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Mortification are an Australian Christian extreme metal band formed in 1987 by bassist and singer Steve Rowe. They were originally called Lightforce. By 1990, in the Melbourne suburb of Moorabbin, they were renamed as Mortification with the line-up of Rowe, guitarist Michael Carlisle, and drummer Jayson Sherlock. Mortification has released fourteen studio albums, three compilation albums, three extended plays, six live discs, one demo album, one box set, and several videos on major metal record labels such as Nuclear Blast. They were one of the first successful extreme Christian metal acts, they would later serve as inspiration for similar bands.
Paramaecium was an Australian death/doom metal band formed in 1991. There is use of instrumentation like flutes, cellos and violins on some albums. Paramaecium is one of the few doom metal bands that focus on Christian lyrical themes and Christian concepts. According to Doom-metal.com, "what sets Paramaecium apart from other bands in the doom metal scene, is the fact that they are the only Christian death/doom band that made it to the top of the genre."
Horde is the unblack metal solo project of Australian musician Jayson Sherlock, formerly of Mortification and Paramaecium. In 1994, the only studio album, Hellig Usvart, was released on Nuclear Blast Records. With a session line-up, Horde played live in 2006 in Norway and in 2010 in Finland and Germany. Hellig Usvart proved to be a seminal release for the unblack metal movement, and the album was highly controversial in the secular black metal scene at the time it was released.
Unblack metal is a religious philosophy and subgenre within black metal, inheriting several characteristics of it, such as the melody, the lyrics and the aesthetics, whose artists either directly oppose the Satanism prevalent in most black metal, or promote Christianity in their lyrics and imagery. Unblack metal artists are controversial within the black metal subculture, because black metal's pioneers, especially those of the Second Wave, were anti-Christian. It is also suggested that Christianity contradicts black metal's dark nature and the individualistic and misanthropic ideals of many bands.
Exhumed of the Earth is the debut album by Paramaecium. It was released in 1993. Exhumed of the Earth is considered to be one of the landmarks of both doom metal and Christian metal movements.
Scrolls of the Megilloth is the second studio album by Australian Christian extreme metal band Mortification. It was released on 28 August 1992. The band's most famous release, this album is full-on death metal, with the thrash metal roots barely showing, and possibly their most extreme album to date. According to AllMusic, the album "garnered the band some attention from the heavy metal underground" and contains "some of the most frightening vocals ever recorded." In 2010, HM Magazine ranked Scrolls of the Megilloth number 17 on the Top 100 Christian Metal Albums of All Time list with Van Pelt stating that "Though the band has been living it down ever since, this album raised the standard of Christian grindcore to almost unattainable levels."
Kekal is a heavy metal and electronic music band formed in 1995 in Jakarta, Indonesia. According to AllMusic, Kekal was one of the first heavy metal bands from Indonesia to make international inroads, and according to sociologist of heavy metal, Keith Kahn-Harris, was one of the few extreme metal bands from Southeast Asia to ever make more than a minimal impression on the global scene. Founded by two musicians known simply Yeris and Newbabe, the band underwent some shifts in lineup in its early years, but emerged with a consistent lineup of three key-members, guitarist/vocalist Jeff Arwadi, bassist Azhar Levi Sianturi, and guitarist Leo Setiawan. Frequently labeled as black metal, progressive metal, and avant-garde metal, Kekal plays a very diverse range of music styles within the frame of metal and rock, incorporating many other music genres such as ambient, electronic, jazz fusion, and progressive rock. Over the course of its career, Kekal has transitioned from a heavy metal-based style to a more experimental and electronic sound.
Hellig Usvart is the debut studio album by Australian unblack metal band Horde, released on Nuclear Blast Records in 1994. Upon its release, the album created a controversy among many black metal fans; death threats were sent to Nuclear Blast demanding the label to drop the album from its catalogue because the album contains Christian, anti-satanic lyrics, counteracting the usual black metal thematics at the time. As a result of the strong lyrical contradiction, the album was thought to be a parody of the Norwegian black metal movement by magazines such as Morgenbladet in 1995.
The Habit of Fire is a 2007 album by Indonesian avant-garde metal band Kekal. Released on 15 May in North America, Japan & Australia and 15 March in Europe & South America, it is their sixth full-length album. The album was constructed during Jeff's move to Canada, and was the last album recorded in his home studio in Indonesia. There is an official music video for the song "Isolated I".
Jayson Sherlock is a Christian metal musician from Australia. He began his career in the Australian death metal band Mortification, which was considered to be a major pioneer in the genre. Sherlock was the founder of the one-man project unblack metal band Horde, in which he played every instrument. He has also been in other bands such as Paramaecium, inExordium, Altera Enigma, and Soundscape. During 2012, he was the drummer for Deliverance. He is currently the drummer for the death metal band Revulsed.
Alteration is the debut album by Australian/Indonesian band Altera Enigma, recorded over 2 years and released in January 2006. The emotional and sophisticated style found on the album drew comparisons to Liquid Tension Experiment, Gordian Knot, and Cynic.
