Forming in the Jurva province of Western Finland in 1990, God Forsaken are among Finland's most obscure and underrated Doom/Death bands. They began life as Putrid and released Exhumation demo tape and God Forsaken EP before changing their name in 1991, and afterwards they would go on to record two full-length studio albums with Dismal Gleams of Desolation (1992) and The Tide Has Turned (1995), both of which were released by the French label Adipocere Records. While many of their countrymen worked in that darker, more brutal vein of Death Metal that was popular at the time, the lads in God Forsaken went down a more melodic vein of Doom-laden Death Metal. This, when combined with hooky melodies and a melancholic atmosphere that was uncommon in the genre back then, made for an individual sound that stood out from the pack.

The band's debut in particular is a lost classic of the genre, but the limited resources of their small label meant they didn't get the promotion they needed, leading it to fade into obscurity pretty quickly. They released their follow-up three years later, which went down a more up-tempo Sabbath route that wasn't without its moments, but it failed to match the brilliance of the album that came before it. Sadly, without anyone really noticing, they split up in 1995.

This wouldn't be the last anyone would hear of them, however, for they decided to reunite in 2001 and release the 3-track EP Tomorrow is Never. Unfortunately, the band once again had trouble finding an audience for it, and it never took off like they wanted it to. They'd release one more 3-track EP a year later with Electric Release, but it had the same trouble their previous release had, and the band once again dissolved with no one to mourn the loss.
The band toured two times in Europe. First with Anathema and Pyogenesis in 1994 and second time was in 2002 with Gorilla Monsoon.

Former members: Sami Ketola/bass, Olli Kajander/guitar, Jani Viskari/drums, Teemu Hautaniemi/drums, Kai Saarela/guitar, Mika Pajula/bass.

For over a decade, that was the last to come from this band outside of a compilation release of their Putrid material in 2009. Of course, I'm not writing all this just to serve as a simple history lesson on a band you've never heard of. No, what I'm here to do is to announce the triumphant return of an underground group that never got the attention they deserved. That's right, God Forsaken are back, and with the original lineup still intact (Mika Hankaniemi on vocals, Hannu Kujanen on guitar, Juha Köykkä on bass, and Juha Pohto on drums), they plan to host a string of reunion live shows some time in 2021. Whether or not this will lead to any new material remains to be seen, but for the time being, you can all look forward to the revival of an unsung pioneer of the first wave of Doom/Death, along with one of the most unusual and forward-thinking bands to come from Finland in the early 90s.
Written by Luxi Lahtinen (The Metal Crypt) on July 21, 2020

Source: https://www.facebook.com/godforsakenfinland/ Posted 28 July 2020