Venom - At War with Satan (1984) [Reissue] (2005)

 

 At War with Satan is the third album by the British heavy metal band Venom, released in April 1984. It is a concept album that tells the story of a war between Heaven and Hell which the latter side wins. It was touted as Venom's crossover into mainstream music, but failed to do so. Shortly after it went on sale, the HMV record chain withdrew the album from its shelves because of its anti-Christian content.

The inspiration for writing a track filling out an entire side of the record, according to Venom's bass guitarist and vocalist Cronos, came from Rush's 2112 album. "At War with Satan" is centred on a character named Abaddon (which is also the alias of Tony Bray, Venom's drummer), who is the guardian to the gates of Hell. Cronos started writing, in his school days, a story about "how Hell revolts and takes over the heavens and throws God into Hell", a story later fleshed out as "At War with Satan". The title track's imagery and storyline largely evokes the Book of Revelation and John Milton's epic poem Paradise Lost (1667–1674), filtered through a postmodern horror movie and pulp aesthetic. The catchy opening riff of the title track derives from the song "Teaser" by Tommy Bolin (1975).

With side A taken by the epic title track, side B offers the "three-minute scorchers" for which the band is best known. The metal journalist Malcolm Dome said that songs such as "Cry Wolf" showed how much Venom had matured in their songwriting without losing their edge. According to the AllMusic reviewer Eduardo Rivadavia, the album's last track, "Aaaaaarrghh", is "possibly the funniest song ever recorded".

At War with Satan's packaging resembled the leatherbound sleeve of a bookcover. A hundred-page The Book of Armageddon with the entire story of At War with Satan was supposed to be published alongside the album, but it never happened. The Swiss independent distributor Disctrade tried to interest Venom in H. R. Giger's painting Satan I (1977) to no avail. It later became the cover art of Celtic Frost's second album, To Mega Therion (1985).

By the time At War with Satan went on sale, Venom had reached a crossroads in their career. Critics felt that their third album should have propelled them into the heavy metal mainstream, something which failed to materialize. Venom were also being threatened by thrash metal upstarts such as Metallica, who two months before At War with Satan's release were the opening act for Venom's Seven Dates of Hell tour (Roughly a year later Venom also took Slayer and Exodus on their North American Combat Tour). This was Metallica's first European tour, which included concerts in Switzerland, Germany, France, Belgium and the Aardschok Festival in the Netherlands.

The record was well received by major music magazines. "Proof positive that Venom are the best heavy metal band in the world", said Melody Maker's Neil Jeffries of the album. "It will definitely go down in Heavy Metal history as the ultimate headbang," claimed a Sounds reviewer of the title track. At War with Satan's entry on the "Where to Start with" section of the Kerrang! site says that this was the "last truly great record the Geordie three would make". Some criticism, though, was directed toward the album's production values, viewed as subpar.

The title track's merits divided critics. In the opinion of About.com's Chad Bowar, "At War with Satan" is at the same time "highly ambitious" and "bloated", but the song was "so over-the-top and so dramatic that it somehow worked" and made the album "an overlooked metal gem".The Allmusic review's tone was harsher: this concept piece was an "ill-advised anomaly", much of it "decidedly crap".

The rise of metal's popularity in the 1980s was paralleled by the political power gained by conservative organisations such as the Parents Music Resource Center (PMRC). The Christian campaign against the "offensive" content of rock music carried out by certain political groups in America eventually crossed over to the United Kingdom. Venom became one of its early victims: HMV stopped selling At War with Satan in fear of legal action because of Britain's obscenity laws. The PMRC later included the title track of Venom's following album Possessed in their "Filthy Fifteen" list.

 

 

 641013

 

 

 

 

 -Tracklist:

 Side A

1. At War with Satan     19:56

Side B

2. Rip Ride     03:08
3. Genocide     02:58
4. Cry Wolf     04:19
5. Stand Up (and Be Counted)     03:31
6. Women, Leather and Hell     03:21
7. Aaaaaarrghh     02:24

39:37

 

-Lineup:

 ⛧Cronos : Vocals, Bass
 ⛧Abaddon : Drums
 ⛧Mantas : Guitars.

 

Label: Earmark.

Recorded at Impulse Studios, UK.

