Michael George Browning (born May 26, 1964) is an American heavy metal drummer and vocalist.

Life and career

Browning started to play drums at 13 years old. His main influences are

Black Sabbath Black Sabbath were an English rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy met ...

, Slayer,

Angel Witch Angel Witch are a British heavy metal band which formed in London in 1976 as part of the new wave of British heavy metal (NWOBHM) movement. Biography Formation The band formed, originally under the name of Lucifer, of guitarist and vocalist ...

Mercyful Fate Mercyful Fate is a Danish heavy metal band from Copenhagen, formed in 1981 by vocalist King Diamond and guitarist Hank Shermann. Influenced by progressive rock and hard rock, and with lyrics dealing with Satan and the occult, Mercyful Fat ...

, and Celtic Frost. Browning was the former drummer/vocalist for death metal pioneers

Morbid Angel Morbid Angel is an American death metal band based in Tampa, Florida, formed in 1983 by guitarist, primary composer and sole remaining original member Trey Azagthoth, vocalist and bassist Dallas Ward, and drummer Mike Browning. Widely considered ...

. He played in the band from 1984 to 1986 and made one official recording with them, '' Abominations of Desolation''; it was not released until 1991, years after Browning left the band. Browning had a very turbulent relationship with Morbid Angel guitarist

Trey Azagthoth Morbid Angel is an American death metal band based in Tampa, Florida, formed in 1983 by guitarist, primary composer and sole remaining original member Trey Azagthoth, vocalist and bassist Dallas Ward, and drummer Mike Browning. Widely considered ...

; Browning's exit from the band was apparently triggered by Azagthoth being involved in an affair with Browning's then-girlfriend, leading to an altercation between the two. Following his departure from Morbid Angel, Browning remained active as the drummer/vocalist for bands in the Florida death metal scene, including

Nocturnus Nocturnus, currently Nocturnus AD, is an American death metal band formed in Tampa, Florida, in 1987 by the drummer/vocalist Mike Browning (formerly of Morbid Angel). They were known for their science-fiction themed lyrics and use of keyboards, ...

, a technical/ progressive-oriented death metal band featuring a

keyboard Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...

player and

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel uni ...

-themed lyrics. Browning was the drummer and vocalist for the band on their album '' The Key'' (1990) and solely played drums on '' Thresholds'' before being fired from the band in 1993. The band has now been revived under the name "Nocturnus AD", but it's not a reunion because Nocturnus AD contains different members from the original Nocturnus, except Browning. Other projects he participated in during the 1980s and 1990s included Florida death metal bands Incubus and

Acheron The Acheron (; grc, Ἀχέρων ''Acheron'' or Ἀχερούσιος ''Acherousios''; ell, Αχέροντας ''Acherontas'') is a river located in the Epirus region of northwest Greece. It is long, and its drainage area is . Its source is ...

. Browning's current band is called

After Death ''After Death'' ( it, Oltre la Morte) is an Italian zombie film directed by Claudio Fragasso. The film is set on a remote island where a voodoo curse raises the dead from their graves to feast on the flesh of the living. When a boat of explor ...

, with lyrics concerned with

the occult The occult, in the broadest sense, is a category of esoteric supernatural beliefs and practices which generally fall outside the scope of religion and science, encompassing phenomena involving otherworldly agency, such as magic and mysticism a ...

and

black magic Black magic, also known as dark magic, has traditionally referred to the use of supernatural powers or magic for evil and selfish purposes, specifically the seven magical arts prohibited by canon law, as expounded by Johannes Hartlieb in 14 ...

. He was also involved in Devine Essence and Wolf and Hawk, with metal singer Lisa Lombardo. He is currently residing in

Tampa, Florida Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and ...

and has a collection of

medieval weapons The following is a list of Wikipedia articles of the types of weapons that were in use during the post-classical historical period (roughly between the mid 1st to mid 2nd millennia AD). Offensive weapons Melee weapons Trauma and cleavin ...

and Ancient Egyptian artifacts in his home. He is also interested in

muscle car Muscle car is a description according to '' Merriam-Webster Dictionary'' that came to use in 1966 for "a group of American-made two-door sports coupes with powerful engines designed for high-performance driving." The '' Britannica Dictionary'' ...

s and 3D graphic design. In 2008, he released a solo album called "Mike Browning's Inner Workings – Trancemissions" at Pharmafabrik Recordings. He also has a band called Nocturnus AD and their debut album Paradox was released on May 24, 2019, on Profound Records. He has a daughter that was born in 2007.

References

External links

Interview with Browning about all of his projects

Official website of After Death
{{DEFAULTSORT:Browning, Mike Living people American heavy metal drummers Morbid Angel members 1964 births 20th-century American drummers American male drummers 20th-century American male musicians American heavy metal singers