Destruction is a Germanthrash metal band formed in 1982. They have been credited as one of the "Big Four" of theGerman thrash metal scene, the others beingKreator,Sodom andTankard.[3] In addition to helping pioneerblack metal,[4][5] Destruction was part of the second wave of thrash metal in the mid-to-late 1980s, along with US bandsTestament,Sacred Reich,Death Angel andDark Angel.[3][6] For most of the 1990s, the band was not signed to a record label and self-produced their albums until they signed a contract withNuclear Blast in the early 2000s.
The band was formed inWeil am Rhein as Knight of Demon in 1982, inspired byIron Maiden,Mercyful Fate,Motörhead andVenom. The line-up featured Ulf Kühne on vocals, Mike Sifringer on guitar, Marcel "Schmier" Schirmer on bass and Tommy Sandmann on drums. Kühne was kicked out of the band due to conflict with Sifringer over a girl, and Schmier took over vocal duties. They were then known as Destruction and released a demo titledBestial Invasion of Hell on 10 August 1984. After this, the group signed withSteamhammer Records and released an EP titledSentence of Death on 10 November.
During the initial recording sessions of the fourth albumCracked Brain, Schmier was fired from the band and was replaced byPoltergeist vocalist André Grieder, the only album with him. The album was released in 1990.[8] Guitarist Mike Sifringer remained and continued to release material under the moniker of "Neo-Destruction", featuring vocalist Thomas Rosenmerkel, second guitarist Michael Piranio, bassist Christian Engler and continuing drummer Oliver Kaiser. The first recording was the self-titledDestruction EP in 1994, followed a year later by theThem Not Me EP, and the band's fifth studio albumThe Least Successful Human Cannonball in 1998.
In 1999, the line-up was disassembled and Schmier rejoined with the addition of new drummer Sven Vormann, returning Destruction as a trio. They signed a record deal withNuclear Blast and released three new albums;All Hell Breaks Loose in 2000,The Antichrist in 2001, andMetal Discharge in 2003,[9][10][11][12][13] with Marc Reign replacing Vormann. The second live albumAlive Devastation was released on 26 March 2003,[14] followed by the release of a live DVD titledLive Discharge: 20 Years of Total Destruction on 4 March 2004.[15][16][17] Reign was temporarily arrested on 24 May 2004 following the band's performance inBrescia, due to the stage accessories, which was confiscated as a result.[18] Destruction would then sign withAFM Records[19] and releaseInventor of Evil on 22 August 2005.[20][21][22][23][24] It was followed by a compilation album titledThrash Anthems on 19 January 2007, featuring re-recorded material,[25] and the next studio albumD.E.V.O.L.U.T.I.O.N. on 29 August 2008.[26][27][28] The third live albumThe Curse of the Antichrist: Live in Agony was released 25 September 2009,[29][30][31][32][33][34][35] followed by the second DVD releaseA Savage Symphony - The History of Annihilation on 29 January 2010.[36][37]
Drummer Marc Reign would leave the band in 2010[38] and be replaced by Polish drummer Wawrzyniec "Vaaver" Dramowicz. On 18 February 2011, the twelfth albumDay of Reckoning was released.[39][40] The band's thirteenth studio albumSpiritual Genocide was released on 23 November 2012.[41] Their next albumUnder Attack was released on 13 May 2016.[42] Through an exclusivePledgeMusic campaign, Destruction released the sequel album toThrash Anthems titledThrash Anthems II on 18 July 2017, featuring more re-recordings of classic songs.[43][44][45]
Destruction performing in 2017
On 23 January 2018, Vaaver left Destruction "for family reasons", according to Schmier. He took time off in 2015 to be with his family following the birth of his second child.Randy Black would temporarily replace him until the band finds a "worthy successor".[46][47] He was later announced as the band's new drummer.[48] On 28 February 2019, Swiss guitarist Damir Eskic joined the band.[49] This new line-up recorded the fifteenth studio albumBorn to Perish, which was released on 9 August 2019.[50][51] It is rooted in their traditional style of thrash metal and received good reviews.[52] The fifth live albumBorn to Thrash was released on 8 May 2020.[53][54]
On 16 July 2021, Destruction performed at the Area 53 Festival inLeoben without rhythm guitarist Mike Sifringer.[55] Schmier explained in aFacebook post that Sifringer had not answered his emails and questioned his status, and that there was a problem that led to the decision to continue without him and would release a statement planned for 19 August.[56] Sifringer's departure was confirmed that day and was replaced by new guitarist Martin Furia, followed by the release of a new single titled "State of Apathy", featuring the band's first recording appearance with Furia.[57] On 13 August, the sixth live albumLive Attack was released.[58] On 16 December, a music video of the title track from the sixteenth studio albumDiabolical was released. The album was released on 8 April 2022 in celebration of the band's 40th anniversary.[59]
On 31 July 2023, it was announced that Destruction (along withKreator,Sodom andTankard) were on the bill for the Klash of the Ruhrpott festival, which took place on 20 July 2024 at Amphitheater Gelsenkirchen inGelsenkirchen, making this the first time that all of the "Big Teutonic Four" bands had performed together.[60]
On 6 June 2024, the band released a new single, titled "No Kings - No Masters", in anticipation of their seventeenth studio albumBirth of Malice, which was released on 7 March 2025.[61][62][63]
^McPadden, Mike (2012).If you like Metallica : here are over 200 bands, CDs, movies, and other oddities that you will love. Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA: Backbeat Books. p. 74.
