Mütiilation is a French
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 tr ...
project, traditionally known as a group, but later slimmed to a solo act that consisted solely of founder William "Meyhna'ch" Roussel who maintained activity under the name until its closing in 2017.
He later reactivated the band as of March 2024. Mütiilation has released six full-length albums and appeared on several EPs and compilations.
History
Mütiilation was founded in 1991 by Meyhna'ch, drummer Dark Wizzard of Silence and bassist David. They recorded a few demos as a trio until 1993, when David left due to Mütiilation becoming the first band of
the Black Legions. At this time, Mütiilation released an EP to honor the circle titled ''
Hail Satanas We Are the Black Legions
''Hail Satanas We Are the Black Legions'' is the first studio recording by French black metal band Mütiilation. The recording pays a direct homage to The Black Legions, which Mütiilation had recently joined at the time of the EP's release. It ...
''.
Shortly after, Dark Wizzard of Silence was replaced by Krissagrazabeth, who recorded with the band up to ''
Vampires of Black Imperial Blood
''Vampires of Black Imperial Blood'' is the debut album by French black metal group Mütiilation. The album is noted for being the first full length release in the Les Légions Noires movement, it was also the first full-length CD publication fro ...
''. Once again, he left due to disagreements with the Black Legions. On the contrary, Mørdrëd, who played bass, was properly admitted into the circle; this line-up was featured in ''The Black Plague – First Chapter (And Maybe Last One)''.
In 1999
Drakkar Productions
Drakkar Productions is a French record label that has released many recordings of black metal bands throughout the world, on CD, cassette and vinyl. They have usually limited the prints to 1,000 copies or less, but some have been known to vary. ...
released a compilation of unreleased material, ''
Remains of a Ruined, Dead, Cursed Soul
Remains of a Ruined, Dead, Cursed Soul is a compilation album by the French black metal band Mütiilation. It was the first material to be released in four years, and since the expulsion of The Black Legions. It compiles songs taken from the demo ...
.'' The album stated that Meyhna'ch was "dead" due to disgust with the black metal scene. However, in 2001, Mütiilation came back with the release of ''
(Grimly Reborn)">Black Millenium (Grimly Reborn)'', with another scathing message against the scene. At this point the band had become a solo project, and Meyhna'ch still used the Black Legions' emblem on some releases.
Mütiilation then followed with two performances with acts such as
Impiety
Impiety is a perceived lack of proper respect for something considered sacred. Impiety is often closely associated with sacrilege, though it is not necessarily a physical action. Impiety cannot be associated with a cult, as it implies a larger b ...
, Abigail, Decayed,
Tsjuder,
Watain
Watain is a Swedish black metal band, formed in 1998.Eduardo Rivadavia: ''Watain Biography'' Allmusic, Macrovision Corporation. The band's name is taken from an early recording by the American black metal group Von.Ronald Ziegler''Merchandise w ...
and
Judas Iscariot
Judas Iscariot (; ; died AD) was, according to Christianity's four canonical gospels, one of the original Twelve Apostles of Jesus Christ. Judas betrayed Jesus to the Sanhedrin in the Garden of Gethsemane, in exchange for thirty pieces of sil ...
. During this time Noktu, Fureiss and Astrelya from
Celestia
Celestia is a real-time 3D astronomy software program that was created in 2001 by Chris Laurel. The program allows users to virtually travel through the universe and explore celestial objects that have been catalogued. Celestia also doubles as ...
were used as live members, filling in for guitars and drums. TND played bass at the gig in
Marseille
Marseille (; ; see #Name, below) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Bouches-du-Rhône and of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regions of France, region. Situated in the ...
, yet could not perform in Germendorf.
Following three more studio albums and a split with Satanic Warmaster and Drowning the Light, Meyhna'ch quietly deactivated Mütiilation. Despite a one-off performance at the 2015 edition of
Hellfest
Hellfest (), also known as Hellfest Summer Open Air, is a rock festival focusing on heavy metal music, held annually in June in Clisson, France. Its high attendance makes it the French music festival with the largest turnover. It is also one o ...
, Meyhna'ch has carried on with new music under his own alias, and maintains that Mütiilation is "dead".
In March 2024, on a Facebook post, Meyhna’ch announced he has revived the project, and that a seventh studio album is due to be released.. Since then, as of March 29th, 2024, said album has been released under the title ''Black Metal Cult''. The album was described as "utterly uncompromising", expressing "the sense of tragic drama and hopelessness".
