Judas Iscariot was an American

black metal Black metal is an extreme metal, extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. Common traits include Tempo#Beats per minute, fast tempos, a Screaming (music)#Black metal, shrieking vocal style, heavily distorted Electric guitar, guitars played with t ...

band. It began in 1992 as the solo-project of Andrew Harris, who performed under the pseudonym Akhenaten (after the

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...

ian

Pharaoh Pharaoh (, ; Egyptian: ''pr ꜥꜣ''; cop, , Pǝrro; Biblical Hebrew: ''Parʿō'') is the vernacular term often used by modern authors for the kings of ancient Egypt who ruled as monarchs from the First Dynasty (c. 3150 BC) until the an ...

of the same name). With the release of ''Heaven in Flames'' (1999), Duane Timlin (aka Cryptic Winter) joined the band as a session drummer. During 1999 and 2000, Akhenaten twice performed live with a line-up featuring members from

Nargaroth Nargaroth is a German black metal band led by René "Ash" Wagner, formerly known as “Kanwulf”. History Wagner had earlier claimed that Nargaroth was formed in 1989, the seven-track instrumental demo ''Orke'' was released in 1991, and the ...

, Krieg, Absu and Maniac Butcher. After relocating to Germany, Akhenaten announced the demise of Judas Iscariot on August 25, 2002.Statement
from the inlay of Judas Iscariot's final release. Judas Iscariot: ''Midnight Frost (To Rest with Eternity)'', Sombre Records 2002.

Ideology

Akhenaten considered the story of the band Judas Iscariot as documentation of one individual's struggle against the moral boundaries set by Christianity. Furthermore, he expressed contempt towards

capitalism Capitalism is an economic system based on the private ownership of the means of production and their operation for Profit (economics), profit. Central characteristics of capitalism include capital accumulation, competitive markets, pric ...

, which he dismissed as inextricably linked to

materialism Materialism is a form of philosophical monism which holds matter to be the fundamental substance in nature, and all things, including mental states and consciousness, are results of material interactions. According to philosophical materiali ...

. Akhenaten stated that his music was intended to give others strength to live in a world compromised by materialism and irrational religious ideology. Some of the lyrics on early Judas Iscariot albums are borrowed from the works of

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or writte ...

and

Christian mystic Christian mysticism is the tradition of mystical practices and mystical theology within Christianity which "concerns the preparation f the personfor, the consciousness of, and the effect of ..a direct and transformative presence of God" ...

William Blake William Blake (28 November 1757 – 12 August 1827) was an English poet, painter, and printmaker. Largely unrecognised during his life, Blake is now considered a seminal figure in the history of the poetry and visual art of the Romantic Age. ...

, as well as from English poet

Percy Bysshe Shelly Percy Bysshe Shelley ( ; 4 August 17928 July 1822) was one of the major English Romantic poets. A radical in his poetry as well as in his political and social views, Shelley did not achieve fame during his lifetime, but recognition of his achi ...

, fundamental for understanding the connection between Dark Romanticism, the esoteric and their connection to heavy metal lyrics. Akhenaten repeatedly denied association with the

National Socialist black metal National Socialist black metal, also known as NSBM, Aryan black metal, and Neo-Nazi black metal, is a political movement and subgenre within the black metal music scene that promotes neo-Nazism, Fascism, and white supremacist ideologies. NSBM a ...

movement. In an interview he stated "Judas Iscariot is no Nazi band. I myself am no Nazi either ..If other bands think they have to include politics into their music, it's their business, but this has nothing to do with my band."Interview on ''Art of Malice''
(in German), accessed on 31 December 2012.

Line-up

* Akhenaten (Andrew Harris) – vocals, guitar, bass and drums * Cryptic Winter (Duane Timlin) – session drums (1999–2001) * Kanwulf (

René Wagner René Wagner (born 31 October 1972) is a Czech football manager and former player. Born in Brno, Wagner played in his career mostly for FC Zbrojovka Brno and SK Rapid Wien in Austria. In April 2011 he was named the manager of FC Zbrojovka Brno ...

) – live guitar * Lord Imperial (Neill Jameson) – live bass (1999–2000) * Proscriptor (Russley Randel Givens) – live drums (1999) * Butcher (real name unknown) – live drums (2000)

Discography

Full-length albums

* ''The Cold Earth Slept Below'' (1996) * ''Thy Dying Light'' (1996) * ''Of Great Eternity'' (1997) * ''Distant in Solitary Night'' (1999) * ''Heaven in Flames'' (2000) * ''To Embrace the Corpses Bleeding'' (2002) * ''An Ancient Starry Sky'' (2018)

EPs

* ''Arise, My Lord'' (1996) * ''Dethroned, Conquered and Forgotten'' (2000) * ''March of the Apocalypse'' (2002) * ''Moonlight Butchery'' (2002) * ''Midnight Frost (To Rest with Eternity)'' (2003)

Split albums

* ''Judas Iscariot/Weltmacht'' (with Weltmacht) (1999) * ''None Shall Escape the Wrath'' (with Krieg,

Eternal Majesty Eternal Majesty is a French black metal band. It was formed by four brothers under the original name of Enchantress Moon. Statistics *Genre: Black metal *Country: France *Status: Active *Time: 1995 - Discography Albums *2002 - ''From War ...

and

Macabre Omen In works of art, the adjective macabre ( or ; ) means "having the quality of having a grim or ghastly atmosphere". The macabre works to emphasize the details and symbols of death. The term also refers to works particularly gruesome in natu ...

) (2000) *''To the Coming Age of Intolerance'' (with Krieg) (2001)

Live releases

* ''Under the Black Sun'' (2000)

Compilation albums

* ''From Hateful Visions'' (2000) * ''Midnight Frost (To Rest with Eternity)'' (2002)

Demos

* ''Heidegger'' (1992) * ''Judas Iscariot'' (1993)

References

External links

Judas Iscariot
on

No Colours Records No Colours Records is a German mail order and record label from Mügeln specialised in black metal. Background No Colours Records mostly releases black metal records, but has also released records related to other extreme metal genres such as t ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Judas Iscariot American black metal musical groups Heavy metal musical groups from Illinois Musical groups established in 1992 Musical groups disestablished in 2002 One-man bands Black metal controversies