Atheist (band)

Atheist is an American death metal band from Florida, founded in 1987 by the vocalist and rhythm guitarist Kelly Shaefer, lead guitarist Rand Burkey, bassist Roger Patterson and drummer Steve Flynn. The band is known for its highly technical playing style, and its 1991 album Unquestionable Presence is regarded as a landmark of the technical death metal genre. The band managed to gain a reputation in the underground. After disbanding in 1994, the group reformed in 2006 and has since released one studio album and a live DVD.

History
The band was originally formed in 1984 in Sarasota, Florida, firstly under the name Oblivion and later as R.A.V.A.G.E. (which stands for "Raging Atheists Vowing A Gory End"). They released their first album, Piece of Time, in 1989. Shortly before entering the studio to record their second album, Roger Patterson died on February 12, 1991, in a car accident at the age of 22. Shortly afterwards, they recruited ex-Pestilence and Cynic bassist Tony Choy to record their second album, Unquestionable Presence. Atheist disbanded for the first time in 1992, then reunited in 1993 to record a third album, Elements, fulfilling their contractual requirements, before disbanding for a second time in early 1994.

Seven years after their second breakup, Shaefer decided to re-release and remaster their three albums with different bonus tracks.

Relapse Records reissued the band's three albums in late 2005, as well as a vinyl box set containing the three albums plus the R.A.V.A.G.E. demo "On They Slay". Flynn formed the band Gnostic in the same year. In January 2006, Atheist announced they were regrouping to perform live during the summer and autumn. The line-up was Shaefer, Burkey, Choy and Flynn. Shaefer only provided vocals due to long battles with tendinitis and carpal tunnel syndrome. The Gnostic guitarist Sonny Carson played all of Shaefer's guitar parts, while Burkey was later replaced by Chris Baker of Gnostic.

On July 12, 2008, Shaefer issued a statement indicating that he and Flynn were working on new material. A month later, Shaefer announced that they had commenced the recording of a new studio album, which would be their first in over 15 years. The band toured Europe and the US in 2009 to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the release of Piece of Time. A live DVD filmed at the Wacken Open Air Festival appeared towards the end of the year.

On July 11, 2010, Atheist revealed that their fourth studio album would be called Jupiter and was set for a November release. They inked a deal with Season of Mist and Jupiter was released on November 8, 2010.

On August 3, 2010, Shaefer and Flynn announced on behalf of the band that Tony Choy would not be appearing on Jupiter but was still likely to appear in live performances with the band due to his own musical aspirations. The band announced in 2014 that it was working on a fifth studio album, which was planned to be released in 2015; however, the album would be left unreleased for over half a decade.

In February 2018, Atheist signed with Agonia Records, and the band plans to release their fifth studio album for the label.

Members
Current
 * Kelly Shaefer – lead vocals (1987–1994, 2006–present), guitars (1987–1994)
 * Dylan Marks - drums (2023-present)
 * Yoav Ruiz Feingold – bass (2019–present)
 * Jerry Witunsky – guitars (2023–present)
 * Alex Haddad – guitars (2023–present)

Former

Guitarists
 * Rand Burkey – (1987–1994)
 * Frank Emmi – (1993–1994)
 * Sonny Carson – (2006–2009)
 * Chris Baker – (2006–2012)
 * Jonathan Thompson – (2010–2012), bass (2010)
 * Jason Holloway – (2012–2018)
 * Chris Martin – (2012–2022)
 * Daniel Martinez – (2019–2022)

Bassists
 * Roger Patterson – (1987–1991; died 1991)
 * Tony Choy – (1991–1994, 2006–2009, 2012–2018)
 * Darren McFarland – live (1992)
 * Travis Morgan – (2011–2012)
 * Sean Martinez – live (2019)

Drummers
 * Steve Flynn – drums (1987–1992, 2006–2023)
 * Marcel DeSantos – live (1991–1992)
 * Mickey Hayes – live (1992)
 * Josh Greenbaum – (1993–1994)
 * Joey Muha – live (2019)
 * Anthony "Apollo XVII" Medaglia – live (2019–2022)

Timeline

Studio albums

 * Piece of Time (1989)
 * Unquestionable Presence (1991)
 * Elements (1993)
 * Jupiter (2010)

Live albums

 * Unquestionable Presence: Live at Wacken (2009)