Hate Eternal

Hate Eternal operates as a fiercely intense death metal/grindcore unit spearheaded by Erik Rutan, the guitarist previously active in Morbid Angel and Ripping Corpse. Taking cues from the groundwork laid by Florida death metal forerunners such as Death and Obituary, the group surfaced in the late 1990s with a technically demanding approach to the style, an approach that reached full realization across key albums including Fury and Flames (2008), Phoenix Amongst the Ashes (2011), and Infernus (2015).

Participation in Hate Eternal marked a notable shift for Rutan, who assumed most lead vocal responsibilities in addition to guitar. Nevertheless, the band’s late-’90s recordings closely resembled the material Rutan had explored earlier. After bringing aboard guitarist Doug Cerrito, formerly of Suffocation, bassist Jared Anderson, and drummer Tim Yeung, the ensemble signed with Wicked World in 1999 and tracked its debut, Conquering the Throne.

Yeung’s departure soon brought Derek Roddy into the drum chair, after which Rutan exited Morbid Angel to devote full attention to Hate Eternal; the band then issued its second album, King of All Kings, on Earache in 2002. During subsequent touring, Jared Anderson’s drug-related difficulties led to his replacement by Randy Piro.

The third album, I, Monarch, appeared in 2005 and received strong critical notices, yet internal tensions prompted tour cancellations and Roddy’s exit in 2006. The following year Rutan added drummer Jade Simonetto, allowing the group to complete Fury and Flames, released on Metal Blade in 2008 and becoming the band’s highest-charting LP at that time.

Randy Piro gave way to bassist J.J. Hrubovcak just before sessions began for the fifth album, Phoenix Amongst the Ashes, which surfaced in early 2011 and reached number 18 on the U.S. Heatseekers chart. The band then moved to Season of Mist for its sixth studio release, the intense Infernus of 2015, which introduced drummer Chason Westmoreland from Burning the Masses. Westmoreland departed shortly afterward and was succeeded by Hannes Grossmann of Blotted Science and Necrophagist, whose first recorded work with the group appeared on the 2018 album Upon Desolate Sands.