bought all ofthe bands Ds back then, even if | wasnt of ' one-on-one talking, personal level with the members, I was at | teas trying to suppor them. 1 had the pleasure of touring with Obituary’ to many fll housed in 2004 thanks to [hast] Frank Watkins” admits Paul Speckmann, eared that the fis death mal record Frank had bought vas the Master debut on vinyl I's certainly a small world, my frend I il smile when I ee the picture of Pestilence wearing their Master shi in thei promo ‘shot and on the back of one of their tou sins, ofthe bassist front Bolt Thrower sporting the orginal Master shir back inthe day." ‘With so much to take in and engrave on your soul, and so much Bore 1 discover from this murky age, the words of former Autopsy drummervocalist Chis Reifere are sobering indeed just depends on who you ask,” he says of death meta’ hierarchy of importn« everyone's got their opinion on what was the best death metal album, othe most important forthe first, most brutal, the fist truly evil one for whatever. Some are just obvious, even for Somcone just getting into stuf, ke, Venom, Slayer; Bathory, Celtic Frost, that kind of stuf, ‘hat’ indisputable. I's just one of those things people can discuss for hours, for days, just {alking about things. Who were the First metal Thand? Was it Black Sabbath? Was it fuckin’ Deep Purple or Sir Lord Baltimore, whatever he hell you're into? Everyone's going to have thelr opinions and insist they're right i's all totally open to interpretation, eae reflects Kam Ue. allWORLD DOWNFAL eeee cists else | SLIMELI pele) aver yie sea NU MIR 1s Ola Lea Lea TMs (0 OLe) ROBES PON e CE ORO NDE NRA CED Re) Ee OULU ULS SO eed re A a ekg ON mts ee Re! aco RZWEB Oh sen BCE VM Levee enna 6s Weare Coe yi IWS 312 A fete Merren So PN es eae. ese fetal and hardrock,” says Bum the metal bands have always ere. Chuck [Schuldnee] moved back ftom California, Terry Butler and the Massacre guys ane 1 thinks the combination of humidity heat, the blood sucking, biting insects and Jee m The giant swamp uring reptiles, like erocs and alligators, the Si mets nous snakes, the wild boars, and swamp ing monsters like the Skunk Ape all h lotto add to our insanity! tid primordial swamp breeding death metal Aly, the Skunk Ape. The story ge A the dawn ofthe “90s the market had Benton tod it, was that Ais eyes on Tampa, and Florida i ner once released giant prim explains “If but since around "94/95 he swamps, one of you knock on in the mide of th Kind of over” sugge tinued to survive T may not even answer. But I can tll and founding member of Monstrosity. 1 This big Fuckin” thing lurched! doven Yyou that behind the door you got a loaded 40 MMe think what happened is that Tampa spawned NB side 0 the road,” as he described I. Ths legen ¢al aimed at your skill. IMorrisound Studios and things kind of essential Floridian lore. Which s wh This response is understandable since Kam centred around that, with so many ofthe dea for this tory involved going to Tampa, Fesides in Florida, where everybody from bands going there It was like every band guting m and some tranguliser death metal vocalist to litle old lakes are from Florida was signed toa dea art and attempting to capture the beast armed tothe teth The mentioning of Morrsound is inescapable ff nil research into sightings of the creature You kinda get forced into being this way with regards to death metal. Blisters and heavy mising. But financial bu when you live hers” he continues. “The ei Iiters alike entered the realm of Toms and Jim Ie was not ate Is out of contol [Moris and the man most commonly associated a hat connection the Skunk The former Death/Massacre vocalist lives inf with the Florida sound, Scott Bur | Ape has played in the development of dealt Orlando, but heavy aril ons stretch Florida has always been « hotbed for meal. Certainly there are other factors at work Statewide, The fiearm collection of Deicide’ . - enough weapons to single-handedly take on Fe ow MCU LEL a Lae ba ead [a WHO KICKED ME OUT OF HERICLASS,” Rangcore i a , " F stout it but the kids were driven o mae rE is ut outa death Poe BESTIAL INVASION plenty of material 0 * traditionally Himited acces othe bases 0 recording music, Addthis tothe free few labels to help bands and an often hostile that there 1 off their al and political environment, and i's prety obvious that thee 2s more comp of most European and North American bands, if