Suffocation is an American

death metal Death metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. It typically employs heavily distorted and low-tuned guitars, played with techniques such as palm muting and tremolo picking; deep growling vocals; aggressive, powerful drumming, fe ...

band formed in 1988 in

Centereach, New York Centereach () is a hamlet and census-designated place in Suffolk County, New York, United States. The population was 31,578 at the 2010 census. History The hamlet of Centereach was first called West Middle Island, but primarily became known a ...

, consisting of lead guitarist

Terrance Hobbs Terrance Hobbs (born April 6, 1970) is an American musician and the lead guitarist in the American death metal band Suffocation. Hobbs has been a constant member in the band since their first released title ''Reincremated'' along with band mate ...

, bassist Derek Boyer, rhythm guitarist Charlie Errigo, drummer Eric Morotti, and vocalist Ricky Myers. The band rose to prominence with the 1991 debut album '' Effigy of the Forgotten'', which became a blueprint for death metal in the 1990s. Since then, Suffocation has recorded a further seven albums. These feature

growled vocals A death growl, or simply growl, is an extended vocal technique usually employed in extreme styles of music, particularly in death metal and other extreme subgenres of heavy metal music. Death growl vocals are sometimes criticized for their ...

with

downtuned guitar Guitar tunings are the assignment of pitches to the open strings of guitars, including acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and classical guitars. Tunings are described by the particular pitches that are made by notes in Western music. By ...

s, fast and complex

guitar riffs A riff is a repeated chord progression or refrain in music (also known as an ostinato figure in classical music); it is a pattern, or melody, often played by the rhythm section instruments or solo instrument, that forms the basis or accompa ...

and drumming,

open chord In music for stringed instruments, especially guitar, an open chord (open-position chord) is a chord that includes one or more strings that are not fingered. An open string vibrates freely, whereas a fingered string will be partially dampened u ...

notes and occasional breakdowns.

History

Early years and the 1990s era (1988–1998)

Suffocation was formed in 1988 in

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United States and the 18 ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

, by vocalist

Frank Mullen Francis P.Mull Eugene Mullen (born January 2, 1970) is an American vocalist, best known as the former frontman for the New York technical death metal band Suffocation. He is one of the first vocalists to introduce low-pitched growling vocals int ...

, guitarists Guy Marchais and Todd German, bassist Josh Barohn, and a drummer whose name hasn't been disclosed. By 1990, the band had hired guitarists

and Doug Cerrito along with drummer Mike Smith, who were members of a local band called Mortuary, which had already disbanded. The quintet was mainly influenced by fellow American

bands as well as the British band

Napalm Death Napalm Death are an English grindcore band formed in 1981 in Meriden, West Midlands. None of the band's original members has been in the group since 1986. But since '' Utopia Banished'' (1992), the lineup of bassist Shane Embury, guitarist Mitc ...

and Brazilian

Sepultura Sepultura (, "grave")Barcinski & Gomes 1999, page 17. is a Brazilian heavy metal band from Belo Horizonte. Formed in 1984 by brothers Max and Igor Cavalera,Barcinski & Gomes 1999, page 16. the band was a major force in the groove metal, thra ...

. Smith commented on meeting Hobbs for the first time: "That's where I first noticed, 'Wow, there's another black guy playing this kind of stuff.'" They signed a contract with

Relapse Records Relapse Records is an American independent record label based in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania. It was founded by Matthew F. Jacobson in 1990. The label features many grindcore, death metal, metalcore and sludge metal artists. History The label w ...

in 1990 alongside bands

Incantation An incantation, a spell, a charm, an enchantment or a bewitchery, is a magical formula intended to trigger a magical effect on a person or objects. The formula can be spoken, sung or chanted. An incantation can also be performed during ceremo ...

, and

Deceased Death is the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain an organism. For organisms with a brain, death can also be defined as the irreversible cessation of functioning of the whole brain, including brainstem, and brain ...

, becoming one of the first three bands to sign onto the newly founded label. The band's first EP, ''

Human Waste Human waste (or human excreta) refers to the waste products of the human digestive system, menses, and human metabolism including urine and faeces. As part of a sanitation system that is in place, human waste is collected, transported, treate ...

'', was released through Relapse Records in 1991. The full-length debut album, '' Effigy of the Forgotten'', recorded by producer Scott Burns at

Tampa Tampa () is a city on the 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 the seat of Hillsborough C ...

