Rotting Christ is a Greek black metal band formed in 1987. They are noted for being one of the first black metal bands within this region, as well as a premier act within the European underground metal scene. The permanent line-up consists of brothers Sakis Tolis and Themis Tolis . Andreas Lagios has been the bassist since 1997, taking the stead of Jim Patsouris. Nightfall's Giorgos Bokos joined as a guitarist in 2005, replacing Costas Vasilakopoulos. Three keyboardists had previously been a part of the band; George Tolias, George Zaharopoulos and a session known only as Panayiotis . During... their rehearsal era in the late 1980s, the band began as grindcore and released various demos and splits with other bands from the Athens area. The group would later alter their sound with influence from proto-black metal bands like Celtic Frost and Venom, and in the process became one of the genre's instigators. Their 5 song demo, Satanas Tedeum, would show a grindcore/black metal crossover, followed by their career-breaking EP, Passage to Arcturo, in 1991.
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| Career began: | 1987 |
| Members: | Sakis Tolis, Andreas Lagios, Magus Wampyr Daoloth, George Bokos, Themis Tolis |
| Hometown: | Athens |
| Also known as: | Rotting Christ |