Biography

By Rei Nishimoto

The spirit of Latin American metal is felt across the globe, and each area has spawned its own identity within an already groundbreaking subgenre. But after two decades of existence, AGONY is ready to keep their death-thrash brand of metal assault alive.

AGONY burst out of the Colombian metal scene in 1992, when then-college students, Alfonso Pinzon (drums) and Andres Jaramillo (lead guitar) started playing together.

They released a demo tape in 1994, with all of the songs controversially written in English. The response to their demo, along with their energetic live shows helped attract a solid fan base. They later landed support slots for international acts such as Testament (USA) and A.N.I.M.A.L. (Argentina), as well as headlining the Rock Al Parque festival numerous times.

One of their shows was turned into a live album, Live All The Time. This release became one of the first live recordings released by a Colombian metal act. This release also featured new members, vocalist Cesar Botero and guitarist Carlos ‘Beto’ Marin (Pestilencia).

AGONY reached a milestone within the Latin metal scene through the release of Millennium in 1996. Fusing Latin percussion sounds and powerful death/thrash sounds, this release became an instant classic amongst the South American underground scene. New bassist Carlos Reyes helped the band take their sound to new heights and placed AGONY within the forefront of the Colombian metal scene.

In 1999, AGONY made a bold move and relocated to Los Angeles to record Reborn (Sum Records). Shortly after their move, Reyes left the band and Marin to follow shortly after. AGONY had utilized the bass services of Tony Campos (Static -X) and Louiche Mayorga (Suicidal Tendencies, Horny Toad) for live and recording purposes.

Botero left AGONY in 2001 before the release of Reborn to pursue other musical projects. He is currently in Decode, with current members of Pestilencia.

In 2002, AGONY headlined the Rock Al Parque festival, with vocalist Jeez (ex-Crux) and Tony Campos.

Unable to find a permanent vocalist, Pinzon and Jaramillo both started a new project called Dia De Los Muertos. This new project consisted of mutual friends playing uncompromised metal with a unique Latin flavor. They were invited to headline the 2006 Rock Al Parque festival, with Body Count bassist Vincent Price and Ruin vocalist Nick Reyes. The group surprised the crowd with a few AGONY songs within its setlist.

In 2006, the 10th Anniversary edition of Millennium was released, with a completely remastered and an enhanced CD with video clips from their Rock Al Parque Festival performances.

Since then, AGONY's lineup has reformed joining former Soulfly bassist Marcelo Dias, with each member bringing in his experiences back into the band and unleashing almost two decades worth of metallic brutality onto the world. New album is mixed by Logan Mader (Soulfly, Divine Heresy, Gojira, Cavalera Conspiracy)