's Morrisound Studios and released by

Roadrunner Records Roadrunner Records is an American record label focused on heavy metal and hard rock bands. Founded in the Netherlands in 1980, it is now a division of Warner Music Group and is based in New York City. History The label was launched in 1980 in ...

the same year. In July 1991, Barohn was replaced by Chris Richards (ex Apparition/Sorrow), as the album became substantially influential in

extreme metal Extreme metal is a loosely defined umbrella term for a number of related heavy metal music subgenres that have developed since the early 1980s. It has been defined as a "cluster of metal subgenres characterized by sonic, verbal, and visual tran ...

music.John Bush,

Suffocation Asphyxia or asphyxiation is a condition of deficient supply of oxygen to the body which arises from abnormal breathing. Asphyxia causes generalized hypoxia, which affects primarily the tissues and organs. There are many circumstances that can ...

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Music ...

. After the following album, '' Breeding the Spawn'', was released in 1993, Smith left the band and was replaced by Doug Bohn.Suffocation history
at official Suffocation Myspace. The 1995 release ''

Pierced from Within ''Pierced from Within'' is the third album by the death metal band Suffocation, released in 1995. "Synthetically Revived" is a re-recording of the song of the same name from the '' Human Waste'' EP and "Breeding the Spawn" is a re-recording of ...

'', which received better production than the previous release,Leslie Mathew, ''Pierced from Within'' AllMusic. was followed by extensive tours in Europe, Canada, Mexico and the United States. In 1998, Suffocation released the EP ''

Despise the Sun ''Despise the Sun'' is an EP released in 1998 by the death metal band Suffocation. It was the last recording before Suffocation's breakup (and subsequent reformation in 2003), and the last to feature guitarist Doug Cerrito and bassist Chris Ric ...

'' via Vulture Records and disbanded soon after. The EP was re-released later in 2000 and 2002 by Relapse Records.

Reunion and later (2003–present)

Suffocation Summer Breeze Open Air 2017 16

Mullen and Hobbs reformed in 2003 with Smith, Marchais, and Barohn. After which, they hired bassist Derek Boyer of the bands

Deeds of Flesh Deeds of Flesh is an American brutal death metal band from Los Osos, California, U.S. They were formed in 1993 by Jacoby Kingston, Erik Lindmark (1972–2018) and Joey Heaslet, and remained active until Lindmark's death in 2018. They founded t ...

and

Decrepit Birth Decrepit Birth is an American death metal band from Santa Cruz, California. They have released two studio albums through Unique Leader Records and two through Nuclear Blast, and a demo independently. All of their studio albums feature artwor ...

to replace Barohn. In April 2004, Relapse Records released ''Souls to Deny''. After the band played more than 400 shows in the United States and Europe including the

Wacken Festival Wacken Open Air (, abbreviated as W:O:A) is a rock music festival, held annually since 1990 on the first weekend of August in the village of Wacken in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. Almost all styles and subgenres of hard rock and metal are repr ...

in Germany, playing to over 33,000 fans, Suffocation released their self-titled album, ''

'', in 2006. In 2007, the band was featured in

The History Channel History (formerly The History Channel from January 1, 1995 to February 15, 2008, stylized as HISTORY) is an American pay television network and flagship channel owned by A&E Networks, a joint venture between Hearst Communications and the Disney ...

's promotional video for ''The Dark Ages'' documentary, playing the song "Bind, Torture, Kill".Suffocation: New Audio Interview with Frank Mullen Posted Online – Feb. 7, 2007
, Blabbermouth.net. In 2008, the band signed to the German

Nuclear Blast Records Nuclear Blast is a record label and mail order record distributor with subsidiaries in Germany, the United States and Brazil. The label was founded in 1987 by Markus Staiger in Germany. Originally releasing hardcore punk records, the label move ...

and released their album '' Blood Oath'' in 2009. The album charted on the US ''Billboard'' 200 at number 135. In 2009, Relapse released the live album entitled ''Close of a Chapter—Live in Québec City'', that was previously self-released by the band in 2005. The release of a documentary film ''Legacy of Violence'' was set for 2010, but has since been delayed.Suffocation: 'Legacy of Violence' DVD Preview Available – Jan. 8, 2010
, Blabbermouth.net. In May 2010, Suffocation toured with Napalm Death in South America and Mexico. In February 2012, Smith left the band again, to be replaced by the returning

Dave Culross Dave Culross (born March 9, 1974 in Rochester, New York) is an American drummer. He was a member of Malevolent Creation, Culross has played drums in many death metal bands, such as Suffocation, Mortician, Incantation, HatePlow, Pyrexia, Gorg ...

Suffocation Summer Breeze Open Air 2017 21

In 2012, the band was inducted into the Long Island Music Hall of Fame and released ''

Pinnacle of Bedlam ''Pinnacle of Bedlam'' is the seventh studio album by American death metal band Suffocation. It is the band's first full-length record since ''Pierced from Within'' to not feature Mike Smith (although he makes a guest appearance on the final t ...