they also had their own uphill battle Underground seenes gr and silently in nies, led by those who wouldn't ky deta death m and Criminal, mention king about the of or retal in his country, emphasising th ‘TERRORIZER'S SECRET HISTORY Egencrally ack ll our demos, et. Th day mornings o ald trade tape and oat ule Important bands continent. Taking command, they the beacon for those lookin future, Alex Cam Keisun, recalls th asist and aly d i's cs of Mi Pa Ma Can ge TR Oa eT PRS TUT SST Ce aL BOR aS Ube happen. Cogumel etal compilation called ‘Warfare Noise: This nificant and influential 6, gultarst and vo ls Mortem say ryone fel Braais impact. We did some tape-trading, mostly inside ca, Brazil was leading the pack, hundreds of bands who were easals even before the cuth American to meet a few people wh stared out roughly atthe same time, lik guys from Napalm Death or Tompa [Lindberg] PYram At The the guys from 3 that mater and It seems to me we have here inthe worl me degree tobe able to make this kind of music, So the simila, but what re the labels wh to the next leee POS see eT fit EITHER EUROPE a Sa aT OCT er Rees CyB music has WORLD DOWNFALL: SOUTH AMERICA “THE AVERAGE TIGKET PRICE FOR AW INTERUATIOWAL ARTIST I a a eT Se a a For us, it was always there ~ the morbid fascination with death, the den, the occu wouldn't dare ome sort of polities or socal turmoil since etal took oot and Reiseneyger believes the he om because of is significance sa socal commentary have this theory that death metal in South America somehow really interpreted youn people's feclings Kids ving in avery viol hopeless envionment were Bound t catch on to this extreme, rebellious stuf. eis their way of saying ‘Fuck You! to th nthe lice, the church, ll thse institutions that repress them and keep them where they ae BP And | don't mean the actual yc, because only few people are able to understand them, its the whole feeling the attitude, the clothes, hey Mentify not only with the musi, but with this whole “fesyle if you will” Ite’ ight ies y to See why some might nd Garvett asserts there are many who stil do in Venezuela The clearest example was Cannibal Corpse last year. The band had already soundchecked “The organisers had alot of papers to explain that all payments were current but those papers didnot matter. They suspended the show with 1.500 people out there. It was insane! People throwing lass bottles, police throwing gas, people running in the streets. It was chaos. eee Saag END OF THE TUNNEL Improve in ost rete sil ong at go ore Colona Pru ecome Fhe net Sweden and one cat hep bet be Tein tat mos a ws Westerns same could be argued fora great par of the First ofall, the end of dictatorship opened up spaces for metal to get more coverage, and then came technological progress and fon inthe rest the massification of me informed about what w ofthe world It’s also significantly easier to acquire the necessities as well explains Reise In my opinion, the main chan do with technology. On the one ha Instruments and recording equipm Tecome more affordable On the other, the Intemet now provides the bands with ways to make themselves known, In both cases, what it means is that they depend less on other people - labels, agents, ete ~ and more fon themselves. But that is not only valid for South Americ, but the rest of the word too Salinas agrees but claims thee ae still massive problems here fs beter acces to to startup a band, and with good ideas you can make your way in the of which are just bad imitations. Bands have fo carry equipment, pint out Ayers, promote ‘themselves, sll kes, and in the end manage their own shows. No money earings, t only pent on your show, if you're for their own performanc some of them negotiate thelr copyrights with the agency, which should be ills ‘country does not help us to interact with gro Braz distances are big and transportation means are complex. Given the fact that we ope, we don't know how bands work to make themselves noticed and known about internationally, We believe that this has to be dane to the vision of the band promoters interact to ean make Sout broad, Europe is like a h because everyone is close to each other and fas access to more financing, Maybe Anton [Reissenexger] was someone certain leadership in Chile and interacted with ‘more bands in South Ame there was a greater cover ‘mass media. Unfortunately, Crieninal’s example has showed ws that in