Venom is an English heavy metal band from Newcastle upon Tyne. Formed in 1979, the group originally featured drummer Anthony Bray, rhythm guitarist Conrad Lant, lead guitarist Jeffrey Dunn, vocalist Clive Archer and bassist Alan Winston. The band currently consists of Lant (on lead vocals and bass since 1980, who was absent between 1988 and 1995), guitarist Stuart "Rage" Dixon (since 2007) and drummer Danny "Dante" Needham (since 2009).
Early on, bassist Winston left and Lant switched to bass. [1] Each band member soon adopted a stage name for use in Venom – Bray as "Abaddon", Lant as "Cronos", Dunn as "Mantas" and Archer as "Christus". [2] Archer was credited as "Jesus Christ" on the band's first demo tape Demon, released in 1980. [3] Shortly after the demo's release, the decision was made to dismiss the vocalist and continue Venom as a three-piece, as Cronos had begun taking over the role. [2] The band's lineup remained stable for the release of four studio albums between 1981 and 1985, before Mantas left in 1986. [4]
For 1987's Calm Before the Storm , Abaddon and Cronos brought in guitarists Mike Hickey and Jim Clare. [2] The following year, however, the frontman decided to leave Venom and form his own eponymous band, with both new members joining him in the group's initial lineup. [5] Cronos was replaced by former Atomkraft frontman Tony "Demolition Man" Dolan early the following year, as Mantas returned and Al Barnes was added on rhythm guitar and bass. [2] After the release of Prime Evil , Tear Your Soul Apart and Temples of Ice , Barnes left Venom; he was replaced by Steve "War Maniac" White, who joined alongside keyboardist Dave "VXS" Young for 1992's The Waste Lands . Dolan, Mantas and Abaddon continued performing as a trio, [6] before Cronos returned in time for a headlining show at Holland's Waldrock Festival on 24 June 1995. [7]
Abaddon, the only remaining constant member of Venom, left the group in 1999 and was replaced by Cronos' brother Anthony "Antton" Lant. [4] In February 2002, Venom was put on hiatus after Cronos was injured in a climbing accident. [8] The group returned in 2004, with Hickey (now under the name "Mykvs") returning to replace the departed Mantas. [9] Mykvs was later replaced by Stuart "La Rage" Dixon in early 2007. [10] Antton then left to focus on his other band Def-Con-One in 2009, [11] with Danny "Dante" Needham taking his place a month later. [12]
| Image | Name | Years active | Instruments | Release contributions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conrad "Cronos" Lant |
|
| all Venom releases from Demon demo (1980) to Calm Before the Storm (1987), and from Venom '96 (1996) onwards | |
| Stuart "Rage" Dixon | 2007–present |
| all releases from Hell (2008) onwards | |
| Danny "Dante" Needham | 2009–present |
| all releases from Fallen Angels (2011) onwards |
| Image | Name | Years active | Instruments | Release contributions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Anthony "Abaddon" Bray | 1979–1999 |
| all Venom releases from Demon demo (1980) to Cast in Stone (1997) | |
| Jeffrey "Mantas" Dunn |
|
| all Venom releases from Demon demo (1980) to Resurrection (2000), except Calm Before the Storm (1987) | |
| Clive "Jesus Christ" Archer | 1979–1980 | lead vocals | Demon demo (1980) | |
| Alan Winston | 1979 | bass | none | |
| Mike "Mykvs" Hickey |
|
|
| |
| Jim Clare | 1986–1988 |
| Calm Before the Storm (1987) | |
| Tony "Demolition Man" Dolan | 1989–1995 |
|
| |
| Al Barnes | 1989–1991 |
|
| |
| Steve "War Maniac" White | 1991–1992 | rhythm guitar | The Waste Lands (1992) | |
| Trevor "VSX" Sewell | keyboards | |||
| Anthony "Antton" Lant | 1999–2009 |
|
|
| Period | Members | Releases |
|---|---|---|
| 1979 |
| none |
| 1979–1980 |
|
|
| 1980–1986 |
|
|
| 1986–1988 |
|
|
| 1988–1991 |
|
|
| 1991–1992 |
|
|
| 1992–1995 |
| none |
| 1995–1999 |
|
|
| 1999–2002 |
|
|
| Band on hiatus 2002–2004 | ||
| March 2004 – January 2007 |
|
|
| January 2007 – April 2009 |
|
|
| May 2009 – present |
|
|
Venom are an English heavy metal band formed in Newcastle upon Tyne in 1978. Coming to prominence towards the end of the new wave of British heavy metal, Venom's first two albums, Welcome to Hell (1981) and Black Metal (1982), are considered major influences on thrash metal and extreme metal in general. Their second album proved influential enough that its title was used as the name of the black metal genre; as a result, Venom were part of the early wave of the genre, along with Mercyful Fate and Bathory.
