Reed joined Celtic Frost in February 1985, and we immediately began to work on songs for Celtic Frost's second studio album, To Mega Therion. The photos reproduced here show us exactly 40 years ago, during songwriting and rehearsal sessions for the album in summer of 1985. They are part of a larger series of images taken by long-time Celtic Frost chronicler Martin Kyburz on different days at the band's rehearsal room, the Grave Hill bunker in Birchwil, Switzerland. We were scheduled to travel to West Berlin in mid-September 1985, to record the album at Casablanca Studio.
Due to Martin Eric Ain's lamentable absence, perhaps unavoidable due to the need to get his personal life in order, the band was playing with session bassist Dominic Steiner. I am playing an Ibanez IC-50 Iceman and a B.C. Rich Wave guitar. The photos are red-tinted because we had red-coloured concert lights installed at the bunker, operated by long-time crew head and band supporter Rick Lights.
