Deicide
Formed as Amon in 1987 by drummer Steve Asheim and the Hoffman brothers, Deicide became notorious for Glen Benton's blasphemous stage theatrics—including smashing effigies of the Virgin Mary filled with animal guts—and guttural vocals. Scott Burns recalled seeing them open for Morbid Angel and Nocturnus: "They come out wearing spikes and armour, they've hung up these effigies of the Virgin Mary, then Glen Benton smashes them and they're full of guts and blood and stuff. That was something to see!" Benton's inverted cross forehead brand made him death metal's most controversial figure. Their second album Legion (1992) brought mainstream attention, making them the second-best-selling death metal band of the SoundScan era. Asheim explained their approach: "We were like, 'Slayer brought their intensity level down, here's a place where we can step in and next-level that.'"
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Legion
Brought Deicide mainstream success and established them as the second-best-selling death metal band of the SoundScan era, pushing blasphemous imagery to its extreme. Glen Benton's inverted cross forehead brand and the band's theatrical violence—including smashing Virgin Mary effigies filled with animal guts—made them death metal's most controversial act. Steve Asheim explained: "We were like, 'Slayer brought their intensity level down, here's a place where we can step in and next-level that.'" The album proved that controversy and musical extremity could coexist with commercial success.