R.I.P. to a legend. The vocalist of Venom, Conrad ‘Cronos’ Lant, unfortunately left us recently at 63. Venom have always been special to me, and I am finding it genuinely difficult to collect all of my thoughts following the news of his passing. I did not expect to process the loss of him anytime soon. So rather than trying to make sense of everything, I am simply going to speak from the heart while listening to some Venom on vinyl.
Cronos was an Extreme Metal giant. He was the voice, bassist and co-founding member of a band whose influence reaches into almost every corner of Extreme Metal. Like many people around the world, I always hoped that I might one day see the original Venom line-up of Cronos, Mantas and Abaddon together again. Sadly, that moment never came.
But what those three working-class lads created together cannot be taken away.
Emerging from Newcastle-upon-Tyne in North East England in the late 1970s, Cronos, guitarist Jeff ‘Mantas’ Dunn and drummer Anthony ‘Abaddon Bray took the foundations of Heavy Metal and pushed them somewhere far more extreme and aggressive, starting a subgenre of Metal in the process.
Venom were never interested in sounding polished. Their distorted guitars, pounding drums, raw production, speed, dark imagery and in-your-face presentation were part of what made them so unique.
Their 1981 blistering debut, Welcome To Hell, sounded like almost nothing else at the time. Then came Black Metal in 1982. That album changed everything, and you cannot overstate its significance.
Black Metal did not simply become an influential record. Its title ultimately gave an entire genre its name. Whilst the term Black Metal has changed completely, Venom were undoubtedly fundamental. The music would go on to influence countless bands, of course in Black Metal, but also in the Thrash scene over in the States, as well as extreme styles like Death Metal.
Some of the world’s biggest bands have notably cited Venom as an influence on their music. In fact, Metallica opened for Venom in the ’80s. That is some influence in itself. They have always been huge fans of the band.
The scale of that legacy is difficult to comprehend when you consider just how wild and chaotic Venom were deliberately trying to sound. They were not attempting to create a perfect heavy metal record. They were creating something raw, dangerous and confrontational, and that attitude became just as influential as the music itself.
At the centre of it all was Cronos.
His unmistakable voice was unlike anything else. His bass playing was an essential part of Venom’s sound, while his stage presence, persona and aesthetic helped establish the band’s identity. Cronos was the frontman who epitomised what the band were truly about.
The classic era of Welcome to Hell, Black Metal, At War With Satan and Possessed will never be forgotten. More importantly, Venom were one of the reasons I developed such a deep love for Extreme Metal in the first place.
That is the part of Cronos’ legacy that is hardest for me to put into words.
When you spend so much of your life listening to a particular kind of music, going to shows, writing about it and discovering new bands, it is easy to forget that somewhere along the way there had to be a starting point. For me, Venom were part of that journey. On reflection, without Cronos and Venom, I genuinely do not know whether I would have developed the same passion for Extreme Metal that I have today.
And there is an added element knowing that this music came from my hometown Newcastle. As someone from the region, I will always be proud that my working-class city produced something that went on to influence musicians and fans across the entire world. His passing also comes just days after we lost another Newcastle-born legend, PAC, one of the greatest wrestlers this country has produced. It has been a difficult few days for the city.
My connection to Venom became even more personal for me in July last year, when I attended the Deepest Hell fan club meet-up in Newcastle-upon-Tyne. I met so many people there, caught up with the ever-humble Abaddon and spoke with others who had been associated with the band over the years from drum techs to a couple of former members.
Naturally, Cronos came up in many of those conversations. I heard some brilliant stories about him and spent time talking to people who had their own memories and experiences of Venom.
Looking back now, those conversations feel incredibly special. At the time, they were simply stories being shared between people who loved the same band. Now, knowing that Cronos is no longer with us, I find myself thinking back to them in a completely different way.
It is a reminder that the legacy of Venom is not just contained within records or books, but lives on through the people who were there, the people who knew them and the legions who continue to carry that music forward. And for me, Venom have always been about that.
Venom’s history is far from straightforward. There were disagreements between members, changing line-ups, different incarnations of the band and disputes surrounding the Venom name and its identity that still exist to this day. There were certainly moments over the years when Cronos’ actions and relationships with former bandmates could be frustrating. But I do not want that to overshadow what matters most.
Cronos was the voice of Venom
Whatever happened afterwards, nobody can rewrite what Cronos, Mantas and Abaddon created in those early years. The music exists forever, and its influence is still being felt.
There is an especially poignant element to his passing for me because I had been talking about him only recently for MetalTalk.
I recently interviewed Stuart ‘Rage’ Dixon for MetalTalk about the new Venom record, Into Oblivion, and Cronos was naturally part of our conversation. Only shortly before that, I had reviewed the band’s new album.
Coming to terms with his loss is just surreal.
I unfortunately never got to meet him. I never got to see the original three members reunite. But I was lucky enough to live in a time when the music they created was still here, still being played and still inspiring people.
And that will forever continue.
What happens with Venom now remains to be seen, but the legacy Cronos leaves behind does not depend on what comes next. The albums remain. That voice remains. Those bass lines remain. The imagery remains. And the influence remains.
My thoughts are with Cronos’ family and everyone who knew him. Sending love to his bandmates in Stuart ‘Rage’ Dixon and Danny ‘Dante’ Needham, to Mantas and Abaddon, to all of my friends in the Deepest Hell fan club and to all of the Venom Legions around the world.
For me, Cronos will always be more than just a name in the history of Metal. He was one of the people who helped show the world just how far this music could go.
Newcastle produced Venom, but Cronos’ legacy belongs to the entire world. And for someone who helped ignite my own love for Extreme Metal, I will always be grateful.
The music lives on.
The influence lives on.
And Cronos’ voice will never truly disappear.
You will be very missed, Cronos. Thank you.