'' in February 2013. Since after the release of ''

'' in 2013, vocalist

announced that he will retire from full-time touring with the band due to his new job. He has since been replaced by various live vocal stand ins, including

Bill Robinson Bill Robinson, nicknamed Bojangles (born Luther Robinson; May 25, 1878 – November 25, 1949), was an American tap dancer, actor, and singer, the best known and the most highly paid African-American entertainer in the United States during the f ...

, John Gallagher, Kevin Muller, and, currently, Ricky Myers. Suffocation Summer Breeze Open Air 2017 14

In January 2015, Suffocation began making posts revealing that they were in the process of recording demos for a new album with a potential release date of late 2015. In April 2016, the ensemble toured with

Soulfly Soulfly is an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1997, and later based out of Phoenix, Arizona. Soulfly is led by former Sepultura frontman Max Cavalera, who formed the band after he left the Brazilian group in 19 ...

Abnormality Abnormality refers to any deviation from the normal, the noun form of the adjective ''abnormal''. Abnormality may refer to: __NOTOC__ Medicine and physiology *Chromosome abnormality, atypical number of chromosomes or a structural abnormality in ...

Battlecross Battlecross was an American heavy metal band from Canton, Michigan. The band has described their sound as "Blue Collar Thrash Metal". To date, they have released three albums through their label, Metal Blade Records. History The band was f ...

and Lody Kong. The new album's name was revealed as '' ...Of the Dark Light'' and was released on June 9, 2017. Later in 2017, Kevin Muller, who had previously been a touring member, joined the band full-time alongside longtime vocalist

leading the two to share vocal duties on the last album. He subsequently stepped down at the end of the year and was replaced by a returning Myers in 2018. On March 12, 2018, it was announced that Frank Mullen would do one more tour with Suffocation before officially retiring from the band. On January 15, 2019 it was announced that Mullen would return in June 2019 for a final tour of Japan.

Musical style and legacy

Suffocation Summer Breeze Open Air 2017 13

Suffocation is one of the earliest groups to redefine the death metal style that is recognized today. The band uses "outrageously guttural vocals with a bottom-heavy guitar foundation, blistering speed, unparalleled brutality and sophisticated sense of songwriting, complex time changes and lead and rhythm guitar acrobatics"Eduardo Rivadavia, ''Effigy of the Forgotten'' AllMusic. and occasional slam riffs and breakdowns. With their debut album, '' Effigy of the Forgotten'', Suffocation rose to prominence of death metal and created a blueprint for the genre for the 1990s, retaining their style after the reunion in 2003. ''

Decibel Magazine ''Decibel'' is a monthly heavy metal magazine published by the Philadelphia-based Red Flag Media since October 2004. Its sections include Upfront, Features, Reviews, Guest Columns and the Decibel Hall of Fame. The magazine's tag-line is currentl ...

'' stated: "''Effigy of the Forgotten'' was a benchmark for extreme music, as it sacrificed neither virtuosity or brutality, becoming a signpost for thousands who were still contemplating how to incorporate scalar runs, rapid-fire

palm-muting The palm mute is a playing technique for guitar and bass guitar, executed by placing the side of the picking hand below the little finger across the strings to be plucked, very close to the bridge, and then plucking the strings while the damp ...

and hummingbird-wing-quick picking into riffs, while opening up rhythmic dimensions and the scope of the

blast beat A blast beat is a type of drum beat that originated in hardcore punk and grindcore, and is often associated with certain styles of extreme metal, namely black metal and death metal,Adam MacGregor, ''PCP Torpedo'' by Agoraphobic Nosebleed ...

." Blabbermouth.net described Suffocation as "American death metal's most consistent and punishing standard-bearers" and their style as "brutal death metal".Keith Bergman
Suffocation ''Suffocation'' (Relapse)
Blabbermouth.net. According to

, Mullen is one of the best vocalists in death metal. ''Decibel Magazine'' stated: "One of Suffocation's trademarks, breakdowns, has spawned an entire metal subgenre:

deathcore Deathcore is an extreme metal subgenre that combines death metal with metalcore. The genre consists of death metal guitar riffs, blast beats, and metalcore breakdowns. While there are some precursors to the concept of death metal fused with me ...

." Suffocation is also one of the pioneers of

technical death metal Technical death metal (also referred to as tech-death) is a musical subgenre of death metal that began and developed in the early- to mid-1990s, with particular focus on challenging, demanding instrumental skill and complex songwriting. Techni ...

