Venom

Venom came out of Newcastle upon Tyne, forming in 1978 and arriving towards the end of the new wave of British heavy metal. Their first two albums, Welcome to Hell (1981) and Black Metal (1982), left a deep mark on thrash, black metal and extreme metal more broadly. The second record gave the black metal genre its name, and Venom stand alongside Mercyful Fate and Bathory as part of its first wave.

The story that followed was rarely settled. Guitarist Mantas left in 1986 and vocalist-bassist Cronos two years later, with drummer Abaddon keeping things going until a 1992 hiatus. The classic trio reunited in 1995, then split again, and Cronos led the band from 2004 until his death in 2026. Sixteen studio albums sit behind them, with At War With Satan and Calm Before the Storm also among the best known.