Blaakyum is a Lebanese

metal A metal () is a material that, when polished or fractured, shows a lustrous appearance, and conducts electrical resistivity and conductivity, electricity and thermal conductivity, heat relatively well. These properties are all associated wit ...

band from

Beirut Beirut ( ; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, just under half of Lebanon's population, which makes it the List of largest cities in the Levant region by populatio ...

, founded in 1995 by Bassem Deaibess. Blaakyum's style is a blend of Thrash,

heavy Heavy may refer to: Measures * Heavy, a characterization of objects with substantial weight * Heavy, a wake turbulence category used by pilots and air traffic controllers to refer to aircraft with a maximum takeoff mass of 136,000 kgs or mo ...

and

groove metal Groove metal, sometimes also called neo-thrash or post-thrash, is a subgenre of heavy metal music that began in the early 1990s. The genre is primarily derived from thrash metal, but played in slower tempos, and making use of rhythmic guitar pa ...

infused with Middle Eastern and

Levant The Levant ( ) is the subregion that borders the Eastern Mediterranean, Eastern Mediterranean sea to the west, and forms the core of West Asia and the political term, Middle East, ''Middle East''. In its narrowest sense, which is in use toda ...

ine

folk music Folk music is a music genre that includes #Traditional folk music, traditional folk music and the Contemporary folk music, contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be ca ...

". To this end, the band incorporates the

goblet drum The goblet drum (also chalice drum, tarabuka, tarabaki, darbuka, darabuka, derbake, debuka, doumbek, dumbec, dumbeg, dumbelek, toumperleki, tumbak, or zerbaghali; / Romanized: ) is a single-head membranophone with a goblet-shaped body. It is ...

into its music.The band's first studio album, ''Lord of the Night'', was released on ''

Friday the 13th Friday the 13th is considered an unlucky day in Western superstition. It occurs when the 13th day of the month in the Gregorian calendar falls on a Friday, which happens at least once every year but can occur up to three times in the same year ...

'' of January 2012. Blaakyum released its second album, ''Line of Fear'', on the 25th of June 2016. The band's last tour started at the Tuska festival, and continued with the "Thrash Mercenaries" Tour 2016, headed by Onslaught.

History

Origins (1995–1997)

Blaakyum was formed in summer of 1995, five years after the end of the

Lebanese Civil War The Lebanese Civil War ( ) was a multifaceted armed conflict that took place from 1975 to 1990. It resulted in an estimated 150,000 fatalities and led to the exodus of almost one million people from Lebanon. The religious diversity of the ...

, with original members: Bassem Deaibess (vocals/rhythm guitar), Maroun Azar (guitar/harmonica), Jean Saad (drums), Jad Nohra (lead guitar). Blaakyum started performing without a bassist and covered pop/rock songs and spiritual songs in front of churches. Meanwhile, Maroun Azar left the band to concentrate on studying Medicine, and Jead Abdallah was asked to join the band as a Bassist since he is originally a guitarist but he couldn't fill that part so he decided to help the band in management. Blaakyum then switched styles into

grunge Grunge (sometimes referred to as the Seattle sound) is an alternative rock Music genre, genre and subculture that emerged during the in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington, particularly in Seattle and Music of Olympia, Washington, O ...

punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...

and performed their first gig at The Lebanese University Faculty Of Human Science—Fanar without a bassist on most of the songs, except for some were handled by Generation X's (A Lebanese rock Band at the time) bassist. During 1996 Blaakyum auditioned several Bassists and the final choice was on Bassem's (Vocalist) brother Samer Deaibess to take the position. And then the band Switched to thrash metal performing mainly

Metallica Metallica is an American heavy metal band. It was formed in Los Angeles in 1981 by vocalist and guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, and has been based in San Francisco for most of its career. The band's fast tempos, instrume ...

songs. With the change of style Blaakyum started performing in many concerts and in pubs, including Rock Concert 1 and 2 at Beirut Hall. At this time the band performed Doom/Black and

Thrash metal Thrash metal (or simply thrash) is an Extreme metal, extreme subgenre of heavy metal music characterized by its overall aggression and fast tempo.Kahn-Harris, Keith, ''Extreme Metal: Music and Culture on the Edge'', pp. 2–3, 9. Oxford: Berg, ...

songs, and by 1997 the bands set list was all originals. After dispute on musical differences and personal obligations, Jad Nohra and Samer Deaibess left the band. Mano was brought to fill in the bass role and the band started looking for a lead guitarist. after trying a couple of guitarists they found Shant Bajac, but Bajac had also official exams so he also left. Nohra rejoined the band, but things didn't work out, and he insisted that Bassem Deaibess would quit singing and concentrate on the rhythm Guitar, in the same time he started another band with Mano and Saad called "Society". Deaibess then met Vic Bajac (Shant's elder brother) in a rehearsal center where "Society" were rehearsing, and they decide to reform Blaakyum.

