History
Celtic Frost's frontman, guitarist and singer Tom Gabriel Fischer, changed his name to Tom Warrior. With Steve Warrior on bass, he formed one of the earliest extreme metal bands, Hellhammer, in 1982. 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 of 1984, now a rare finding on e-Bay or second hand record stores around the world.
By May of 1984, Hellhammer had disbanded; Fischer and Ain, along with session drummer Stephen Priestly, reappeared with Celtic Frost. Their 1984 debut LP, Morbid Tales was a hit in the metal scene, and the band set out on its first tour, through Germany and Austria. This was followed up with an EP "The Emperor Returns". Both early releases are now available on the one CD, although vinyl copies are still around. One of their most influential recording was 1985's "To Mega Therion", followed in 1987 by Into the Pandemonium. These albums were some of the pivotal LPs for underground metal and inducted a new and more varied sound. Celtic Frost, along with Venom and Bathory were pioneers in the still underground Black Metal scene, although Celtic Frost were much more experimental with the addition of classical instruments, opera vocals and sampling. They were given the new title of avant-garde metal.
After a subsequent North American tour (which saw the addition of a second guitarist, Ron Marks to the groups ranks), financial trouble, personal tension between the band members and an ill-fated relationship with their record label led to a complete dissolution of the band. Six months later, Warrior decided to reform the band with Stephen Priestly back on drums, Oliver Amberg on guitars and Curt Victor Bryant on bass. The resulting album Cold Lake was a major disappointment to most of the group's established fan base but achieved notable success in the North American market. Bryant fired Amberg and former live guitarist Ron Marks returned as a guest for the recording of Vanity/Nemesis in 1990. The most significant change, however, was the return of early bassist Martin Eric Ain. But Celtic Frost's reputation did not fully recover. The group's next (and, as it would turn out, last for several years) album was a collection of rare and unreleased recordings called Parched With Thirst Am I and Dying (1992). It featured unreleased material, re-recorded versions of older songs, and some studio session versions, closing the chapter on one of the most brutal and experimental bands of all time.
A final album titled "Under Apollyon's Sun" never eventuated under that title, although Fischer co-founded a new group called Apollyon Sun.
Apollyon Sun
Some years after the termination of Celtic Frost, and after quite some time spent entirely away from the music industry, Fischer co-founded a new group called Apollyon Sun with his close friend Erol Unala on guitars in the mid-nineties and recorded an EP God Leaves... ... and Dies and a full-length album Sub. Although clearly based on Celtic Frost's dark and more adventurous music, Apollyon Sun was a dedicated industrial metal project. During his hiatus from music, Fischer had also finished work on an autobiographical book, called Are You Morbid?, which was published by London-based Sanctuary Publishing to critical acclaim in 2000.
Comeback
Celtic Frost with Reed St. Mark, September 2006.
In late 2001, Fischer and Ain began to write music together again, along with Unala on guitar and, from late 2002, experienced Swiss drummer Franco Sesa (also known within the group as the Inverted Cross). The aim was to develop and record a new, very dark and heavy album. The completion of the project took far longer than anticipated (in part due to the DIY nature of the project and the project's financing) but finally resulted, in late 2005, in what Fischer and Ain describe as "perhaps the darkest album Celtic Frost have ever recorded", based on a combination of the musical aura of To Mega Therion and Into The Pandemonium.
The newest and seventh Celtic Frost album was financed by the group itself through their own record label, Prowling Death Records, and publishing imprint, Diktatur des Kapitals. Prowling Death Records originally was the self-founded underground label which released the Hellhammer demos and managed Hellhammer's career in 1983/1984. The album was produced by Celtic Frost with Peter Tägtgren (of Bloodbath/Hypocrisy/Pain fame) and mixed by Fischer and Ain. Celtic Frost and Prowling Death Records subsequently entered into a worldwide licensing deal with Century Media Records. The album, titled "Monotheist", was released on May 30th, 2006.
