One of Denmark's leading death metal acts, the oddly named
Konkhra began its run in 1989, issuing two demos: "Vicious Circle" (also the band's name at the time) and "Malgrowth" on their way to a 1992 promo E.P. called Stranded (distributed by a tattoo magazine!), and a full-length debut,
Sexual Affective Disorder in 1993. Having finally settled into a semi-stable lineup featuring
Anders Lundemark (vocals/guitar), Kim Mathiesen (guitar), Lars Schmidt (bass), and Johnny Nielson (drums), the group went on to tour the U.S. with
Suffocation before releasing The Facelift E.P., and a sophomore L.P., Spit or Swallow -- all in 1994. The next year's Live Eraser was drawn from a landmark performance at the Roskilde Festival, and was marketed as the world's first "death & roll" live album (this being a term made famous by Swedish giants
Entombed). Internal differences would soon split the band, but main man
Lundemark quickly found a silver lining when he hired superstar guitarist
James Murphy (
Death,
Obituary, etc.) and drummer
Chris Kontos (
Machine Head), as well as bassist Thomas Christensen to record 1997's highly acclaimed, ambient death metal classic
Weed Out the Weak. As was to be expected, this lineup was explosive but short-lived.
Kontos was replaced by ex-
Invocator drummer
Per M. Jensen prior to 1999's The Freakshow E.P. and
Murphy resumed his journeyman existence following the sessions for Come Down Cold later that year. Notable for taking the band in an almost alt-rock direction, this was also the last album with
Jensen, off to join Swedish outfit
the Haunted. There followed an extended break, and when
Konkhra finally returned with 2003's back-to-basics Reality Check, the ever-present
Lundemark was joined by guitarist Kim "Hakim" Mathiesen, bassist Lars Schmidt and returning former drummer Johnny Nielsen. ~ Eduardo Rivadavia