Celtic Frost

Celtic Frost was a Swiss metal band that was founded in 1984. In 1993 the group split up and reunited again in 2006 before they disbanded again in 2008. The band's music exerted a strong influence on many metal bands of the 1980s and 1990s.

Band History

Celtic Frost was founded in 1984 by Tom G. Warrior ( Thomas Gabriel Fischer ), Martin Eric Ain ( Martin Stricker ) and Steven Priestly founded following the dissolution of Hellhammer and brought the mini- LP Morbid Tales at the German label Noise Records out in the Hellhammer had signed; this proved to be a success. Subsequently, the band toured Germany and Austria. In 1985 appeared the mini - LP Emperor 's Return, which also contained their first hit with Circle of the Tyrants.

For their first full album To mega therion, which still appeared in the same year, the band for the cover design HR Giger could win and followed up on the success of the first mini - LPs. The Song Circle of the Tyrants was hereupon again released in a new version. The album title refers to the Antichrist from the Book of Revelation.

The second album Into the Pandemonium appeared in 1987 and should reach an immense influence on the development of European metal. To the thrash metal were elements of gothic rock and darkwave.

During a subsequent tour of the United States, financial problems and personal tensions of the members came to a head in the complete resolution of Celtic Frost. Six months later, Tom G. Warrior decided to resume the work, together with Stephen Priestly, Oliver Amberg and Curt Victor Bryant. Despite his decision he lay apparently less interested in the pictures, and let the work on Cold Lake Amberg and producer Tony Platt. Stylistically, the band away much of their thrash metal roots and tended toward heavy metal and glam metal. The album had no success in the mainstream nor in the metal scene, but led instead to sell allegations.

On the next album Vanity / Nemesis from 1990, on which the band presented itself again significantly harder, Martin Eric Ain returned ( Slayed Necros; bourgeois Martin Stricker ) back to the band. Critics praised the band's reputation, however, could not restore. 1992 still appeared Parched With Thirst retrospective Am I and Dying, in addition to well-known titles and previously unreleased songs and two new songs included, which should give a foretaste of the next album. This album with the working title Under Apollyon 's Sun, however, was not realized because the group broke up again.

In the years 1999/2000, the founding members of the band got back together to work on the re-release of the early albums. It turned out that both fishermen and Stricker were interested in a revival of Celtic Frost, so that the group reformed and began working on a new album in attack. Result, the album was a monotheist, on which the band had spent more than four years and was published in 2006 ( Label: Century Media, publisher of the new Celtic Frost pieces: Edition dictatorship of capital / Budde Musikverlag, Berlin). From June 2006 to May 2007, the band went on an extensive world tour, which alone 71 concerts in the United States as a headliner and as special guest of Type O Negative. After the performances at Wacken Open Air and With Full Force Festival 2006 Celtic Frost toured in March and April 2007, back in Germany.

On 9 April 2008 Tom Gabriel Fischer was surprisingly his departure from Celtic Frost known. According to the official website and his blog, he left the band " because of unmanageable serious wear and tear on a personal level ." The remaining band members said then all the upcoming concerts in 2008 from ( including the scheduled appearance for the tenth anniversary of the Giger Museum in Château St. Germain in Switzerland). On 9 September 2008 Fischer and Ain announced in a joint statement on the website of the band the final resolution of Celtic Frost.

Meanwhile, Tom Gabriel Fischer devotes together with the guitarist of Dark Fortress and touring guitarist for Celtic Frost, V Santura, the former drummer of Fear My Thoughts, Norman Lonhard, as well as a previously unknown bassist named Vanja SLAJH complete his new band Triptykon, which before Fischer's exit was founded in Celtic Frost as a side project. The debut album Eparistera Daimones where Tom Gabriel Fischer and V Santura have worked for over two years and which also contains material that should be included for a successor to Monotheist originally appeared on March 19, 2010.

Musical development

The music of the predecessor Hellhammer was heavily influenced by Venom. Tom Warrior later said about this phase that the musicians were not good enough to create something of our own. From the guitar riffs on the name of the songs to the pseudonyms that everything was a " lousy photocopy " of Venom. The band was accused of having no talent, at the same time the musicians were with the development of the scene do not agree, especially with the fact that mainstream bands like Mötley Crüe 's 1983 album served with their Shout at the Devil an image that is not to their music fit. They have founded instead, Celtic Frost, in order to give it a musical beginning.

This manifested itself in the 1984 published EP Morbid Tales, which is attributable to the thrash metal and to this day is considered to be the trend for the genre Death Metal and Black Metal, one of the main points of the band from the beginning, the criticism of Black Metal was and they wanted nothing to do with the scene. Characteristic of the style of the band were simple and catchy song structures that were not only held in high speed but were also settled in the mid- tempo range. The down-tuned guitars, the growling and the short " Ugh! " Shouts of singer Tom Fischer in combination with the double bass were new stylistic elements that had been as yet published previously by any band. Thus they were regarded as a pioneer of innovative new flow within the metal.

Compared to Morbid Tales was mega therion To (1985 ) slower and more structured and presented so that the link to the 1987 released classic Into the Pandemonium represents the music on this album is classified as Dark Metal, combining dark sound with avant-garde elements. It is considered both as a reference work for the Black Metal and Death Metal, but without being assigned to one of two genres clearly.

The 1988 released album Cold Lake represented a complete departure from the hitherto played extreme metal Represents the album offered traditional heavy metal with glam metal influences from bands like Mötley Crüe, the musicians went on with hairspray - styled hairdos and posing in photos " sexlüstern and open fly. " Due to the disappointed reactions from fans and critics, and possibly also because of the hoped-for but not incurred commercial success, the band changed their style direction again. Added to this was the reactivation of the occupation in which the band until 1987 was active.

In 1990, published Vanity / Nemesis is regarded as the most mature work of the band until then, combined the thrash metal with thoughtful arrangements. Due to the gloomy mood of the songs the album is still awarded influence on the European Doom Metal of bands like My Dying Bride or Cathedral and the later played by bands like Paradise Lost Gothic Metal.

Discography

Studio albums

Compilations

Singles and EPs