Mastered at Utopia Studios, London, UK.

 Production & cover design by Venom.

 

 

 

 

Venom - At War With Satan (1984) CASS [1986]

At War with Satan is their third album released in April 1984. It is a concept album that tells the story of a war between Heaven and Hell which the latter side wins. It was touted as Venom's crossover into mainstream music, but failed to do so. Shortly after it went on sale, the HMV record chain withdrew the album from its shelves because of its anti-Christian content.

The inspiration for writing a track filling out an entire side of the record, according to Venom's bass guitarist and vocalist Cronos, came from Rush's 2112 album. "At War with Satan" is centred on a character named Abaddon (which is also the alias of Tony Bray, Venom's drummer), who is the guardian to the gates of Hell. Cronos started writing, in his school days, a story about "how Hell revolts and takes over the heavens and throws God into Hell", a story later fleshed out as "At War with Satan". The title track's imagery and storyline largely evokes the Book of Revelation and John Milton's epic poem Paradise Lost (1667–1674), filtered through a postmodern horror movie and pulp aesthetic.

With side A taken by the epic title track, side B offers the "three-minute scorchers" for which the band is best known. The metal journalist Malcolm Dome said that songs such as "Cry Wolf" showed how much Venom had matured in their songwriting without losing their edge. According to the AllMusic reviewer Eduardo Rivadavia, the album's last track, "Aaaaaarrghh", is "possibly the funniest song ever recorded".

At War with Satan's packaging resembled the leatherbound sleeve of a bookcover. A hundred-page The Book of Armageddon with the entire story of At War with Satan was supposed to be published alongside the album, but it never happened. The Swiss independent distributor Disctrade tried to interest Venom in H. R. Giger's painting Satan I (1977) to no avail. It later became the cover art of Celtic Frost's second album, To Mega Therion (1985).

By the time At War with Satan went on sale, Venom had reached a crossroads in their career. Critics felt that their third album should have propelled them into the heavy metal mainstream, something which failed to materialize. Venom were also being threatened by thrash metal upstarts such as Metallica, who two months before At War with Satan's release were the opening act for Venom's Seven Dates of Hell tour (Roughly a year later Venom also took Slayer and Exodus on their North American Combat Tour). This was Metallica's first European tour, which included concerts in Switzerland, Germany, France, Belgium and the Aardschok Festival in the Netherlands.

The record was well received by major music magazines. "Proof positive that Venom are the best heavy metal band in the world", said Melody Maker's Neil Jeffries of the album. "It will definitely go down in Heavy Metal history as the ultimate headbang," claimed a Sounds reviewer of the title track. At War with Satan's entry on the "Where to Start with" section of the Kerrang! site says that this was the "last truly great record the Geordie three would make". Some criticism, though, was directed toward the album's production values, viewed as subpar.

The title track's merits divided critics. In the opinion of About.com's Chad Bowar, "At War with Satan" is at the same time "highly ambitious" and "bloated", but the song was "so over-the-top and so dramatic that it somehow worked" and made the album "an overlooked metal gem". The Allmusic review's tone was harsher: this concept piece was an "ill-advised anomaly", much of it "decidedly crap".

The rise of metal's popularity in the 1980s was paralleled by the political power gained by conservative organisations such as the Parents Music Resource Center (PMRC). The Christian campaign against the "offensive" content of rock music carried out by certain political groups in America eventually crossed over to the United Kingdom. Venom became one of its early victims: HMV stopped selling At War with Satan in fear of legal action because of Britain's obscenity laws. The PMRC later included the title track of Venom's following album Possessed in their "Filthy Fifteen" list.

 

 -Tracklist:

A1. At War With Satan
B1. Rip Ride
B2. Genocide
B3. Cry Wolf
B4. Stand Up And Be Counted
B5. Women Leather And Hell
B6. Aaaaaarrghh!

 

 -Line up:

• Cronos : Vocals, Bass
• Mantas : Guitars
• Abaddon : Drums.

 

 

 Label: PDI – 50.1034, Victoria Ediciones Musicales, S.A. – VMC-181

 Recorded at Impulse Studios, UK.
Mastered at Utopia Studios, London, UK.
Production & cover design by Venom.

