Infant Annihilator

Infant Annihilator are an English deathcore band based in Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire. They were formed in 2012 by drummer Aaron Kitcher and guitarist Eddie Pickard.[1] The band are known for their technical, eclectic, parodistic, and brutal musical style; satirically graphic lyrical content and shock humour;[4] and music videos that feature ribald themes.[5][6]

Infant Annihilator
The band's logo, which was drawn by guitarist Eddie Pickard.
Background information
OriginKingston upon Hull,
East Riding of Yorkshire, United Kingdom
GenresDeathcore, technical death metal[1]
Years active2012–present
Associated acts
WebsiteInfant Annihilator on Facebook
MembersAaron Kitcher
Eddie Pickard
Dickie Allen
Past membersDan Watson

Their debut album The Palpable Leprosy of Pollution, which features the American vocalist Dan Watson, was released in late 2012. After replacing their vocalist with Massachusetts-native Dickie Allen, their second album The Elysian Grandeval Galèriarch was recorded and mixed by Jesse Kirkbride at his home studio Kirkbride Recordings and was released in 2016. Their third album, The Battle of Yaldabaoth, was released on 11 September 2019.

Infant Annihilator were described by the Hysteria Magazine as an internet band[5] and even though they have stated that touring is a possibility, they have performed only as a studio project so far.[3][7]

History

Formation and The Palpable Leprosy of Pollution (2012–2013)

Infant Annihilator were formed in 2012 in Hessle near Kingston upon Hull by guitarist Eddie Pickard and drummer Aaron Kitcher.[1] The name "Infant Annihilator" came from a song bearing the same title that was composed by Kitcher's previous band As the Blessed Fall, and was chosen as a parody of death metal band name stereotypes.[3] In a 2016 interview, they explained "We wanted the song names and band name to be as completely over-the-top as our music..."[3]

Pickard and Kitcher wrote and created homemade recordings together using “recording software” on Pickard's computer. They wrote, recorded and edited the instrumental tracks for their debut album, The Palpable Leprosy of Pollution. After releasing instrumental songs online, the pair met American vocalist Dan Watson from Indiana online, who discovered Infant Annihilator on Facebook.[8][9] Pickard and Kitcher were impressed with his performance, and asked of him to perform vocals for the album.[2][3][9] They soon began garnering viral popularity online—growing to around 20,000 "likes" within a month[8]—with the release of the music video for their song "Decapitation Fornication".[5][9]

Following the release of the video, the group promoted the release for their debut album The Palpable Leprosy of Pollution, which was released on 12 December 2012 (12/12/12). The idea to release the album on 12/12/12 was an idea pitched by Watson, which the band loved. However, Watson retrospectively has expressed regret for such a release date as it caused him to rush his work in order to get the album released on time, leaving him ultimately unhappy with the end result of his vocals.[9]

Watson left the band in late 2013[3] and publicly announced his departure from the band 22 February 2014.[10][11] He later explained that he left the band because he did not feel like an equal compared to the other two members, and also because he was upset over the two members agreeing to a contract without consulting his input first.[8][9][9] After his leaving, Watson would later form the Washington-based deathcore group Enterprise Earth with guitarist BJ Sampson.

New vocalist and The Elysian Grandeval Galèriarch (2014–2017)

In late 2014, while he was drumming for fellow UK band Desolated during their first US tour, Kitcher met vocalist Dickie Allen in person for the first time. The tour line-up included the band Traitors, who had brought Allen, a close friend, along with them on the tour. Hearing Allen's vocals in person convinced Kitcher that he was a good fit for the band.[3][7] Infant Annihilator announced via social media on 1 June 2016 that they had brought on Dickie Allen as their new vocalist.

Infant Annihilator's second album The Elysian Grandeval Galèriarch was officially released 29 July 2016. The album was Infant Annihilator's first to chart, making it onto several Billboard charts, including the Top Heatseekers, Independent Albums, Top Album Sales, Top Rock Albums, and Top Hard Rock Albums charts.[12]

The Battle of Yaldabaoth (2019–present)

On 25 July, Infant Annihilator posted a music video for their first single "Three Bastards" to YouTube, along with the upcoming album’s release date, title, art, track list, and preorder information. The Battle of Yaldabaoth was released on 11 September.[13]

Musical style and influences

Infant Annihilator plays the genre known as deathcore.[5] They have also been said to carry some influences from technical and brutal death metal.[3] Their lyrical content is intentionally extreme and covers controversial topics such as rape, paedophilia, murder, infanticide, "mass programming", religion, cult,[3] and the Catholic Church. These topics are derived from the history of sexual abuse in the Catholic Church.[5] At one point, their music was deemed "too offensive" and was removed from Spotify and iTunes as a result,[14][15] but was soon returned to both platforms three days later.[15]

They have listed various subgenres of death metal and hardcore punk to be influential to their music, including: deathcore, slam death metal, technical death metal, “down-tempo hardcore”, grindcore and mathcore.