Members

Current *

– lead guitar (1990–1998, 2003–present) * Derek Boyer – bass (2004–present) * Charlie Errigo – rhythm guitar (2016–present) * Eric Morotti – drums (2016–present) * Ricky Myers – vocals (2019–present; live member: 2015–2016, 2018) Former *

– vocals (1988–1998, 2003–2019) * Todd German – lead guitar (1988–1990) * Guy Marchais – rhythm guitar (1988–1990, 2003–2016) *

Doug Cerrito Doug Cerrito (born November 1970) is an American musician best known as the former guitarist for New York death metal band Suffocation from 1990 until their split in 1998. He also played on death metal band Hate Eternal's debut ''Conquering the ...

– rhythm guitar (1990–1998) * Josh Barohn – bass (1988–1991, 2003–2004) * Chris Richards – bass (1991–1998) * Mike Smith – drums (1990–1994, 2003–2012) * Doug Bohn – drums (1994–1995) *

– drums (1995–1998, 2012–2014) * Kevin Talley – drums (2014–2016) Former live musicians * Bill Robinson – vocals (2012) * John Gallagher – vocals (2013) * Kevin Muller – vocals (2017) Timeline

Discography

Studio albums

Live albums

{, class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;" , - ! scope="col" style="width:15em;", Title ! scope="col" , Album details ! scope="col" , Notes , - ! scope="row" , ''Close of a Chapter: Live in Québec City'' , * Released: 2005 * Label: Self-released * Formats: CD, download , * re-released by Relapse Records on October 27, 2009 , - ! scope="row" , ''Live in North America'' , * Released: November 12, 2021 * Label: Nuclear Blast * Formats: CD, cassette , * Recorded on October 22, 2018 at Middle East Down in Cambridge, MA on the Death Chopping North America Tour (final North American tour with Frank Mullen)

Extended plays

{, class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;" , - ! scope="col" style="width:15em;", Title ! scope="col" , Album details , - ! scope="row" , ''

'' , * Released: May 1, 1991 * Label: Relapse Records * Formats: CD, CS, LP, download , - ! scope="row" , ''

'' , * Released: April 30, 1998 * Label: Vulture Records * Formats: CD, LP, download

Compilation albums

{, class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;" , - ! scope="col" style="width:15em;", Title ! scope="col" , Album details , - ! scope="row" , ''

The Best of Suffocation ''The Best of Suffocation'' is a greatest hits, best-of compilation album by the American death metal band Suffocation (band), Suffocation. It was released through Roadrunner Records on January 29, 2008. Track listing :''Tracks 1–5 were taken ...

'' , * Released: January 29, 2008 * Label: Roadrunner Records * Formats: CD, download

Demos

{, class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;" , - ! scope="col" style="width:15em;", Title ! scope="col" , Album details , - ! scope="row" , ''Reincremated'' , * Released: July 1990 * Label: Self-released * Formats: CS

Music videos

{, class="wikitable" , - ! Year ! Title ! Directed ! Album , - , 2004 , "Surgery of Impalement" , Adam Wingard , ''Souls to Deny'' , - , 2005 , "Synthetically Revived" , Adam Wingard , ''Human Waste'' , - , 2006 , "Abomination Reborn" , Rick Carmona , ''Suffocation'' , - , 2009 , "Cataclysmic Purification" , David Brodsky , ''Blood Oath'' , - , 2013 , "As Grace Descends" , Tommy Jones , ''Pinnacle of Bedlam''

Notes

:A.{{note, Mullen's-Status Since the release of ''Pinnacle of Bedlam'' in 2013 until his retirement from the band in 2018, Frank Mullen announced that he would be retiring from full-time touring with the band due to his new job. He has since been replaced by various live vocal stand-ins, including

, John Gallagher, Ricky Myers, and Kevin Muller.{{cite web, url=http://loudwire.com/suffocation-pinnacle-of-bedlam-future-of-vocalist-frank-mullen/, title=Suffocation Members Talk 'Pinnacle of Bedlam,' Future of Vocalist Frank Mullen + More, publisher=

Loudwire ''Loudwire'' is an American online media magazine that covers news of hard rock and heavy metal artists. It is owned by media and entertainment business Townsquare Media. Since its launch in August of 2011, ''Loudwire'' has secured exclusive i ...

, access-date=June 3, 2017, date=December 13, 2012

References

{{Reflist

External links

{{Commonscat
Official website
*{{allmusic {{Suffocation {{Authority control {{DEFAULTSORT:Suffocation 1988 establishments in New York (state) American technical death metal musical groups Articles which contain graphical timelines Death metal musical groups from New York (state) Heavy metal musical groups from New York (state) Musical groups established in 1988 Musical groups from Long Island Musical quintets Nuclear Blast artists Relapse Records artists Roadrunner Records artists