Kreator's work has been consistently in the vein of pure thrash, with the exception of four albums (Renewal, Cause for Conflict, Outcast and Endorama) during the 1990s when they undertook serious experimentation. Incorporating Industrial, Gothic and Avant-Garde elements into their sound, the results were uneven in some fans' and also critics' eyes. The band has since incorporated melodic death metal elements into their thrash sound, particularly that of the gothenburg scene.
Kreator formed as Tyrant in 1982 in Essen, Germany. The original lineup featured vocalist/guitarist Miland "Mille" Petrozza, drummer Jurgen 'Ventor' Reil, and bassist Rob Fioretti. They soon changed their name to Tormentor and released two demos. They changed the name of the band again to the final one, Kreator and signed to Noise Records in 1985. The name Kreator is not just a play on the English word "creator", it's also a name of a demon in the German mythology. Mille thought it was a cool name so the band settled with this new name instead of "Tormentor".
They recorded their debut album, Endless Pain, in just 10 days. Legions of black and death metal bands call it one of their major influences. The band hired the late Sodom guitarist Michael Wulf for the albums tour.
Wulf was in the band for a few days and didn't play on the band's next album, 1986's Pleasure to Kill, despite his getting credit. A new guitarist, Jörg "Tritze" Trzebiatowski joined the band and he played on this album, which is widely considered a thrash classic. Produced by Harris Johns (Helloween, Voivod), it is arguably one of the heaviest, fastest albums in metal, while showing the band growing in talent and technical ability. The song "Flag of Hate" became an early hit, and the band became one of the most promising up-and-coming European metal acts. With Tritze the band started their first tour ever (before the release of Pleasure to Kill they had only played 5 gigs total). The band closed out the year with the Flag of Hate EP.
In 1987 Kreator released Terrible Certainty, which is often considered to be Kreator's best album as the arrangements on the album were more complex and the tempos more varied. The album featured another hit "Behind The Mirror", and the band's popularity continued to grow. They managed to find enough time and money (coming from the concerts) to finance another EP Out of the Dark ... Into the Light.
In 1988 Kreator signed with major label Epic Records. Their debut with Epic, 1989's Extreme Aggression, recorded in Los Angeles, became a metal hit. Continuing the Terrible Certainty formula while showing the band still progressing musically and with better production by the well-regarded Randy Burns (also Megadeth among others), the album featured the band's first major singles and music videos, the title track and "Betrayer", becoming major hits on MTVs Headbangers Ball. They toured North America with Suicidal Tendencies, which greatly expanded their popularity outside of Europe.
In 1989 German director Thomas Schadt made a documentary about Kreator (focusing on the social aspect of heavy metal in the Ruhr Area) titled Thrash Altenessen (named after the band's hometown, a suburb of Essen). Tritze left Kreator after Extreme Aggression. In 1990, with new guitarist Frank "Blackfire" Gosdzik (also formely of Sodom), the band released Coma of Souls. This album was not quite as praised as the bands previous few albums (many felt the album was "rushed" and repetitive), but still managed to do quite well, with "People of the Lie" becoming a hit. However, things changed in the 90's. With many other thrash bands such as Metallica, Megadeth, Anthrax, and others changing their sound for a more commercial approach, Kreator began experimenting with death metal and industrial metal around this time.
The result was 1992s Renewal, which featured heavy death metal and industrial influences. While reaching a newer, more commercial audience, the band upset many longtime fans, accusing them of "selling out". The band, once known for being an excellent live act, had disappointing shows and tours for this album due to the industrial influences.
The excruciatingly taxing touring commitments that followed took the band as far as South America, but understandably left them physically and creatively exhausted. The band began to fall apart around this time, founding member Rob Fioretti left the band after the recording of the album as he wanted to spend more time with his family and was replaced by Andreas Herz, who never played any official release. In 1994 Reil left as well, leaving Petrozza the sole original bandmember. Reil was replaced by Joe Cangelosi. Herz left in 1995 and was replaced by Christian Giesler. To make matters worse, their contract with Epic was dropped. Now on G.U.N. Records the new lineup put out the album Cause for Conflict that year. The result was their most modern album at that time, the sound on this album had influences from Pantera and Machine Head, a slight return to a harsher sound than on the previous album.
