Sodom is a German Thrash metal trio[1] from Gelsenkirchen, formed in 1981.
Along with the bands Kreator and Destruction, Sodom is considered one of the “Big three” of Teutonic thrash metal. While all three bands created a sound that would influence death metal, Sodom’s music style would greatly influence many late-1980s and early-1990s black metal bands, among others.
Formation and early black metal years (1981-1986)
Sodom’s original line-up consisted of Tom Angelripper, Bloody Monster,Arius “Blasphemer”, and Aggressor. The band was initiated by Tom as a desperate attempt to get out of having to work in coal mines in his home town of Gelsenkirchen. Taking inspiration from bands such as Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden, Motörhead, Venom, Tank, Accept, Discharge, Ramones and AC/DC, the group released two demos which led to a record deal with Steamhammer (which were not recorded with Bloody Monster, who by this time was replaced by Chris “Witchhunter” Dudek). Aggressor left the band shortly before releasing the In the Sign of Evil EP (generally regarded as an important early black metal release), and was replaced by Grave Violator, who himself did not last long, and left following the recording of In the Sign of Evil. Michael “Destructor” Wulf was found as a replacement, after which the band went and recorded Obsessed by Cruelty, their full-length debut featuring music that was mostly in the vein of In The Sign of Evil. Wulf did not last in the band long, and later went and joined Kreator (he would not last long there either, and he died in 1993 after a tragic motorcycle accident).
Change to thrash metal and increasing popularity (1987-1990)
For the most part, Sodom was at first not taken seriously, with various press sources describing them as “a second-rate Venom clone with semi-inventive lyrics”. One member would change that. Frank “Blackfire” Gosdzik came in to fill the guitar spot Wulf had left behind. Frank convinced Tom that thrash metal was moving beyond horror/occult/satanic themes of bands like Venom to embrace political, societal, and war themes. Tom was already interested in various wars yet remained a peacenik. New inspiration culminated into Frank’s full-length debut with the band, Persecution Mania. The new lyrical approach and increased musicianship on the part of Frank gave the band great acclaim (as well as a gas-masked mascot Knarrenheinz, who appeared for the first time on Persecution Mania’s cover). They soon embarked on a tour of Europe with the Swiss thrash metal band Coroner. After touring for the better part of 1987 and 1988, the band returned to the studio to make another album. The final product, Agent Orange, sold 100,000 copies in Germany alone. This made Sodom famous, giving them worldwide critical acclaim, and secured their place alongside Kreator and Destruction as one of the great Teutonic thrash metal bands. To this date, Agent Orange has sold more than any other German thrash-metal album in the world.
Problems were brewing inside of the band, however. Tom and Chris descended further into alcoholism−and in Chris’s case, drug abuse. Furthermore, Frank had grown tired of composing music that his band-mates would often perform poorly live. Mille Petrozza of Kreator offered Frank a position with his band, after they lost their second guitarist, and Frank accepted. Angelripper went out looking for a replacement and found Michael Hoffman, formerly of German thrashers Assassin.
Changes in formation (1990-1997)
Sodom, live at Hole In The Sky 2009
With this line-up, the album Better off Dead was released in 1990. During the South American tour however, Hoffman decided to stay in Brazil and was therefore forced to quit. Andy Brings replaced him, and a new album was recorded, Tapping the Vein, with more of a death metal sound. This proved to be the last album with the drummer Witchhunter: He was kicked out of the band, and Atomic Steif formerly of both Holy Moses and Living Death became his replacement behind the drum kit.
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