A pioneering death metal band from Stockholm, Sweden, founded in 1987 by Nicke Andersson (drums), Leif Cuzner (bass), Alex Hellid (guitar) and Ulf Cederlund (guitar), who were soon joined by L-G Petrov (vocals).
Nihilist's debut demo "Premature Autopsy" (1988) is often considered to be the first real Swedish death metal demo release. The demo also has Mattias Böström listed as a vocalist, but it's uncertain if he ever was in the band for real. After the recording Cederlund left the band to concentrate on his other bands Morbid and Infuriation. Hence for the second demo "Only Shreds Remain" (1989) Cuzner had switched to guitar and Johnny Hedlund had joined the band as a bass player. After this Cuzner moved to Canada and Cederlund came back. Their third demo "Drowned" was recorded in August 1989, but at this point disagreements within the band (namely between Johnny Hedlund and the rest of the group) lead to Andersson splitting the band apart. Almost immediately after the split Andersson and Cederlund however reformed the group as Entombed, but without Hedlund, who then went to form his own band Unleashed.
Guitarist Leif Cuzner is often credited as the founder of the famous Stockholm death metal guitar tone, which uses the Boss HM-2 distortion pedal on "all knobs at max" setting. This particular guitar tone, or "Stockholm sound", also became a trademark of producer Tomas Skogsberg and his famous Sunlight Studios.
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| Both this picture and the one above is from Relapse Records vinyl version from 2011 of the demo collection ”Carnal Leftovers" |
Taken from the booklet for Nihilist (1987-1989), written by Ula Gehret, former Metal Maniacs contributor and current label manager for Century Media:
"For a band whose technical lifespan was just over two years, few bands have left more of an indelible impression upon the extreme music scene than Nihilist. Formed in 1987, the group bore the name Brainwarp before morphing into Nihilist. It was the brainchild of drummer Nicke Andersson, who was joined by two of his friends from summer camp, Alex Hellid on guitars and Leif Cuzner on bass and vocals (Daniel Strachal, who was a part of Brainwarp would later go on to play drums for Lobotomy).
Having first been influenced by the '80s hardcore and crossover bands, Nihilist were soon introduced to the likes of Death and Kreator and the bastard cross-pollination of influences would soon breed its own virulent new hybrid strain. For their earliest rehearsals and shows, they mixed a repertoire of cover songs and originals. Nihilist found two fortuitous additions when they went into the studio in March of 1988 to record their first demo tape. Mutual friend Mattias "Buffla" had rehearsed a few times as a singer with the other three. As they were eager to find a standalone vocalist, but for the recording session the band drafted in session vocalist L-G Petrov, who was then the drummer for cult death metal band Morbid. Also joining as a session musician was L.G.'s bandmate in Morbid Ulf "Uffe" Cederlund on second guitar. It was with these five members that the three-song Premature Autopsy was recorded.
Premature Autopsy (1988)
According to an interview in the book Swedish Death Metal, both LG and Uffe were actual members of the group, but mis-credited as session members (although this has been denied by Nicke Andersson). Mattias, on the other hand, was never a part of the group at all.
Recording information:
Recorded at 'Studio Z' Stockholm in March 1988.
1. Sentenced to Death
2. Supposed to Rot
3. Carnal Leftovers
Lineup:
L.G. (R.I.P. 2021) - Vocals
Ulf Cederlund - Guitars
Alex Hellid - Guitars
Leffe Cuzner (R.I.P. 2006) - Bass
Nicke Andersson - Drums
Only Shreds Remain (1989)
It was assumed that the vocals on this demo were recorded by Johnny Hedlund (much deeper vocals, and practically identical to his early recordings with Unleashed), though they are credited to LG Petrov, also Hedlund stated on the "Where No Life Dwells" reissue that his very first time doing vocals were on the "And Laughter Has Died" EP sessions.
3000 copies sold.
Recording information:
Recorded on December 8th and 16th, 1988 at Sunlight Studio, Stockholm, Sweden.
Produced by Nihilist.
1. Abnormally Deceased 02:56
2. Revel in Flesh 03:32
3. Face of Evil 03:39
LineUp:
L-G Petrov (R.I.P. 2021) - Vocals
Alex Hellid - Guitars
Johnny Hedlund - Bass
Nicke Andersson - Drums
Leffe Cuzner (R.I.P. 2006) - Guitars
Drowned (1989)
Originally released on cassette, 3000 copies sold. 10 advance tapes had a different cover, the one later used for the Threeman anthology CD.
Also released as a 7" on Bloody Rude Defect Records (BRD 001).
According to the official demo compilation CD on Threeman Rec.:
"Nihilist only managed one semi-official vinyl release, which was their own bootlegged version of the Drowned 7" single on Bloody Rude Defect Records, released by the band's good friend Fredrik Holmgren".
Recording information:
Recorded in August 1989.
1. Severe Burns 05:41
2. When Life Has Ceased 04:10
Lineup:
Ulf Cederlund - Guitars
L-G Petrov (R.I.P. 2021) - Vocals
Alex Hellid - Guitars
Johnny Hedlund - Bass
Nicke Andersson - Drums