Crucified Pumpkin

Extreme Black Metal band formed in 1998 by members Ovenroaster (vocals), Cat Strangler (drums), Dictator (bass) and CaveTroll (guitars). Hailing from Jerkstud, Norway, the five original members met while in high school and set out to make "the scariest, most uber grim extreme metal out there". Rather than just relying on the extreme blast beat drums and tremolo picking guitar playing of their Black Metal contemporaries, Crucified Pumpkin added other experimental atmospheric touches to their radical style of metal. After deciding that keyboards would solidify their line-up, Crucified Pumpkin was set to record. Mopp (keyboards) joined the band in the summer of 1998, and brought a fury of classical piano experience with him. Mopp had recently been fired from the Oslo Symphony Orchestra over accusations that he had begun practicing Beastiality with a pet chicken backstage before performances. The adding of fart noises and toilet flush sound effects to their 1998 debut "Jack O' Lenten Death" resulted in a series of underground tours, but not much publicity for the band. Finally, extreme Black Metal band Shroudghoul asked Crucified Pumpkin to open up for them on the former Soviet Blok tour in 1999. Fellow Black Metal band Tombmaster joined the two bands on the tour in Turkmenistan. Regular shows for Crucified Pumpkin included violent, shocking imagery, including scarecrows crucified upside down, crow's blood smeared on the band members and corn stalk impalements. On the night of March 4th, 1999, Tombmaster lead singer Cryptkeeper got into a backstage fist fight with Crucified Pumpkin drummer Cat Strangler and left to go back to his band tent. Tombmaster tour manager Rod took Cat Strangler on a beer run, but Cat Strangler ended up leaving Rod at the liquor store and driving back to the concert arena. Cat Strangler then killed Cryptkeeper with a potato cannon in a drive-by fashion. Cat Strangler was found guilty of pre-meditated murder with a Tuber, which carries a 23 year sentence in Norway. Cat Strangler's "potato cannon drive by" of Tombmaster lead singer Cryptkeeper was seen in the Black Metal community as more funny than serious, especially since it had done little to overshadow the Mayhem murders 5 years earlier. Still, with Cat Strangler's conviction after the '99 tour, Crucified Pumpkin was left without a drummer. Lead Singer Ovenroaster, bassist Dictator, keyboardist Mopp and guitarist CaveTroll decided to rehearse drummers for the position. Many drummers tried and failed to meet the standards of the remaining band members. The rejected list included:Nick Barker, Tony Laureano, Frost, Horgh, Inferno, HellHammer. Finally, the band would find Cat Strangler's replacement with longtime Black Metal session drummer Casserole. Their line up solidified, Crucified Pumpkin would again enter the studio in late 2000 to record for their next effort: "Trick or Treat Slaughter". After another series of tours in Africa and central Asia, Crucified Pumpkin sought a break due to "writer's block" and "lack of creative direction". Not much is known about the period of 2002-2007, because all members went back to Norway to work in their respective daytime jobs. Finally, in 2007, CaveTroll, Ovenroaster and Casserole had begun meeting in Jerkstud, Norway to sample some new ideas for a new album. The band re-united to record "The Rotting Season" in early 2008. Tracks such as "The Great Scarecrow's Demise", "The Autumn Offering" and "Howling at an Orange Moon" saw an even more diverse range of synth from keyboardist Mopp, and even drummer Casserole sampled new items for te drum tracks such as infant toys and children's xylophones. "The Rotting Season" was released on June 23rd, 2008, amidst great fan expectations and confirmation of a world tour in late 2008/2009. The tour locations (so far) include: North Korea, Pakistan, Botswana, Tajikistan, Latvia, Chad, Niger, Ethiopia, Kazakhstan. Also in the works is a Live DVD to be shot on location in Jalalabad, Pakistan to be titled: "Once Sent From a Gourded Hall". Although never able to tour Chechnya due to security concerns, many Russian soldiers claim the "Jack O' Lenten Death" track "The Patch Exorcism" as an unofficial battle hymn in their anti-insurgency war against militant Muslims.