Andrew Tompkins is the lead vocalist and bassist for the Australian doom metal band Paramaecium, which was considered to be the biggest Christian doom metal band.
Jason De Ron is a musician from Melbourne, Australia, most notable for being the former guitarist for the death/doom band Paramaecium and co founder and guitarist of the avant garde/progressive metal band Altera Enigma.
Acidity is the fifth album by Indonesian avant-garde metal band Kekal. It was recorded in celebration of the band's tenth anniversary, and was an official reunion album for the band. It marked the return of guitarist Leo Setiawan to the band, and includes the vocal talents of founding member Newbabe. The album was released following the band's successful 2004 European mini-tour, and a promotional concert and release party was held for the album on 13 March 2005 in Indonesia. It was considered by many to be the band's strongest work to date, and is one of four albums available for free download from the band on its website.
Audible Minority is the seventh full-length studio album by Indonesian experimental metal band Kekal. According to the band, the album is titled "Audible Minority" because the music on the album is of extreme minority status, and is "entirely bleak, gloom and dark." They also said that the album was constructed over almost two years, during various events in the band members lives. Jeff Arwadi recorded the entire songs on this album all by himself, and started shortly after he moved to Canada in 2006.
Embrace the Dead is the second album by Indonesian extreme metal band Kekal. It reached sold-out status in 2004. On 15 August 2010, a new, remastered limited edition entitled Embrace the Dead 1999 was released as a free download, for up to a 1000 downloads. On 18 May 2012, Kekal made the re-mastered edition available for purchase on Bandcamp, citing exorbitant prices for second-hand copies of the original album on sites like Amazon.
The Painful Experience is the third full-length studio album by Indonesian extreme metal band Kekal. It marks the transition of Kekal from straightforward melodic black metal to a more distinct progressive metal style, while still retaining the intensity and speed. The title refers to the recording sessions for Embrace the Dead. Guitarist Leo Setiawan left the band before the recording sessions began and moved to Melbourne, Australia, but he was still listed on the album credits as a guitarist due to his contribution to the album's songwriting and general concept. The album was released by four independent labels: Fear Dark in the Netherlands for the European market, Clenchedfist Records in the United States for the North American market, Indonesian label THT Productions for the Southeast Asian market, and HROM/HIRAX for Eastern European market.
8 is the eighth full-length studio album by Indonesian experimental metal band Kekal, announced on 23 June 2010, and made available for purchase on 23 January 2011. While the band has no officially active members, former members Jeff, Leo, and Levi all contributed to the album. The album was set to be released by Whirlwind Records during December 2010, on CD and as a digital download, and on 15 December 2010, the album was available for pre-order, which included an offer of free shipping within Europe up to December 24.
Jefray Kurnia "Jeff" Arwadi is an Indonesian musician, music producer, and graphic designer. A native of Jakarta, Indonesia, he now resides in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. He is mostly known as a former guitarist, vocalist, and record producer for the avant-garde/progressive metal band Kekal. Professionally, he has made a career as a graphic designer and has worked at various companies for more than a decade. In the past, he was also known in the music scene for his works as a freelance graphic designer under Soundmind Graphics, and until his 2006 move to Canada, Jeff owned and ran his own home-based recording studio, Vision Studio, in Jakarta. He also was a staff member of the record label THT Productions. In addition to his roles in Kekal, he was also the co-founder of progressive metal project Altera Enigma and was involved with bands such as Armageddon Holocaust and Inner Warfare.
Revulsed is a technical/brutal death metal band that originated in Australia in 2010. Revulsed's debut album Infernal Atrocity was featured on No Clean Singing and Trevor Strnad of the Black Dahlia Murder's best albums of 2015 lists.
References
- 1 2 3 4 Sharpe-Young, Gary. "Altera Enigma". MusicMight. Archived from the original on 3 October 2012. Retrieved 24 November 2010.
- 1 2 Morrow, Matt. "Altera Enigma - Alteration". TheWhippingPost. Retrieved 10 December 2012.
- ↑ Lang, Stefan. "ALTERA ENIGMA: Interview mit Jason De Ron". Power Metal.de. Retrieved 6 January 2011. (in German)
- ↑ Necrowild, Willy (3 April 2006). "Altera Enigma - In Depth Interview". NekroBlog. Retrieved 6 January 2011.
- 1 2 Altera Enigma (25 December 2010). "Bio : Band History and Introduction". Altera Enigma. Archived from the original on 16 February 2011. Retrieved 6 January 2011.
- ↑ Altera Enigma (25 December 2010). "Discography". Altera Enigma. Archived from the original on 16 February 2011. Retrieved 6 January 2011.
- ↑ DeRon, Jason (2 March 2010). "March 2010 Updates". Altera Enigma. Archived from the original on 16 February 2011. Retrieved 6 January 2011.
- ↑ Altera Enigma (28 May 2011). "Update : Album Progress". Altera Enigma. Retrieved 6 January 2011.