order for you to make fan Intemational music career, the only option igrate where there's a bigger scene with hich in this South Ameriea and touring Europe, ut itis also teat the Erpean and American scenes are quite self hich I ean understand from an economic point of view Its obviously cheaper for obviously the key to Sepultura's success, they didn't wait for someone to discover them andl maer them something, they just took ther fate Deir hands, made the tip tothe notth and, inevitably help build a more recognisable base Is becoming more open now. The local Scenes used to be more isolated from eountey to county. I took us some time to finally play in countries lke Colombi Agent, Uns counties have good death metal bands now theresa strong death metal se in Peru and Bolivia but for some reason we haven't payed there yet, but is gon happen soon,NORTHERN EXPOSURE OURO uth ee es NO ANE BALLER IIL R ean AUD BANDS ROLLING OFF THE TONGUE THAN A GROUPIE CONVENTION, BUT TO THINK OF CANADA'S DEATH METAL HISTORY AND SCENE AS MERELY THE FROSTY MIRROR IMAGE OF THE UNITED STATES IS TO DO ITS PARTICIPANTS A GREAT INJUSTICE. JILL MIKKELSON pated renee tem tema Cer es Supportive ally got ehind promote them, ee Pe: 5 Soe ‘accupying the rey space between the aly NWOBHMthrash and the darkne would become knoven as death metal. Dave son, gultarst and vocalist for Slaughter ever knew how to label Staughter. L gues it would be death-thrash-punk? The os i . Important bands were technically not dat By Gy) met hn we ere the coset Canaan band } B Tieng sous eter ear al CURT 8 oy > ee te Te of Chak cle and Seo Cason FORWARD TO. areca rk te ced (iad ood teams eal A THRASH NATION foo oe cabled unser The their uns, Canada is back then, metal bands were mos From Ontario towards the Paciic me of death metals fn s, soit was dificult to find ban much happening. Basphemy and Dis Cryptopsy, Martyr, Quo Vadis and Despse iscovered that we fi a lot better as notables but there wasn't Teon are but a handful of the word-cass acts flay with hi and started playing support to jump start strong West wh home and though size an at punk ve vas definite st seen It dda’ help thatthe largest urban I have traditional here, the underground metal fans wanted @ entres are anywhere fom three to ten hours isolated metal within the lone French-speaking nd like us and the hardcore fans accepted us= apart Stl the bands that are building the sen province of Québec, 27 years after it all began as thrash was carving its niche around today took their cue and westerners sil ook it's a eros-country phenomena home to the world, Urbinati recalls how their scene their example as important markers in their own Asproporionate contingency of unique and high WP eventually gained enough momentum to become ff piece of history of Canadian death meal Joe calibre miscins renowned for an unwavering JB self-sustaining, “Sometime around 1986 th Sikorski of Calgary's Exit Strategy and webmaster dedication to moving death metal forward thrash nto be able to suppor itself. fat Albenameta.net remembers: “The The mos significant precursors besides Promoters that would usually book Bad Bran ad fom the fist wave of metal through Volvod began to appear when afew kids in were now booking Slayer as wel. There was ester Canada, We had difculies getting Ontario got excited about the likes of Venom, finitely alot of suppor from not only bands, fF venues to open thei dors, as there was this Slayer and Metallica, and decided to try thrash zines and fans in general were much more J perception that metal was dead and undesirable Jon for size. The scene would eventually f legendary bands such as laughter, Sacrifc Razor, Exciter, Annibilator and Infernal Mijst ees SLAUGHTER REALLY DOW'T GET ENOUGH CREDIT, Bee aa aaa eae) ‘ GRIND AND DEATH METAL.” Seametal music scenes manners, with diffrent influences. In cam say that bands like Power and Blasphemy had huge impact. et THE LOUD REVOLUTION Bhs sity ile : proved to that i was posible that you did the Bay Area t have everybody that community oted their own shows, other bands ee path inclined provo-death WORLD DOWNFALL: CANADA am ero Rents Cea i i OPA De neta band from Montreal would slater, bridging BB recat i that provided the fuel for Bastion re pals in big Sepultara fan, 1 was writin back then, wr th Entombed im Dismember ‘liked Sacrifice and Voivo attracted tothe death meta scene and there was no death