Atrocities is the fourth studio album by American rock band Christian Death, released in 1986 through record label Normal.
Christian Death is an American rock band formed in Los Angeles County, California, in 1979 by Rozz Williams. With major line-up changes over the years, Christian Death has retained "a relentlessly confrontational stand against organized religion and conventional morality".
The Adolescents are an American punk rock band formed in Fullerton, California in 1979. Part of the hardcore punk movement in southern California in the early 1980s, they were one of the main punk acts to emerge from Orange County, along with their peers in Agent Orange and Social Distortion. Founding bassist Steve Soto was the sole constant member of the band since its inception until his 2018 death, with singer Tony Reflex being in the group for all but one album.
Rozz Williams was an American singer and songwriter known for his work with the bands Christian Death, Shadow Project, and the industrial project Premature Ejaculation. Christian Death is cited by some as a pioneer of the American gothic rock scene as well as deathrock, and is considered to be one of the most influential figures of the scene. However, Williams disliked the "goth" label and actively worked to shed it during the 1980s and 1990s by focusing on punk rock, hard rock, cabaret, and spoken word music. Williams was also involved with his groups Daucus Karota, Heltir, EXP, Bloodflag, and his own version of Christian Death, along with recording a handful of solo albums. In addition to music, Williams was also an avid painter, poet, and collage artist.
Eva Ortiz, better known as Eva O, is a music artist most notable for her previous works in Christian Death and a band she formed with her then-husband Rozz Williams called Shadow Project. Regarded as a veteran and "one of the most striking figures of the American Gothic scene," Eva O has had a significant influence on the emerging death rock movement, which garnered her the "Queen of Darkness" title from the press and audience. She is known for her heavy guitar playing style and dramatic, authoritative vocals.
Shadow Project was a rock band formed in 1987 featuring former members of Los Angeles deathrock groups Christian Death and Super Heroines. After recording two LPs the group experienced a three-year hiatus, reconvening for a third and final album. Shadow Project definitively folded after vocalist Rozz Williams committed suicide on April 1, 1998. The band briefly returned in 2019 under the moniker "Shadow Project 1334" for 13 shows only, vowing to never perform again together after that.
Karim George Chmielinski, known professionally as Casey Chaos, is an American musician, best known as the lead singer of Amen. His music has encompassed a number of styles, including hardcore punk, death rock and nu metal.
Pompeii 99 was an American post-punk band formed in Los Angeles in 1981. They released one single and one album before the core members of the band joined Rozz Williams for a new version of Christian Death in 1983, and eventually continued with the Christian Death name after all the original members had left the group. Aside from Kand, the main songwriter during this period was Cram Netod, who later went on to perform with Double Naught Spy Car.
Only Theatre of Pain is the debut studio album by the American rock band Christian Death, released on March 24, 1982, by the Frontier record label.
Catastrophe Ballet is the second studio album by American rock band Christian Death. It was released in 1984, through record label Contempo.
Mephisto Walz are an American rock band formed in 1985. The band's discography includes many full-length albums spanning nearly three decades, through Cleopatra Records and other labels.
Richard Francis "Rikk" Agnew Jr. is an American musician with a career spanning more than 40 years. He has previously been a member of some of the most influential bands of the Orange County hardcore punk genre, as well as the influential deathrock band Christian Death. During his years with the Adolescents, Agnew became known as one of the best guitarists in the Southern California hardcore punk scene.
Valor Kand is a singer, guitarist and songwriter best known for his involvement with Christian Death, an American death rock and gothic rock band.
The Scriptures was Christian Death's fifth album and is seen as an essay on comparative world religions. The liner notes state that the work is "a translation of world beliefs by Valor." The album, like Atrocities, is split into two acts, though later reissues would omit these subtitles. The first 10,000 versions of the original LP record came with a free seven inch single containing two songs: "Jezebel's Tribulation" and "Wraeththu". Some CD reissues of the album feature these songs as bonus tracks. The completion of recording on The Scriptures would see David Glass leave the group and like previous members Barry Galvin and Johann Schumann, would go on to play in Mephisto Walz.
Dreadful Shadows is a German rock band formed in 1993 in Berlin. Initially part of the gothic rock and dark wave movement, the band had developed considerably by the time of the release of their debut album, incorporating metal elements and modern electronics, causing the band to be considered part of the gothic metal genre. Dreadful Shadows disbanded in 2000 to work on separate projects.
Dream Home Heartache is an experimental dark cabaret collaboration album featuring American musicians Rozz Williams and Gitane Demone, both former members of Christian Death. It was released in late 1995 by Triple X Records after being recorded between March 28 and April 5, 1995 in the Netherlands. Williams and Demone toured Europe and North America in support of the album, provoking a riot in Mexico City when fans were unable to enter the sold-out venue. The album is named after the Roxy Music song "In Every Dream Home a Heartache", a cover of which is the first and last track. The album features synthesisers, pianos and accordions, with cabaret-influenced vocals.
Sex and Drugs and Jesus Christ is the sixth album by American deathrock band Christian Death. It was released on 18 October 1988.
The Wind Kissed Pictures is an EP by American deathrock band Christian Death, and is the debut release featuring Valor Kand on vocals. It was released in 1985 through Nostradamus Records and has spawned one single, "Believers of the Unpure". On the album, the band's title is made longer, calling themselves For Sin and Sacrifice Must We Die a Christian Death. Allmusic gave the album two stars out of five. However, they claimed it to be "some of the finest post-Rozz Williams work Christian Death would produce."
Paris Anthony Sadonis is a Los Angeles-based keyboardist, painter, performance artist and musician.
All by Myself is the debut solo studio album by the American multi-instrumentalist Rikk Agnew. It was originally released in October 1982, on the label Frontier. It was produced by Agnew, and co-produced by the then-Adolescents producer Thom Wilson. Agnew played all the instruments on the album. The band D.I., which Agnew joined in 1983, included cover versions of the songs "O.C. Life", and "Falling Out" from this album for their debut album, Ancient Artifacts, which was released in 1985.
