Rotting Christ

Noticing the start of the crazed black metal scene in the Scandinavian region, the Tolis brothers, Sakis (vocals/guitar) and Themis (drums), wanted to begin their own spectacle in their hometown of Athens, Greece. Hence, Rotting Christ were born in 1987 with the addition of Kostas Vassilakopoulos on second guitar and bassist Andreas Lagios. However, the nationwide attention as a second-generation black metal act didn't start until the release of their 1991 EP, Passage to Arcturo. After adding a keyboard player to their lineup (George, just George) and hooking up with France's Osmose Records, their first full-length, Thy Mighty Contract, was released in 1993, followed by Non Serviam two years later. Clearly showing off their Venom and Celtic Frost influences with those two releases, Rotting Christ established themselves as one of the premier European underground metal acts. After recording 1996's Triarchy of the Lost Lovers, a deal was secured with Century Media Records, meaning that they where finally getting distribution on both sides of the North Atlantic. Following the 1997 release of the melancholy, keyboard-driven A Dead Poem, their sixth release, Sleep of the Angels, was released two years later. Khronos arrived two years after that.