Black Metal is the second album by English heavy metal band Venom. It was released in November 1982 during the new wave of British heavy metal, and is considered a major influence on the thrash metal, death metal and black metal scenes that emerged in the 1980s and early 1990s.
Conrad Thomas Lant, also known by his stage name Cronos, is an English musician. He is the founder, vocalist and bassist of heavy metal band Venom.
Welcome to Hell is the debut studio album by English heavy metal band Venom released in December 1981 through Neat Records. After various line-up changes and recording several demo tapes in Impulse Studios, Venom gained success and attention with the single "In League with Satan", their dark, satanic image and their fast, raw sound. The band re-recorded all of the demos' songs, which Neat Records released as an album.
At War with Satan is the third album by the British heavy metal band Venom, released in April 1984. It is a concept album that tells the story of a war between Heaven and Hell which the latter side wins. It was touted as Venom's crossover into mainstream music, but failed to do so. Shortly after it went on sale, the HMV record chain withdrew the album from its shelves because of its anti-Christian content.
Possessed is the fourth studio album by English heavy metal band Venom, released on 8 April 1985. It is the band's last studio album to feature guitarist Jeffrey Dunn before his first departure from the band in 1986. At the time of its release, it received mixed reviews, even from critics who had liked Venom's earlier albums; Possessed was thought to be in another league as compared to the band's earlier works, even though much of the material on Possessed was written before the release of its predecessor, At War with Satan. It was the first Venom album recorded outside of Impulse Studios. The song "Possessed" is ranked No. 14 on the Parents Music Resource Center's "Filthy Fifteen", a list of the 15 songs the group found to be most objectionable.
Jeffrey "Mantas" Dunn is a British guitarist and one of the founding members of the heavy metal band Venom, with which he played as a guitarist from 1979 to 1985 and 1989 to 2002. He plays in Venom Inc. alongside fellow former Venom member bassist/vocalist Tony Dolan.
Calm Before the Storm is the fifth studio album by British heavy metal band Venom. The original title of the album would have been Deadline, but the title was changed when guitarist Jeffrey "Mantas" Dunn left the band and was replaced by Jimi Clare and Mike Hickey. Both were to follow bassist Conrad "Cronos" Lant in his later solo career and the latter would also return on the 2006 album Metal Black.
Cronos were an English heavy metal band formed in 1988 by Venom frontman Conrad "Cronos" Lant.
Prime Evil is the sixth studio album by British heavy metal band Venom. It was released in 1989 and is the first in a series of three albums with Atomkraft bassist and vocalist Tony Dolan, replacing Conrad "Cronos" Lant, as a band member and composer.
Régis Lant, better known as Nornagest, is a vocalist and writer, best known for his vocal works with the black metal band Enthroned and Absu's self-titled release.
Eine kleine Nachtmusik is a live album released by English heavy metal band Venom in 1986. It contains partial recordings of two different concerts with two different setlists. The first disc contains a show recorded at Hammersmith Odeon in London on 8 October 1985 and the second disc recorded at The Ritz in New York City on 4 and 5 April 1986. The title Eine kleine Nachtmusik is German for "A Little Night Music". The title is taken from Mozart's piece of the same name.
Antony "Antton" Lant is an English drummer, best known for his time with thrash metal band Venom. He was the band's drummer from 2000 to 2009 and recorded three albums with them. His oldest brother is Graham Lant, former drummer of Prefab Sprout,. He is a direct cousin of the frontman of Enthroned, Nornagest.
"Countess Bathory" is a song by English heavy metal band Venom. The song originally appeared on the band's 1982 album Black Metal as well as their 1986 live album Eine kleine Nachtmusik.
Miasma is an EP by the British band Hecate Enthroned that was released on 4 July 2001 via Blackend Records. It has six tracks, one of which is a hidden bonus cover of Venom's "Buried Alive".
Venom Inc. are a British heavy metal band from Newcastle upon Tyne. Formed in 2015, the band features former Venom member Tony "Demolition Man" Dolan, and previously Jeffrey "Mantas" Dunn and Anthony "Abaddon" Bray. Bray was replaced by Jeramie "War Machine" Kling in 2018, who was replaced by Marc "JXN" Jackson in 2024. The group has released two studio albums.
"In League with Satan" is the first song released by the English extreme metal band Venom. It was released on 17 April 1981 as a single with the B-side "Live Like an Angel" by Neat Records and later appeared on the band's first album, Welcome to Hell. The song has been cited as the first black metal song and is also often cited by critics who claim a connection between heavy metal and Satanism.
"Bloodlust" is a single released by English speed metal band Venom on August 13, 1982 through Neat Records. It is the bands second single and the follow-up to their debut single "In League with Satan".
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