Artists they have taken influence from include: Carnifex, Bring Me the Horizon (early deathcore era, à la Count Your Blessings), System of a Down, Slipknot, Chimaira,[3] Despised Icon, Thy Art Is Murder, The Black Dahlia Murder, Beneath the Massacre, Cattle Decapitation, Waking the Cadaver, and GG Allin.[7]

Members

Timeline

Discography

Studio albums

List of studio albums, with selected chart positions
Year Album details Peak chart positions
US
Hard Rock
[16]		 US
Rock
[17]		 US
Top Sales
[18]		 US
Ind.
[19]		 US
Heat.
[20]
2012 The Palpable Leprosy of Pollution
  • Released: 12 December 2012
  • Label: Self-released/Total Deathcore
  • Format: CD, LP (limited-print re-release), digital download
 — — — — —
2016 The Elysian Grandeval Galèriarch
  • Released: 29 July 2016
  • Label: Self-released
  • Format: CD, CS, LP, digital download
 7 22 90 14 4
2019 The Battle of Yaldabaoth
  • Released: 11 September 2019
  • Label: Self-released
  • Format: CD, 2xLP, digital download
 11 22 54 20 6
"—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that country.

Singles

  • "Decapitation Fornication" (23 July 2012)[21]
  • "Motherless Miscarriage" (22 June 2016)
  • "Three Bastards" (25 July 2019)

Promotional releases

  • The Palpable Leprosy of Pollution – Promo (2012)
gollark: So, you know ComputerCraft, the Minecraft mod?
gollark: I'm using it for skynet, so it's quite important that I know *something* about it.
gollark: Me!
gollark: Just use it sparingly.
gollark: Well, not necessarily.

References
  1. Infant Annihilator. James Christopher Monger. AllMusic.
  2. hammer (27 May 2013). "Interview with Dan Watson (Infant Annihilator): A Christian Missionary Family child crucifies Christ | Everything Guttural". Everything Guttural (in English and Slovak). Blogspot. Retrieved 15 April 2018.
  3. sin23ou (1 August 2016). "NEW DISC REVIEW + INTERVIEW 【INFANT ANNIHILATOR : THE ELYSIAN GRANDEVAL GALERIARCH】 | Marunouchi Muzik Magazine" (in English and Japanese). Marunouchi Muzik Magazine. Retrieved 10 April 2018.
  4. Mike (28 February 2017). "Infant Annihilator – NSFW Animated Music Video | The Circle Pit". The Circle Pit. Retrieved 19 April 2018.
  5. Jonty Simmons (2 August 2016). "INFANT ANNIHILATOR // Is The Best Deathcore Band You're Not Listening To - Hysteria Magazine". Hysteria Magazine. Hysteria Media. Retrieved 19 April 2018.
  6. Rock Feed (22 June 2016). "INFANT ANNIHILATOR Just Released The Most Outrageous Music Video Of All Time". Rock Feed. Retrieved 19 April 2018.
  7. Dan Cece (29 June 2016). "INTERVIEW: Dickie Allen of INFANT ANNIHILATOR". It Djents. Retrieved 16 April 2018.
  8. Pecoraro, Andrew (2 September 2017). "Enterprise Earth Interview 9.02.17 // New Album // Religion // Stay Sick // Infant Annihilator" (Video). YouTube. Retrieved 21 February 2019.
  9. Powell, Kevin (18 March 2016). "INFANT ANNIHILATOR/ENTERPRISE EARTH Interview - Dan Watson Part I - March 2016 - YouTube" (Video). YouTube. Retrieved 20 February 2019.
  10. erizen 826 (22 February 2014). "Infant Annihilator Vocalist Leaves | Sputnikmusic". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved 15 April 2018.
  11. Ty A. (xFiruath) (22 February 2014). "Infant Annihilator Splits With Vocalist - in Metal News ( Metal Underground.com )". Metalunderground.com. Retrieved 7 May 2018.
  12. "Infant Annihilator | Billboard". Billboard. Retrieved 9 May 2018.
  13. "NEWS: Infant Annihilator detail third album, 'The Battle Of Yaldabaoth'!". DEAD PRESS!. Retrieved 27 July 2019.
  14. Greg Kennelty (14 September 2017). "Spotify Removes INFANT ANNIHILATOR Catalog, Deem The Band Too Offensive". Metal Injection. Retrieved 19 April 2018.
  15. Tommy Gimler (18 September 2017). "Spotify Has Removed 'Infant Annihilator' From Its Site". Mandatory. Evolve Media. Retrieved 19 April 2018.
  16. "Infant Annihilator Chart History: Hard Rock Albums". Billboard. Retrieved 18 April 2018.
  17. "Infant Annihilator Chart History: Rock Albums". Billboard. Retrieved 18 April 2018.
  18. "Infant Annihilator Chart History: Top Album Sales". Billboard. Retrieved 18 April 2018.
  19. "Infant Annihilator Chart History: Independent Albums". Billboard. Retrieved 14 April 2018.
  20. "Infant Annihilator Chart History: Heatseekers Albums". Billboard. Retrieved 14 April 2018.
  21. "Infant Annihilator - Decapitation Fornication (2012) [Single] - Metal Kingdom". Metal Kingdom. Retrieved 8 May 2018.
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