Line #42 Music/Kreator


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/kreator_logo_big.jpg]]
2	[[caption-width-right:350:United in Hate since 1982.]]
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5	Kreator is a German ThrashMetal band originating from Essen, Germany. Founded in 1982 as '''Metal Militia''', they changed their name to '''Tyrant''' and then to '''Tormentor''' before settling on their current name in 1984. They have released 14 full albums and two [=EP=]s so far. Together with Music/{{Destruction}}, Music/{{Sodom}}, and Music/{{Tankard}}, they are considered to be one of the bands comprising the ‘big 4’ of the German thrash metal scene. They emerged with a raw, fast, and unrelentingly heavy sound that made waves throughout the metal underground, cemented their first four albums as veritable cult-classics of the genre, and even became an inspiration for the then-burgeoning DeathMetal style. Their second album, ''Pleasure to Kill'', is widely hailed as one of the greatest thrash metal albums of all time.
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7	After their similarly acclaimed fifth album ''Coma of Souls'', they began [[NewSoundAlbum flirting with elements of several other metal genres outside of thrash]] throughout the rest of the 90s, including GrooveMetal, IndustrialMetal, and GothicMetal. However, their tenth album,''Violent Revolution'', saw them return to their classic thrash metal sound (albeit with a more melodic edge), and they have been sticking to it ever since.
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9	Kreator has had [[RevolvingDoorBand many different members]] over the years, the most famous of which are guitarist/lead vocalist Mille Petrozza and drummer Jürgen "Ventor" Reil (who also preformed lead vocals ''while playing drums at the same time'' on the band's earliest material).
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11	'''Current line up:'''
12	* Miland "Mille" Petrozza – lead vocals, rhythm guitar (1982–present)
13	* Jürgen "Ventor" Reil – drums (1982–1994, 1996–present), co-lead vocals (1982-1989)
14	* Sami Yli-Sirniö – lead guitar, backing vocals (2001–present)
15	* [[Music/DragonForce Frederic Leclerq]] – bass, backing vocals (2019–present)
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17	'''Former members:'''
18	* Roberto "Rob" Fioretti – bass (1982–1992)
19	* Jörg "Tritze" Trzebiatowski – lead guitar (1986–1989)
20	* Frank "Blackfire" Gosdzik – lead guitar (1989–1996)
21	* Andreas Herz – bass (1992–1994)
22	* Joe Cangelosi – drums (1994–1996)
23	* Christian "Speesy" Giesler – bass, backing vocals (1994–2019)
24	* Tommy Vetterli – lead guitar (1996–2001)
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26	[[AC:Studio Discography:]]
27	* ''Endless Pain'' (1985)
28	* ''Pleasure to Kill'' (1986)
29	* ''Terrible Certainty'' (1987)
30	* ''Extreme Aggression'' (1989)
31	* ''Coma of Souls'' (1990)
32	* ''Renewal'' (1992)
33	* ''Cause for Conflict'' (1995)
34	* ''Outcast'' (1997)
35	* ''Endorama'' (1999)
36	* ''Violent Revolution'' (2001)
37	* ''Enemy of God'' (2005)
38	* ''Hordes of Chaos'' (2009)
39	* ''Phantom Antichrist'' (2012)
40	* ''Gods of Violence'' (2017)
41	* ''Hate Über Alles'' (2022)
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43	----
44	! Kreator provides examples of:
45	* ConceptAlbum: According to Mille, every song on ''Pleasure to Kill'' is about a way to die.
46	* CoverVersion: "Lambs to the Slaughter" by Raven and much later, "Music/TheNumberOfTheBeast" by Music/IronMaiden.
47	* DeathMetal: The band is more of an UrExample, but they are widely seen as a huge influence on the genre regardless, particularly the early European scene.
48	* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: Drummer Ventor used to also preform most of the lead vocals for the band's early albums (half of ''Endless Pain'', three songs on ''Pleasure to Kill'', just one song on ''Terrible Certainty'') until ''Extreme Agression'', where Mille has been the sole lead vocalist since. He still performs those songs live though, and provides backing vocals on many newer tracks.
