The Key (Nocturnus album)

The Key is the debut studio album from American progressive death metal band Nocturnus. It was released on Earache Records in October 1990.

The Key
Studio album by
Nocturnus
ReleasedOctober 1, 1990
RecordedJune 1990 Morrisound Studio,
Florida, USA
Genre
Length46:56
LabelCombat/Earache
ProducerTom Morris, Nocturnus
Nocturnus chronology
The Key
(1990)		 Thresholds
(1992)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic [1]

A concept album, The Key is centered on an occult (the influence of drummer/vocalist Mike Browning) meets sci-fi (influenced by guitarist Mike Davis) theme. The story follows a cyborg who travels back in time to the year 0 B.C. to assassinate Jesus Christ which leads to the destruction of Christianity (highlighted by the controversial track "Destroying the Manger") and the creation of a modern empire.

In addition to their unusual lyrical content, the band employed the use of keyboards which was virtually unheard of at the time in the broader genre of death metal. The keyboards were generally used for song intros and more atmospheric purposes, however, and most of the album was based upon a more conventional guitar and drums approach, with Kam Lee of Massacre providing backing vocals.

Due to the increased complexity and experimentation, some have considered the release to be the first technical death metal album.[2]

Browning has claimed that he has not seen any royalties from either this album or its follow up since he was kicked out of the band, blaming both former band members and Earache Records.

Track listing
No.TitleLength
1."Lake of Fire"4:51
2."Standing in Blood"4:13
3."Visions from Beyond the Grave"4:00
4."Neolithic"4:40
5."Undead Journey"4:16
6."B.C./A.D. (Before Christ/After Death)"4:48
7."Andromeda Strain"3:36
8."Droid Sector"4:16
9."Destroying the Manger"5:59
10."Empire of the Sands"6:17

Credits
Nocturnus
Additional Personnel
Production
  • All songs written by Nocturnus
  • Lyrics on tracks 1, 2, 3, and 5 by Mike Browning
  • Lyrics on tracks 4, 6, 7, and 9 by Mike Browning and Mike Davis
  • Lyrics on track 8 by Mike Browning, Mike Davis, and Louis Panzer
  • Recorded at Morrisound Studio, Florida, USA
  • Produced by Tom Morris and Nocturnus
  • Engineered by Tom Morris
  • Cover art by Dan Seagrave
  • Logo by R.P. Roberts

References
  1. The Key at AllMusic. Retrieved April 11, 2020.
  2. "Progress, Erase, Improve? The Case For Progressive Death Metal". Heavy Blog Is Heavy. February 19, 2016. Retrieved December 7, 2020. In 1990, Nocturnus released The Key, which is generally considered to be the first technical death metal album.



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