On May 29, 2006, Celtic Frost embarked on the most extensive tour of the band's career, the "Monotheist Tour", initially headlining festivals (e.g. the Wacken Open Air festival, in front of an audience of 50,000) across Europe throughout summer 2006 and then commencing the tour proper with 46 headline concerts in the United States and Canada in fall 2006, and the group's first ever shows in Japan in January 2007. Spring 2007 is to see the European leg of the tour and a return to the United States to reach new audiences as a special guest to Type O Negative. Further festival appearances and concerts are to follow throughout summer 2007.
Onstage, Celtic Frost play with an additional tour guitar player. This position was initially filled by Anders Odden (Cadaver, Apoptygma Berzerk, Magenta), now by V Santura (of Dark Fortress).
As of early 2007, Celtic Frost have begun writing material for a new album, possibly due for release in 2008.
Influences
Celtic Frost have influenced a plethora of Black, Death, Gothic, and Heavy Metal bands. For example, the band Therion took its band name from their album "To Mega Therion." Other bands that have cited Celtic Frost as an influence, or have covered Celtic Frost, include Sigh, Opera IX, Evoken, Opeth, Amorphis, Paradise Lost, Anathema, Cradle of Filth, HIM, Dimmu Borgir, The Gathering, Sarcófago, Sepultura, Tiamat, Black Crucifixion, Emperor, Mayhem, Darkthrone, Satyricon, High on Fire, Nokturnal Mortum, Obituary, Gorgoroth, Mortician, Noothgrush and uncounted others. Dave Grohl of Nirvana and Foo Fighters has also repeatedly stated that Celtic Frost were a major influence. He subsequently invited Celtic Frost singer Tom Gabriel Fischer to participate in the recordings of his 2004 solo project, Probot, resulting in the co-written song "Big Sky".
Despite this, when frontman Tom was asked to comment on their influence on heavy metal, he replied "no, I try to stay away from that. I'm a musician, I don't want to get involved with all that. It's not healthy. I want to do good albums. I'm still alive and I feel there's still so much in front of me. I don't want to be bothered with who has influence and where we stand and all that. I think it's a negative thing.
Band members
Current Members
- Tom Gabriel Fischer - vocals, guitars, programming
- Martin Eric Ain - bass, vocals
- Franco Sesa - drums, percussion
- V Santura - guitar (tour guitarist)
Former members
- Curt Victor Bryant - guitar, bass (1988 - 1993)
- Oliver Amberg - guitar (1988 - 1989)
- Ron Marks - guitar (1987)
- Anders Odden - tour guitarist (2006 - 2007)
- Dominic Steiner - bass (1985)
- Reed St. Mark - drums, percussion (1985 - 1988, 1992 - 1993)
- Stephen Priestly - drums, percussion (1984, 1988 - 1992)
- Erol Unala - guitar (2001 - 2006)
Discography
Studio Albums & EPs
- Morbid Tales (1984)
- Emperor's Return (EP, 1985)
- To Mega Therion (1985)
- Tragic Serenades (EP, 1986)
- Into the Pandemonium (1987)
- Cold Lake (1988)
- Vanity/Nemesis (1990)
- Monotheist (2006)
Compilations
- Parched With Thirst Am I and Dying (1992)
Re-releases
- Morbid Tales/Emperor's Return (1999)
- To Mega Therion (1999)
- Into the Pandemonium (1999)
- Vanity/Nemesis (1999)
Bootlegs
- A Night In The Dark (1987)
- Fairy Tales(Live) (1987)
- Celtic Frost- Live in Weinheim, WG/ Bathory, Demos 1984-1985 (1997)
- Live in Switzerland St. Gallen'85 (1998)
- Rare & Unreleased Rehearsals (1998)
- From the Vaults(Bootleg) (1999)
- Demos 84 & 85 (2004)
- Reign of Steel(Live) (2005)