metal scene in Canada back then AN UNGENTLE EXUMATION Net Maaton Ne and Denence eet and but they were heavier was like a bg del. Pd put Gorgts in the ry a6 ‘None So Vile: [didn't know it be tight I's a EE ince the early days, Galy Records have bell rans, Despised Icon, Ma onance, Beneath The Massacre and a host o fuitarst for Obliveon and p Québécois favourites notes network of people m land most important, There've also good independent help is not because of them that meta is alive out Québécois culture? Why il eptive to death metal? One nething to do with the udbec, which is quite different than anada hecause of the la afferent whole count Bache very healthy, ven for smal local “ ia10WS oF huge stadium shows with big acts Metal Fans here are interested in new stuf, new ands and they're very supportive. I's like 3 Dig family. Wee all inthe same boat, we have to help each other: When a band from Québec are successful elsewhere inthe world Tm jus, happy for them. Metal fans from Canada are tlso dichard but the ratio between population Band metal fans is just not the same” ‘And as Sikorski says, “I think perhaps @ culture of encouragement and support for Imusic and the as would foster a healthy J environment for the growth of metal certainly. BT think language plays no role in whether 3 ‘culture supports the ars, but in Québec society Yyou'l find a different approach to musie and farts then elsewhere in Canada.” ‘With this kind of foundation it makes sense that the number of Québécois hands continues 0 grow, as John Kuruce, drummer for Vancouver Jsland’s Gross Misconduct points out, "When yo Thave a ton of bands in one concentrated ate, i ives the younger generations something to look tp to and emulate. So theoretically speaking, the kids who went to-a Voivod show in their hometown when they were fourten could go fn to start a and like Gorgus, then the kids who were fourtcn wen Gorguts rolled through their town go onto start band lke Despised Jeon. Growing up on Vancouver Island, we had no exposure to quality touring bands in BB our hometoen, et alone in Vancouver: y LIFE IS A HIGHWAY BIB vile death mal would thrive here, in many BP instances it would stay here. The scene developed In soation from the rest of Canada and as Erin mentions, many have had difficulties gaining attention outside of the province “Necotie Mutation were really popular in BARF, Hidden Pride, Obliveon... such a talented and I don’t know what happened, they should he humongous by now but it never worked out They had a huge following there are dozens ‘of examples like that. Immensely talented but trapped inside the French Canadian wall The harsh geographic reality is that Cana Is massive in tems of space, minute in terms ‘of population; nds don’t leave home because they cant The inability of death meal bands to regularly promote their music with touring has heen and stl a major obstacle preventing the nationwide success of the genre, Sikorski highlights that outside of southern Ontario and, Qucbec, travel becomes very long and very Arduouscoften with very itl reward PXfost of the major urban centres are three= a Ru eae o-cight hours apart and many ofthe smaller towns to justify touring to it. In Europe if said we Inada touring radius of 1,00km, you'd think we: vere wel established, but here, that i typical Weekend roadtrip between western urban centres [Most bands that tur in western Canada do so tes don’t have the fan Bstimivedly due tothe vast distances, and not as frequently to ensure good turnout at shows. Our 3 mini-tour was over 2.700km over a three Fay period. Play and dive that's a typical day fn the road in Canada, ‘And for Qué bands, why play elsewhere shen the best shows are within the province? J Mongrain says, “[Across Canada, there's) lots Pot driving, not many venues or promoters: We ere lucky to play like ten shows in fourteen days. Sometimes the crowd was good, say 200 Sometimes not, say 50. Many other bands from ‘Québec have done i, same thing. I's pretty hard fora band to our Canada if you're not with a big act and play big clubs. The big tours Usually go to Montreal, Québec City, Edmonton, Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary, and thats it. The local seenes across Canada are not very healthy” Québec is another planet. You can play twenty shows al around and there'l be at least 150 to, 500 people depending ofthe city. Touring in he States is way easier, you can play 45 shows fn 45 days, even if nobody knows you, Because ofthis, most bands end up focusing any touring efforts Stateside, but this resents Yet another obstacle for unsigned hands as fining access tothe country canbe rather tricky. Lemay remembers, "We have never been attracted fo [touring Canada) and it’s sad to say, I we're being honest about it. 