Doom metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music that typically uses slower tempos, low-tuned guitars and a much "thicker" or "heavier" sound than other heavy metal genres. Both the music and the lyrics are intended to evoke a sense of despair, dread, and impending doom. The genre is strongly influenced by the early work of Black Sabbath, who formed a prototype for doom metal. During the first half of the 1980s, a number of bands such as Witchfinder General and Pagan Altar from England, American bands Pentagram, Saint Vitus, the Obsessed, Trouble, and Cirith Ungol, and Swedish band Candlemass defined doom metal as a distinct genre. Pentagram, Saint Vitus, Trouble and Candlemass have been referred to as "the Big Four of Doom Metal".
Into the Pandemonium is the third studio album by Swiss extreme metal band Celtic Frost, released in 1987. The album marks the return of bassist and backing vocalist Martin Eric Ain, who appeared on 1984's Morbid Tales, but not the band's previous album.
Eric's Trip is a Canadian indie rock band from Moncton, New Brunswick. Eric's Trip achieved prominence as the first Canadian band to be signed to Seattle's flagship grunge label Sub Pop in the early 1990s. The band had a minor hit in alternative circles with the single "View Master", from the 1994 album Forever Again.
Racer X was an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1985. The group went through a hiatus and a few lineup changes, with bassist Juan Alderete being the sole constant member. They were signed to Shrapnel Records.
The Supersuckers are an American rock band, formed in 1988, whose music ranges from alternative rock to country rock to cowpunk. AllMusic describes the band as "the bastard sons of Foghat, AC/DC, and ZZ Top after being weaned on punk rock, unafraid of massive guitar riffs, outsized personalities, or pledging allegiance to sex, weed, and Satan with a wink and a nudge."
Trouble is an American doom metal band from Aurora, Illinois, formed in 1981. They are often considered one of the pioneers of doom metal, and have been referred to as one of the genre's "big four" alongside Candlemass, Pentagram and Saint Vitus. The band created a distinct style, taking influences of the British heavy metal bands Black Sabbath and Judas Priest, and psychedelic rock of the 1960s.
Tourniquet was an American Christian metal band that formed in Los Angeles in 1990. The band was founded by Ted Kirkpatrick, Guy Ritter, and Gary Lenaire. Tourniquet primarily performed a mixture of thrash, progressive, and neoclassical metal, and was influenced by additional, non-rock forms of music such as classical and world music. It earned six GMA Dove Award nominations and won multiple recognitions from the readers of HM Magazine, including "Favorite Band of the 1990s" and "Favorite Album of the 1990s" for Pathogenic Ocular Dissonance (1992). The band released ten studio albums, two live albums, four compilation albums, one EP, and several video releases. Tourniquet has sold more than 300,000 albums. In addition to its use of classical music, the band is known for frequently using medical terminology in its album and song titles and lyrics.
Novembers Doom is an American death-doom band from Chicago, currently signed to Prophecy Productions. Along with Evoken and Rigor Sardonicous, Novembers Doom is one of the earliest American death-doom bands still active today.
Psalm 9 is the debut studio album by American doom metal band Trouble, released by Metal Blade Records on March 10, 1984. The album was originally released eponymously and later renamed to Psalm 9 after the release of the band's fourth studio album, which was their 1990 self-titled release. Along with Saint Vitus' self-titled debut album from the same year, Psalm 9 is considered by many critics to be one of the first doom metal releases.
The Skull is the second studio album by the American doom metal band Trouble, released by Combat and Metal Blade Records on April 15, 1985.
Run to the Light is the third studio album by American doom metal band Trouble, released by Metal Blade Records on July 15, 1987, being the band's last release on that label. It was the band's first album to have Ron Holzner on bass guitar and the only Trouble album with Dennis Lesh on drums. Jeff Olson, who left the band in 1986, played the Hammond organ on the song "The Beginning". Ted Kirkpatrick, who later formed the Christian metal band Tourniquet in 1990, played drums during Trouble's tour for the album. A music video was made for the title track.
Trouble is the fourth studio album by American doom metal band Trouble, released on Def American on February 13, 1990. It was the first Trouble album to have Barry Stern on drums. Music videos were made for "At the End of My Daze," "Psychotic Reaction," "R.I.P.," and "The Misery Shows ;" the music videos were released on the Videos DVD by the band's Trouble, Inc. label in 2007. The album was reissued and remastered by Hammerheart Records, cooperating alongside Trouble, Inc., on November 27, 2020.
Plastic Green Head is the sixth studio album by the American doom metal band Trouble. It was first released on the Music for Nations label in Europe in 1995 and later distributed in the United States by Century Media Records with a bonus track in 1996. The album marked the return of original Trouble drummer Jeff Olson, who left the band in 1986 and returned in 1993. The album contains covers of The Monkees' 1968 track "Porpoise Song" and The Beatles' 1966 song "Tomorrow Never Knows". A promotional disc was released with "The Eye," "Plastic Green Head," and "Hear the Earth" in 1995. Following the release of Plastic Green Head, Trouble went on an extended hiatus after their European tour was canceled. The album was reissued and remastered by Escapi Music in 2006 with a bonus DVD containing concert footage of Trouble on February 21, 1996, in Hamburg, Germany, live video of English rock band Hawkwind, and footage that was included with the 2006 reissue of Trouble's debut album Psalm 9. It was reissued and remastered by Hammerheart Records in 2022.
Simple Mind Condition is the seventh studio album by American doom metal band Trouble. It was the band's first full-length studio release in twelve years, the longest gap between Trouble's studio albums to date; the band's previous album, Plastic Green Head, was released in 1995. The album is dedicated to former drummer Barry Stern, who died in 2005. To date, this is Trouble's last release with vocalist Eric Wagner and drummer Jeff Olson, who both left in 2008. Wagner died in 2021.
Cirith Ungol is an American heavy metal band formed in late 1971 in Ventura, California. This early doom and power metal group is known for lyrics based on fantasy. The band took their name from the mountain pass Cirith Ungol in J. R. R. Tolkien's epic fantasy novel, The Lord of the Rings.
Bruce Franklin is an American musician. He is a founding member and guitarist for doom metal band Trouble. In 1979, he formed the band with his hometown friends Eric Wagner, Rick Wartell, Jeff Olson, and Ian Brown. After touring the Midwest and gaining popularity, Trouble was signed to Metal Blade Records in 1983.
Eric Wagner was an American heavy metal singer, best known for his work with doom metal band Trouble.
Jeff Olson is an American musician and the original drummer for the doom metal band Trouble. He is also the founding member of Retro Grave, keyboardist for Victor Griffin's In~Graved, proprietor of Upland Recording, and former drummer for The Skull.
The Skull is an American doom metal band founded by three former members of Trouble, vocalist Eric Wagner, bassist Ron Holzner, and drummer Jeff "Oly" Olson. It was founded in 2012 in Chicago, Illinois. The band's name is derived from Trouble's second studio album, The Skull.
Onward to Freedom is a solo album by Tourniquet drummer Ted Kirkpatrick. Originally announced as a side project to be released as The Tourniquet Ark, Kirkpatrick made the decision to release it under the Tourniquet name with himself listed as the primary artist. This has led to confusion in the fan community, and the erroneous classification of the album as an actual Tourniquet release. This has been exacerbated by Kirkpatrick choosing to refer to it as part of the Tourniquet catalog instead of as a part of his solo catalog. The album features many musicians, such as Marty Friedman and Chris Poland of Megadeth, Mattie Montgomery of For Today and Michael Sweet of Stryper. The album was released on November 11, 2014, via Tourniquet's own label, Pathogenic Records.
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