Early Days:
Celtic Frost was formed in Switzerland in 1983 by guitarist/vocalist Tom Warrior (Thomas Gabriel Fischer) after he split up his band Hellhammer. It also included bassist Martin Eric Ain and drummer Stephen Priestly. Their debut album Morbid Tales was released in 1984.
Success:
After the release of their first album, Priestly was replaced by American drummer Reed St. Mark. After an EP, they released their masterpiece, 1985's To Mega Therion. It established Celtic Frost as the pre-eminent European extreme metal band.
Evolution:
Their next album, 1987's Into The Pandemonium, found Celtic Frost further mixing death metal with symphonic elements and venturing into avant-garde metal territory. After a tour filled with personality clashes and problems, Warrior disbanded the group.
Questionable Return:
A few months later he reformed the band with an entirely new lineup. The result was the poorly received 1988 release Cold Lake, which was a radio-friendly commercially oriented album and a huge departure from their previous work. The band also adopted the ill-advised glam rock look, resulting in a huge negative backlash among fans.
Righting The Ship:
After more personnel changes, the band regrouped for 1990's Vanity/Nemesis, which was a return to their traditional style. They released a retrospective in 1992, but broke up in 1993. Even though in their later years they moved away from the roots, Celtic Frost was one of the most influential European metal bands and helped pave the way for later bands that would mix other genres with death metal.
Short Lived Reunion:
Celtic Frost finally reunited. Original members Tom Gabriel Fischer and Martin Eric Ain were joined by drummer Franco Sesa. They've been working on songs for over 3 years and their first CD in 13 years Monotheist was released in May, 2006. In 2008, Fischer announced he was leaving the band and formed Tryptykon. Celtic Frost's future is unknown.
Current Band Members:
Thomas Gabriel "Warrior" Fischer - Guitar, vocals (Apollyon Sun, Coroner, Grave Hill, Hellhammer, Probot, Tarot)
Martin Eric Ain - Bass (Hellhammer, Schizo)
Anders Odden - Guitar
Franco Sesa - Drums
Former Band Members:
Ron Marks - Vocals, guitar (1987, 1990)
Erol Unala - Guitar (2003-2005)
Curt Victor Bryant - Guitar (1988-1993)
Oliver Amberg - Guitar (1988-1989)
Dominic Steiner - Bass (1985)
Steve Priestly - Drums (1984, 1988-1992)
Reed St. Mark - Drums (1985-1988, 1992)
Discography:
1984 Morbid Tales (Noise)
1985 Emperor's Return EP (Noise)
1985 To Mega Therion (Noise)
1986 Tragic Serenades EP (Noise)
1987 Into The Pandemonium (Noise)
1988 Cold Lake (Noise)
1990 Vanity/Nemesis (Noise)
1992 Parched With Thirst Am I, And Dying
(Noise)
2006 Monotheist (Century Media)
Essential Album:
To Mega Therion
Celtic Frost's second full-length album is a death metal classic. It's nonstop brutality marked with brief moments of respite that add some diversity. Tom Warrior's vocals are outstanding, and the album is wall to wall riffage.
