Venom – Lay Down Their Soul

Venom – Lay Down Their Soul

THE BLACK METAL GODS ANNOUNCE THEIR

BRAND-NEW ALBUM, ‘INTO OBLIVION’

RELEASED ON NOISE/BMG ON 1st MAY 2026

PLUS, PREORDERS HERE

Venom needs no introduction, from their birth in Newcastle in ’79 they paved the way for extreme metal and created their own genre, Black Metal. Which is arguably more popular now than it has ever been globally, with their influence ever far reaching as the originators.

‘Into Oblivion’ is Venom’s sixteenth studio album and features the long-standing line up of Cronos (bass/vocals and founding member), Rage (guitar) and Dante (drums) and marks their first new recordings since 2018’s, ‘Storm The Gates’. Into Oblivion consists of thirteen songs that are signature Venom: heavy, evil and catchy. There’s a combination of their classic 80’s sound adjacent to a more modern, progressive approach but without losing any of their fire and brimstone of old.

The album has been in the works for some years now, but a number of factors held back its completion until now; the Covid pandemic, recording setbacks and the hunger to nail it to perfection, but in the words of Cronos ‘This album has really pushed the boundaries, but if you want to make a killer album, you pay for it in blood, sweat and tears.’ However, Venom true to form have overcome adversity to release an album worthy of their legacy as Rage affirms ‘I’m so proud of this album, it’s astounding! It feels so different, yet so familiar. The sonics are a step up, no song sounds the same, but they all work together.’

The lead single, Lay Down You Soul is a thunderous first offering and harks back to the band’s formative years, and the song Black Metal. While being slightly tongue in cheek, it bears all the hallmarks of a soon to be live classic with its rousing sing-along chorus. Cronos states, ‘I think it’s healthy to recognise things from back in the day and bring them into a new setting that gives it a whole fresh approach. The fans are going to go mental for it!’

The chemistry on ‘Into Oblivion’ is undeniable and is a musical testament to the longevity of this lineup, which now eclipses any other, clocking in at seventeen years. Dante clicks his fingers, ‘It’s gone like that, seventeen years! It’s all down to friendship and mutual respect.’

‘Into Oblivion’ will be released on 1st May 2026 via Noise/BMG and is available for preorder now and is available in these formats.

  • Double, gatefold smoke vinyl
  • Double, gatefold clear, black & red splatter vinyl (Limited Edition)
  • CD digisleeve with 16-page booklet
  • Digital

Preorders of both vinyl and CD will come with a limited photo card, signed by Cronos, Dante and Rage only from the Noise Records store, while stocks last!

Find Venom online at venomslegions.com / FB @officialvenomband / IG @venom_band_official

Cronos – ‘Dancing In The Fire’ (DISSONANCE)

Cronos – ‘Dancing In The Fire’ (DISSONANCE)

Originally released, or UNLEASHED as I’m sure Cronos (Conrad to his mates), would say, in 1990, Dancing In The Fire was the first solo album from the Venom frontman/bassist. There’s no black metal on display here, though. I would compare the material on Dancing In The Fire to ‘80s W.A.S.P. or Armoured Saint. The opening track Fantasia has a glam metal feel. Cronos did a glam metal album? Umm… yes, he did. He even tries to be melodic, or as melodic as Cronos could get. There are lots of chuggy riffs, pinch harmonics, widdly guitar solos, and god-awful lyrics. Terrorise even has Cronos attempting a (bad) Steven Tyler impersonation. The vocals are as flat as a pancake that has been run over by a steamroller. Must try harder, Conrad.

The title track starts with a vaguely melodic intro but quickly becomes hilarious with Cronos trying his hand at some Bon Jovi style whoa’s (or should that be woes?) It really is hilarious; it’s more Spinal Tap than even the Tap can manage themselves.

The only halfway decent track is Vampyr, which could have ended up as a Venom track. The production is much better than any Venom effort, but that doesn’t save this cringfest. Venom were so influential because they did something new, and people latched onto the image, lyrics and dark sound. Cronos should have stayed in his lane and gave the Venom fans more of what they wanted. They definitely didn’t ask for Dancing In The Fire.

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Author: Kenny Kendrick

Venom – ‘In Nomine Satanas – 40 Years In Sodom’ (BMG/Sanctuary Records)

Venom – ‘In Nomine Satanas – 40 Years In Sodom’ (BMG/Sanctuary Records)

When the news initially broke earlier this year regarding this Limited Edition vinyl-only box set that brings together remastered editions of the four studio LPs and a double live album recorded by the original line up of Black Metal gods Venom, I was immediately intrigued.