 

Venom - The Seven Gates Of Hell: The Singles 1980-1985 (2003)

 

Venom is a metal band formed in Newcastle upon Tyne, UK in 1979.
Coming to prominence towards the end of the 'New Wave of British Heavy Metal', Venom's first two albums – Welcome to Hell (1981) and Black Metal (1982) – are considered a major influence on thrash metal and extreme metal in general. Venom's second album proved influential enough that its title was used as the name of an extreme metal subgenre: black metal.
Venom's original personnel came from three different bands: Guillotine, Oberon and DwarfStar. The original Guillotine featured Jeffrey Dunn and Dave Rutherford on guitars, Dean Hewitt on bass guitar, Dave Blackman on vocals and Chris Mercaters on drums. Blackman and Mercater were replaced by drummer Anthony Bray and vocalist Clive Archer of Oberon and soon after, Dean Hewitt was replaced by Alan Winston on bass. Around the summer of 1979, Conrad "Cronos" Lant from the bands DwarfStar and Album Graecum replaced Rutherford. Around this time, the band adopted the Venom moniker.
Prime influences of the formative band were Black Sabbath, Judas Priest, Motörhead and Kiss. Other bands cited by Venom as an inspiration are Queen, The Who, Deep Purple, Sex Pistols, Van Halen, The Tubes and The Rolling Stones.
A few days before a show at a local church hall, Winston left the band. To fill in, Lant borrowed a bass guitar from Steve Thompson (later to become Venom's first producer). Playing the show with the borrowed bass plugged into his Marshall guitar amp and effects pedals, he created an unnerving racket and the 'Bulldozer Bass' was born.
Venom's lyrics often featured Satanic references, and the band members took on new stage names. Archer became 'Jesus Christ', Lant 'Mr. Cronos', Bray 'Tony Abaddon', and Dunn 'Jeff Mantas'.
In April 1980, the band recorded a three song disc, featuring "Angel Dust", "Raise the Dead", and "Red Light Fever". Soon afterward, six more tracks were recorded for just £50, with Lant taking vocal duties on the song "Live Like an Angel". Archer soon left the band, and Venom's line-up became a trio.
Venom's recording debut was the 1981 single "In League with Satan"/"Live Like an Angel" which was released by Neat Records. Later that year they released their full-length debut, "Welcome to Hell".
Though crudely recorded with sometimes dubious musicianship, "Welcome to Hell" was still a remarkable tour de force for the era. Venom's music was faster and harsher than most heavy metal contemporaries and while Satanism and other dark topics had been featured in metal before, the subject had rarely been more prominent. Lant was quoted as saying that this celebration of evil subjects was inspired by the perceived need to out-do musicians like Ozzy Osbourne of Black Sabbath, who would 'sing about evil things and dark figures, and then spoil it all by going "Oh No, No Please God help me!"'
Their second album, 1982's "Black Metal" is cited as perhaps the most important influence in the development of black metal, thrash metal, death metal, and other related styles that are often grouped under the extreme metal umbrella. Many defining elements of these genres are first found in the lyrics and song titles created by Lant and his unique singing style as well as the guitar work and solos performed by Dunn. Though they would later be cited as important, neither of Venom’s first two albums sold well upon their original release. And while many of their British metal peers had found measures of popular success or critical acclaim (or, like Def Leppard, were moving away from metal towards hard rock), Venom were still regarded by critics as "a trio of buffoons".
In an attempt to prove their status as serious musicians, Venom recorded "At War with Satan" in 1983. The epic 20-minute title track, with substantial progressive rock influences, took up the first side of the LP. The B-side was focused on the rapid-fire, three-minute "scorchers" Venom were known for. In 1985, Venom released their fourth album, "Possessed', which was not as successful as previous albums. Dunn then left the band to pursue a solo career.
Two guitarists, Mike Hickey and Jim Clare, were hired to replace Dunn. Their fifth album, 1987's Calm Before the Storm, moved away from Satanic themes in favor of Tolkien-esque “Sword and Sorcery” material. This was even less successful than "Possessed", and Lant, Clare and Hickey all left Venom after subsequent touring to form Lant's eponymous solo band Cronos.
Bray was left as the only group member, but he was able to convince Music for Nations for a deal to release a new Venom album on the Under One Flag label, using Deadline demo tracks which were recorded with previous line-ups but never released. In 1988, Bray offered a vocals/bass role to Tony Dolan from Atomkraft. Bray and Dolan wrote new material prior to Dunn's rejoining the band along with rhythm guitarist Al Barnes. Together they recorded Prime Evil (1989), Tear Your Soul Apart (1990) and Temples of Ice (1991). Barnes then left the band, and Steve White from Atomkraft was hired as replacement. They released "The Waste Lands" in 1992, also without success. Music for Nations refused to release any more Venom albums, so Dolan and Dunn quit, effectively disbanding Venom. Bray continued to release compilation and live albums up to 1996.
In 1995, Lant, Dunn and Bray reunited the "classic" line-up, beginning by headlining the Waldrock Festival on 24 June 1995. They recorded and self-released the "Venom '96" EP with four re-recorded and one new song, resulting in a record deal with the SPV label. An album, "Cast in Stone", was next released in 1997, split between new material and re-recordings of popular early-'80s songs.
Bray left Venom in 1999 and was replaced by Lant's brother Anthony "Antton" Lant. This lineup released "Resurrection" in 2000 on SPV. However, in 2002 Dunn again left the group and was replaced by a returning Hickey. In late 2005, Venom released a career-spanning 4-disc box set "MMV", which includes an exclusive mini-poster of the band's seven-date tour of Europe with Metallica and a 60 page picture book, with interviews and pictures. The set includes all their best-known songs, along with rarities like live tracks, demos and outtakes. This lineup of the band released the "Metal Black" album.
Hickey left the group 2007, with a guitarist calling himself "Rage" serving as his replacement. This lineup released the record "Hell" in 2008. Anthony Lant has since left the group and has been replaced by drummer Danny "Dante" Needham.
Currently, the band is in the studio recording their next album which is due for release at the end of 2010 and also negotiating some live shows afterwards. Cronos commented saying, "There's a fresh energy with the new line-up and the sessions are going great, Dante is a really big hitter which is fantastic, his playing went down a storm with the South American Legions during our Latin American tour in December 2009. Rage has been tearing up the decibels and cranking his amp valves white hot, so the new album is sounding killer and should be ready to be unleashed end 2010"

