Based in Athens, DESPISE was formed in late '86.However the period from then until '88 was characterised by continuous changes in the line-up, apart from MAKIS(guit), who staunchly remained the guitarist and later also became the band's singer. During that period, as expected, DESPISE didn't perform LIVE at all, due to the lack of suitable and permanent musicians.

With some members of the older line-up and some session musicians DESPISE recorded one song with the title 'Spewn out from hell' for a Greek Metal compilation double LP, called 'GREECE ATTACKS-VOL.1', consisting of 20 bands, which was finally released in Greece in 1989 by FM Records.Followed by a gallup sponsored by the said company and published in the Greek edition of 'METAL HAMMER' mag, 'Spewn out from hell' was unanimously voted as the compilation's best song.

The line-up was finalised in mid '89 and remained unchanged till 2004. So, the members of the old DESPISE line-up (trio) were:

* MAKIS (guitar & vocals)
* MARIA (bass)
* JOHNNY (drums) - not any more in the band

As a three piece, we have played live in various local clubs and also opened D.R.I.'s LIVE in Athens 'RODON' Club in '90. D.R.I. were among the first who had a taste of our then unreleased material (including demo songs) and were profuse in their praise for both the music and our band's performance.

'State of Brutality' demo '93 was our debut release with the new line-up and it's a 4-channel self-recorded and produced demo, made in our first rehearsing studio in Athens. It consists of 4 songs with the following titles:'State of Brutality','Cruel Mission','Mindless Warrior'and 'Flower of death', which were composed in the period '86-'91, but finally recorded in '92 with our new line-up, after we had managed to solve most of the problems which held us back and prevented us from releasing this demo earlier.

'State of Brutality' was finally released in '93 and very well received, accumulating only positive reviews from all over the world. There was a lot of interest from various magazines and radio stations not only from Greece, but also from abroad, who requested both the demo and interviews.

To be precise, our 'State of Brutality' track was placed amid the top tunes of the 39th issue (April/May'95) of the 'SCREAMS FROM THE GUTTER' mag by DAVE ROHRBACH and our demo among the best post '87 demos worldwide.

Fans from all over the world were thrilled by our demo and we received many requests for it, soon leading to its sell-out. The huge amount of mail we got from fans caused a significant delay in our band's headway, as each and every one of these letters was answered personally by both MARIA (bass) & MAKIS (vox,guit).

There was also a great deal of interest by Record Labels, which in one case led to negotiations with the German'ACTIVE RECORDS AC'-a division of SUBWAY RECORDS managed by JEAN-MARC TRISTANI, which nevertheless got us nowhere. The demo also fell into the hands of the A&R people from NOISE RECORDS (1993), who contacted us by phone and expressed their admiration while asking us to keep in touch. On a more personal level, we had a demo audition by BILL WILSON from BLACKOUT/CAROLINE RECORDS and Greg Howie from ROADRUNNER RECORDS at the 1993 NY 'Independent Music Festival'. The latter was very interested in our band and asked us to provide him with any further material.

In 1995 the Canadian'NEW WORLD SYMPHONY RECORDS-UMG CANADA' included our song 'State of Brutality' in the compilation CD 'UNDERGROUND SYMPHONIES'-VOL.2, together with 15 other songs performed almost exclusively by Canadian bands.

As for the period from 91 to 97 other than what we have already mentioned, we were busy composing new songs, which formed the basis of the material of our 1st LP.

Meanwhile, in 1996, due to the inadequacy of Greek recording studios (in our genre of music), in meeting the high standards we set for ourselves, we were forced to put together a new rehearsing/recording studio of our own, where we started a process of recording our new material, leading in '98 to the preproduction of the whole LP.

At long last, the 10 songs making up our LP, from which the 4 songs comprising this demo come from, were recorded during 1998-2000 and were produced by MAKIS(vox/guit.-DESPISE).

ALBUM / AIM

DESPISE' s 1st Album could be described as straight aggressive thrash, which over the years the band has developed and refined, taking the music on a specific course, by using more melodic passages, mainly on the vocals, which tie in with the otherwise pervasive dark harmonies and melancholic vibe, as was initially manifest on the demo'93.
Just as on 'State of Brutality', heavy motifs with calculated riffs and solos, but with more advanced and expressive guitar passages prevail, as well as the balanced play between drum rhythms and techniques, although not with the continuous extreme speed.

A lot of care and attention has also been given to the composition and structural balance of the Album as an entity, to the consistently uniform style, as well as to the production, where the latest technology has been recruited, so that the result conforms to contemporary standards.

The goal of creative self-determinaton, i.e. the definition and control of the band's sound, as well as the whole recording process, has always been foremost in mind, in order to preserve a musical and ideological independence and have the potential to cultivate a separate individual style, apart from the tendencies of marketing trends.
The idea is that in this manner, DESPISE' s way of perceiving things will be accurately conveyed to the audience, so that in turn it can relate to the band and the music

Source : http://www.myspace.com/despisegr