49	* {{Engrish}}: Like a lot of other German groups at the time, the band’s English wasn’t the best on their earliest albums;
50	---> ''This is a song in which
51	---> I use to describe what I feel
52	---> About people like you''
53	* FourTemperamentEnsemble:
54	** Mille: melancholic
55	** Ventor: choleric
56	** Sami: phlegmatic
57	** Fred: sanguine
58	* HarshVocals: Particularly on the very early albums; on ''Endlesss Pain'' and ''Pleasure to Kill'', Mille and Ventor were major innovators in the vocal style DeathMetal would later pursue. "Flag of Hate" is a great example.
59	* IAmTheBand: Mille Petrozza, being both the frontman and the only member who has been with the band since its formation.
60	* LeadDrummer: Ventor is the next most consistent member after Petrozza and did lead vocals for the band early on.
61	* LongRunnerLineup: They went eighteen years without a lineup change until Christian "Speesy" Giesler left in 2019, being replaced by Music/DragonForce bassist Frederic Leclerq.
62	* MetalBandMascot: Violent Mind, a demon with an exposed brain whose contents vary from album to album. He first appeared with a complete body on ''Pleasure to Kill'', but ''Coma of Souls'' marked the famous nightmarish head imagery the mascot is known for.
63	* MetalScream: Mille utilizes a mix of Type 3 and Type 1, while Ventor's vocals are closer to Type 2.
64	* NewSoundAlbum: ''Renewal'' featured a somewhat IndustrialMetal influenced sound, while still maintaining a thrash edge. ''Cause for Conflict'' took cues from GrooveMetal of the time like Music/MachineHead or Music/{{Pantera}}, but still retained the thrash basis. ''Outcast'' was a mix of the industrial thrash metal of ''Renewal'' and a touch of GothRock. The biggest change, however, came with ''Endorama'', which was mainly a GothicMetal album, even featuring a member of Lacrimosa and music videos with the band dressed in full {{Goth}} attire. 2001's ''Violent Revolution'' had them fully return to their classic thrash metal sound, albeit with a more melodic twist, and they have stuck with that ever since.
65	* PowerMetal: The band have incorporated some elements of the genre into their ThrashMetal sound since ''Violent Revolution''.
66	* ReligionRantSong: The band naturally has a number of these songs, with "Blind Faith" from ''Terrible Certainty'' (Type 2), "Catholic Despot" from ''Cause for Conflict'' (Type 3), "Enemy of God" from the eponymous album (mix of all three subtypes), and "Satan is Real" from ''Gods of Violence'' (also fits into each subtype) being just a few examples.
67	* RevolvingDoorBand: Since their formation, Mille has been the only completely constant member, although Ventor has played on all but one studio album.
68	* SanitySlippageSong: "Violent Revolution", where the protagonist is DrivenToMadness by their disgust at the cruelty and inequity of the world around them and swears to violently tear it all down.
69	---> Nothing can take the horror from me
70	---> Your sick world, the loss of all morality
71	---> My hate has grown as strong as my confusion
72	---> My only hope, my only solution
73	---> Is a '''VIOLENT REVOLUTION!'''
74	* TeenGenius: Mille was just ''17 years old'' when ''Endless Pain'' was recorded. Ventor and then-bassist Roberto Fioretti were only 19 themselves.
75	* ThrashMetal: Their main genre, along with proto-DeathMetal
76	* TitleOnlyChorus: The title track of ''Hate Über Alles''.
77	* TropeCodifier: One of the major ones for teutonic thrash and the harder end of thrash in general, not to mention early DeathMetal.
78	* VocalEvolution: Over time, Mille’s vocals have generally become slightly cleaner and more melodic, at least compared to the gruff, snarly shouting that characterized his voice on the early albums.
79	* VocalTagTeam: As noted, Mille and Ventor early on.
80	* XtremeKoolLetterz: Swapped the "C" in "Creator" for a "K."

Context Music / Kreator