| Reverend Bizarre | |
|---|---|
 Eläköön myyjät todellisen doom ! Lohja Power. | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Turku, Finland; Lohja, Finland |
| Genres | Doom metal |
| Years active | 1995 - 2007 |
| Labels | Spikefarm, Sinister Figure, Hellride Music, PsycheDOOMelic, Metal Coven Records |
| Associated acts | Minotauri, Lord Vicar, Spiritus Mortis, Opium Warlords, The Puritan, Friends of Hell, Orne |
| Website | |
| Past members | Albert Witchfinder Peter Vicar Earl of Void Juippi |
Reverend Bizarre were a band from Finland, active from 1995 - 2007. They are notable for playing doom metal in what they billed as "Pure Doom", often with the statement along the lines of "Pure Doom: no keyboards, synthesizers, flutes or violins used on this album." This is a statement that would be used on their seminal debut album In the Rectory of the Bizarre Reverend.
On II: Crush the Insects though "Doom What Thou Wilt" is a common statement placed within their albums. Though the band relocated to Turku they pay homage to their hometown of Lohja, Finland with the statement "Lohja Power" in most of their releases.
First performing live in 1999, the band managed to perform mostly in Finland but had a handful of other shows in Europe and one tour of the United States.
Notably two Reverend Bizarre singles that charted in Finnish Radio's top ten at the time of release: "Slave of Satan" peaked at No. 2 on the Finnish Singles Chart. 2007's "Teutonic Witch" peaked at No. 1 on the Finnish Singles Chart. Three split singles the band released in 2008 also charted within the top ten of the Finnish Singles Chart.
The band had planned a totality of five albums; Songs from the Funereal World being the third, Heavier Than Life the fourth and How It Was Meant to Be the fifth and the last album. However, Reverend Bizarre abandoned this plan in Autumn of 2006, finishing off their career with the double album III: So Long Suckers.
The band chose to disband in 2007, citing a need to end the band "before it started to suck".
History[]
In The Rectory (1997 - 2003)[]
Reverend Bizarre was started in 1995 by Albert Witchfinder (Sami Hynninen), Peter Vicar (Kami Kärki) and Juippi (Juha-Petteri Lundqvist). Kärki was christened with the nickname "Peter Vicar" due to being married and leading a more "serious" life. Though some practice sessions were recorded (Vicar owns the only copy) no real studio recordings were made with this lineup and Juippi left in 1997, replaced by Earl of Void (Jari Lars Johan Pohjonen).
The band's current lineup then recorded some practice sessions and self-released them under the title Slice of Doom in 1999. The band played their first live show at TVO in Turku, Finland on August 18, 1999.[1]
Eventually in 2002, the band released their debut album In the Rectory of the Bizarre Reverend. Following the album was a 2003 tour of Germany (their first shows outside of Finland.) with a limited CD-R entitled You Shall Suffer!. An EP followed entitled Harbinger of Metal followed that year.
II: Crush the Insects (2004 - 2005)[]
Slice of Doom 1999 - 2002 was released in 2004 via PsycheDOOMelic, detailing all recordings from the Slice of Doom sessions and compilation tracks.
In 2005, Reverend Bizarre released their second album II: Crush the Insects on Spikefarm. A short tour of Sweden happened in April that year and their only tour of the United States happened in July 2005, supported by The Gates of Slumber. Their first US performance was in Indianapolis, Indiana at Templars of Doom.
III: So Long Suckers, disbandment and other releases (2006 - 2007)[]
Reverend Bizarre announced their breakup was imminent sometime in 2006, recording what would be their final album and a plethora of songs for split releases that year. Along with a string of shows in Europe, they played a handful of shows in Finland leading up to their final performance.
