Artist: DEICIDE
Album: LEGION (CD)

Release date: 1992
EAN/UPS: 16861919221
Media type: CD

DEICIDE, emerging from the cult troupe AMON founded in 1987, was the first American Black styled Death Metal band to push the novelty factor into the realms of the dangerous. Early shows had arch protagonist vocalist / bassist Glen Benton drenched in the blood of a pig bedecked in studded body armour sporting an upside down cross the frontman had burned into his own forehead. Benton, whose first son he tactfully named Daemon, rather intriguingly voiced premonitions that he will die aged 33. Needless to say his 33rd Birthday passed without event.

The singer’s more than vocal appreciation of a Satanic belief system, his willingness to engage in media sponsored set discussions on good and evil with church members (including the late former TWELFTH NIGHT vocalist and vicar GEOFF MANN) and his apparent witnessed shooting of squirrels in his house (!) put DEICIDE firmly in the Black Metal camp. Quite remarkably for a Death-Black Metal band DEICIDE maintained a rock solid line-up since its inception for fifteen years, comprising Benton, brothers Eric Hoffman and Brian Hoffman on guitars, and Steve Asheim on drums, and continues to maintain a strong unyielding fan base.

AMON released two demos, August 1987's 8 track garage recording 'Feasting The Beast' and 'Sacrificial' in December 1989. This second session scored a deal with Roadrunner Records. The name DEICIDE arrived in June 1990 with an eponymous album recorded in February of that year by Scott Burns at at the spiritual home of US Death Metal, Tampa's Morrisound Recording, re-crafting all six 'Sacrificial' tracks for this opus. This winning formula of studio and producer would be cemented for the next three albums.

The 'Deicide' album, issued in June 1990, broke little new ground, if any, musically but Benton’s skill in manipulating the media was matched by a half hour savage burst of pure blasphemy driven by Steve Asheim's impressive percussive abilities. Lyrical content was entirely devoted to the practices of Lucifer and his minions with the exception of opener ‘Lunatic Of God’s Creation’ and ‘Carnage In The Temple Of The Damned’, in deference respectively to Charles Manson and Guyana occultist Jim Jones.

That same year Glen Benton featured as a backing vocalist on another ground breaking recording, CANNIBAL CORPSE's 'Eaten Back To Life'. Further controversy was whipped up after the second album, June 1992's ‘Legion’, when two New Jersey teenagers tortured and killed a dog leaving its carcass hanging in a tree. When questioned by authorities the youngsters claimed inspiration from DEICIDE. 'Legion', intended as a quick fire response to the furore engendered by the debut, was so rushed that the original sessions clocked in at just over 20 minutes, necessitating the band returned to the studio to bring the second effort up to a satisfactory duration.

So vociferous was the media against DEICIDE that their notoriety spread into areas not normally troubled by Black Metal. Benton’s comments regarding his supposed treatment of animals led to bomb threats which blighted a winter 1992 European tour. A more pointed message left with the media, allegedly from the Animal Militia organisation's Manchester cell, informed Benton he would be killed if he stepped on English soil. DEICIDE’s British and European shows went according to plan until the Scandinavian leg when a bomb planted at the Fryshuset club in Stockholm, Sweden exploded. The device actually detonated during touring partner’s THERION’s set, but had been timed to go off in the middle of DEICIDE’s originally scheduled stage time. Nobody was seriously hurt, although the bomb caused several minor injuries and blew apart part of a wall and roofing. However, it was unclear as to the object of the assault as support band GOREFEST had also received death threats from another source. Performing in the UK, a fake “bomb”, constructed out of a clock and wires, was thrown onstage in Manchester, temporarily halting the show. The band finished the remainder of the European tour without major incident.

TRACKLIST:

1. Satan Spawns The Caco-Daemon
2. Dead But Dreaming
3. Repent To Die
4. Trifixion
5. Behead The Prophet (No Lord Shall Live)
6. Holy Deception
7. In Hell I Burn
8. Revocate The Agitator

LINE-UP:

Glenn Benton (vocals/ bass)
Eric Hoffman (guitar)
Brian Hoffman (guitar)
Steve Asheim (drums)