 

 

 

-Tracklist:

Disc 1

Side A:
1. In League with Satan     03:30      
2. Live like an Angel, Die like a Devil     03:48
3. Bloodlust     02:59    
4. In Nomine Satanas     03:24      
5. Die Hard (12" version)     03:03      

Side B:
6. Acid Queen     02:28    
7. Bursting Out     02:57    
8. Warhead (12" version)     05:56
9. Lady Lust     02:45    
10. Seven Gates of Hell     05:26 

         
Disc 2

Side A:
1. Manitou (12" version)     04:39    
2. Dead of the Night     04:05    
3. Woman     02:53      
4. Nightmare (12" version)   03:51
      
Side B:
5. Satanachist     02:43    
6. F.O.A.D.     03:02    
7. Witching Hour     04:16    
8. Teacher's Pet / Poison / Teacher's Pet     07:59

 

 

-Line up:

 

 • Abaddon: Drums
• Mantas: Guitar
• Cronos: Vocals, Bass.

 

 

 

 

 

Label: Earmark

Includes all Venom EPs and singles that were released through Neat Records in the eighties, excluding 'assault EPs'.
Includes also an essay written by John Ticker which has information about band's early history and releases that are presented on this compilation.

Ltd. Edition 180 Gram Vinyl. 

 

 

Venom - Welcome To Hell (1981) [Remastered] (2002)

Originally began as a 5-piece called Guillotine with Clive Archer on vocals, Alan Winston on bass and Cronos on rhythm guitar. Archer and Mantas met at a Judas Priest concert in 1979 which led to Archer and Abaddon (both of the band Oberon) joining Guillotine.

Cronos switched to bass when Alan Winston left the band a week before a gig - his decision to plug his bass guitar into a guitar amp is credited with the development of his trademark “bulldozer bass” sound. The line-up was further trimmed down to a three-piece following the first demo session when the rest of the band decided they preferred Cronos' vocal style to Archer's.

Illness and passport problems prevented Jeff “Mantas” Dunn from joining the early part of Venom's At War With Satan US-tour. He was temporarily replaced by Dave Irwin and Les Cheetham.

