Massacration


Massacration is a Brazilian satirical heavy metal band, self-proclaimed the "greatest and most classic heavy metal band, the inspiration behind most heavy bands since 1985, whose members' hairdos and posing influenced the whole heavy metal culture". The classical line-up consists of Detonator, Blondie Hammett, Metal Avenger, Jimmy "The Hammer" and Headmaster.
Massacration was created in the sketch comedy show Hermes & Renato along with other fake bands such as the indietronica "Também Sou Hype", samba school "Unidos do Caralho a Quatro" or the axé band "Coração Melão". But, like The Monkees, Massacration became a huge success, and a real band.

History

Fictional origin

According to a mockumentary shown in MTV in December 2004, the band began in 1979, when a young delinquent called John Hammet was directed to the juvenile hall for the sixth time. There, Hammet played guitar as his only hobby, thus bringing the attention of David Sutter, committed for trafficking quails. They had become very close friends. After being released from detention, they approached Donald Polai and formed a band called Death Mania. Unfortunately, the band lasted nothing but a couple of minutes after their first gig when Polai, influenced by the name, committed suicide.
Hammet and Sutter, depressed over the loss, became addicted to pasta from a ristorante named "Massas Crezio", and ate so much of his food they wound up going 100 pounds overweight. Crezio intervened, conceding them a space in his property so that Hammet and Sutter could rehearse, which made them overcome their depression and lose all the weight they had gained. In order to reform the band, they decided to put an ad in a local newspaper looking for a drummer, a rhythm guitarist and a bassist. The three candidates who filled these spots were, respectively, Jimmy "The Hammer" Lombardo, Klaus Bisonnette and Rick Banday. Coincidentally enough, all three of them worked with Crezio. The band was formed again. In order to pay homage to Crezio and his pivotal role on getting the band back together, the band was rebaptized as MASSASCREZIO. The cacophonic name later on suffered a series of mutations: MASSACREZIO, MASSACRETION, and finally MASSACRATION .
Right after their first gig as Massacration, they had already hooked up with Dick Dornelle, a famed record producer who had worked with the likes of Queen, Iron Maiden and Michael Jackson. With Dornelle, the band had signed with a label called Shusi Records and, even without any recorded material, their popularity had skyrocketed in but a matter of hours. Only then would they go on to record their first single, "Metal Massacre Attack", whose recording sessions lasted two whole months in a studio in North Carolina. "Metal Massacre Attack" consolidated their success by debuting at number one on Billboard Hot 100, anachronistically in front of contemporary names like Usher, Maroon 5 and Gavin DeGraw, and earning the band a "Gremlin".
One day however, Detonator, reduced to a pauper, knocked the door to Hammet's house. They instantly recognized themselves and the reunion brought about a maelstrom of emotions. Clean from his addiction, Detonator was readmitted into the band, making the three remaining members change their minds about taking their old jobs back. As their comeback act, the band promptly released their second single, "Metal Bucetation", which rose them to the top again due to its lightning-quick selling - there were even riots because there were relatively too few singles for too many people. Trailing this success came "Metal Milk Shake", their third single, that sold 12 billion copies, certifying them with a sixfold diamond record, as well as helping Massacration be heralded with the Nobel Prize in Music, which had only been awarded to Mozart, Beethoven and Frank Sinatra.

Biography

The band was idealized by and composed of members of the Brazilian comedy act Hermes & Renato that aired on MTV in 2002, in a trash horror movie-like segment that showed a youngster who bought a Massacration record and, by playing it backwards, triggered a curse that, ultimately, turned back against him. After this segment, an "exclusive interview" with the five band members and then, the video premiere for "Metal Massacre Attack", were aired. In these segments, the name of the band did not have the present spelling: it read "Masacretion" on the record cover, and "Massacrassion" in the interview sketch.
After the making of the song "Metal Massacre Attack", the video began airing not only on the Hermes e Renato comedy show, but also on the MTV regular rotation videos. The promo video was such a success that the crew was forced to make more songs and videos. "Metal Bucetation" followed "Metal Massacre Attack".
In 2005 they finally finished their first album, Gates of Metal Fried Chicken of Death, produced by João Gordo, lead singer of Ratos de Porão, a reputed hardcore punk Brazilian band. The first single was "Metal is the Law". Because Jimmy "The Hammer" and Headmaster are not real musicians, Igor Cavalera recorded the drums and Blondie Hammet recorded all the guitars.
They have been requested to perform live their songs, and have so far appeared in the Abril Pro Rock Festival and Brasil Metal Union. Most of the humour effect of the band relies on its use of a fake English, exaggerate posing, outrageous clothes and gear.
The success they achieved was so high, they even have their own MTV show, where only heavy metal videos are broadcast.
It is rumored that their tour drummer is Cavalera Conspiracy's Igor Cavalera. Massacration actually opened some venues for Sepultura during the course of 2005, and Cavalera actually played with them in some venues, under the alias "El Covero".
Massacration debuted in 2006 in Rockgol, a Brazilian MTV show, in the Pirulândia team, along with Supla, Falamansa, Sonic Jr. and Lucas Santtana.
In 2009, the follow-up album, Good Blood Headbanguers, was released. By this time, the band's aesthetics has leaned more towards glam metal while generally retaining its traditional metal sound. As another highlight, the album was produced by Roy Z, well known for his work as guitarist in Rob Halford's solo project and as producer with many other bands and artists such as Bruce Dickinson.
In July 30 of 2014, Fausto Fanti was found dead in his apartment. He hanged himself with a belt.
In May 20 of 2016 Massacration reunited and released a new song called "Grand Pedido" to promote the return of McDonald's Grand Big Mac hamburger, which uses elements of rock and heavy metal as main concept. In December 20 of 2016, Massacration's comeback was officialized, with the release of a new single, "Metal Milf".

Style

Massacration chiefly satirises Manowar, Angra, Judas Priest and Iron Maiden, with minor references to Sepultura, Saxon, Black Sabbath and Viking metal in general. Their main targets are the Brazilian heavy/power metal fans who can't speak English but nevertheless love the genre, the Brazilian groups who sing in English and the heavy metal culture in general, with its leather jackets, black clothes, long hair and frowns. The very fact that the Brazilian headbangers laughed at their jokes and even embraced their music.
Regarding their lyrics, they are intentionally written in a very broken English mixed with embromation. Sometimes entire sentences or stanzas can be in Brazilian Portuguese—and not gibberish, unlike some foreigners believe. For instance, the introduction of "Metal is the Law" includes the lines: ai, ai, ai, ai,/ em cima, embaixo/e puxa e vai, which are verses taken from a 'marchinha de Carnaval' known nationwide and would translate to ugh, ugh, ugh, ugh/above, below/pull and go. Also, some words whose translation would not be known are thrown in the lyrics in Portuguese, like the first verse of "Metal Dental Destruction", which says "fear of the killing broca...", in which broca refers to a dental drill.
The overall image of the band, their subjects and the recurrent terminology suggest a heavy influence of Manowar. However, while most of their songs have names that suggest violence, death, sorrow and sacrilege, they are actually always light-hearted, humorous and naïve, pointing to a joyride lifestyle instead of the gloomy atmosphere of actual heavy metal records.

Discography

Current members