'm not saying there aren't many metal fans in those provinces Du you go to Manitoba t play a show and ome on, i's so far apart and how many people Sy yer Se eae aA LU) WERE es Yaa ef Corea Rea) START Se lk EU Po ae = LIKE Ue [Bale as large enough ates but then it was always the Immigration thing, You need to have work permits and B 0 play a radio show oa show. You really nee to ave a record label behind i, other than that you're on your own and it's hard OMINOUS PROPHECY Considering the difficulties any Canadian band face, let alone one from Burnaby oF Medicine Hat, is no wonder the west has remained off F the radar For so long. Even just five years ago Bi would have seemed unimaginable, but seenes outside the metal Mecca ar finaly taking off and according to Kuruce are now growing at an unprecedented rate. “We started to really et into extreme metal inthe late 90s, and at the time, there wasnt whole lt going on out hire. Atleast 90 percent of the bands that were around in ritsh Columb, when we tarted off In 1999/2000, are no longer around However, the western Canadian metal scene is exploding with talent these days, and there are ‘more awesome hands in the scene right now than there has been forthe last ten years.” may have taken longer but the foundation is strong and the fans ae there, all tking an active approach to promoting metal in westera Canada, bs Sikorski desribes, We stil is gaining strength ut is fragile atthe same time. Some stenes are smaller and fractured, wile others are much more organised, Scarab Productions just held @ Tis of I's kind Meal Conference in conjunction with t's NOCTI ll Concert. This conference featured record company execs fom around the world, and numerous local do-it-yourself people In hopes to foster local musicians and give them the tols they need to push their muscrbands road. Everything fom the business side of the Industry to how to record yourself seminars. We fre not the hub of the universe, bu iis now B considered by some that outside of Montreal! Calgary is one ofthe places to Belplay in westem Canada, With so many major tours stopping here ov, there isa markt for metal for centin aay ceUME , / N q "7 eee eR ean on Cen rer aT ta PTlelel TN Are PULTE ACO) OM CS laa Tee OATES MBC ar RO) OO) FETC Ae AnUeE LeU Len on: em KEVIN STEWART-PANKO PEERED INTO THE FUTURE, FROM THE PAST. “Erosion OFS ns st HF metal tomes to some them live, I got caught in a blizard 4 found them ind ended upsdding ofthe Sealy. S into a shallow ditch. Fast fo and strangled dual rummer schooled home in the id’ really think much once they heard intersted in the ban 5 mature Gorguts album, nity and this album fist step to putting areal fingerprint on the hole different line-Wp Leia ptt pe Ts Te ey Pe a 4 “a Mae eT ee Pee Leet Nes a a Cand rt BintBB problems. sighs Luc, pr fom the fst two albums, Steve Cloutier the Bassist, and Steve Hurdle, the other gut iyocalist, were both the main writers in their Devious bands and Iwas always the main writer in Gorguts. So, i was three principal writers fom three bands coming and the ideas were ‘coming fom all over the place, so there wa Aitferen chemistry inthe composition department relly curious about different id’ want trendy guitar articulation fst picking and sq pls aiff nds fucked up tnd you cant even tll i's a sting quart ven though fs the same instruments essence is ther, but the way of paying the instrument has evolved over time and that’ the approach we hod with “Obscura Lue should know. He’ pr 2 Montreal institute of nll in 4 composition course higher learning, has completed an orchestrated Piece based on old Gorguts riffs and his present project is what he describes asa “violent symphony” But that still doesn't explain where the hell the band have been since 1993. There were alt of line-up and record deal avin tld this Story a few hundred times alread. “Actally ‘Onscurs’ hasbeen writen since November 94. We Aid the lburn with royalty mo Tabe. So instead of siting at home and spending from our former the money on weed, we got