A lyric video for the second single, "Live On Your Knees", off the Criminal's upcoming new album Sacrificio is now online. The album is due September 17th.

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Source:	facebook.com
Band profile:	Criminal

On September 17th, Chilean veterans Criminal will release their new studio album, Sacrificio, their first in 5 years. For a first preview of the upcoming music output, a video for the new single "Zona De Sacrificio" has been unleashed. Directed by Carlos Toro of Abysmo Films.

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Band profile:	Criminal

Chilean metal veterans Criminal have announced the addition of Danilo Estrella as their new drummer. Estrella will repalce Zac O'Neil, who left the band amicably over a year ago. With the addition of Estrella, the Criminal line-up is now three fourths Chilean again. The band also confirmed that they will enter the studio in the summer to record the follow-up to 2016's Fear Itself. The new record will be released by Metal Blade Records towards the end of 2019.

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Band profile:	Criminal

Behemoth are in trouble with the Polish authorities again, this time over a merchandise design. You might remember that guitarist/vocalist Adam "Nergal" Darski faced up to two years in prison for tearing apart a bible on stage and calling it "a book of lies" (later he was cleared of the charges, and then the decision was appealed). It seems that the Polish authorities have taken issue with the "Republic Of The Unfaithful" design allegedly for disrespecting the White Eagle, which is found on the national coat of arms of Poland.

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Band profile:	Behemoth

Criminal have recently announced a new lead guitarist and they are also working on a new album to follow Akelarre. The Anglo-Chilean thrashers have parted ways with Basque lead guitarist Olmo Cascallar. Now joining their ranks is Chilean shredmaster Sergio Klein, who resides in Berlin, Germany. Klein has already gained recognition as a lead player with his band The Outside and is also a guitar instructor. With him, Criminal have already started working on the material for a new album for a late 2015 release.

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Band profile:	Criminal

"Akelarre", a brand-new track from thrashers Criminal - originally formed in Chile and now based in the UK - has been made available for streaming over at MySpace.

"Akelarre" is the title track off the band's upcoming new album, which will be released on August 19th through Massacre Records.

Akelarre is Criminal's seventh studio album and first since the departure of lead guitarist and founding member Rodrigo Contreras and the subsequent addition of Basque guitar player Olmo Cascallar. The album was produced by bassist Dan Biggin at his HVR Studios in Suffolk, UK.

Akelarre tracklist:

01. Order From Chaos
02. Resistance Is Futile
03. The Ghost We Summoned
04. Akelarre
05. State Of Siege
06. Tyrannicide
07. Feel The Void
08. The Power Of The Dog
09. Vows Of Silence
10. La Santa Muerte

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Source:	myspace.com
Band profile:	Criminal

Official press release

Yesterday thrash masters Criminal - originally formed in Chile and now based in the UK - entered bassist Dan Biggin's HVR Recording Studios in Suffolk, UK to record their seventh studio album, the first since the departure of guitarist / founding member Rodrigo Contreras and the subsequent addition of Basque guitar wizard Olmo Cascallar.

"The way we're approaching the drums this time around is to focus a lot on the set-up of the sounds before we record", explains drummer Zac O'Neil. "I think in the past we've been too quick to start tracking without thinking too much about the raw audio. I'm very keen to move in a different direction from the way that metal is going with sampled and edited drums, and go back to the way that metal used to be before all this electronic trickery. Hopefully we'll retain the dynamics and raw energy that just isn't present in many productions nowadays.

I've also been concentrating on pre-production arrangements for the drum tracks. I want to make sure that what I play complements the songs and is not too busy or complicated for the sake of it.

I'm really looking forward to how this next Criminal album will turn out. Hopefully we'll also get some nice tracking footage as well for the fans to see just how we did it."

The as-yet-untitled album, the follow-up to the acclaimed White Hell (2009), will be released in August 2011 by Massacre Records.

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Band profile:	Criminal

Chile-born, UK-based thrash masters Criminal have announced the departure of lead guitarist and founding member Rodrigo Contreras.

Band leader Anton Reisenegger (guitar, vocals; also in Lock Up) comments: "As some of you may be aware, Rod decided to go back to Chile a few months ago, leaving the future of the band uncertain. After much deliberation, we have now decided to replace him in order to be able to carry on as a band.

