Nazarene Deceiver

Allegedly founded way back in the late-1980s during the early years of the Death/Black Metal underground, NAZARENE DECEIVER offered up a raw and primitive assault, complemented by a wayward use of keyboard and samplings to add a most unsettling atmosphere to their recordings. Although shifting through a number of different monikers before settling with their current name, the band appears to have operated consistently as a trio, consisting of Spiros Accurser (vocals, keyboards, samples), Steve Martyrizer (guitars, drums) and a certain Paul (bass). With this lineup, the band recorded a handful of severely limited-edition tapes (first as TERROR, then as ANATHEMA), before unleashing their first work as NAZARENE DECEIVER: “Cannibalistic Dehumanization” (1990). Featuring rehearsal recordings put to tape between 1988-1990, “Cannibalistic Dehumanization” – much like many other recordings during this formative period – evades convenient categorization, since the concepts of Black- and Death- Metal were yet to be cemented as specific subgenres. It combines aggressive, Punk-like approach of late-1980s Death Metal with the ferality and malicious atmosphere of primordial Black Metal.

Selected tracks from the “Cannibalistic Dehumanization” were later re-released on a split-demo tape in 1992 with UK’s Bestial Black/Death masters DEAD CHRIST (who also released a 7” EP on the Greek label Molon Lave). A second (and final) N.D. demo tape was issued the same year, entitled “Perfect Lies” (1992), but this recording has not surfaced yet.

NAZARENE DECEIVER mainmen Spiros Accurser and Steve Martyrizer later teamed up in a number of underground acts, mostly of Black Metal-orientation, such as FROSTDEMONSTORM, PUTSCH and TRAGEDY BEGINS. In addition to his continued output as TRAGEDY BEGINS, Spiros Accurser has also released an array of releases under other names, including TRAUMA ONEIRON, ETHOS HEROICON and TERRORISTIC ECSTASY.

Compilation appearances: