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Despised Icon

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Despised Icon
From left to right: vocalists Alex Erian, Steve Marois and bassist Sebastien Piché.
From left to right: vocalists Alex Erian, Steve Marois and bassist Sebastien Piché.
Background information
OriginMontreal, Quebec, Canada
GenresDeathcore
Years active2002–2010, 2014–present
Labels
SpinoffsObey the Brave
Members
  • Steve Marois
  • Alex Erian
  • Eric Jarrin
  • Alex Pelletier
  • Ben Landreville
  • Sebastien Piché
Past members
  • Marie-Hélène Landry
  • Al Glassman
  • Max Lavelle
  • Yannick St-Amand
Websitedespisedicon.com

Despised Icon is a Canadian deathcore band from Montreal, Quebec. Formed in 2002, the band is noted for the talent of its drummer, Alex Pelletier, who makes frequent use of the blasting technique, as well as for its dual lead vocalists; Alex Erian and Steve Marois.

In April 2010, the band disbanded, but officially re-formed six years later in April 2016 after playing reunion shows in 2014 and 2015. Collectively the group has released six full-length albums while succumbing to very few lineup changes throughout their run.

History

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Consumed by Your Poison (2002–2004)

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Despised Icon was founded in January 2002 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Shortly after their formation, the group signed with Galy Records, and released their debut album, Consumed by Your Poison in October of that year.[1] The following year, Despised Icon had undergone several changes in their lineup. In early 2004, the group returned with a new formation, consisting of two vocalists Steve Marois and Alex Erian, guitarists Yannick St-Amand and Eric Jarrin, bassist Sebastien Piche, and drummer Alex Pelletier, and recorded a self-financed EP entitled Syndicated Murderers,[1] followed by a split EP with Bodies in the Gears of the Apparatus, issued through Relapse Records.[2][3]
[4]

The Healing Process (2005–2006)

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Despised Icon signed a worldwide deal with Century Media in January 2005. Despised Icon released their second studio album, The Healing Process through the label on April 5, 2005. It was produced by the band's guitarist Yannick St-Amand, mixed by Jean-Francois Dagenais and mastered by Alan Douches.[5]

Despised Icon toured in support of The Healing Process in 2005, alongside artists including Cryptopsy, Quo Vadis, Vader, Suffocation, Aborted, Immolation, Deicide and continued touring into 2006 with Through the Eyes of the Dead, Ed Gein, Morbid Angel, Behemoth, Hatebreed, Exodus, The Black Dahlia Murder and Napalm Death. During the same year, their debut album, Consumed by Your Poison was re-released through Century Media. In early 2007, they went on tour supporting Unearth, along with Job for a Cowboy and Dååth.

The Ills of Modern Man, Day of Mourning, and breakup (2007–2010)

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The band's third studio album, The Ills of Modern Man was recorded and released in 2007 through Century Media Records and was produced by their former guitarist, Yannick St. Amand.[6] That summer, they toured supporting Job for a Cowboy along with The Faceless and A Life Once Lost. Following that tour, they went on tour supporting Suicide Silence, along with Winds of Plague. In the winter of that year, they toured with The Acacia Strain, Full Blown Chaos, The Tony Danza Tapdance Extravaganza, and Ligeia. They also toured supporting Misery Index, along with Beneath the Massacre and Man Must Die. On June 18, 2008, the original bassist Sebastien Piché has left the band due to him having a full-time job and being a new father. Piché was replaced by Max Lavelle from Goratory. They were then on the 2008 Summer Slaughter Tour alongside The Black Dahlia Murder, Vader, Cryptopsy, The Faceless, Aborted, Born of Osiris, Psycroptic, and Whitechapel.

In late October 2008, Despised Icon announced the details of their first DVD, entitled Montreal Assault, which was released January 27, 2009. The DVD features a multi-camera shoot from the band's sold-out hometown show, along with a documentary, in addition to all their music videos.[7] It was originally intended to be released on January 17, but was delayed due to manufacturing problems.[8] In December 2008, guitarist Al Glassman left Despised Icon to join Job for a Cowboy in replacement of their original guitarist Ravi Bhadriraju.[9] During their 2009 Montreal Assault Tour, Despised Icon announced that they were recording a new studio album, entitled Day of Mourning, that was released on September 22, 2009 by Century Media Records.[10] On July 17, 2009, Despised Icon released their song, "MVP" as the first song off of Day of Mourning onto the web. They played on the 2009 Thrash and Burn Tour alongside DevilDriver, Emmure, Veil of Maya, For the Fallen Dreams, Oceano, Periphery, MyChildren MyBride, and Thy Will Be Done. Their fourth album Day of Mourning was released as scheduled on September 22, 2009, and reached No. 162 on the Billboard 200 as of September 30, 2009. A music video was created and released for the title track of the album.

