Tortured Conscience is a
Christian
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
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 ...
band from
San Francisco
San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...
,
California
California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
.
History
Tortured Conscience formed in 2000 with the lineup of just two members, Jeff Lenormand on guitars and bass and Shannon Frye on drums and vocals. In 2001, the band released their first demo, titled ''Faces of God''. The demo was re-released through ''The Collection Vol. 1: Tools of the Trade'', a split release with Royal Anguish and Soul of the Savior in 2002.
In 2002, Sounds of the Dead (SOTD) Records, released ''A Brutal Christmas: The Season in Chaos'', a compilation of Christmas songs covered by Christian metal bands. Tortured Conscience appeared on the compilation, alongside bands
Kekal
Kekal (sometimes stylized as KEKAL) is a heavy metal and electronic music band formed in 1995 in Jakarta, Indonesia. According to AllMusic, Kekal was one of the first heavy metal bands from Indonesia to make international inroads, and accordin ...
,
Frost Like Ashes
Frost Like Ashes is a Christian black metal band that formed in Kansas City, Missouri in 2001. The band has released two EPs - ''Born to Pieces'' and ''Pure as the Blood Covered Snow'' - and a full-length album, ''Tophet'', and their songs have ...
, Royal Anguish and
Death Requisite, recording the song "
The Little Drummer Boy
"The Little Drummer Boy" (originally known as "Carol of the Drum") is a popular Christmas song written by American composer Katherine Kennicott Davis in 1941. First recorded in 1951 by the Trapp Family, the song was further popularized by a 19 ...
".
Tarantula Promotions released a sampler, titled ''
Arachnid Terror Sampler'' for to promote some artists they had worked with, including Tortured Conscience,
Soul Embraced
Soul Embraced is a Christian melodic death metal band from Little Rock, Arkansas, Little Rock, Arkansas, United States. It was originally a side project for Rocky Gray and David Sroczynski.
History
Originally a side project of drummer David Sroc ...
,
Frosthardr
Frosthardr is a Norwegian Christian black metal band, formed in 1997. The band plays a raw type of black metal music with occasional punk influences and lyrics from Christian point of view. The drummer Pål Daehlen (Savn) is a former member of th ...
, and
Sanctifica
Sanctifica was a Swedish unblack metal band, formed in 1996, and disbanded in 2003. After releasing their EP, ''In the Bleak Midwinter'', in 1997, they were considered to be one of the leading modern Christian black metal bands in the early 2000s ...
.
In 2006, the band released their debut album, ''Every Knee Shall Bow'', via
Bombworks Records
Bombworks Records is a record label from McKinney, Texas, that formed in January 2004. The label would sign several bands, including Seventh Angel, A Hill to Die Upon, Grave Declaration and Crimson Thorn. The label started careers for bands suc ...
. By this time, the lineup was Lenormand on guitars and bass, John Gotelli on drums and Berto Salas on vocals.
The band is currently working on new material with Lenormand on guitar, bass, and drum programming. The band stated that it will most likely be an
EP and it will be released through Battlefrost Productions. In 2020, it was announced that their debut album was remixed and remastered and was to be re-released through Battlefrost Productions.
Christianity
The band is uncompromisingly Christian.
[ In an interview, Lenormand stated;
When asked about his ambitions for the band in another interview, he responded;
]
Members
Current
* Jeff Lenormand - Guitars/Bass (2000–present)
Former
* Berto Salas - Vocals (2004-2010)
* Paul Pontikoff - Vocals (2002)
* Shannon Frye - Drums/Vocals (2000-2002)
* John Gotelli - Drums (2002-2015)
Discography
Studio albums
*''Every Knee Shall Bow'' (2006; Bombworks)Tarantula
Tarantulas comprise a group of large and often hairy spiders of the family Theraphosidae. , 1,040 species have been identified, with 156 genera. The term "tarantula" is usually used to describe members of the family Theraphosidae, although ...
)
*''Christian Brutal Death Metal: Vol. 1'' (2015)
References
{{Authority control
American Christian metal musical groups
Death metal musical groups from California
Bombworks Records artists
Musical groups established in 2000
Musical groups from San Francisco