Criminal

Criminal originated in 1991 when Chilean death metal outfit vocalist/rhythm guitarist Anton Reisenegger—who had earlier led the massively impactful underground act Pentagram under its well-known metallic banner—and lead guitarist Rodrigo Contreras joined forces, immediately asserting themselves by supporting German thrashers Kreator at their inaugural concert. By 1994 the lineup had stabilized with the addition of bassist Juan Francisco Cueto and drummer J.J. Vallejo following a pair of demos, enabling Criminal to issue its debut full-length Victimized and subsequently undertake the group’s initial performances beyond Chilean borders. Momentum continued to build, even amid persistent parallels to Brazilian death gods Sepultura, prompting the recruitment of drummer Jimmy Ponce for the 1996 Live Disorder EP and the widely acclaimed 1997 Dead Soul LP, the latter eventually secured for global distribution by Metal Blade Records. That association later produced the 1998 live album Slave Master, the 2000 release Cancer, and, following a deliberate move to Europe, 2004’s No Gods No Masters, which welcomed keyboardist Mark Royce and drummer Zac O’Neil into the ranks. Hard-hitting Sicario arrived in 2005, succeeded by White Hell in 2009 and Akelarre in 2011, before Fear Itself—the band’s eighth studio album—emerged in 2016.