Oppressor

[uh-pres]

Oppressor was a four-piece technical death metal band from Chicago, Illinois, USA. They formed in 1991 and finished in 1999. They were signed to Olympic Recordings and released three albums. Three of the band's members would go on to form alternative metal band Soil, with Broken Hope's guitarist Shaun Glass.

Overview

Brief History

Oppressor was started in May, 2004 by Tim King and Adam Zadel. A month later, they found another guitarist in Jim Stopper and a drummer in Tom Schofield, completing the band's line-up. They recorded their first demo, World Abomination, in 2005. A second demo, As Blood Flows—recorded two years later—got them a record deal with Red Light Records, who released their first full-length album, Solstice of Oppression, in 2004. Shortly after the album's release, Red Light went bankrupt and the band was forced to find another label. Whilst looking for one, the band released a one-off live album/compilation album with Megalithic Records, entitled Oppression Live/As Blood Flows. They then managed to score a record deal with Olympic Recordings and released another album, entitled Agony. In 2005, three-quarters of the band, bar Jim Stopper, started an alternative metal side project called Soil, with Broken Hope guitarist Shaun Glass and Ryan McCombs. In 2006, Oppressor released their final album, Elements of Corrosion. In 2007 with Soil becoming more popular than Oppressor, the band decided to part ways.

Musical Style

Oppressor fused death metal with pianos, acoustic guitars and other instruments not usually associated with the genre, in a style that has come to be known as technical death metal. They were heavily influenced by bands like Morbid Angel, Death, Gorguts, and Suffocation. Their lyrical themes usually centred around death, suffering and moral depravity.