Denial of God

If Finland, despite having great bands like Beherit and Impaled Nazarene, existed in the shadow of neighbors Norway and Sweden, then Denmark was practically invisible. Denmark, of course, is known as the home to Mercyful Fate and King Diamond, whose impact on extreme metal is virtually without peer. But in terms of traditional black metal, not many bands emerged in the era we've been talking about up to now. The major exception is DENIAL OF GOD.

Denial of God was formed by brothers Azter and Ustumallagam (on guitar and vocals, respectively) and their friend Uksul (on drums) in 1991 in a small town near Sønderborg, Denmark. Much like a lot of the rest of Europe, death metal was huge in the late 80s and early 90s, so it was hard for Denial of God to find like-minded individuals to join their black metal outfit. As a result, they weren't able to recruit a bass player until 1992.

Here is their 1992 demo, Oscularium Infame, in full

After finally recruiting Kulmar on bass, they recorded the Oscularium Infame demo in 1992. There were only around 400 copies of this demo made, but they circulated widely in the underground. Denial of God's name began to spread, and one of the results was that they began to get offers for shows from around Denmark, and even headlined a couple of smaller shows.

 A second advantage to this new-found notoriety was that they were able to record their next demo in an actual studio (this was 1993's The Dawn of Aemizaez). The sound on this second demo was much improved over the first one. Some of Denial of God's influences--like early Bathory and Dead-era Mayhem--can be heard on this demo. As a result of the Dawn of Aemizaez demo, their underground reputation only grew. Labels began to seek them out.

This is the title track from 1995's The Statues Are Watching

Italian label Maggot Records, for example, wanted to put out a Denial of God 7" on vinyl. The result was 1995's The Statues Are Watching. As Ustumallagam put it, he'd "never forget the feeling the first time [he] held the vinyl" in his hands. This release was a milestone for the band, and opened yet more doors. They were in contact with more labels, and what followed was a series of EPs, MCDs, and 7-inches on various labels. Denial of God also went through numerous line-up changes in the 1990s as well. They had a hard time finding a dedicated bass player, and eventually parted ways with long-time drummer Uksul.

One of the things that Denial of God became known for was their showmanship. For them, live shows weren't just about playing their music for their fans, but it was about harnessing an evil atmosphere and truly performing. Denial of God shows have incorporated candles, corpsepaint, maggots, and other elements to truly give them a ritualistic, evil vibe. For band member Ustumallagam, the shows were, first and foremost, about catharsis.

"Curse of the Witch" is from 2006's The Horrors of Satan

After a series of EP's and 7-inches, the band ran into some rough times in the early millenium. They lost their rehearsal space and some of their equipment in 2001, and didn't really get back on their feet until 2004. This year marked the beginning of a new era for Denial of God. Newly invigorated, D.O.G. put out their first full-length--The Horrors of Satan--in 2006. This album can be considered a true landmark in Danish black metal.

Since that time, Denial of God has soldiered on with their trademark horror-infused sound. They have re-released old material, continued to put out EP's and MCDs, and released their second full-length album (Death and the Beyond) in 2012. 

From Death and the Beyond, this is "Funeral"

Select Discography:
Oscularium Infame (demo) (1992)
The Dawn of Aemizaez (demo) (1993)
The Statues Are Watching EP (1995)
The Ghouls of DOG EP (1996)
The Curse of the Witch EP (1999)
Klabautermanden EP (1999)
The Crypt Has Eyes EP (2000)
Robbing the Grave of the Priest EP (2001)
A Night in Transylvania EP (2006)
The Horrors of Satan (full-length) (2006)
Death and the Beyond (full-length) (2012)

Next time: CHRIST AGONY