1998–2001

By 1998, the band changed their style into a blend of Thrash,

Heavy Heavy may refer to: Measures * Heavy, a characterization of objects with substantial weight * Heavy, a wake turbulence category used by pilots and air traffic controllers to refer to aircraft with a maximum takeoff mass of 136,000 kgs or mo ...

and

Groove Metal Groove metal, sometimes also called neo-thrash or post-thrash, is a subgenre of heavy metal music that began in the early 1990s. The genre is primarily derived from thrash metal, but played in slower tempos, and making use of rhythmic guitar pa ...

infused with Middle Eastern and Levantine folk-music vibes, a nod to the band's origins and influences, coming from a country that straddles

eastern Eastern or Easterns may refer to: Transportation Airlines *China Eastern Airlines, a current Chinese airline based in Shanghai * Eastern Air, former name of Zambia Skyways *Eastern Air Lines, a defunct American airline that operated from 192 ...

and western civilizations on the south-eastern coast of the Mediterranean and with members inspired by

Testament A testament is a document that the author has sworn to be true. In law it usually means last will and testament. Testament or The Testament can also refer to: Books * ''Testament'' (comic book), a 2005 comic book * ''Testament'', a thriller no ...

, Overkill, Annihilator, Onslaught,

Slayer Slayer is an American thrash metal band from Huntington Park, California, formed in 1981 by guitarists Jeff Hanneman and Kerry King, drummer Dave Lombardo and bassist/vocalist Tom Araya. Slayer's fast and aggressive musical style made them ...

and

Iron Maiden Iron Maiden are an English Heavy metal music, heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris (musician), Steve Harris. Although fluid in the early years of the band, the line-up for most ...

, just to name a few, along with oriental music icons such as Fairouz, Sabah and

Marcel Khalife Marcel Khalife (; born 10 June 1950 in Amchit) is a Lebanese musical composer, singer, and oud player. Khalife is considered a folk hero in the Arab world, and he has been described as the "Bob Dylan of the Middle East." Biography In 1983 ...

. Winning the Lebanese Bands Competition in 1997, Blaakyum released its first single, "Am I Black", in 1998, at the height of the anti-Metal

witch hunt A witch hunt, or a witch purge, is a search for people who have been labeled witches or a search for evidence of witchcraft. Practicing evil spells or Incantation, incantations was proscribed and punishable in early human civilizations in the ...

conducted by the Lebanese religious and political authorities, who considered anyone affiliated with the scene a national threat, and during which the band's founder and frontman, Bassem Deaibess, was detained and jailed simply for being a heavy-metal musician and fan. Due to Lebanon's dire economic conditions and a mixture of personal and health problems that hit the band's members, Blaakyum was forced to split in 2001. Deaibess continued to perform with other bands. In 2006,

war War is an armed conflict between the armed forces of states, or between governmental forces and armed groups that are organized under a certain command structure and have the capacity to sustain military operations, or between such organi ...

hit Lebanon again, destroying much of its infrastructure (electricity, water, roads), which remains in disarray.

2007–present

But by the end of 2007, Blaakyum was back with fresh new members that Deaibess picked from the new generation: Gio Najarian (Drums), Rany Battikh (Bass). Later this year they won the Lebanese Nationals in the

Global Battle of the Bands The Global Battle of the Bands (GBOB) is a live music competition joined by bands from all continents around the world. It is open to amateur/professional bands of all music genres and ages; there are only two main prerequisites to joining: no cove ...

