Deicide: End Of The Wrath Of God – new video

Weather-wise, wrath of god is just beginning here – but such mundanities have no place under DEICIDE's new video ‘End Of The Wrath Of God’. We here have already determined that if you mistakenly think yourself cunning or shrewd, he thought of it first. Some have an issue with him, but others believe him to be as straightforward as it gets. DEICIDE and their memorable co-founder, vocalist and bassist Glen Benton are back and they don’t give a shit how the news reaches you because their reputation precedes them and anyway, what are the labels for? DEICIDE's eleventh album, ‘In The Minds Of Evil’, is out since November 25th/26th, 2013, through Century Media. Recorded at Audiohammer Studios in Sanford, Florida with Jason Suecof (with Ron Miller and Eyal Levy assisting), mastered by Alan Douches and its art created by Simon Cowell (I’m guessing not that Simon Cowell), the album sold 2,200 copies in the United States in its first week of release. The first DEICIDE album to feature guitarist Kevin Quirion which “features 11 high-quality slabs of muscular, vintage-sounding death metal with highlights arriving via the groove-laden title cut, the neck-snapping ‘Misery Of One’, and the brash, blasphemous, and nearly hummable ‘Kill The Light Of Christ”, according to James Christopher Monger, AllMusic (more here), should be humbly bought here (CM Disto Europe), here (CM Distro North America), via iTunes, Amazon etc. Btw, although Spotify isn’t available everywhere, ‘Misery Of One’ is available to those who have it in full there.

One of the founding fathers of death metal and easily one of the most influential and, of course, controversial bands ever, DEICIDE, was formed in 1987 in Florida by bassist Glen Benton and guitarist Brian Hoffman who brought his brother Eric (also guitarist) and drummer Steve Asheim along for the ride. Known as “Amon” in the beginning, the band released a couple of demos, became “Carnage” for a while and it was during the “Carnage” phase the band's frontrunner Benton reportedly stormed into Roadrunner Records office to demand a contract (“Sign us, you fucking asshole!” he allegedly said.) And the deal was duly signed. In 1989, the band became officially DEICIDE and as such they released their debut self-titled album in 1990. The Scott Burns-produced recording has since became the second bestselling death metal album of all time:

“Benton's vocals are actually one of the main features, as his guttural growl is touched up by production tricks to sound absolutely hideous and tortured as he spews his Satanic nonsense. At the time it seemed quite evil, and the press surrounding him suggested that he was willingly possessed by demons that sang through him. On top of that, he also claimed that since he was the antithesis of Jesus Christ, that he would kill himself at the age of 32 to mimic Christ's death. Heady stuff for a death metal band, but even though the gimmick may have banished them from the cover of Hit Parader, it didn’t take away from the effectiveness of the album,” [commented the album, the group and the state of affairs AllMusic's Bradley Torreano – more here:]

 

Revered by DEICIDE's fans, ‘Legion’ was issued in 1992 and ‘Once Upon A Cross’ followed in 1995:

Together with producer Scott Burns and their label, controversy-plagued DEICIDE continued to stand their (blasphemous) ground;  1997's ‘Serpents Of The Light’ (“Not music for the faint of heart,” noted Gred Prato, AllMusic) was followed by live album ‘When Satan Lives’ a year later, and by ‘Insineratehymn’ in 2000, DEICIDE's fifth long-player:

“The songs on this release each have unique qualities, and even some near-melodicism. That’s not to say that bassist/vocalist and bandleader Glen Benton decided to actually sing. His patented growls and groans remain unchanged, but within the slower, more focused riffs and arrangements, his godless messages has the room needed for maximum clarity and impact,” [commented Vincent Jeffries, AllMusic – more here:]

2001's live album, ‘In Torment, In Hell’, was the band's last issued through Roadrunner Records:

Following the release of DEICIDE's seventh studio album, ‘Scars Of The Crucifix’, in 2004 through Earache Records, Hoffman brothers (guitarists Brian and Eric), left the band after 17-year-long service in the name of the archfiend. The guitar positions were respectively filled by Jack Owen, Dave Suzuki and Ralph Santolla, yet DEICIDE's trademark extreme metal sound remained intact despite the lineup changes. ‘The Stench Of Redemption’ was released in 2006 (“The band's most consistent and satisfying release in over a decade,” thought Eduardo Rivadavia, AllMusic), followed by 2008's ‘Till Death Do Us Part’. In 2009 DEICIDE signed a worldwide record deal with Century Media and their tenth album which followed, had left Eduardo Rivadavia, AllMusic wondering if bandleader Glen Benton actually become a prisoner of this Satan-worshiping caricature of his own creation. He reasoned:

“While most of DEICIDE's original death metal co-legionaries gave themselves enough wiggle room to mature, evolve artistically, or simply grow the f**k up, Benton and his dead-eye-staring bandmates accepted the pressure of continually outdoing themselves in search of the next, most brutal sound and controversial lyric, only limiting their musical horizons in the process.” [More here]

DEICIDE did what they do best for the tenth time in February 2011. The album was called ‘To Hell With God’: 

DEICIDE features: Glen Benton – vocals and bass, Jack Owen – guitar, Steve Asheim – drums and Kevin Quirion – guitar