Already at the end of 1987, Stratuz made
its first live appearance! So we're not talking about kiddies here! During their
19 years of existence a lot of time (and trends) went by, but Stratuz is still
here and through the years have accomplished in creating their own specific
sound! A very personal style that combines a perfect harmony between atmospheric,
doom and brutal death metal mixed with ethnic and exotic (or is it erotic?)
elements and some unusual instruments.
After recording the essential demos,
Stratuz landed a deal to release their debut LP "In Nomine..."
in1995. The album was released as a split CD (with Noxious - .R.I.P.) and took
Venezuela by storm, unleashing a wave of media frenzy and live performances
being described as "Dark, Ritualistic, Satanic" by religious
and political groups. And like most of the time, negative publicity took a positive
toll for the band: shows were sold out and the CD was really a hot item! Abroad
the album was also very well accepted and was described as one of the best South
American releases at that time.
After 2 years of non-stop touring, the
band decided it was time to prepare for another studio visit to record their
second album, "The Last Angel". But plans were put on hold as they
were offered to do a tour in Europe, playing the "Festival Del Sol"
(a.o. Stratovarius), play a big part of the Repulsive Tour '98 (by .R.I.P. -
Repulse Records) together with Centinex and Anasarca, and headline at the Köln
Musikfestival (a.o. Guerrilla). After visiting their countrymates of Laberinto
in Holland, they returned back home and finally recorded and released "The
Last Angel" in the fall of 1999.
It was due to this album that Stratuz
was offered a deal by the LSP-COMPANY. Because so much had passed since they
planned their second album and the actual release of it (3 years), the band
had already written lots of new songs and so they immediately went on to record
their third album. The result is entitled "Spirit Seduction" and was
definitely their best recorded material. Just listen to their special mix of
ethnic, atmospheric, doom and brutal death metal and you'll be surprised of
what they can accomplish!
In December of 2002, Stratuz is dissolved
for diverse personal and political reasons and after three years of absence,
in August of 2005 they met to discuss the pending projects and they decided
to reunite the band again. Everything is set for late February and early March
(2006) when Stratuz will officially begin to record their new full-length album
"Without Original Sin".
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