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Infernäl Mäjesty - Biography


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1986-

Biography

In the city of Toronto, in the year 1986, Rick Nemes (drums), Psycopath (bass), Kenny Hallman (guitar), Steve Terror (guitar) and Chris Bailey joined forces and created the thrash band Infernal Majesty.

Infernal Majesty's main objective was to write an album of complex and exciting thrash tunes, to unleash onto the ever-evolving thrash market. In order to begin this process, they recorded a 24-track four-song demo at Metal Works studios in Toronto (owned by members of the band Triumph).
With the demo tape completed, copies were sent out through various channels, and a record deal was signed with Roadrunner Records in New York City. The amazing thing about the signing was, Infernal Majesty had never sent a copy of the demo to Roadrunner - a magazine in Europe had sent one to them with a recommendation to sign the band.

In September 1987, the worldwide release of the now cult classic, 'None Shall Defy' was launched. The album included such cuts as "Overlord" which was the code name for the Normandy invasion, "Anthology of Death" about the notorious Jack the Ripper, and "Night of the Living Dead" which was inspired by the march of the zombies scene in the classic horror film of the same name. The title track "None Shall Defy" became the band's first video. They received very promising reviews from leading magazines such as Metal Hammer, Aardschok and Kerrang. Displeased Records lists Infernal Majesty along with Venom, Bathory, Hellhammer, Kreator and Death as one of the main influences on the death/black metal music scene. Fan mail from distant locations such as Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Brazil, China and New Zealand demonstrated the magnitude of the expanding thrash market.

In 1988, Rick Nemes and Psycopath left Infernal Majesty and shortly after were replaced by Kevin Harrison (drums) and Bob Quelch (bassist). With the new line-up, Infernal Majesty's next step was to record a 2-song demo for a new album at Wellesley studios in Toronto. The tape 'Nigresent Dissolution' was completed. It remained unheard by most listeners as the tape was not made available to the public until Displeased Records added the two tracks "Into the Unknown" and "Hell on Earth" to the CD release of 'None Shall Defy'. A third, 4-song demo was completed with a local producer. With the help of Brian Taylor (famous for his work with Sacrifice), 'Creation of Chaos' was completed with new vocalist Vince, as Chris Bailey had left the band. 'Creation of Chaos' was sold by mail order and distributed by Cargo Records to listeners around the world. Infernal Majesty went on to play seIect shows with Razor, Kreator, Coroner, Death Angel, etc. Infernal Majesty's cult status was solidified with the masterful cover of their ultimate thrash classic "Night of the Living Dead" by Sweden's Dawn. Other bands such as Christ Denied from Spain, Illdisposed and Goddess Of Desire have recorded or played songs by Infernal Majesty. Imitation is the ultimate form of flattery which proves true with reports of bootlegged CDs, live videos, T-shirts and posters.

With the re-release of 'None Shall Defy' on CD, Infernal Majesty schedule a summer tour in Europe with original vocalist Chris Bailey. In late March of 1997, a sample of new material was recorded and produced by the band and added to a compilation CD. The CD entitled 'Kanada Compilation' was released in limited quanities. Infernal Majesty contributed 2 songs, "Where Is Your God" and "Gone the Way of All Flesh" which are shortened versions of new songs for their upcoming album. With the re-release of 'None Shall Defy' on CD, Infernal Majesty toured Europe with original vocalist Chris Bailey and newly acquired bass player Chay McMullen. The tour, consisting of Malevolent Creation, Infernal Majesty, Vader and Vital Remains, was considered by many as the highlight of the summer. With record interest wide-spread the band returned home to sign a new record deal. January 1998, Infernal Majesty signed with Hypnotic Records who have been signing Canadian bands for some time, already have Voivod, Razor, Anvil and Mundane as part of their roster.

The CD entitled 'Unholier Than Thou' was released on August 15, 1998. A European tour with Cannibal Corpse and Dark Funeral followed in September 1998 and was a great success. April 2000 saw the release of the 'Chaos in Copenhagen' CD showcasing Infernal Majesty live. April 2001 Hypnotic Records along with Big Daddy re-released 'Unholier Than Thou' in the USA; this CD release was remixed and remastered and included a live version of "Night of the Living Dead".

In May 2001 Kris Deboer and Eric Dubreuil became the newest members of Infernal Majesty. 2003 and work had begun on the newest Infernal Majesty CD 'One Who Points to Death', which was recorded in Vancouver B.C.

In early 2004 Infernal Majesty signed with Galy Records for 'One Who Points to Death' which was released on April 6th, 2004. Later, in June 2004, the band signed with the Greek label Black Lotus Records for the European distribution of 'One Who Points to Death'.

Source: Infernal Majesty official website http://www.infernalmajesty.com