Members
Current
*Meyhna'ch – bass, guitar, drum programming, vocals (1991–1996, 2000–2009, 2009–2017, 2024–Present)
*Kham – drums (2024–Present)
Former
*Dark Wizzard of Silence – drums (1992–1994)
*David – bass (1992–1994)
*Krissagrazabeth – drums (1994)
*Mørdrëd – bass (1995)
*TND – bass (2001)
*Andy Julia – drums (2001)
*Cyril Mendre – guitar (2001)
*Fureiss Frank – guitar (2001)
*Azk.6 – drums (2015–2017)
*Reverend Prick – bass (2015–2017)
*Patrice Duthoo – guitar (2015–2017)
Discography
Albums
* ''
Vampires of Black Imperial Blood
''Vampires of Black Imperial Blood'' is the debut album by French black metal group Mütiilation. The album is noted for being the first full length release in the Les Légions Noires movement, it was also the first full-length CD publication fro ...
'' (1995)
* ''
Remains of a Ruined, Dead, Cursed Soul
Remains of a Ruined, Dead, Cursed Soul is a compilation album by the French black metal band Mütiilation. It was the first material to be released in four years, and since the expulsion of The Black Legions. It compiles songs taken from the demo ...
'' (1999)
* ''
Black Millenium (Grimly Reborn)
''Black Millenium (Grimly Reborn)'' is the third album by French black metal project Mütiilation. After being away since 1995 (excluding the compilation of unreleased material by Drakkar Productions in 1999), Meyhna'ch thereby resurrected Mütii ...
'' (2001)
* ''
Majestas Leprosus
''Majestas Leprosus'' is the fourth album by French black metal group Mütiilation
Mütiilation is a French black metal project, traditionally known as a group, but later slimmed to a solo act that consisted solely of founder William "Meyhna' ...
'' (2003)
* ''
Rattenkönig
''Rattenkönig'' ( German: ''"rat king"'') is the fifth full-length album by French black metal band Mütiilation. The title is a Germanic folkloric tale of rats being attached by the ends of their tails.
Track listing
# "That Night When I D ...
'' (2005)
* ''Sorrow Galaxies'' (2007)
* ''Black Metal Cult'' (2024)
Demos
* ''Rehearsal 1992'' (1992)
* ''Rites through the Twilight of Hell'' (1992)
* ''Ceremony of the Black Cult'' (1993)
* ''Evil – The Gestalt of Abomination'' (1993)
* ''Cursed (Rehearsal 1994)'' (1994)
* ''Satanist Styrken'' (1994)
* ''Black Imperial Blood (Travel)'' (1994)
* ''Rehearsal 2001'' (2001)
* ''Destroy Your Life for Satan'' (2001)
EPs, splits and compilations
* ''
Hail Satanas We Are the Black Legions
''Hail Satanas We Are the Black Legions'' is the first studio recording by French black metal band Mütiilation. The recording pays a direct homage to The Black Legions, which Mütiilation had recently joined at the time of the EP's release. It ...
'' (1994)
* ''Promo'' (1995)
* ''
New False Prophet
New False Prophet is an EP by black metal band Mütiilation
Mütiilation is a French black metal project, traditionally known as a group, but later slimmed to a solo act that consisted solely of founder William "Meyhna'ch" Roussel who mainta ...
'' (2000)
* ''
Split
Split(s) or The Split may refer to:
Places
* Split, Croatia, the largest coastal city in Croatia
* Split Island, Canada, an island in the Hudson Bay
* Split Island, Falkland Islands
* Split Island, Fiji, better known as Hạfliua
Arts, enter ...
'' with
Deathspell Omega (2002)
* ''1992–2002: Ten Years of Depressive Destruction'' (2003)
* ''
From the Entrails to the Dirt
''From the Entrails to the Dirt'' is a compilation album released by End All Life Productions, featuring songs by French black metal acts Malicious Secrets, Antaeus, Mütiilation and Deathspell Omega.
The album was first released as a triple vin ...
(Part II)'' (2005)
* ''Split'' With Drowning The Light and
Satanic Warmaster (2007)
* ''Black as Lead & Death (EP, 2012)
See also
*
Les Légions Noires
Les Légions Noires (also known as The Black Legions in English, or simply abbreviated to LLN) was a movement of French underground black metal musicians and their bands, centered mostly around the city of Brest, in Brittany. The bands involved ...
*
Heavy metal umlaut
A metal umlaut (also known as röck döts) is a diacritic that is sometimes used gratuitously or decoratively over letters in the names of mainly hard rock or heavy metal bands—for example, those of Blue Öyster Cult, Queensrÿche, Motörhea ...
References
Works cited
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External links
Official website archived copy found at
Internet Archive
The Internet Archive is an American 501(c)(3) organization, non-profit organization founded in 1996 by Brewster Kahle that runs a digital library website, archive.org. It provides free access to collections of digitized media including web ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mutiilation
French black metal musical groups
Les Légions Noires bands
Musical groups established in 1991
Musical groups disestablished in 1996
Musical groups reestablished in 2000
Musical groups disestablished in 2009
Musical groups reestablished in 2014
Musical groups disestablished in 2017
1991 establishments in France
Musical groups from Occitania (administrative region)
One-man bands