METALLIAN - Profanatica

Live – 2001 – Necroscope
Profanatitas De Domonatia – 2007 – Hells Headbangers
Disgusting Blasphemies Against God – 2010 – Hells Headbangers
Thy Kingdom Cum – 2013 – Hells Headbangers
The Curling Flame Of Blasphemy – 2016 – Hells Headbangers
Rotting Incarnation Of God – 2019 – Season Of Mist
Crux Simplex - 2023 - Underground Activists/Season Of Mist

Members

Vocals

Toten, Abomination, Havohej>>PAUL LEDNEY>>Havohej

Guitar

Blood Thirsty Death, Incantation>>Brett Makowski>>Havohej, Cyberchrist, Sociopath, 36 Crazyfists – Toten, Abomination, Contrivisti>>John Gelso>>Contrivisti, The Royal Arch Blaspheme – Toten, Abomination, Contrivisti>>John Gelso>>Contrivisti, The Royal Arch Blaspheme - Morionor, Jenovah, Malefic, Hellgoat, Thoth Nemesis, Berator, Disfigurement>>ADAM BESSERER

Bass

Blood Thirsty Death, Incantation>>Aragon Amori>>Demonic Christ, Contrivisti - Anal Secretion, Malefic, Vimur, Hellgoat, Disfigurement, Striges>>PAT DAVIES>>Vimur, Hellgoat, Striges

Drum

Mutilador, Revenant, Toten, Abomination, Incantation, Havohej, Connecticut Cocksuckers>>PAUL LEDNEY>>Havohej, Connecticut Cocksuckers

History & Biography

This true black metal band was founded by former Incantation members Paul Ledney, Aragon Amori and Brett Makowski in 1990. The trio professed to black metal and not black/death metal like John McEntee of Incantation. The Ledney trio also wanted to wear corpse paint and introduced it and nudity into its Profanatica persona. The band attacked the underground and circulated a rehearsal tape with more inverted crosses than a dozen Deicide albums combined. This was quickly followed by a better recording of the same tracks entitled Putrescence Of... Osmose Productions later pressed this on vinyl. It was entitled As Tears Of Blood Stain The Altar Of Christ. Another demo was Broken Throne Of Christ. The three issued a single on After World Records called Weeping In Heaven. The Live demo of 1991 was recorded in New Jersey. A young Osmose Production of France caught the band in the nick of time and placed several of the band’s songs on a split with its other new signee Colombia-based Masacre. Having hoped for a full-length the band was disappointed. Second guitarist John Gelso was part of the line-up. He and Ledney had been in a New York-based Abomination and Toten before. Brett and Aomori left Profanatica at this stage. A record called The Raping Of The Virgin Mary (initially announced as Sodomy Of Sacred Assholes) was announced for 1992, but was MIA. Maybe or maybe not the master tapes were destroyed by Aragorn. The band split up in 1992 and Ledney went on to blaspheme the world in Havohej.

The band may be extreme and underground, but is not immune to the avarice, lust and wants of materialism. Profanatica reformed in 2001 hot on the heels of a live record. The album was dedicated to Aragon Amori who had died and gone to hell in 1996. Someone called War Hammer Records compiled the band’s music onto a CD called Collection in 2001. Malcolm Tent was the bassist between 2001 and 2006. Broken Jew referenced the mythical figure of Jesus and was a 2002 single. The Enemy Virtue was another compilation and was issued in 2006. The same label that issued the compilation released the band’s proper first album in 2007. Ledney and Gelso were the band. Gelso had rejoined in 2007 and would stay until 2016. Profanatica was further heard on a compilation called Trampling The Holy Faith in 2008. Deathgasm, in the meanwhile, issued a full-length video of the band confusingly again called The Enemy of Virtue, which was the title for a compilation earlier.

Ledney uncovered a rehearsal recording and had it released as The Years Of Pestilence 7” in 2010. Hells Headbangers issued a sampler, including new tracks, in 2010. It was called The Grand Masters Session and was performed live in the studio. The same label issued Disgusting Blasphemies Against God in 2010. The line-up remained Ledney and Gelso. Thy Kingdom Cum featured a Luciferian cover artwork and was recorded in 2011. Demoncy and Fornicator were touring when the last band was pulled from a venue due to its image and lyrics. Altar Of The Virgin Whore was a 2018 EP. The band moved to Season Of Mist’s Underground Activists’ imprint for Rotting Incarnation Of God. The act was solely Ledney now. Gelso left in 2016 and was replaced by Ryan Adams. A tour of Europe with Watain and Rotting Christ was announced for 2018. USA dates were announced for 2019. The Black.Metal.Revenge - European Tour was announced for April and May 2021 with Revenge, Misþyrming and Ultra Silvam. It was postponed to 2022 before being cancelled.

Profanatica kicked off its European headliner tour at the SWR Festival in Barroselas, Portugal on April 28th 2023. The tour went through 15 countries. Necrobode from Portugal opened. The act issued its Crux Simplex album next. Profanatica announced the Crux Simplex Tour of North America for the winter of 2024. Opening were Nunslaughter and label-mates Tombs. There was a video for the song Take Up The Cross. Profanatica was booked for Milwaukee Metal Festival 2024.

Ledney’s own imprint was called Necroscope Productions after the turn of the century. Ledney and his wife ran a print and design shop in Connecticut. Profanatica is Latin for ‘desecrator of heaven.’

Reviews

PROFANATICA - CRUX SIMPLEX - SEASON OF MIST
The album is 38 minutes long, but it takes only a couple of minutes into the first track Condemned To Unholy Death to be reassured that the new album is Profanatica at its blasphemous best. Not that it was ever in doubt. This is an act that has made black metal affiliated underground its trademark.
What can one expect from a band that has an album called Crux Simplex, song titles like Meeting Of A Whore or Wipe The Fucking Face Of Jesus or Cunts Of Jerusalem and has a picture of the local BBQ joint on its cover? Let the intro, which sounds as if someone has mashed up the soundtrack to Blade Runner with the voice of Razorback (good movies both with perky tits in shower scenes coincidentally), pass and the pounding raw vomitous and sacrilegious metal that would make fans of Amorphis, Moonspell and anyone in Finland generally have a spontaneous abortion will re-manifest itself. No solos, no harps and no cellos (sorry Cruachan fans); instead Profanatica delivers on extremeness and only breaks it up with interludes of screechy noise. An exception comes on the aforementioned Wipe The Fucking Face Of Jesus where the guitar doodles briefly and that is it. Compelled By Romans is doomy and crackling. Its drum sound lighter than elsewhere. It sounds akin to Incantation’s doom passages. The vocals have a habit of projecting more slowly than the chaotic music that surrounds them with the singer switching to admirable deep growls, not far removed from John McEntee of Incantations’ actually, occasionally. The music throws a few solid riffs under the influence of sharp Boss-like distortion a la Dismember on a track like The Second Fall. No kidding.
Profanatica will never be the world's tightest band, but it delivers on the virtues of being extreme forever, steadfast in perpetuity and serious to the chagrin of many and the observer comes to wonder how such a band can exist on a label whose pride and joy is either a keyboard wielding Eurovision lackey or half a dozen ambient bands probably from places like Iceland or some flea market in Morocco. Who cares? Years have passed and Profanatica would still wipe the smugness off both the fucking face of a mythical character like Jesus and all the masses of poseurs who shake their heads to K&F (Keyboards & Female Vocals) as they tell themselves they are listening to ‘metal.’ - Ali “The Metallian"

Interviews

Profanatica