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Without death metal's founding fathers, POSSESSED, OBSCENE
EXTREME would be a very differentfestival indeed.
Forming in San Francisco in 1983, the band dragged thrash metal
into darker and heavier places with their classic albums "Seven
Churches" and Beyond The Gates" on COMBAT RECORDS. POSSESSED created
a whole genre and then faded away like ghosts.
Reforming around vocalist and founder Jeff Becerra in 2007,
the original death cult are back and they're writing new material too. OBSCENE
EXTREME 2014, prepare yourself for a new chapter in the unholy book of the
dead...
Bio
Few bands have done more to push the boundaries of extreme
metal than the legendary Possessed. Even fewer can create a unique style which
continues to set them apart from all others in a genre they laid the foundation
for.
Mike Torrao (guitar), Mike Sus (drums) and Barry Fisk
(vocals) got their start playing covers of bands like Judas Priest and Iron
Maiden. After Fisk’s unfortunate suicide, Torrao and Sus recruited
singer/bassist Jeff Becerra from local metal band Blizzard to form a new band-
Possessed- whose name would eventually be known by heavy music fanatics
worldwide. Possessed took San Francisco’s metal scene by storm, playing with
fellow Bay Area thrashers and friends Exodus, and other bands- many now long
gone. In 1982-1983, they recorded a four song demo. One of the demo tracks,
“Swing of the Axe” ended up on the Metal Massacre 6 compilation and later on
“The Best of Metal Massacre.” While starting to make waves in the metal
community, Possessed replaced guitarist Brian Montana, whose dedication to the
band had waned. To fill the void left by Montana, Jeff Becerra recruited friend
and Blizzard band mate Larry LaLonde. LaLonde’s passion for guitar and
home-grown style fit Possessed perfectly; roughly six months after LaLonde
joined Possessed, they signed to Combat Records. Released in October 1985 on
Combat Records, Seven Churches set a new standard for extreme music. Combining
Torraro and LaLonde’s lighting fast riffs, Becerra’s raspy trademark growl and
speedy bass playing, Sus’s pummeling drums and Randy Burns’ production, Seven
Churches created a whole new genre of music- death metal. Written by primarily
by Torrao and Becerra, Seven Churches went on to be one of Combat Records’
best-selling albums. Not bad for a quartet of high school kids! Torrao and
Becerra teamed up with LaLonde to write Beyond the Gates. Released on Halloween
in 1986, this album was especially well-received in Europe where they toured at
the end of the year. The album that changed the landscape of heavy metal, Seven
Churches is the bar by which death metal albums are still measured. After that
tour, Possessed recorded and released Eyes of Horror, a five song EP produced
by Joe Satriani. Musically and lyrically advanced, the album touched on dark
themes such as sin, drugs and violence. Not long after the release of the EP,
LaLonde joined up with Les Claypool and Primus. Soon after, Sus left to
continue his studies at SFSU and Torrao decided he no longer wanted to play in
a band. Becerra continued to play and joined some side projects, but mostly
took time to pursue his goals in life. At one point, Torrao attempted to
re-create Possessed, but this attempt was short lived.
In 2004, Becerra joined with Sadistic Intent to record “The
Exorcist” for a Possessed tribute album. Becerra and Sadistic Intent decided to
do a few live shows to satisfy fans who had been clamoring for shows for decades.
With such a positive response, Becerra and Sadistic Intent continued to play a
number of successful shows, including Wacken 2007, Maryland Deathfest 2009, and
2010’s Blackest of the Black Tour. This lineup breathed life into Sadistic
Intent and Becerra, and the two parties split amicably to play their own styles
of metal, with drummer Emilio Marquez staying with Becerra and Possessed. In
2011, Becerra and Marquez (Asesino, Coffin Texts, ex-Brujeria) found new blood
in bassist Robert Cardenas (Masters Of Metal (formally known as Agent Steel),
Malice, Coffin Texts, Engrave), along with guitarists Kelly McLauchlin
(Pessimist, Diabolic, Unholy Ghost) and Daniel Gonzalez (Nailshitter). After a
successful run from 2011 to 2013, Kelly McLaughlin decided to pursue other
interests; and Mike Pardi was selected for the position.
Discography
Release date | Release name | Media |
---|---|---|
2004 | Agony in Paradise - live album | CD |
1995 | Seven Churches | CD, LP |
1993 | 1992 | DEMO |
1991 | 1991 | DEMO |
1987 | The Eyes of Horror | EP |
1986 | Beyond the Gates | CD, LP |