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Only one influence need be mentioned when discussing Germany's Warhammer: Hellhammer. No, not the Norwegian black metal drummer, but rather the long-disbanded group from Switzerland that served as the template to one of the '80s most innovative and avantgarde bands: Celtic Frost. Hellhammer only released one record, an EP called Apocalyptic Raids, but that solitary release was more than enough to plant the musical seed in a small group of aspiring musicians that would eventually germinate into Warhammer.
The fledgling disciples recorded a demo in 1996. Towards the Chapter of Chaos featured five songs in the grinding, death/doom tradition of their mentors. The band signed with Voices Productions and released The Winter of Our Discontent. Heavier, meaner, deadlier and rawer, Warhammer expanded their extreme horizons and captured the pale reality of a lost mankind drifting into the depths of damnation, an apocalyptic soundtrack. The band's sophomore effort, Deathchrist (released on Grind Syndicate Media), contained even heavier and more morbid songs. They took their apocalyptic brutality out on the road and raided towns with the likes of Hypocrisy, Asphyx and Goddess of Desire and even performed at Wacken Open Air 1999 (Germany), leaving the crowds insane and desperate for more.
While most of the metal scene left their '80s roots behind, especially as the 21st Century drew closer, Warhammer stood as one of the few exceptions. The band became more extreme by evoking an even heavier Hellhammer sound and unleashed The Doom Messiah (their first for Nuclear Blast). The album captured the pure essence of the early '80s underground. Wanting to take it even further, Warhammer turned up the speed for their latest opus to the old school, Curse of the Absolute Eclipse - their first domestic release. The final result is a grinding concoction of aggression and brutality patterned after the death-doom template hammered out by Hellhammer way back in '84.
Hellhammer is dead. Warhammer death/doom forever!
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