The band briefly split after Calm Before the Storm (recorded without Mantas) before reforming without Cronos, and later split again after The Waste Lands.

-Tracklist:

1     Sons Of Satan     3:37
2     Welcome To Hell     3:13
3     Schizoid     3:30
4     Mayhem With Mercy     0:58
5     Poison     4:31
6     Live Like An Angel  3:56
7     Witching Hour     3:41
8     One Thousand Days In Sodom     4:34
9     Angel Dust     2:39
10     In League With Satan  3:32
11     Red Light Fever     5:12

  Bonus Tracks:

 
12     Angel Dust (Lead Weight Version)     3:03
13     In League With Satan (7" Version)     3:32
14     Live Like An Angel (7" Version)     3:53
15     Bloodlust (7" Single)     3:00
16     In Nomine Satanas (7" Single)     3:26
17     Angel Dust (Demo)     3:12
18     Raise The Dead (Demo)     3:31
19     Red Light Fever (Demo)     4:45
20     Welcome To Hell (Demo)     4:58
21     Bitch Witch (Outtake)     3:07
22     Snots Shit (Outtake)     2:10

-Line up:

- Cronos: Vocals, Bass
- Mantas: Guitars
- Abaddon: Drums.

 

 

 

 

Label: Castle Music/ Sanctuary Records Group Ltd.

 

Recorded and produced at Impulse Studios, Newcastle, UK.

Mastered at Utopia Studios, London, UK. 

Co-produced by Venom (tracks A1-A5, B1-B3, B5).

 
The song "Schizo" is typed as "Schizoid" in the tracklist.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Venom - Black Metal (1982)

Black Metal is the second album by english Black Thrash Metal band Venom. It was released in November 1982, during the great flourishing of metal music in the UK that was the new wave of British Heavy Metal, and is considered a major influence on the Thrash Metal, Death Metal and Black Metal scenes that emerged in the 1980s and early 1990s.

Although lending its name to the latter subgenre of Heavy Metal, today it is still debated if the album's music is Thrash Metal or Black Metal. AllMusic has described it as "Extreme Metal", while Moynihan & Søderlind in their book affirm that the album "carved in stone some of (black metal's) essential features". Nevertheless, its lyrics and imagery were a major influence on the early Norwegian Black Metal scene.

The cover art was made by the band's bassist and singer Conrad "Cronos" Lant.

VMC-180, 50.1033

 

• Tracklist:

Side A - Black
1.     Black Metal     03:45
2.     To Hell and Back     03:04
3.     Buried Alive     04:19
4.     Raise the Dead     02:48
5.     Teacher's Pet     04:46

Side B - Metal
6.     Leave Me in Hell     03:37
7.     Sacrifice     04:31
8.     Heaven's on Fire     03:43
9.     Countess Bathory     03:44
10.     Don't Burn the Witch     03:20
11.     At War with Satan (Preview)     02:14

 

• Line up:

- Cronos: vocals, bass
- Mantas: guitars
-  Abaddon: drums.

 

 

Recorded at Impulse Studios, Newcastle, England.
Mastered at Utopia Studios, London, England.

  Keith Nichol: producer, engineer.

 ..."The bullshit even came in Venom's direction with certain bands getting us banned from certain rehearsal rooms in the area, so I'd have to book the studios under different band names to get some rehearsal time, until we finally ended up rehearsing in a church, it was the only place left who'd hire to us"...

 [Cronos].

 

 

Welcoming the virgins fair
To live a noble life
In the castle known to all
The Count's infernal wife
She invites the peasants with
Endless lavish foods
But, when evening spreads its wings
She rapes them of their blood

Countess Bathory
Countess Bathory

All day long the virgins sit
And feast on endless meals
The Countless laughs and sips her wine
Her skin doth crack and peel
But when nighttime fills the air
One must pay the price
The Countess takes her midnight bath
With blood that once gave life

Countess Bathory
Countess Bathory

Living in her self styled Hell
The Countess dressed in black
Life's so distant - death's so near
No blood to turn time back
The castle walls are closing in
She's crippled now with age
Welcomes death with open arms
The reaper turns the page

Countess Bathory
Countess Bathory.