On April 7, 2010, Despised Icon made an announcement that they will be disbanding. They explained that this is due to the members of the band reaching "a new chapter in their lives, starting families, buying houses and pursuing other careers to make it all happen. Writing music, touring and leaving home for months at a time is slowly becoming impossible because of that. We all decided that it’d be best to pull the plug now and end things right."[11][12] Their farewell European tour included an appearance at the Hevy Music Festival on August 7, 2010 near Folkestone, UK.

During the year of 2010, Despised Icon played their United States, Australia, Japan, European, and Canadian Tour. On December 2, 2010, Despised Icon performed their final four shows in Toronto (December 2 and 3) along with The Acacia Strain, Ion Dissonance and Oceano, Ontario and their hometown of Montreal, Quebec (December 4 and 5). These shows included their current line-up as well as the past line-ups from their first two records.[13] Since the disbandment, Alexandre Erian went on to form the metalcore band, Obey the Brave, along with former Blind Witness bassist, Miguel Lepage, and guitarist, John Campbell as well as Darkness Rites guitarist, Greg Wood and drummer, Stevie Morotti.[14] Max Lavelle now plays bass for The Black Dahlia Murder.[15] Eric Jarrin rejoined his progressive band Heaven's Cry with whom he was performing when he founded Despised Icon. They released an album entitled Wheels of Impermanence through Prosthetic Records in September 2012.

Reunion shows, comeback and Beast (2014–2018)

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On February 4, 2014, the band announced via their Facebook page that they would reunite to play several live shows in the upcoming spring. The band would consist of all members of The Healing Process era with the exception of Ben Landreville on guitar.[16] Founding member Yannick St. Amand returned to handle the band's audio samples and live sound, thus making the group a septet for the first time.

In April 2014, they participated in the Impericon Festival Tour across Europe and also headlined a handful of shows with support from Brutality Will Prevail and Cerebral Bore. They also performed at Montebello's Amnesia Rockfest in Canada on June 20, 2014.

They closed the year 2014 with 4 North American concerts on the east coast, playing Montreal, Toronto, New York City and Worcester in December.

On April 6, 2015, the band announced via their Facebook page that to commemorate the 10 year anniversary of the release of their album The Healing Process, the band would be performing exclusive shows at U.K.'s Ghostfest and in Canada at Quebec City's Envol & Macadam Festival.[17]

On April 12, 2016, the band announced via their Facebook page that after signing a deal with record label Nuclear Blast, they were officially back as a permanent band. They released a short video with a snippet of unreleased material. Their fifth studio album titled Beast was released on July 22, 2016.

Purgatory and Déterré EP (2019–present)

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On September 20, The band embarked on a massive North American tour to promote their upcoming album "Purgatory".[18]

Their sixth full-length album, Purgatory, was released on November 15, 2019.[19]

On October 28, 2022, the band released an EP titled Déterré, which consists of five re-released early tracks.[20]

Members

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Current members

  • Steve Marois – vocals (2002–2010, 2014–present)
  • Alex Erian – vocals (2004–2010, 2014–present); drums (2002–2004)
  • Eric Jarrin – lead guitar (2002–2010, 2014–present)
  • Sebastien Piché – bass (2002–2008, 2014–present)
  • Alex Pelletier – drums (2004–2010, 2014–present)
  • Ben Landreville – rhythm guitar (2009–2010, 2014–present)

Former members

  • Yannick St-Amand – samples, media (2002–2006, 2014–2019); rhythm guitar (2002–2006)
  • Marie-Hélène Landry – vocals (2002–2003)
  • Al Glassman – rhythm guitar (2006–2008)
  • Max Lavelle – bass (2008–2010)

Timeline

Discography

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Studio albums

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List of studio albums, with selected chart positions
Year Album details Peak chart positions
US
[21] 		US
Heat.
[22]
2002 Consumed by Your Poison
  • Released: October 2, 2002
  • Label: Galy
 — —
2005 The Healing Process — —
2007 The Ills of Modern Man
  • Released: May 22, 2007
  • Label: Century Media
 — 28
2009 Day of Mourning
  • Released: September 22, 2009
  • Label: Century Media
 162 6
2016 Beast — 2
2019 Purgatory
  • Released: November 15, 2019
  • Label: Nuclear Blast
 — —
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart

DVDs

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Year Album details
2009 Montreal Assault
  • Released: 2009
  • Label: Century Media

Other releases

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Year Album details Notes
2004 Syndicated Murderers
  • EP
  • Released: 2004
  • Label: —
2005 Bodies in the Gears of the Apparatus and Despised Icon
  • Split album with Bodies in the Gears of the Apparatus.
  • Released: January 11, 2005
  • Label: Relapse
  • Features one track that was later re-recorded for Beast.
2006 Demos 2002 & 2004
  • Split with Ion Dissonance, including:
    • .357 demo, 2002 by Ion Dissonance;
    • Syndicated Murderers promo, 2004 by Despised Icon.
2022 Déterré
  • EP
  • Released: October 28, 2022
  • Label: Nuclear Blast
  • Tracks 1-2 are from the Syndicated Murderers EP released in 2004.
  • Tracks 3-5 are from split with Bodies in the Gears of the Apparatus released in 2005.

