s a vital part of the Black Metal scene in the early 90s, GODKILLER unleashed two important and highly acclaimed demo tapes. “Ad Majorem Satanae Gloriam” (1994) and “The Warlord” (1995) serve as proof of the feverish passion and will present in the underground during those days. Furthermore, the seven tracks document Duke Satanaël‘s search for GODKILLER‘s trademark sound: from raw Death and Thrash Metal of the first demo to anguished Black Metal utilizing Medieval-inspired elements.
“We Are The Black Knights” presents all demo tracks for the first time in a mastered version by Duke Satanaël himself. The demo compilation is now officially released on CD, vinyl and digitally via Debemur Morti Productions and can be streamed via Bandcamp or on the label’s YouTube channel:
In an extensive interview with Obsküre mag (all three parts are also present on Debemur Morti Productions‘ website in English language), Duke noted about the evolution of GODKILLER‘s sound:
“I completely abandoned Death Metal and replaced it with pure Black Metal. But, indeed, the most important element stems from the Medieval influence. I even had started, simultaneously, a project without guitars, with neither drums nor voice. I only used strings, flutes, bells, the brass and orchestral percussions, as it is also audible in the introductory pieces of the two demos. I didn’t complete this project. All in all, it was really this Medieval atmosphere that I liked, and the attempt to mix this music inspired by ancient and purely acoustic sounds with electric and contemporary approaches. Two seemingly unnatural pieces of music meet to generate a Rops-like creature.“
“We Are The Black Knights” is available on CD, vinyl and digital. Orders are possible via the label’s EU, US (no merch) and Bandcamp shops.
GODKILLER was founded by Duke Satanaël in 1994. The first demo, “Ad Majorem Satanae Gloriam“, was released in December of the same year. It featured a mixture of Death and Black metal with already an evocation of the medieval era, as it is audible in the intro. The second demo, “The Warlord“, was released in February 1995, and showed an evolution towards a style that would become GODKILLER‘s trademark: Black Metal with medieval-inspired sounds.
The demo caught the interest of Italian label Wounded Love Records (a division of Avantgarde Music). The first release from this partnership was “The Rebirth Of The Middle Ages” in 1996.
Always being interested in new musical inspiration and evolution, the next album needed to be different. On “The End Of The World“, released in 1998, the tempo slowed down, the riffs became heavier, the atmosphere was less medieval-inspired, but still crepuscular, even more so. The lyrics dealt with personal, introspective subjects from a bleak perspective.
Finally, the last GODKILLER album, “Deliverance“, was released in 2000. Once again, this album marked an evolution in style. The main characteristics of “The End Of The World” were kept, but the medieval atmosphere was almost entirely gone, replaced by a more modern, cold and clinical atmosphere. This last album was, in a way, GODKILLER‘s self-destruction, the point of completion as well as the point of no return.
In 2022, GODKILLER signed a deal with Debemur Morti Productions to reissue the two demos on CD and vinyl.