Add into the mix a further double LP of previously unreleased demos, an exclusive shaped picture disc of ‘Bloodlust’, and a veritable cornucopia of memorabilia that includes amongst other things a stunning 40 page ‘History Of Venom’ hardback book along with (if you pre-ordered it from the band themselves) a 12×12 art print signed by Cronos himself, and before I could yell “C’MAAAAAAAAAAAN TURN IT UP’, I had bought a copy.

I actually received mine at the start of May well ahead of the official release date of May 31st but I wanted to really get to grips with this mammoth set before giving you my verdict simply because with a retail price of £150 this is never going to be an impulse purchase.

As I’ve mentioned the ‘History’ book already let’s begin with a little bit of my own history and how I first heard Venom. It was early 1983 and a close friend (who remains so to this very day) who first introduced me to ‘Black Metal’, oddly via a mate of his who had bought said LP (complete with poster) and as he thought it was shit, he had given it away. It wasn’t really like any of the other metal bands we were listening to at the time other than those noisy bastards Motorhead and Tank, in fact, it reminded me more of the relentless racket created by the UK82 punk bands my other school mates were listening to at the time like G.B.H and Discharge. I have to admit I wasn’t exactly an immediate fan but I did have a copy of ‘Black Metal’ taped for me (there’s a gag in there that I won’t need to explain to old school fans) so it did make numerous appearance on my Walkman over the summer of that year but it wasn’t until June 1984 when I just happened to buy a ticket on the door for the awe-inspiring Seventh Date Of Hell show at Hammersmith Odeon that I fully got what Venom were really all about.  

Picking up the “remastered from the original tapes” splatter and swirl LPs contained in this lavish box set (they all come with reproduction sleeves and inners) I actually begin my aural assault with ‘At War With Satan’ because that was the Venom record I first purchased for myself (on picture disc) at that legendary Seventh Date gig, and here pressed on heavyweight clear splatter vinyl it sounds absolutely magnificent. Okay, the gatefold doesn’t have the gold leaf cover of the original pressing or the original merch/poster inserts but that’s probably just me being a little bit too pernickety as otherwise this is stonking stuff.

I then go back to the band’s beginnings, with ‘Welcome to Hell’ and ‘Black Metal’ played back to back, and here the rumbling bottom end that bursts out the speakers is enough to wake the dead, or at the very least the neighbours. Both LPs come in embossed sleeves (and include replicas of the posters and lyric inners – here reproduced on the inner bags) and are again pressed on splatter vinyl, sounding as raw as they did back at the dawn of the eighties and equally just as ground-breaking.  The only small niggle I have here is my copy of ‘Black Metal’ came with nasty click on the run-in groove to side one, again I may be being over critical here but with the hefty price tag attached to this set I would expect nothing short of perfection.

Which is something I do get with the 74 tracks on offer here that’s for sure, with perhaps the real highlight for me being the chance to rediscover 1985’s (at the time) critically panned ‘Possessed’ LP. A record that has never sounded better than it does here, and coming as it does pressed upon splatter vinyl complete with the original inner bag and a huge poster it’s never looked as good either.

Moving on to ‘Eine Kleine Nachtmusik’ from 1986 and this double live LP for me has never really cut it, largely because some bright spark decided to leave silences between the tracks, so its not really like listening to a live album at all, and why would I want to listen to the band live just as they were falling apart at the seams when I could simply slip in my almost worn out VHS of The Seventh Date of Hell? The soundtrack of which I have always felt would have been a much better alternative as their official live album. Here ‘Nachtmusik’ is lovingly restored in a gatefold sleeve complete with the inner bags, so I’m sure I’ll get to play it more this time around.

With many Venom fans probably looking to buy this box set just for the 15 track ‘Sons Of Satan’ double LP I have to admit that if this were a standalone release I wouldn’t have been happy paying a top price for it. However, as a piece of Venom history contained within such an absorbing time capsule commemorating the band’s 40th anniversary it actually works well. Initially transporting us right back to 1979 via some very boomy cassette recordings of the band’s first line up complete with singer Christ, this is a world away from the Venom that would ultimately change heavy metal forever. However, by the time we get to the 1980 Impulse Studios demos that make up sides 2 and 3 of ‘Sons Of Satan’ the more recognisable “organised chaos” of the classic Venom sound is all but a few bottles of Jack Daniels away and waiting to take on the world. Something Cronos, Mantas and Abaddon were more than ready to do by the time they released the original ‘Bloodlust’/’In Nomine Satanas’ 7” single back in 1982 and thankfully it is included here as a shaped picture disc exclusive to this box set.