Gosdzik and Cangelosi left in 1996 and were replaced by Tommy Vetterli (formerly of Coroner), and, surprisingly, Jurgen Reil. The band continued to experiment with their sound, releasing Outcast and Endorama, both of which experimented with goth and ambient influences, incorporated samples and loops and even found Petrozza trying a few different singing styles on for size. It also retained the groove metal influences. The record sales went down, by the end of the '90s the band reached both commercial and critical nadir. Though frontman Mille Petrozza never cared about this: "For us, success doesn't define in record sales. So all our albums have been successful for us, because we've achieved what we were aiming for...".
However, in 2001, with new guitarist Sami Yli-Sirniö, the band released their "comeback" album Violent Revolution, which saw the band returning to their classic thrash style (albeit they used a lot of melodic metal and so called Gothenburg metal riffs). It was praised by fans and critics alike. The tour was extremely successful and introduced Kreator to a younger generation of metal fans. A live album Live Kreation and live DVD Live Kreation: Revisioned Glory were released in 2003, and a new studio album - still retaining a style closer to old school thrash metal - Enemy of God was released in 2005. This album also saw a special edition re-release in 2006 called Enemy of God: Revisited. In early 2006, Kreator toured North America and Canada with Napalm Death, A Perfect Murder, and Undying. In 2007 Kreator had a European tour with Celtic Frost and Waatan. Kreator were to tour 2008 with King Diamond, Leaves Eyes, and Cellador, however the tour has been cancelled due to back issues with King Diamond.
In July of 2008 Kreator entered the Titonus Studios in Germany with producer Moses Schneider to record their twelfth studio album: Hordes of Chaos. The record was mixed by Colin Richardson and released worldwide under Steamhammer Records on the 13th January 2009. The record has been described as their most organic album to date because, barring vocals, guitar solos and some melodies, the album was recorded in a live setting on analog tape recorder with very few overdubs. Frontman Mille Petrozza noted that this was the first time they have recorded an album this way since Pleasure to Kill in 1986.
The album was released in three different formats. The standard edition was issued in a jewel case and features the 10 album tracks. A deluxe edition features a bonus DVD with a making of the album documentary. The LP version of the album has different artwork to the other versions.
The album debuted at number 165 on The Billboard 200 chart in the US, with first week sales of approximately 2,800 copies.
The album was re-released as the 'Ultra Riot' box set edition in mid 2010. It featured new artwork, extended liner notes, promo videos, a bonus disc with demo tracks and cover songs and various pieces of memorabilia (such as a photobook, sticker, poster and photo card).
Kreator toured on the back of this album throughout 2010, and Mille has recently confirmed that 2011 will primarily be a song-writing year for the band.
Enemy of God
Kreator Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Gather united in grief
Nothing is left from the world they have known
Grotesque indifferent belief
Systems have failed
Rules can't control
Corrupt dictators, forever dethroned
Lies of the Priest
Failure of structures manipulate deviant crimes
All nations hail the end of peace
New dawn inception of disease
Age of revenge has now been born
By the mother of all wars
Enemy of God
Purity and innocence is killed
Enemy of God
Peace died long ago when life stood still
Clash of demonic religions
Hatred the human divine
Despotic aggressors in triumph they reign
Fanatics bring mayhem to life
War of all wars
Foreseen before
Freedoms foundations exist no more
A genocide nightmare the darkest of days
Chaos devourers as all hope and pride fades
Enemy of god
Purity and innocence is killed
Peace died long ago when life stood still
Now the fury is unleashed
The hunter has become prey for the beast
Breathing savage disdain
Malevolence ingrained
No emotion for humanity
Tragically the palace falls
Burned are the imperators halls
For their decadent facades
All their elitaire
Exhibition of filth to watch for all
For those who die along the way
timeless glory awaits
Nothing can divide
Terror is thy name
Last legion alive
Set the World aflame
Enemy of god
Cast deliverance
Fanatical divide
Slaying innocence
Enemy of god
Answer to no one
Bringing war from heaven
A thousand fires burn
The lyrics to Kreator's song "Enemy of God" deal with themes of war, violence, and the end of civilization as we know it. The first stanza speaks of a dystopian world where everything people have known has been destroyed. The systems and rules that were supposed to control society have failed, and corrupt leaders have been overthrown. The lies of religion and the trust of the blindly faithful have led to the ultimate failure of society.
The second stanza speaks of the clash of religions and the hatred that divides humanity. Fanatics reign as chaos devours hope and pride. There is no more foundation for freedom, and the darkest of days bring about a genocide nightmare. The chorus reiterates the idea that purity and innocence have been killed, and peace died long ago in this dystopian world.
In the final stanza, we hear about the unleashing of fury and the fall of the palace. The flames of destruction burn, and the enemy of God is described as "terror" itself. The song ends with a call to arms, with the last legion of warriors ready to fight and bring war from heaven.