Reverend Bizarre's final concert was on December 30, 2006. It was at TVO in Turku, the same venue where their first show was held. The show had two sets including In the Rectory of the Bizarre Reverend in its entirety and founding member Juippi as a guest. [2]
"Teutonic Witch" was released in May 2007 and peaked at #1 on the Finnish Radio Singles charts. Reverend Bizarre's third and final album III: So Long Suckers, was released on August 8, 2007. A sticker was included on the jewelcase with the statement "DOOM METAL IS DEAD". A plethora of posthumous split releases and EPs were released throughout the rest of 2007 and 2008. All of these recordings (Along with other split and rare tracks) were compiled in a 2CD set via Spikefarm entitled Death Is Glory... Now, released on February 11, 2009.
Return to the Rectory, an EP that was never officially released until being compiled on the Spikefarm reissue of In the Rectory of the Bizarre Reverend, was released as a standalone double LP set in 2011.
Peter Vicar went on to form Lord Vicar. Albert Witchfinder went on to form Opium Warlords along with his activity in Spiritus Mortis (2009 - 2017) and a multitude of other projects. Earl of Void is still active with the progressive rock band Orne.
Along with several re-releases and archival box sets, the three core members of Reverend Bizarre would get together on 22 September 2022 to conduct "the last Reverend Bizarre interview".[3]
Discography[]
Studio Albums[]
- In the Rectory of the Bizarre Reverend (2002, Sinister Figure)
- II: Crush the Insects (2005, Spikefarm)
- III: So Long Suckers (2007, Spikefarm)
Demos[]
- Practice Sessions (1996, self-released)
- Slice of Doom (1999, self-released)
- You Shall Suffer! (2003, self-released)
Extended Plays[]
- Harbinger of Metal (2003, Spikefarm)
- Thulsa Doom (2006, Aftermath Music)
- Dark World / Deciever (2008, Primitive Reaction)
- Return to the Rectory (2011, Svart; Recorded 2003 - 2004)
Singles and Splits[]
- Blood on Satan's Claw / Death in Spring (2003, Metal Coven)
- Reverend Bizarre / Orodruin (2004, Hellride)
- Black (Magic) Triangle / Apocalyptic Riders (2004, Metal Coven)
- Slave of Satan (2005, Spikefarm)
- Under the Sign of the Wolf (2006, The Church Within)
- Teutonic Witch (2007, Spikefarm)
- Knock 'Em Down to Size Part I (2007, Metal Coven
- Reverend Bizarre / Kuolema (2008, MCR Company)
- Reverend Bizarre / Rättö ja Lehtisalo (2008, Full Contact)
- Electric Wizard / Reverend Bizarre (2008, Rise Above)
- Mr Velcro Fastener / Reverend Bizarre (2008, Solina)
- The Goddess of Doom (2008, Spinefarm)
Compilations[]
- Slice of Doom 1999 - 2002 (2004, PsycheDOOMelic)
- Death Is Glory... Now (2009, Spikefarm)
- Magick with Tears (2009, Tyrannus Records)
Members[]
- Albert Witchfinder - Bass, Vocals (1995 - 2007)
- Peter Vicar - Guitar (1995 - 2007)
- Earl of Void - Drums (1997 - 2007)
- Juippi - Drums, Keyboards (1995 - 1997, 2006)
Tours[]
- Friends of Hell (With Minotauri, Spiritus Mortis) (2002)
- Germany/Belgium Tour 2003 (With Revelation, Mirror of Deception) (2003)
- July/August Mini-Tour (With Cathedral, Sloth, Spiritus Mortis) (2004)
- Autumn of Doom Tour (2004)
- Sweden/England Mini-Tour (With Thee Plague of Gentlemen, The Gates of Slumber)(2005)
- Templars of Doom USA Tour (With The Gates of Slumber) (2005)
- 2006 Tour (With Warning) (2006)
- Friends of Hell II (With Minotauri, Spiritus Mortis) (2006)
External Links[]
References[]
- ↑ Setlist.fmAccessed 29 May 2016
- ↑ Setlist.fmAccessed 29 May 2016.
- ↑ Reverend Bizarre Facebook
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