Possessed is an American death metal band, originally formed in 1983. Noted for their fast style of playing and Jeff Becerra's growled vocals, they are often called the first band in the death metal genre, and paved the way for the 1980s Bay Area thrash metal scene, along with Metallica, Exodus, Testament and Death Angel. The band is also notable for featuring future Primus guitarist Larry LaLonde, who was the guitarist for Possessed from 1984 to 1987.
Pestilence is a Dutch death metal band from Enschede, founded in 1986. There have been numerous lineup changes with the band over their 36-year career, with guitarist and vocalist Patrick Mameli as the only constant member. After disbanding in order to pursue other musical directions in 1994, Pestilence reunited in 2008, and was put on a "permanent hold" in July 2014. However, the band reunited once again in October 2016. To date, Pestilence has released nine studio albums, and they are often known as part of "progressive death metal's Big Four", along with Death, Atheist, and Cynic.
Technical death metal is a musical subgenre of death metal that began and developed in the early- to mid-1990s, with particular focus on challenging, demanding instrumental skill and complex songwriting.
Testimony of the Ancients is the third album by the Dutch death metal band Pestilence, released in 1991 on Roadrunner Records. This was their first release with a new lineup, with Tony Choy replacing Martin van Drunen on bass, while guitarist Patrick Mameli filled in for the latter on vocals.
Malleus Maleficarum is the debut album by the Dutch death metal band Pestilence, released in 1988. Although the sound of this album is technically death metal, its direction is notably different from the band's subsequent work, leaning more towards the thrash metal genre with punk influences, known as crossover thrash. This is the only Pestilence album to include guitarist Randy Meinhard, who was replaced by Patrick Uterwijk prior to the making of their next album Consuming Impulse (1989).
Consuming Impulse is the second album by Dutch death metal band Pestilence, released in 1989. While retaining some of the thrash metal elements from its predecessor Malleus Maleficarum (1988), Consuming Impulse saw the band progress further towards the traditional death metal genre with progressive influences; this can be seen as one of the earliest examples of technical death metal, a subgenre that would be used and expanded on Pestilence's subsequent albums. Consuming Impulse was also their first release with then-new guitarist Patrick Uterwijk, and their last one to feature bassist and vocalist Martin van Drunen.
Once Was Not is the fifth album by Canadian technical death metal band Cryptopsy.
Creepmime were a Dutch death metal band active from 1991 to 1997, and recorded two full-length albums, both on Mascot Records.
Cynic is an American progressive metal band formed in Miami, Florida in 1987 which incorporates elements of progressive rock, alternative rock, and extreme metal. Their first album, Focus, released on September 14, 1993, is widely regarded as a landmark release of the progressive metal genre. Cynic disbanded in 1994, but they reunited in 2006 and released their second album on November 17, 2008. Traced in Air was released through French label Season of Mist, followed up by an EP titled Re-Traced on May 18, 2010 and an EP titled Carbon-Based Anatomy on November 11, 2011. Their third studio album, Kindly Bent to Free Us, was released on February 14, 2014. In December 2017, after two years of an uncertain future, founding member Sean Reinert confirmed his split from Cynic. Reinert died at the age of 48 on January 24, 2020. A longtime Cynic bass player, Sean Malone, died at the age of 50 eleven months later, leaving Masvidal as the only remaining original core member left.
Resurrection Macabre is the fifth studio album by Dutch technical death metal band Pestilence, which was released on 16 March 2009. It is the band's first album of original material in 16 years, since 1993's Spheres and this fact is referenced in the album's title; hence resurrection. Re-recordings of earlier Pestilence songs make appearances as bonus tracks on the record; "Chemo Therapy" from Malleus Maleficarum and "Out of the Body" from Consuming Impulse.
Secret Sphere is an Italian symphonic power metal band from Alessandria, formed by guitarist Aldo Lonobile in July 1997.
Secrets is the sixth studio album by guitarist Allan Holdsworth, released in 1989 through Intima Records; a remastered edition was reissued in 2008 through Eidolon Efformation. The album features drummer Vinnie Colaiuta, rather than regular collaborator Chad Wackerman; Wackerman did, however, write and perform drums on the song "Peril Premonition".
Patrick Mameli is a Dutch death metal singer and guitarist who is best known for his work with technical death metal band Pestilence.
MetalSucks is a heavy metal music-themed news website. The site features reviews, interviews, information on latest metal releases and blog-like posts from the writers, most notably Vince Neilstein and Axl Rosenberg.
Tombs is an American metal band from Brooklyn, New York, formed in 2007. Thus far, the group has released five full-length records, Winter Hours, Path of Totality, Savage Gold, The Grand Annihilation, and Under Sullen Skies.
Doctrine is the sixth studio album by Dutch technical death metal band Pestilence, which was released on April 24, 2011. The album was recorded and mixed at Woodshed Studio in southern Germany with engineer Victor "V.Santura" Bullok. The artwork was designed by Marko Saarelainen. The album represents a second release by the reformed Pestilence, with two new members: Yuma van Eekelen and Jeroen Paul Thesseling, who was a member of the band during the Spheres era. Technically, the album is an experimentation with very low tunings, with Mameli and Uterwijk playing on 8-string guitars with standard tuning, and Thesseling playing a 7-string fretless bass tuned in f# sharp.
Stéphane Paut, known professionally as Neige, is a French songwriter, singer, multi-instrumentalist musician, and record producer from Bagnols-sur-Cèze, now relocated to Paris. He is the founder of the black metal/shoegaze project Alcest and also the founder for the now-defunct Amesoeurs.
Obsideo is the seventh studio album by Dutch death metal band Pestilence. It was released on October 21, 2013 via Candlelight Records. The album was produced by the vocalist/guitarist Patrick Mameli, and their last before their two-year hiatus from 2014 to 2016. According to Mameli, the album's overall lyrical theme is "the journey of the human soul." This is the final Pestilence album to feature lead and rhythm guitarist Patrick Uterwijk, who had been with the band since Consuming Impulse in 1989.
Hadeon is the eighth studio album by Dutch death metal band Pestilence. It was released digitally on 26 January 2018, nearly two months ahead of its scheduled release date; a physical component of the album was released on 9 March 2018. Hadeon is the band's first album since their two-year hiatus from 2014 to 2016, and the first one since Malleus Maleficarum (1988) not to feature longtime lead and rhythm guitarist Patrick Uterwijk.
Arcadea is an American synth-metal band from Atlanta, formed in 2015 by Mastodon drummer Brann Dailor, Zruda guitarist Core Atoms, and guitarist Raheem Amlani. Arcadea's self-titled album was released in June 2017 via Relapse Records.
