The band originated in San Francisco in 1983. The band recruited Jeff Becerra to take over the lead vocal position following the death of original lead vocalist, Barry Fisk. The following years were spent practicing and working on their sound by performing at local venues. Through their early live performances they met fellow bay-area heavy metal band, Exodus. Exodus brought the band's four song demo recording to the attention of Brian Slagel, head of Metal Blade Records. Slagel showed interest in the band and offered to put one of their songs on an upcoming compilation titled "Metal Massacre 6". The track included was titled "Swing of the Axe". Following the release of the compilation, guitarist Brian Montana left the band due to creative differences. He was replaced by Larry Lalonde, future guitarist of popular alternative metal band Primus. Although Metal Blade did not offer to sign the band, the compilation drew the attention of Combat Records. Possessed signed with the label and released the album "Seven Churches" in 1985.
Possessed followed the release with a supporting tour which included a performance with Slayer and Venom at San Francisco's Kabuki in 1986. On Halloween, 1986, Possessed released their second album, "Beyond the Gates". In 1987 the band issued a five song EP titled "The Eyes Of Horror" which marked a change in direction for the band. The Satanic themes that they had become noted for were completely absent on the EP. The songs had more of a thrash metal style than their earlier death metal. The EP was produced by guitarist Joe Satriani. Most of the songwriting was done by Lalonde, rather than Becerra and Torrao who had written most of the band's earlier material.
Shortly after the release of the Eyes of Horror EP the band disbanded. In 1989, Jeff Becerra was paralyzed from the waist down following a shooting incident.
Mike Torrao reformed Possessed in 1993 with a new line-up consisting former members of Machine Head and Pro-Pain. The new line-up recorded two demos before dissolving the same year.
In 2007, it was announced that Jeff Becerra would be performing under the "Possessed" name at the Wacken Open Air festival and would be backed by all members of Sadistic Intent, one of the bands featured on the Possessed tribute, and would also headline the Gathering of the Bestial Legions III festival in Los Angeles.
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Possessed_(band)
2) This is the story of a band whose tragic legacy could never have been predicted. Possessed were born out the thriving underground West Midlands Rock & Blues scene of the mid to late ‘60’s. This was a scene in which band- leader, Vernon Pereira, had been a key figure.
The band were formed in late 1969 when Vernon teamed up (after a spell playing next to Robert Plant in The Band Of Joy) with Mick Reeves, who had been playing in (amongst other bands) Sugarstack with Al Atkins. This was the band that would eventually evolve into being the first incarnation of Judas Priest.
Exploration was originally intended for releases in 1971. Due to various reasons the album never saw the light of day; that is, until a few years back, when Rise Above Records released it.
The band were finally on the verge of signing a major deal, when tragedy struck. Whilst returning home from a gig in 1976, the bands van drove into a stationary tanker, taking the lives of three band members.
Confessions
Possessed Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Crimes of passion
ruled his mind
the anger inside
compassion he will
Never find
The Pain and Pleasure
of the blade
The screams she made
Forgive me father
For I have sinned
Because the anger
Burned within
Unfaithful
He saw it in her eyes
They wouldn't hide
Betrayal and her Wicked
Lies
Confessions
From a dying man
Listen now
And understand
Shadows
In the Night
Pain
that summons fright
He looked
Into her eyes
And Tells her
Tonight she dies
But to you
I must confess
That when she died
she was the best
The lyrics to Possessed's song Confessions tell the story of a man consumed by the anger and pain of betrayal. The crimes of passion rule his mind, and he cannot find compassion within himself. He takes pleasure in the pain of the blade and the screams of his victim, a woman who has been unfaithful to him. He asks for forgiveness for his sins, knowing that his anger burned within him and led him down this dark path.
The man sees the betrayal in his lover's eyes, and he cannot ignore it. He confronts her and tells her that she will die tonight. But he also confesses that when she died, she was the best. This shows the depths to which he has sunk and the twisted nature of his love. The song is a disturbing portrait of a man who has lost his way and fallen into darkness.
Line by Line Meaning
Crimes of passion
Emotions overwhelmed him leading to violent acts of passion.
ruled his mind
These violent passions dominated his thoughts.
the anger inside
A deep-rooted anger lurked inside him.
compassion he will
Never find
He is incapable of feeling compassion due to his inner turmoil.
The Pain and Pleasure
of the blade
He feels both pain and pleasure while using a blade as a weapon.
And he loved
The screams she made
He found pleasure in the screams of his victim.
Forgive me father
For I have sinned
Asking for forgiveness for his violent acts.
Because the anger
Burned within
He had no control over his anger.
Unfaithful
He saw it in her eyes
They wouldn't hide
Betrayal and her Wicked
Lies
His partner's infidelity became undeniable revealing her deceitfulness.
Confessions
From a dying man
Listen now
And understand
Sharing his sins as he is approaching death.
Shadows
In the Night
Pain
that summons fright
The darkness of night and the fear of pain haunt him.
He looked
Into her eyes
And Tells her
Tonight she dies
He stared into her eyes and threatened her with death.
But to you
I must confess
That when she died
she was the best
Admitting that he found pleasure in killing his victim.
Contributed by Kaelyn C. Suggest a correction in the comments below.