Whilst immersing myself in the satanic sounds of this box set I found the aforementioned ‘History Of Venom’ book to be the perfect accompanying piece, formed as it is from quotes from all the band members as well as being crammed with some of the cheesiest band photographs ever taken. This book for me is where this box set truly adds a bit of (black) magic to the mystery of Venom, as does the memory jogging reproduction tour programme.

Wrapping up the memorabilia part of this set you also get a huge Seven Dates Of Hell poster along with a Venom’s Legions back patch and if like me you order it from the band’s official store (linked below) you also get a very frameable art print signed by Count Cronos himself.

So, is it worth the £150 then I hear you cry?

Well, if you don’t already have these seminal albums on vinyl it most certainly is a must buy. If however you are a hardcore Venom collector and have these albums already a bazillion time over you’ll probably have done what I did and already have this box set filed away in your collection, in which case, “what the hell are you doing reading this review?” Ha!

‘In Nomine Satanas – 40 Years In Sodom’ will take a lot to top in the box set stakes that’s for sure and it once again proves that the devil really does still have all the very best tunes.

 

signed by Cronos Copy Here

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Double CD best of book edition Here

Author: Johnny Hayward

Venom – ‘Storm The Gates’ (Spinefarm Records)

Venom – ‘Storm The Gates’ (Spinefarm Records)

With 2019 being the 40th anniversary of Venom, it’s well worth noting that it’s also the 10th anniversary of the band’s current line-up of Cronos (vocals and bass), Rage (guitar) and Dante (drums). Their recently released ‘Storm The Gates’ album is the band’s fifteenth to be bursting out with metal of the non-more black variety and thanks to a huge (very limited edition) Venom LP box set and 2 disc career retrospective being on the fire stoked horizon Spinefarm Records are giving this 13 tracker another push right now, which is great for me as this release somehow totally passed me by when it originally hit the shelves back in January of this year.

Which is something I can’t help but feel a bit annoyed with myself about really, simply because Venom are a band that not only reinvented heavy metal but also birthed a bazillion other subgenres, so why aren’t they lauded as all-conquering heroes and afforded multiple page tributes by the metal press like Motorhead always were every time they release a new record…and I then don’t end up missing them?”

Now there’s some food for thought eh?

In fact that Motorhead parallel is even more prevalent once you get to hear ‘Storm The Gates’ because just like what Lemmy did with the Mikkey and Phil line up, Cronos and Venom are doing pretty much the same here, by making some of the best full throttle black metal rackets they have made since their early to mid ‘80s heyday.

Opener ‘Bring Out Your Dead’ is an absolute barnstormer of a track with Cronos rattling his r’s over a pounding rhythm designed to get the heads banging and which seamlessly sets up the full on metal grind of ‘Notorious’ a track that sees Rage out Mantasing the band’s former guitar ninja with his use of the divebombing whammy bar, and the goodies don’t stop there either. ‘Dark Night (Of The Soul)’ is a fierce metal fist to the face as is the album’s title track ‘Storm The Gates’ a track that I can just see a pumped up Cronos stood arms folded 50 hole Dr Martins akimbo commanding his Legions to do his bidding in the live setting.

As a long-time fan of the band I have to admit I do find the flat out and nowt else approach the band take to their songwriting these days more than just a little relentless at times. So, for those of us who might still long an all new ‘At War With Satan’ or perhaps even a 21st century ‘Buried Alive’ you will not find anything remotely like that on ‘Storm The Gates’. In fact, tracks like ‘Over My Dead Body’ and ‘The Mighty Have Fallen’ are perhaps the most brutal the band have ever sounded, largely thanks to the superb almost out of control freight train drumming of Dante and the razor-sharp riffing of Rage.

‘Storm The Gates’ then is the sound of Venom heavier and angrier than ever before, I just hope that with this being such a special year for the band they finally get the credit and recognition they so rightly deserve as a truly ground-breaking metal band especially here in the UK where late-afternoon slots at Bloodstock aside we’re lucky to get to see them live at all.

C’MAAAAAAAAAAAAAN!!!!!!!

Buy Storm The Gates Here

Author: John Hayward