Paths of Possession is an American melodic death metal band featuring

George "Corpsegrinder" Fisher George Fisher (born July 8, 1970), better known by his stage name Corpsegrinder, is an American death metal vocalist who is the lead singer of Cannibal Corpse, Paths of Possession and the supergroup Serpentine Dominion. He recorded two album ...

Cannibal Corpse Cannibal Corpse is an American death metal band formed in Buffalo, New York in 1988, now based out of Tampa, Florida. The band has released fifteen studio albums, two box sets, four video albums, and two live albums. The band has had little radi ...

in a more melodic environment, with song structures that have much more in common with early Bay Area Thrash than the Tampa death metal scene.

Biography

Formed in 1999 by Randy Butman (Silhaven), Jay Fossen, Erin "Goat" Fuller (Cryptic Winds) and Richard Brunelle (ex-

Morbid Angel Morbid Angel 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 ...

guitarist), as Swollen, Paths of Possession is a mix of traditional heavy metal with influences of Swedish melodic death metal. Paths of Possession independently released their first CD-R demo, ''Legacy in Ashes'', in 2000. Following the release of ''Legacy of Ashes'', Erin left the band to join Hell on Earth and was replaced by Brian Ridley (Cancerslug, Union Down) in 2002. Soon after, Paths of Possession was approached by Keith Suchland better known as "Splattergod" about releasing their next CD. It was mutually decided that they and Dark Faith would release a split EP, with each band contributing four songs. While working on the split, Butman was asked to join Withered Earth in late 2002, officially doing so in January 2003, resulting in the band going on hiatus and the split being put on hold. Following the release of Withered Earths' ''Of Which They Bleed'', the band broke up and Butman returned to Tampa and set about resurrecting the dormant Paths of Possession. As their then-vocalist, Bill Lander, had relocated to New York, Butman asked his friend,

(vocalist of

) to take over the vocal position. The new line-up then opted to record their six songs in Ozone Studios, St. Petersburg,

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

, finishing in September 2003. The result was entitled ''The Crypt of Madness'' and released on Splattergod Records, limited to 1000 copies. Plans were then made between the band and Splattergod to release their full-length CD in late 2004 / early 2005. Soon following the split's release, in early 2004, Richard Brunelle was replaced by current guitarist Jack Goodwin, and drummer Brian Ridley left to rejoin Cancerslug. Nick Goodyear (Dark Faith) stepped in to take over the drumming duties. Paths of Possession debuted their new/current lineup at the second Gathering of Lowlifes Festival on April 9, 2005, appearing with the newly reformed Hallow's Eve as well as Dark Faith, Gardy Loo and Eviscerated Zombie Tampon. It was also during this time that

Metal Blade Records Metal Blade Records is an American independent record label founded by Brian Slagel in 1982. The US office for Metal Blade is located in Agoura Hills, California. It also has offices in Germany, Japan, Canada, and the UK. The label is distrib ...

owner

Brian Slagel Brian Slagel (born February 14, 1961) is an American music executive. He is the founder and CEO of the independent record label Metal Blade Records. Slagel is known for having initiated the ''Metal Massacre'' series of compilation albums in 1982 ...

, after hearing ''The Crypt of Madness'', approached Fisher about signing Paths of Possession, which came about in 2005. Paths of Possession entered Mana Recording Studios / Razzor Media in St. Petersburg,

to record ''Promises in Blood'', with renowned metal producer Erik Rutan (

Hate Eternal Hate Eternal is a death metal band from St. Petersburg, Florida. The band currently consists of founding guitarist/vocalist Erik Rutan and bassist J. J. Hrubovcak. To date, Hate Eternal has released seven studio albums: '' Conquering the Throne' ...

Soilent Green Soilent Green is an American extreme metal band formed in 1988 in Chalmette/ Metairie on the suburbs of New Orleans, Louisiana. Described as a sludge metal and grindcore band, the group blends elements of death metal, black metal, hardcor ...

, Into the Moat). Once the recording was finished, ''Promises in Blood'' was sent off to West West Side in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

to be mastered by Alan Douches, best known for his work with artists such as

Nile The Nile, , Bohairic , lg, Kiira , Nobiin language, Nobiin: Áman Dawū is a major north-flowing river in northeastern Africa. It flows into the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile is the longest river in Africa and has historically been considered ...

, Sepultura, Hatebreed,

Clutch A clutch is a mechanical device that engages and disengages power transmission, especially from a drive shaft to a driven shaft. In the simplest application, clutches connect and disconnect two rotating shafts (drive shafts or line shafts). ...

, Unearth, The Misfits,

Mastodon A mastodon ( 'breast' + 'tooth') is any proboscidean belonging to the extinct genus ''Mammut'' (family Mammutidae). Mastodons inhabited North and Central America during the late Miocene or late Pliocene up to their extinction at the end of th ...

Shadows Fall Shadows Fall is an American metalcore band from Boston, Massachusetts, formed in 1996. Although Shadows Fall has experienced several line-up changes, for most of its recording career, Shadows Fall has been composed of Jon Donais (lead guitar, b ...

, The Dillinger Escape Plan, Converge and

Earth Crisis Earth Crisis is an American hardcore punk band from Syracuse, New York, active from 1989 until 2001, reuniting in 2007. Since 1993 the band's longest serving members are vocalist Karl Buechner, lead guitarist Scott Crouse, bassist Ian Edwards ...

Current members

*Randy Butman – bass *Jay Fossen – guitar *Jack Goodwin – guitar *Nick Goodyear – drums *

– vocals (2003–present)

Former members

*Erin Fuller – drums *Brian Ridley – drums *Chad – drums *Bill – vocals *

Richard Brunelle 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 ...

– guitar (died 2019)

Discography

*''Legacy in Ashes'' (2002) *''The Crypt of Madness'' (Paths of Possession / Dark Faith

split album A split album (or split) is a music album that includes tracks by two or more separate artists. There are also singles and EPs of the same variety, which are often called "split singles" and "split EPs" respectively. Split albums differ from "var ...

) (2003) *''

Promises in Blood Paths of Possession is an American melodic death metal band featuring George "Corpsegrinder" Fisher of Cannibal Corpse in a more melodic environment, with song structures that have much more in common with early Bay Area Thrash than the Tampa ...

'' (2005) *''

The End of the Hour Paths of Possession is an American melodic death metal band featuring George "Corpsegrinder" Fisher of Cannibal Corpse in a more melodic environment, with song structures that have much more in common with early Bay Area Thrash than the Tampa ...

'' (2007)

External links

Official website
(archived) {{Authority control Musical groups from Tampa, Florida Death metal musical groups from Florida Musical groups established in 1999 American melodic death metal musical groups Metal Blade Records artists 1999 establishments in the United States