Music videos

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Year Title Director
2006 "The Sunset Will Never Charm Us" Jean-Phillipe Bernier[23][24]
2007 "In the Arms of Perdition"
2008 "Furtive Monologue" Jonathan Desbiens[25]
2009 "Day of Mourning" Mathieu Elle
2010 "MVP" Fan made[26]
2016 "Beast" Jessy Fuchs[27]
"Bad Vibes"
"The Aftermath" Matt Charland
2019 "Purgatory" Jessy Fuchs
"Snake in the Grass"

References

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  1. ^ a b Rivadavia, Eduardo. "Despised Icon > Biography". allmusic. Retrieved October 13, 2008.
  2. ^ "Century Media Records". Archived from the original on September 27, 2007. Retrieved August 20, 2007. Century Media Records published Despised Icon biography
  3. ^ [1] Archived November 5, 2013, at the Wayback Machine Galy Records published Despised Icon biography
  4. ^ [2] Archived October 31, 2010, at the Wayback Machine Relapse Records published Despised Icon biography
  5. ^ "Despised Icon sign Worldwide deal with Century Media Records". Blabbermouth.net. January 11, 2005. Archived from the original on December 1, 2008. Retrieved June 26, 2008.
  6. ^ Bowar, Chad "Despised Icon Interview" Archived June 20, 2017, at the Wayback Machine 2007
  7. ^ "Despised Icon: DVD Details Revealed". Blabbermouth.net. October 23, 2008. Archived from the original on December 1, 2008. Retrieved November 9, 2008.
  8. ^ Montreal Assault Delayed Blabbermouth
  9. ^ "Roadrunner Records Page Not Found". Roadrunner Records Official Website. Retrieved May 6, 2017. {{cite web}}: Cite uses generic title (help)
  10. ^ "Despised Icon to Release Day of Mourning in September". Blabbermouth.net. Roadrunner Records. June 3, 2009. Archived from the original on June 6, 2011. Retrieved July 2, 2009.
  11. ^ "DESPISED ICON : Official Website". Archived from the original on February 17, 2010. Retrieved May 6, 2017.
  12. ^ "Despised Icon To Call It A Day", ThePRP.com, April 7, 2010, Retrieved on April 7, 2010
  13. ^ "Century Media Records - Despised Icon: : Issue Final Statement Before The Last Six Shows of Their Career". www.centurymedia.com. Archived from the original on July 24, 2011. Retrieved May 6, 2017.
  14. ^ "ALEX ERIAN USED TO BE DESPISED, BUT NOW, HE'S BRAVE". MetalSucks. January 18, 2012. Retrieved May 6, 2017.
  15. ^ blackdahliamurdertv (April 30, 2012). "The Black Dahlia Murder introduce new bassist Max Lavelle". Archived from the original on December 21, 2021. Retrieved May 6, 2017 – via YouTube.
  16. ^ "DESPISED ICON Announces Reunion Shows". February 4, 2014. Retrieved May 6, 2017.
  17. ^ "Comments - Lambgoat". lambgoat.com. Retrieved May 6, 2017.
  18. ^ "DESPISED ICON, KUBLAI KHAN, INGESTED & SHADOW OF INTENT Announce North American Tour". Metal Injection. June 5, 2019.
  19. ^ "DESPISED ICON To Release 'Purgatory' Album In November". BLABBERMOUTH.NET. September 6, 2019.
  20. ^ Ellis Heasley (September 2, 2022). "Despised Icon announce new rarities EP 'Déterré'". Distorted Sound. Retrieved September 5, 2022.
  21. ^ "Despised Icon – Chart History: Billboard 200". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved January 21, 2014.
  22. ^ "Despised Icon – Chart History: Heatseekers Albums". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved January 21, 2014.
  23. ^ "Despised Icon - "The Sunset Will Never Charm Us"". MTV Networks. March 28, 2006. Archived from the original on December 2, 2008. Retrieved November 9, 2008.
  24. ^ "Despised Icon - "In the Arms of Perdition"". MTV Networks. June 4, 2007. Archived from the original on December 2, 2008. Retrieved November 9, 2008.
  25. ^ "Despised Icon - "Furtive Monologue"". MTV Networks. March 4, 2008. Archived from the original on December 2, 2008. Retrieved November 9, 2008.
  26. ^ "Despised Icon - "MVP" *Day Of Mourning* (UNOFFICIAL-FAN VIDEO)". Archived from the original on December 21, 2021 – via www.youtube.com.
  27. ^ NuclearBlastVEVO (May 19, 2016). "Despised Icon - Beast". Retrieved May 6, 2017 – via YouTube.[dead YouTube link]
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