This is not something we wanted to happen, but we have to be realistic, and being thousands of kilometers apart wouldn't have allowed us to work as a functioning band. This is not a studio project, our music is meant to be played live, and we have many plans for the future which require the four of us to be geographically close.

Rod and I started this band almost 20 years ago and he wrote some of the band's best and most characteristic material, which made this situation extremely difficult for me personally. I feel, however, that we've done the right thing, as everything was talked through with all people involved, and Rod's departure happened in the most open, civilized terms possible.

We hope that you, the fans, will understand this decision. It's not an easy step for us to take, and it wasn't a rushed decision, but if the only other choice is to stop playing as Criminal, we'd rather take the flak and soldier on.

We may still play a few shows with Rod in South America next year when we celebrate our 20th anniversary, but nothing is set in stone yet.

Rod's replacement is Olmo Cascallar from the Basque band Gamora, who already did a fantastic job as a stand-in on our last few European dates. Not only is he an excellent guitarist with a great stage presence, we also feel he will contribute an entirely new approach to our songwriting."

Criminal will enter HVR Studios in Suffolk, UK in March of 2011 to record their seventh, as-yet-untitled studio album.

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Source:	myspace.com
Band profile:	Criminal

Criminal have made their new album "White Hell" available for streaming in its entirety at metal.de for a limited time period/

"White Hell" will be released on February 27th by Massacre Records. The European version of "White Hell" will be available in a limited edition with a bonus DVD including over 80 minutes of live footage.

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Source:	metal.de
Band profile:	Criminal

Anglo-Chilean thrash band Criminal have revealed the content of the bonus DVD which will be included in the European edition of their new album "White Hell", to be released by Massacre Records on February 27th, 2009.

The main feature of the DVD consists of 10 songs from the band's December 2007 show at Teatro Novedades in Santiago de Chile, filmed with multiple cameras and professional audio.

The bonus features include Criminal's show opening for Megadeth in Santiago on May 31st, 2008 in front of 14,000 metalheads, 4 songs from the band's peformance at the Up From The Ground 2006 festival in Germany and an EPK released last year. The full track listing of the DVD, which has a total running time of approximately 90 minutes, can be found below. Criminal have uploaded a clip of the track "Time Bomb" from the Teatro Novedades show to their YouTube channel. In addition, the band has posted part 1 of a "Making of White Hell" video, which offers a candid look behind the scenes of the recording sessions for the new Criminal album.

"White Hell" bonus DVD track listing:

Main feature:

Live at Teatro Novedades, Santiago de Chile, Dec. 07, 2007 (approximate running time: 35 minutes)

01. Denial
02. Scapegoat
03. Rise and Fall
04. Time Bomb
05. Decosntruction
06. Slave Master
07. Downfall
08. Self Destruction
09. El Azote
10. New Disorder

Bonus features:

* EPK 2008 (approximate running time: 5 minutes)

* Live at Arena Santiago (supporting Megadeth), Santiago de Chile, May 31, 2008 (approximate running time: 35 minutes)

01. Denial
02. Collide
03. Self Destruction
04. Deconstruction
05. Hijos de la Miseria
06. Cancer
07. Slave Master
08. Rise and Fall
09. New Disorder

Live at Up from the Ground festival, Gemünden, Germany, Aug. 27, 2006 (approximate running time: 15 minutes)

01. Rise and Fall
02. Time Bomb
03. Self Destruction
04. The Root of all Evil

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Source:	blogs.myspace.com
Band profile:	Criminal

Original news, posted on 02.01.2009

Anglo-Chilean thrash metallers Criminal have uploaded the track "21st Century Paranoia", from their upcoming album "White Hell", to their MySpace page.

"White Hell" will be released on February 27th, 2009 by Massacre Records. In Europe the album will be released in a limited edition including a bonus DVD, the contents of which will be announced shortly, while the South American version of the album will contain the bonus track "Hermanos Dementes".

UPDATE (thanks to Deadmeat)

Also "Crime And Punishment", another new song by Criminal is available for streaming on the band's MySpace page.