an album together. We decided to do the whole album and planned to sell othe labels could have a beter idea uct. By the me we got the money from Roadrunner, Steve McDonald, drums), who he album with us, had been out ofthe band for almost a year and we did't havea drum. We drummer to learn Steve's pats and record the ab 5 anot n wth us, Then Steve came ba this summer. Also during that ime, we moved iLook time to vith Olympic from Sherbrooke to Mo workout some ofthe Records. Time moves prety quickly dosn't i Lac laughs, ood whole thing # MIND GAMES Not content with their new sonic ind Gorguts have a new surprising tured about the Iyreal lease one, t00. evar ri Pig FOR A STRING QUARTET fh : SR RST Te ae Tl Coa LST ie Gone are the gore and death references, in thelr place, a lose iyrical concept exploring death bby exploring life. Or something like that. steve Hurdle fs relly into Indian philosophies withthe guys who mediate, put themselves into a deep tance and study mind and bod” explains Luc. “They all believe inthe aspect of mind in oppesiton to flesh. Our es lays comes to an end but th powerful and mysterious and is capable of many Amazing things relating too The yr id by this and are very positive, We ca talk about death in very positive way because death is part of if. I was really happy having Steve being intersted in that Stuf. Musialy, we decided to say something alferent with ur nstuments snd I think this subject diferent and suits the musi perfectly uld't see myself singing about anything else Dbesause with tis music, you need to havea sol Sibject, not necessary serous, but meaning (On the topie of death, Gonguts recently {ook part in the ewenty-plus date Death Across America tour, a tour which by all Appeared to have much in common with a hardcore package ~ evidenced by the respect the bands held for each other, both musically Bone wel and is convincing, tb Dey and personally and their workin spreading the word that death metal i tll valid force to be reckoned with “We nad was really fucking coe 8 lot of new frends. Cryptopsy, eventhough they are from Montreal, we di’t really know them ‘We were sharing a van so we got to point Luc totaly agrees with ime. [have to say everybody. mn this tour and we made now them better, We met otally fucking col. It was family on tour, every help and there was alot of brotherood. What was ool was that t wasn't a four with Gonguts and suppor. I was abil of brutality, musicianship and heavy music right from beginning to end” Having been a part of such a death metal {your opinion on the oss the continent? ary supertour, state of the gente a Death metal ster, isnot dead, even rithout the commercial focus of ive years ago Death metal fan respect what the bands are doing because it's a sive that’s very well with snsiianship fom Cryptopsy, Morb Suffocation and soon, This total vir to me anyway. think i a style that allows for creativity without syle imitations. You can pt any kind idea into this extreme musi, and i's respecte, Ifyou open your mind, death metat has the potential to be more avantgarde than other yes of metal whi ingredients, like the hip-hop metal thing, for example. However, don't ell ike the death metal tag anymore I's extreme music we'e talking about Beause with ll the progress and 5 that have been accepted nto this type Of muse, can just be called death mea.” Se ais Cy Acti Eade ee Cam s > <EVERYONE WANTS TO BE EITHER PROGRESSIVE OR TECHNICAL, RUN PICU Ur emcee ean Te am Ty Pea PENT rh arm NUR OLe MET Une Ter PSAP n a a PU ena nee eaKo PERU ee M URES ES UNO ENNELY REE ar Ree en snwest nt hee SR TT Cle et Be ‘PROGRESSIVE’.” Can Sgee a CUE a SAAT a Cs Ua eA Tae Te Sa CR aaaDESOLATE WAY TECHNICA ROGRESSIVE DEATH METAL RO ea pare PS RU oe Ce V7 Ata ord angmy neural passageways, Luc Lemay fired the ‘Erosion OF Sanity’ line-up n 1993, hired three Steves, ft dropped from Roadrunner and elpated in what looks ikea dark yoga HePhoto shoot for ‘Obscura’, he weirdest death Pica album ever. Whats so interesting about Js that it avoids all the typical language of esth metal atthe time: there's no tremolo cking, barely any chugging, no urgled or Eftural vocals, no fourfour Slayer beats, no jonchead breakdowns. Instead we're treated Bo this groaning, seasick riffing style that at its best sounds like a Chinese couple arguing ‘over baby names. The vocals are a lonesome {uo of anguished wolves aimlessly wandering the