Despised Icon

Montreal-based Despised Icon fuse precision with unrelenting fury in their hyper-technical deathcore sound. Standout traits such as contrasting dual vocalists paired with flawless blastbeat drumming helped the group distinguish itself on releases including the acclaimed 2009 album Day of Mourning.

The band originated in January 2002 and issued its debut album, Consumed by Your Poison, on the local imprint Galy Records before the year closed. Lineup instability created obstacles throughout 2003, yet the musicians regrouped by early 2004 around a revised roster featuring vocalists Steve Marois and Alexandre Erian, guitarists Yannick St-Amand and Eric Jarrin, bassist Sebastien Piche, and drummer Alex Pelletier. A self-financed EP titled Syndicated Murderers followed, and combined with relentless road work it secured a contract with Century Media Records, leading to the early 2005 arrival of the second full-length, The Healing Process. Ills of Modern Man, issued in 2007, reached number 28 on the Billboard Top Heatseekers chart thanks to the single "In the Arms of Perdition," while Day of Mourning earned favorable notice in 2009 for its scorching title track and the equally forceful "MVP." The following year the members disbanded, explaining that constant touring had strained their private lives and that family priorities now required attention. Early in 2014 the group posted on Facebook that it would reunite for selected spring concerts; additional dates took place in 2015. By April 2016 the musicians revealed a new agreement with Nuclear Blast and plans to reenter the studio, resulting in the July release of Beast. In June 2019 they embarked on an extensive U.S. tour marking the tenth anniversary of Day of Mourning, and before year’s end delivered their sixth studio album, the intense and brooding Purgatory.