Hellhammer

Hellhammer was a Swiss extreme metal band from Nurensdorf, active during 1981–1984. They are regarded as a key influence on black metal, and one of the founders of death metal. In June 1984 Hellhammer ceased existing, changing their name into Celtic Frost by the hand of two former members.

Biography

Inspired by the music of Black Sabbath, Venom, Raven, and Motörhead, guitarist/vocalist Thomas Gabriel Fischer (a.k.a. "Tom Warrior"), bassist/vocalist Urs Sprenger (a.k.a. "Steve Warrior") and drummer Pete Stratton formed Hammerhead (later Hellhammer) in early 1981. Although Fischer was also "blown away" by the first two Discharge records - Why? and Hear Nothing See Nothing Say Nothing - he "was not into punk at all."

After the exit of Stratton and drummer Jörg Neubart (a.k.a. "Bruce Day") joining in the ranks on autumn 1982, Hellhammer attempted to find proper rehearsal spaces, which proved difficult due to either exceedingly high rents or unavailable studio hours. In June 1983, the group recorded their first demo tape, Triumph of Death, for a mere $70. Despite being embarrassed by the end results, Hellhammer shipped their demo to a number of heavy metal magazines, such as Great Britain's Metal Forces; critical response toward them was generally favorable. Although rejected by the labels they sent tapes to, the band eventually caught the attention of newcomer Noise Records.

Triumph of Death

Triumph of Death may refer to:

A theme common in Western Art, including:

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Related subjects

Thomas Gabriel

Thomas Gabriel may refer to:

See also

Black metal

Black metal is an extreme subgenre and subculture of heavy metal music. Common traits include fast tempos, shrieking (sometimes growling or both) vocal style,heavily distorted guitars played with tremolo picking, raw (lo-fi) recording, unconventional song structures, and an emphasis on atmosphere, though many other characteristics and techniques may be employed. Artists often appear in corpse paint and adopt pseudonyms.

During the 1980s, several thrash and death metal bands formed a prototype for black metal. This so-called first wave included bands such as Venom, Bathory, Mercyful Fate, Hellhammer and Celtic Frost. A second wave arose in the early 1990s, spearheaded by Norwegian bands such as Mayhem, Darkthrone, Burzum, Gorgoroth, Immortal and Emperor. The early Norwegian black metal scene developed the style of their forebears into a distinct genre. Norwegian-inspired black metal scenes emerged throughout Europe and North America, although some other scenes developed their own styles independently. Some prominent Swedish bands spawned during this second wave. Bands such as Marduk, Nifelheim and Dark Funeral are notable examples.

Celtic Frost

Celtic Frost /ˈkɛltɪk frɒst/ was a Swiss extreme metal band from Zürich. They are known for their heavy influence on extreme metal genres. The group was first active from 1984 to 1993, and re-formed in 2001. Following Tom Gabriel Fischer's departure in 2008, Celtic Frost disbanded. The band was inspired by heavy metal groups such as Black Sabbath, Judas Priest and Venom, but also by gothic rock acts like Bauhaus, Siouxsie and the Banshees and Christian Death, and by the hardcore punk group Discharge.

Their exact genre has been a topic of debate. Their earlier music was sometimes classified as thrash metal, black metal, and even death metal and their later work as doom metal and gothic metal. The level of experimentation on albums such as Into the Pandemonium led certain journalists to describe the band's direction as avant-garde metal.

History

Formation (1984–85)

Celtic Frost's former frontman, guitarist and singer Tom Gabriel Fischer, adopted the alias Tom Warrior. With Steve Warrior on bass, he formed one of the earliest extreme metal bands, Hellhammer, in 1981. Steve Warrior was later replaced by Martin Eric Ain – also a pseudonym. The band attracted a small international fan-base, got signed to Noise Records in Germany and recorded their debut EP Apocalyptic Raids in March 1984, now a rare finding on eBay or second hand record stores around the world.