Line by Line Meaning
Shocked Orwellian races
Various nations who are stunned and scared, similar to the dystopian society in George Orwell's 1984
Gather united in grief
Come together in shared sorrow
Nothing is left from the world they have known
The world as they knew it is gone, destroyed or unrecognizable
Grotesque indifferent belief
A twisted and ugly mindset that is indifferent to others' suffering
Systems have failed
Political, economic and social systems have collapsed, leaving chaos in their wake
Rules can't control
There is no way to govern or control the situation
Corrupt dictators, forever dethroned
Rulers who are corrupt and unjust have been overthrown for good
Lies of the Priest
Religious leaders who deceive and mislead their flock
Trust of the Blind
People who believe without question, even when it's not in their best interest
Failure of structures manipulate deviant crimes
Societal structures that should prevent crime have become corrupt, leading to increased criminal behavior
All nations hail the end of peace
Everyone knows that peace is over, they accept there is no returning to it
New dawn inception of disease
A new era, marked by the beginning of a terrible illness or malady
Age of revenge has now been born
The time has come for retaliation and vengeance
By the mother of all wars
This conflict is the largest and most important in history
Enemy of God
The opposition to all that is holy
Purity and innocence is killed
The virtues of goodness and moral integrity no longer exist
Peace died long ago when life stood still
There hasn't been peace for a long time, time and society are frozen in darkness
Clash of demonic religions
Battles between dark, devilish belief systems
Hatred the human divine
What humans once revered as holy is now conceived as detestable
Despotic aggressors in triumph they reign
Rulers who are cruel and oppressive have emerged victorious
Fanatics bring mayhem to life
Extremists propagate chaos and destruction
War of all wars
The greatest, most destructive battle in history
Foreseen before
It was predicted or prophesied
Freedoms foundations exist no more
Individual rights and freedoms have been stripped away
A genocide nightmare the darkest of days
The horror of a genocide, a period of suffering and darkness
Chaos devourers as all hope and pride fades
Chaos destroys everything, including the hope and pride that people once had
Now the fury is unleashed
The rage and anger that was stored are now let loose
The hunter has become prey for the beast
The strong have now become the weak
Breathing savage disdain
Showing cruel and violent hatred
Malevolence ingrained
Evil is embedded in everything
No emotion for humanity
Apathetic or indifferent to human suffering
Tragically the palace falls
Even the most magnificent, powerful structures will fall and crumble
Burned are the imperators halls
The halls of those in power have been destroyed by fire
For their decadent facades
The rulers put up a false front of luxury and indulgence
All their elitaire
The wealthy and powerful, the ruling class
Exhibition of filth to watch for all
Public displays of disgusting or immoral behavior
For those who die along the way timeless glory awaits
Those who die in this conflict will have a legacy that will last forever
Nothing can divide
There is nothing that can come between us
Terror is thy name
The force of fear controls everything
Last legion alive
The survivors of the war, the last ones standing
Set the World aflame
Bring the entire world into a state of destruction and chaos
Cast deliverance
Possess the power to free or save someone
Fanatical divide
A militant and extreme opposition between different groups
Slaying innocence
The killing of pure and moral virtue
Enemy of god
The opponent of divine principles or holy teachings
Answer to no one
This force is accountable to no one, not even the highest authority
Bringing war from heaven
The celestial realm has become a battleground for conflict and destruction
A thousand fires burn
A multitude of destructive forces are at work, causing widespread devastation
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: MILAND PETROZZA
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@SkullknigtReal
He escuchado todos sus álbumes y siguen siendo igual de potentes, agresivos y geniales, siguen igual de thrashers.
Viva el Thrash y su mejor exponente! Kreator!(en mi opinión)
@adrianvillanueva7826
Y donde pones a Sodom o a Destruction
@williamosorio1849
@@adrianvillanueva7826 la misma categoria mi amigo
@ginaoporto5566
Opino igual, Kreator son los mejores exponentes del Thrash
@manuelcortes7817
Y donde dejan a slayer
@matiasvidal9213
totalmente de acuerdo wn, la mas potente de ahora en mi opinion es 666 world divided
@TyTye
This is one of the few thrash bands that get better with age. Not every Kreator album was fantastic but they at least didn't do their own Load or St Anger
@rangelfakov1699
ооо..yes!!!
@johnstrika9170
Um what would you call that turd Endorama?
@johnstrika9170
Imagine I knew what that even meant lol, If you're gonna reply to me fix your English