(GBOB), representing Lebanon in London. Among 3,000 bands that participated in the GBOB and 35 finalists, Blaakyum earned the seventh place. The following year, Blaakyum entered the

studio A studio is a space set aside for creative work of any kind, including art, dance, music and theater. The word ''studio'' is derived from the , from , from ''studere'', meaning to study or zeal. Types Art The studio of any artist, esp ...

to record its debut album, a process that took more than four years to be completed. The band released "Lord Of The Night" on Friday, 13 January 2012 which was well received by critics. In 2012 another wave of anti-Metal Music took place and Bassem Deaibess was detained for the second time. Blaakyum set on the "Night Lords" tour that took it all over

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

as well as

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

at Metal Blast Festival. The tour also had shows at Metal Heads' Mission 2012 in

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

, MetalCamp 2012 in

Slovenia Slovenia, officially the Republic of Slovenia, is a country in Central Europe. It borders Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the south and southeast, and a short (46.6 km) coastline within the Adriati ...

, and playing gigs in

Slovakia Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the west, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia's m ...

(

Bratislava Bratislava (German: ''Pressburg'', Hungarian: ''Pozsony'') is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the Slovakia, Slovak Republic and the fourth largest of all List of cities and towns on the river Danube, cities on the river Danube. ...

—Randal Club) and

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

(

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

—Progresjia Club). Blaakyum subsequently performed on the main stage at Metaldays 2013 (formerly MetalCamp) and began working on its second album. In 2015, Blaakyum became the Middle East winner of

Wacken Open Air Wacken Open Air (, abbreviated as W:O:A) is a Heavy metal music, heavy metal music festival, held annually since 1990 on the first weekend of August in the village of Wacken, Schleswig-Holstein, Wacken in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. Almost all ...

's Metal Battle. And achieved third place in the 2015 worldwide finals of the Metal Battle at

Germany, On 4 April 2017, Blaakyum announced the official video for the track 'Freedom Denied' on

Metal Hammer ''Metal Hammer'' is a heavy metal music magazine and website founded in 1983, published in the United Kingdom by Future, with other language editions published by different companies available in numerous other countries. ''Metal Hammer'' featu ...

. The track deals with the political event called the

Arab Spring The Arab Spring () was a series of Nonviolent resistance, anti-government protests, Rebellion, uprisings, and Insurgency, armed rebellions that spread across much of the Arab world in the early 2010s. It began Tunisian revolution, in Tunisia ...

Members

Current

* Bassem Deaibess – vocals, rhythm guitar (1995–present) * Pierre Le Port – bass guitar (2016–present) * Rabih Deaibess – lead guitar (2012–present) * Hassan Khoder – drummer (2016–present) Sessionists: * Elie Abou Abdo –

Darbuka The goblet drum (also chalice drum, tarabuka, tarabaki, darbuka, darabuka, derbake, debuka, doumbek, dumbec, dumbeg, dumbelek, toumperleki, tumbak, or zerbaghali; / Romanized: ) is a single-head membranophone with a goblet-shaped body. It is ...

Arabic folk percussion(2015–present)

Former

* Samer Deaïbess – bass guitar * Shant Bajac – Lead guitar * Vik Bajac – bass guitar * Jean-Pierre Mattar – lead guitar * Jean Saad – drummer * Elias Njeim – lead guitar * David Elias – drummer * Jad Feitrouni – drummer * Ghassan Sakr – drummer * Jad Nohra – lead guitar * Will Mallouk – lead guitar * Rany Battikh - Bass

Discography

Studio albums

*''Lord of the Night'' (2012) - 13 songs: **''Dark Moon'' **''Lord of the Night (feat Wissam Tabet)'' **''The Last Stand'' **''Cease Fire'' **''Am I Black (feat Wissam Tabet)'' **''Journey to Eternity (feat. Wissam Tabet)'' **''Battle Roar'' **''The Land'' **''Awakened Dreams (feat. Wissam Tabet)'' **''March of the Eastern Man (feat. Wissam Tabet)'' **''Rip It Off'' **''Living Forever'' **''Dark Symphony'' *''Line of Fear'' (2016) - 8 songs: **''Crossing'' **''The Line of Fear'' **''Wicked Revelation'' **''Destined to Rise'' **''Baal-Adon'' **''Religion of Peace'' **''Freedom Denied'' **''I Am Who I Am''

Singles

* "Riot against Riot" (2016)

Awards

* W:O:A Metal Battle 2015 Finals—Winner 3rd place * W:O:A: Middle East Metal Battle 2015—Winner 1st place * GBOB Lebanon 2007 Champion (1st place) * Lebanese Band Competition 1997 (1st place)

References

External links

Official website
{{Authority control Thrash metal musical groups Lebanese heavy metal musical groups Folk metal musical groups Musical groups established in 1995