Conrad “Cronos” Lant, the bassist and lead singer of the black metal pioneers Venom, has died at the age of 63. The news came Thursday from his Venom bandmates, who posted a tribute on social media. No cause of death was provided.
“It is with profound sadness and broken hearts that we share the news that Conrad ‘Cronos’ Lant has passed away. For more than four decades, Conrad’s voice, bass and vision were at the heart of Venom.”
Venom’s Rise in Newcastle
The rise of Venom came at the close of the first wave of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal, which placed bands such as Def Leppard, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, and Motörhead at the front. Drawing on the imagery, intensity, and pace of Judas Priest and Motörhead, Venom was formed in 1979. Lant originally played rhythm guitar before moving to bass and eventually stepping in as vocalist after Clive Archer left in 1980.
Venom’s sound marked a radical departure from the polished NWOBHM acts surrounding them. The band stripped heavy metal down to its most primal, blunt form, which left critics appalled. But metal fans devoured it instead.
Welcome to Hell and the Birth of Black Metal
One year later, Venom issued their first full-length album, Welcome to Hell, which included the influential title track. The song was named to Rolling Stone‘s list of the 100 Greatest Heavy Metal Songs, with the magazine observing that “until 1981, heavy metal had never seen a band go as all-in on Satan as the three lads from Newcastle calling themselves Venom did.”
“Contrasting with the forward-thinking innovation of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal (a.k.a. NWOBHM), the trio stripped heavy metal down to its most primitive, bluntest form… Critics were appalled, metal fans ate it up.”
Welcome to Hell was soon followed by what became the group’s landmark LP, 1982’s Black Metal. That album coined its own subgenre and inspired offshoots like thrash, speed, and death metal. Venom’s influence was immediate and lasting.
The Legacy That Followed
Since then, the music of Venom has been repeatedly covered by the metal bands it helped shape. Bands such as Obituary, Cradle of Filth, Dimmu Borgir, and Mayhem — the group that infamously led the Norwegian black metal scene — have all recorded their own versions of Venom songs. Metallica, Slayer, and Megadeth have also championed the band’s influence.
It wasn’t just metal bands that loved Venom. In 1995, Beastie Boys’ Mike D said, “Venom fucking rocked. They had the speeches, the routines, the metal! Venom were an early crossover band. I used to listen to this hardcore radio show in New York, and they used to mix stuff like Venom in amongst the Black Flag and Minor Threat. We thought Venom were excellent. But then they came to New York to do some gigs, and we found out that they weren’t joking at all!”
The Beastie Boys gave Sonic Youth’s Thurston Moore a tape of Lant’s onstage banter from a 1986 gig in Trenton, New Jersey. Moore pressed that speech onto a 7-inch single dubbed “Venom – Live.” The speech was also sampled at the end of Beastie Boys’ Check Your Head track “Mark on the Bus.”
A Career Beyond Venom
The group broke apart in 1988, yet Lant brought Venom back together with different musicians and kept the band active through his passing. Beyond Venom, he led his own band Cronus, joined forces with Warfare, and recorded with Cradle of Filth. He also showed up on Dave Grohl’s metal side project Probot.
Lant’s son Nathan Lant added his own tribute. “I want to thank all of the Legions for all of the support you have given my dad over the years,” he said. “I know he really appreciated you all. He has laid down his soul, and his music will live on. The legend of Cronos will never die. His music will never die. His voice will never fade.”
What Venom Changed
Welcome to Hell, the band’s influence is hard to overstate. Venom’s 1981 debut, laid down the rough, satanic sound that would come to define their legacy. Their 1982 record Black Metal then gave the genre its very name and its sonic foundation. That influence reached far beyond black metal alone, touching thrash, speed, and death metal alike, and shaping the entire extreme metal family of styles.
- Venom’s 1981 debut Welcome to Hell was a blueprint for the raw, satanic sound that would define their legacy.
- Their 1982 album Black Metal coined the genre of black metal itself, giving it its name and its sonic template.
- The band’s influence spread to thrash, speed, and death metal, shaping the entire extreme metal spectrum.
A Voice That Defined a Genre
Conrad “Cronos” Lant’s voice was the sound of Venom. It was deep, menacing, and unmistakable. It was the voice that screamed “Welcome to Hell” and delivered the speeches that made Venom a live act unlike any other. It was a voice that could be sampled and still be recognized instantly.
Venom’s run ended when he died, bringing an end to his work with the band. Venom never followed the rules, and Lant never compromised either. At the center of it all was Lant himself — fearless, uncompromising, and unmistakable.
The bandmates’ tribute described what Lant meant to Venom. He wasn’t merely a member of the group — he was its heart. His voice, his bass, and his vision shaped the band from the very first dark rumblings of Welcome to Hell all the way through Black Metal, At War With Satan, Possessed, and further still.
The legend of Cronos will endure forever, and his voice will never be silenced, though his music will remain to be heard for generations to come.
Source material: “Conrad ‘Cronos’ Lant, Singer and Bassist of Black Metal Pioneers Venom, Dead at 63,” Rolling Stone.
Get the Notebook.
The day's best stories and every fresh verdict, in plain English, in your inbox by seven. One email a day, no more.