History
When the Mexican band Damned Cross had released their first demo to the public in 1989 (titled 'Excretion of Infected Corpses'), Daniel Corchado (bass, vocals), Guillermo Hérnadez (guitar) and Oscar Clorio (drums) decided to start a new band. Cenotaph was born.
Cenotaph's debut demo 'Rise of Excruciation' was released in 1990 and spreaded as far as to North America and Europe. It featured 4 originals and the cover of Autopsy's 'Ridden with Desease'. A few months after a two song 7" EP 'Tenebrous Apparitions' was unleashed through Distorted Harmony Records from Mexico.
In following year, the band released their second 7" EP including two death/grindcore songs, 'The Eternal Disgrace' through Los Angeles' Baphomet Records. Cenotaph's music was now spread world-wide. The band was looking for a label and released 'Promo 1991' including 'Tenebrous Apparitions' EP and two new studio recordings. The band participated on the death metal collection 'Pantalgia - An International Death Metal Compilation' released by Germany's MBR including the likes of God Macabre, Therion, Crematory and Pan-thy-monium with an exclusive song, 'Evoked Doom'. With the song, the band started their journey towards doomy death metal.
The band's debut full length album 'The Gloomy Reflection of Our Hidden Sorrows' came out in 1992 through Horus Records (Mexico). Its murky death metal took the band on stage with Immolation, Carcass, Pestilence, Cannibal Corpse, Death, Sadus, Obituary, Dark Angel, Morbid Angel, etc.
During the years, the band went through many line-up changes. It took band some years to record their sophomore album 'Riding Our Black Oceans', which was released in 1994 by Holland's Cyber Music label and distributed world-wide. With this album, the band treaded towards more melodic death metal. Fir the first time Cenotaph played gigs outside Mexico, in cuntries such as Guatemala, Salvador, Honduras, Costa Rica, Panama, Ecuador and the USA.
The band inked a record deal with Mexican label Oz Records. The first fruit of collaboration was the 1996 album 'Epic Rites - 9 Epic Tales and Death Rites'. In 1998 Cenotaph performed live at "Milwaukee Dea th Feast Metal" next to bands like Mercyful Fate, Suffocation, Mayhem, Sodom, Usurper, Destruction, etc. The band disbanded.
In 1998 and 1999 respectively, Oz Records reissued 'The Gloomy Reflection of Our Hidden Sorrows' and 'Riding Our Black Oceans' with a bonus 5-song live CD.
In 2000 Cenotaph was reformed by drummer Oscar Clorio and vocalist Edgardo González. Ex-Domain guitarist Eduardo Guevara and ex- The Suffering guitarist Samuel Ocazid were recruited on the axes and Fernando Garcilazo on bass.
In 2002 another bunch of reissues was released by Oz Records: 'Epic Rites' and 'he Gloomy Reflection Of Our Hidden Sorrows'. The band travelled to Germany to record their new album 'Saga Bélica'with producer Harris Jones (Helloween, Sodom, Voivod, Celtic Frost, Grave, Kreator etc.). The style was deathrash now.
The band moved to Chicago, USA, and disbanded soon after that in 2002.
Cenotaph reformed in 2009 to play unique series of concerts in Mexico City and some cities in the interior of Mexico to commemorate their twentieth anniversary.
(written by Lane, March 2007, edited in November 2009)
(discography incomplete)