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Source:	blogs.myspace.com
Band profile:	Criminal

Criminal have posted the following update:

Anglo-Chilean thrash masters Criminal have revealed the cover artwork for their new album "White Hell." The piece was created by Chilean designer / tattoo artist / drummer Fran Muñoz.

"The original idea we were pursuing didn't really work out," comments vocalist/guitarist Anton Reisenegger, "so we basically decided to start from scratch. Then Fran approached us with this idea and we all really liked it, so we just went for it."

The track listing for "White Hell" is:

01. 21st Century Paranoia
02. Crime And Punishment
03. Incubus
04. Black Light
05. The Deluge
06. Strange Ways
07. Mobrule
08. The Infidel
09. Invasion
10. Eyes Of Temptation
11. Bastardom
12. Sons Of Cain

In Europe the album will be released in a limited edition including a bonus DVD, the contents of which will be announced shortly, while the South American version of the album will contain the bonus track "Hermanos Dementes".

A brand new track off "White Hell" will be made available via the band's MySpace page
on January 1st, 2009. The page is currently hosting demo versions of two tracks, "The Infidel" and "Eyes of Temptation."

"White Hell" will be released on February 27th, 2009!

In other news, Criminal have announced a Chilean tour for the month of January. The confirmed dates are as follows:

Jan 11 - Santiago, Chile - Club Hípico, Cumbre del Rock Chileno
Jan 13 - Buin, Chile - Buinlebar
Jan 14 - Talca, Chile - Pub El Webeo
Jan 15 - Concepción, Chile - Taberna Rock
Jan 16 - Valparaíso, Chile - El Huevo
Jan 17 - Santiago, Chile - Bar 89

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Source:	blogs.myspace.com
Band profile:	Criminal

Official press release

Anglo-Chilean thrash masters Criminal have set "White Hell" as the title of their upcoming sixth studio album, which will be released on February 27th, 2009 by Massacre Records. The album is currently being recorded at bassist Dan Biggin's home studio.

"'White Hell' could be many things," vocalist/guitarist Anton Reisenegger comments on the title, "a hell of cocaine abuse, or a hell of racism and intolerance, or driving through Europe in the middle of winter in a van with no heating - which we actually did on the Six Feet Under tour! The someone waking up in an emergency room, not knowing how or why they got there - which is actually based on a real-life experience - and this is what we are going to try and depict on the album cover in a very nightmarish way. Our long-time cover designer Claudio Bergamin has already gone to work on the cover, and I expect it to be killer as always!"

About the recording process, Reisenegger offers the following update: "Two weeks ago, Zac recorded all of his drum tracks in only two days. That's 14 songs in two days! We were just sitting there with our jaws dropped, completely in awe of what Zac was doing on his kit. We got some of it on video, so we will hopefully post a clip on YouTube soon for all you drum freaks. Let me just tell you, this album will contain the sickest drumming ever heard on any Criminal album!

"During the following week we recorded all rhythm guitars and guitar overdubs, and it's sounding pretty fucking phat! Even though he was just doing overdubs, Rod did some serious shredding, so I can't wait until we get to record his actual solos.

"I also started doing some vocals, and I think I've found a very comfortable, somewhat deeper tone. I think the vox sound most similar to what I did on "Cancer". The other guys loved it, so I must be doing something right.

"It's going to be really tough to decide on which songs to include on the album, as we all agree that 14 would be just too much. It's probably going to be between 10 and 12, and I expect some heated discussions, but it's hopefully all going to be for the best."

"White Hell" will be released in a limited edition including a bonus DVD, the contents of which will be announced shortly. A new Criminal track titled "The Infidel" can be heard on the band's MySpace page in demo version.

In other news, Criminal have been confirmed to headline the Red Stage at next year's Cumbre del Rock Chileno (Summit of Chilean Rock) festival. The event, which will be held on Sunday, January 11th, 2009 at Club Hípico in Santiago de Chile, features the country's most successful exponents of each subgenre within rock music, and is expected to draw over 50,000 music fans. Also appearing on the Rockaxis-sponsored Red Stage will be Dorso, Weichafe, Alejandro Silva and many more.

