Corrosion Of Conformity

Formed in North Carolina during the early 1980s by guitarist Woody Weatherman, Corrosion of Conformity ranked among the earliest bands to fuse punk with metal. Their initial output combined an aggressive attack, sharply political lyrics, and a readiness to abandon the usual rules of both hardcore and metal scenes. By the following decade the group had moved toward a leaner, more measured approach that echoed Black Sabbath refracted through Southern grit, aligning them closely enough with prevailing alt-metal currents to secure a degree of mainstream attention.

The band issued its debut, the thrash-oriented and Black Flag-influenced Eye for an Eye, in 1983 with Weatherman joined by drummer Reed Mullin, vocalist Eric Eycke, and bassist Mike Dean. A growing underground reputation followed the 1985 release of Animosity, yet Death Records, frustrated by repeated lineup shifts that included Eycke’s replacement by vocalist Simon Bob, parted ways with the group after 1987’s Technocracy. Several years passed before another stable configuration emerged, this time featuring Weatherman, guitarist Pepper Keenan, Mullin, vocalist Karl Agell, and bassist Phil Swisher. Their 1991 album Blind delivered a tighter, more metallic statement that markedly expanded the band’s reach. Once Agell was dismissed in the wake of that success, he and Swisher formed Leadfoot, while Keenan assumed lead-vocal duties for the even more Sabbath-inspired Deliverance in 1994, which also marked the return of original bassist Mike Dean. In 1995 Keenan briefly joined the Southern-metal supergroup Down alongside Pantera’s Phil Anselmo and members of Crowbar.

A broader shift in audience taste toward the ultra-heavy strain of alternative metal the band had helped originate brought Corrosion of Conformity its largest following yet with 1996’s Wiseblood, further extending their presence on rock radio. After an extended recording hiatus and a world tour supporting Metallica, the group resurfaced in fall 2000 with America’s Volume Dealer. Another period of inactivity preceded the live document Live Volume in 2001. The musicians reconvened in April 2005 for the dense and intricate In the Arms of God. Subsequent years found the band on hiatus while members pursued separate projects, until drummer Reed Mullin rejoined in 2010, restoring the Animosity-era lineup even as Pepper Keenan remained occupied with Down. The remaining trio began writing new material and issued the self-titled eighth album, Corrosion of Conformity, on Candlelight Records in 2012. Their ninth effort, IX, followed in 2014. Shortly afterward the group welcomed Keenan back into the fold and completed work on the tenth studio album, No Cross No Crown, which appeared in January 2018. On 27 January 2020 the band announced Reed Mullin’s passing.