Integrity

Formed in Cleveland, Ohio in 1988 around Dwid Hellion, Integrity originally anchored itself in the American hardcore scene while shifting it toward a darker, heavier sound, threaded with gothic, industrial, and noise-influenced elements. The band, based in Belgium since 2003, early on fused the speed and tension of hardcore punk with riffs from thrash and extreme metal, with a writing style marked by occult atmospheres and apocalyptic imagery. This aesthetic takes shape with the first album Those Who Fear Tomorrow in 1991, then sharpens on Systems Overload in 1995, Humanity Is the Devil in 1996 and Seasons in the Size of Days in 1997, records that have become landmarks in metalcore history. Over the years, Integrity has undergone numerous lineup changes around Dwid Hellion, including a period under the name Integ2000 at the end of the 1990s, before continuing with Closure in 2001, To Die For in 2003, The Blackest Curse in 2010, Suicide Black Snake in 2013 and Howling, For the Nightmare Shall Consume in 2017. Between loyalty to the most abrasive hardcore and a taste for dissonant textures, Integrity remains associated with a harsh, taut and often experimental form of metalcore.