Xysma

This article does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (November 2008)

Xysma was a Finnish band that was founded in 1988 in Naantali, a small town near Turku. The band split up in 1998.

Early stage

In the beginning Xysma played grindcore and death metal; with Disgrace, they were pioneers in that genre in Finland. The bands played at the legendary Turku underground center Panimo, and created a short-lived but intense scene. Soon after, the death metal/grindcore influence spread to the Helsinki area, with bands such as Abhorrence (which soon evolved into melodic death metal classic Amorphis).

Xysma's first demo, Swarming of the Maggots, was shared widely via tapetrading and became a cult classic (it was remastered and released on the 2004 Xysma compilation CD). Musically, the band were inspired by the early classics in the genre like Carcass and Napalm Death. With the following mini-albums, Above the Mind of Morbidity and Fata Morgana, the last one released in the United States through the infamous Seraphic Decay label, Xysma evolved towards less extreme metal.

First albums

Since Xysma was a part of the rise of Scandinavian death metal, they had close bonds to the scene in Stockholm, Sweden, occasionally travelling to and playing in Stockholm, and visiting their colleagues from Entombed and others. Xysma also recorded their first album, Yeah (1990), in Sweden, in the Sunlight Studios of legendary producer Tomas Skogsberg.

Yeah mixed death metal and Black Sabbath structures, in a quite complex and even progressive way, making Xysma pioneers in Finland, and arguably the world.^{[citation needed]} Their second album, First & Magical (1992), revealed more changes and more musical evolvement, featuring a kind of death'n'roll, with groovy riffs and simple, short songs. Also, the vocals of Janitor had changed to less brutal growls.

However, despite its undeniable cult status and a small but loyal following, Xysma never received the commercial success of its peers, such as Entombed and Amorphis--perhaps the band was too far ahead of its time, and the band's rather eccentric performances didn't warm up the audience enough.^{[citation needed]}

Final albums

Xysma's third album, Deluxe (1993), was no longer a death metal album, not necessarily even a metal album. The songs were hard-paced, catchy but straightforward, in the vein of Helmet. Janitor no longer growled, singing in a much more clean style. The nex album, Lotto (1996), was a full-blooded rock album with a very retro style; one of the tracks was featured later in Brian De Palma's movie Snake Eyes (1998). The band also released an EP called Singles, containing covers of classics sung in a schlager style.

Xysma's fifth and final album, Girl On The Beach, was more or less a pop rock album, and tension between the members grew. Eventually the band decided to quit, and though they played occasional gigs since, there had been no talk of reunion.

Death of Toni Stranius and Xysma's one-time reunion

Guitarist Toni Stranius (6-9-1972 – 7-7-2006), member of both Xysma and Disgrace, died in 2006 after an heart attack, in Ireland, where he lived. A memorial gig in his honour was held on 15 September 2006 in Bar Päiväkoti, Turku. All of Stranius' bands (including Disgrace, Xysma and Finnish rock band Kalsaripaita) played at the occasion, reuniting Xysma just for this special event.^[1]

Members

Final line-up

• Janitor Mustasch (Janitor Muurinen) - vocals
• Olivier Lawny (Olli Nurminen) - guitar
• Thee Stranius (Toni Stranius) - guitar
• Dr. Heavenly (Kalle Taivainen) - bass
• Marvellous Sidney Safe (Teppo Pulli) - drums

Former members

• Vesa Iitti - bass (1988-1992)

Discography

• Swarming of the Maggots (Demo, 1989)
• Above the Mind of Morbidity (Mini LP, 1990)
• Fata Morgana (7", 1990)
• Yeah (Album, 1990)
• First and Magical (Album, 1992)
• Deluxe (Album, 1993)
• Lotto (Album, 1996)
• Singles (EP, 1997)
• Girl on the Beach (Album, 1998)
• Xysma (2cd compilation) (Compilation CD, 2004)

• Compilation consists of Xysma's demo recording, first two mini-albums, and first two studio albums

References