Cesare "Fratello Metallo" Bonizzi (born 1946), a monk from the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin who has been performing in recent years as a heavy metal singer, has decided to retire. Fratello Metallo ("Brother Metal"), which is also the name of his band, felt that being in a heavy metal band has made him a celebrity and taken him down the Devil's path. The Devil, he says, has turned him away from his fellow monks and managers, so he had "to kill him." However, Bonizzi asserts that he will maintain his interest in heavy metal.



Since 1990 he has released numerous albums in various styles from new age to rock. After seeing Metallica in concert, however, his passion turned to heavy metal. "Metal is the most energetic, vital, deep and true musical language that I know," says Fratello Metallo. In 2008 he released a heavy metal album under the title Misteri. He cites Megadeth and Metallica as major inspirations on his transformation to metal. His band was the opening act at 2008's Gods of Metal, Italy's largest heavy metal festival.

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Source:

news.bbc.co.uk