Arctic night and the drums sputter, tinker, and blast like alien ty soldiers come to life Te listened to the last two Gorguts records Ihundreds of times each and am exponentially awestruck atthe dissonant 20th Century THE WORLD, YOU MUST HAVE IDEAS.” technical music could have heen progressive in 3 gente ike death metal, a a point where nobody else had done it befor, namely playing on a ‘more complex level within the style. Nowadays, where lot ofthe bands inthe scene have caught up the level of techni, is anything bu progressive, because most ofthe bands maintsin a ertain level of technicality at least onthe record In the stulo. Having sai that, the question is what exactly does ‘technical’ mean? I think ics safe to assume that the the ter tech al opinion of what al music’ means in deth metal sits music that's harder to perfor than your involves techniques of the instrumentalists that are not widely wed in fing for example. Also the complexity of rhythm and measure and the ability to perform complex 5 death meta pats a the high tempo that lot is performed at. Playing highly technical music doesnot really require virwoshy, but skis that an be trained by anyone. Monkeys that can perform tricks on thei instruments are cool, man éspecaly i the number of ellowers i high Raw skill ae just ool that can be wed to expres musical erty, chops, ‘echnical’ et eas, and not necessarily good ones either, notes Johnston. “1 liken many of these shredder’ \ypes to someone who can type 150 wpm but realy has nothing to say ~ no interesting point of view, no new ideas.. just a monkey with utitarian sil but no creative Insight, Watching the guitarist in Dragonforce i ike watching a ‘seasoned mechanic overhaul an engine or an TF guy assemble a computer. Much of this tech shit boils down to repetitive academic exerises masquerading as music. Tot oftechiprog metal these days seems like a sort of detached grat school confectionery or precious art-damaged Ina sterile way. Nobody wants to et thie hand! too diy or mess up their har. ike to hear Tunatis lke Gorguts who would eat of the floor and go beyond what’ acceptable to channel FEEDING THE ABSCESS As the bar of expense and finesse has se, the : igh not completely fivorced from the ides of using advanced sills to convey a unique sound, has seen bands dig ‘even deeper Int the framework that shaped the genre to begin with, mixing notes and chords ike deranged if alchemists, redeining beats and roove inthe sprit of mad science. As Grouse points out progressive in terms of death metal has in many instances distanced self from technicalities and bands that may have atone time been candidates forthe progressive label don't it into death metals well a they did in the pas. Progressive isn't a technical term, is conceptual. I ‘of sound you dont have to be the speediest sian inthe word, you must have ideas, 1s want to create a new kind like Meshuggah, Devin Townscnd, or Opeth Technique is usta too that helps to create, only. Indeed, Opeth, Textures, acrid, Gojira and (Quo Vadis are all examples of bands who have {incorporated traditional DM stylings into an unprecedented sound many purists have trouble ssrallowing but despite seemingly branehing off Into opposite galaxies of space, there ae plenty fof bands who do effectively prove thatthe twa) are still compatible, innovative, and relevant. The technical saavy and forward thinking movements ofthe likes of Martyr, Decapitated "Asis, Decrepit Birth and Psyeropte are undeniably extraordinary and cuting-e ‘hacer thinks the climate is better than ever don't think any of us imagined ie would play our like it has 25 years later with ll of he subgentes and open mindedness. I's a grand ‘old time for musica at, and 1am very excited fo be making @ new album inthis landscape 1 funny to me thatthe term progresive fs now a tied term, when in the erly 30s we begged for journalists to understand what that meant. Progressive is used far to loosely these ays for sure, Many think chat just having a keyboard player in the band automatically makes them prog. For me it should only be used for people breaking new ground you know? Some ands of toi 9 are what I ike to cll ‘digressivell etl: Buta band like Gojira for instance, they fate progressive to me ‘cos the ate changing the pant, they are carving new crevices in metal going and taking it to new places, and | give them a huge round of applause fr that" SCE