Doom

Doom are a UK punk band from Birmingham, active from 1987 to 2005. They play crust punk, d-beat, hardcore punk and punk, and are associated with Black Cloud Records.

Formation and early years

The band begins as The Subverters, with John Pickering on bass and vocals, Brian Talbot on guitar and Jason Hodges on drums. After Hodges is replaced by Mick Harris, the group adopts the name Doom and briefly plays crossover metal. Pickering and Talbot then move the band away from that style and towards a Discharge-influenced crossover thrash approach.

Pickering switches from bass to vocals, Pete Nash joins on bass, and Tony “Stick” Dickens comes in on drums after a meeting at the Mermaid Pub. This line-up starts rehearsing in mid-1987 and is generally regarded as the band’s first stable formation.

Recordings and releases

Peaceville Records hears about Doom and invites them to contribute to the compilation A Vile Peace. The band records its first demo on 28 August 1987, with Jim Whitley filling in on bass after Nash breaks his wrist. Three songs are recorded, and two appear on the compilation.

The band then records the War is Big Business demo in November 1987 and sells it as a cassette at gigs. In February 1988 it records 21 songs at Rich Bitch studios for the debut album War Crimes (Inhuman Beings). Around this period it also produces the Domesday demo.

At the end of 1988 Talbot announces that he is leaving, but remains long enough to record the split LP Bury the Debt - Not the Dead with No Security on Peaceville and the Police Bastard EP on Discarded Records. Doom also records two sessions for John Peel’s Radio One show.

Later line-ups and touring

Talbot leaves in April 1989 after a long European tour. Doom continues with different guitarists, including Dave Talbot, and for a period plays as a three-piece while Pickering handles vocals and guitar. The band splits in August 1990.

After the break-up, Pickering forms Police Bastard, while Stick joins Extreme Noise Terror and then DIRT.

Doom reforms in 1992 with Talbot, Pickering, Nash and Stick, tours Japan and records a 12-inch of new songs for Vinyl Japan. After that release, the band again changes personnel: Tom Croft of Genital Deformities joins on vocals and Paul “Mall” Mallen on bass. This line-up records the split album with Selfish, a split 7-inch with Hiatus, the split 7-inch Doomed to Extinction with Extinction of Mankind, the double LP Fuck Peaceville and the 7-inch EP Hail to Sweden.

During a European tour in 1994, this is the line-up documented on the Videodoom video recorded for MCR. A Scandinavian tour in 1995 leads to further changes: Scoot replaces Mall, Denis Boardman fills in for the tour, and Chris Gascoigne later becomes the permanent bassist. Tom Croft leaves after the tour and Wayne Southworth joins on vocals.

While on the Scandinavian tour, Doom records the Monarchy Zoo 7-inch at Sunlight Studios. In June 1996 the band records the full-length Rush Hour of the Gods for Flat Earth. Wayne Southworth dies in 2005, and the band tours England one last time in tribute.

Members

Members associated with Doom include John Pickering, Stick, Brian Talbot, Pete Nash, Tom Croft, Scoot and Dave Sneddon. Other musicians named in the band’s history include Jason Hodges, Mick Harris, Jim Whitley, Tony “Stick” Dickens, Paul “Mall” Mallen, Denis Boardman, Chris Gascoigne and Wayne Southworth.