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Source:	blog.myspace.com
Band profile:	Criminal

Chilean Death/Thrash metaller Criminal have posted a new demo song entitled "The Infidel" on their MySpace page.

The band posted the following update: "So here it is, I finally got around to posting a demo track to our MySpace, hope you like it! It is not very compressed, so you might have to turn it up (which you should do anyways when it comes to Criminal!). We had a bit of an argument about this with our bass player Danny, who engineered and mixed the demo, and he was completely against over-compressing it just to make it as loud as possible, a pretty common controversy nowadays ("Death Magnetic" anyone?).

The song in question is "The Infidel", and it's about - you probably guessed it - religious dogmas and intolerance, and the right to stand up for the fact that THERE IS NO GOD. Musically speaking, it's pretty straight-forward thrash/death with some obvious Slayer influences, but I feel it has enough of our own ideas to make it really original and 100% Criminal!

Anyways, this is just one little appetizer, as the material for the record is incredibly varied, ranging from really technical stuff with odd time signatures, to crushing groove monsters, to all-out death metal and everything in between, so be prepared for one hell of a rollercoaster ride! We might post another demo track within the coming weeks or months just to give you a broader idea of what the new album is going to sound like, but we don't want to give too much away either.

After doing some pre-production over the last couple months, we will officially start tracking the album this weekend, beginning with the drums as usual. Since we're not doing it in a commercial studio, but at Danny's home studio instead, we're going to take a bit more time for the recording than we spent on the last couple albums, which will hopefully allow us to be more creative and put some more color and fresh ideas in there.

The album should be released around March 2009 through Massacre Records, and it will come with a bonus DVD, the contents of which we're going to announce once they're 100% confirmed. We'll keep posting updates about the progress in the studio and other details about the album, so stay tuned!

On a different front, I was up in Sheffield recently working with one of the best drummers in extreme metal on a project which should also hopefully surface in 2009, but I'm afraid I can't give away more at the moment. Speaking of side projects, Rod is busy putting together ideas for his first solo album (which I think he should have done ages ago!), Zac is involved in a prog/death metal band called The Agonist, and Dan is always working on his wonderful melodic rock band Takoma Star."

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Source:	blog.myspace.com
Band profile:	Criminal

Anglo-Chilean thrash masters Criminal are proud to announce their signing of a new recording deal with Germany's Massacre Records. The band will enter the studio in September to record its sixth studio album for an early 2009 release. The follow-up to 05's "Sicario" will be released in a limited edition package including a bonus DVD.

Vocalist/guitarist Anton Reisenegger states: "It's great to be on a label like Massacre, that has carved its niche in today's vercrowded market through hard work and dedication. We are looking forward to a long and productive collaboration.

"I have nothing but good things to say about the staff at Metal Blade Europe," the frontman comments on the band's former label, "but the company's priorities were clearly somewhere else, so it made no sense for us to continue working together. I honestly wish them all the best for the future."

Formed in the early 90s in Santiago de Chile by ex-Pentagram mastermind Reisenegger and guitar virtuoso Rodrigo Contreras, Criminal were combining elements of thrash, hardcore and death metal long before the term "metalcore" was even thought of. The band enjoyed a meteoric rise to the forefront of the South American metal scene, including five-digit album sales, shows with the likes of Kreator, Sepultura and Slayer and a nomination for Best Rock Video at the MTV Latino Video Music Awards, but was faced with severe personal and business problems around the turn of the decade. Reisenegger and Contreras then decided to relocate to the UK, regrouping in a half-Chilean, half-British line-up. Since then, the band has played on major European festivals such as Wacken and Summer Breeze, as well as support shows with bands such as Chimaira, Six Feet Under, Brujeria and Lamb Of God.

Criminal's latest studio offering, "Sicario", was hailed by the press as one of the finest thrash metal releases of 2005 and was voted into the Top Ten Albums of the Year by the readers of Terrorizer magazine. At the same time, the band's status in their home country remains unbroken, as evidenced by a four-page feature in the Chilean edition of Rolling Stone magazine and a recent show supporting Megadeth in front of over 14,000 metalheads.

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Source:	blog.myspace.com
Band profile:	Criminal