Trey Azagthoth

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Trey Azagthoth [Atz-egg-tote] (born George Emmanuel III March 26 1965 in Bellingham, Washington) is an American artist, musician and composer. He is known for his guitar playing in the death metal band Morbid Angel. Trey is widely considered to be one of the most talented guitar players in death metal as well as extreme metal in general. His guitar riffing and solos come from a place that is far beyond the confinements of any 'learned' theorized approach, for his foundation is mainly based on the freedoms of personal expression and placing value first on self-satisfaction and secondly on how it is being reflected by others. He has always been what is known as a paradigm shifter, for he has clearly shown in every step of his career that he refers to something different from any group, system or scene.

- Azagthoth has often said that his playing is based on 80-90% pure imagination, personal beliefs, and his overall way of thinking and how he interprets his reality. The products of his riffing, songwriting and philosophical viewpoints have proved themselves very influential within the extreme music scene. + He started playing guitar at the age of 16, when he got his first guitar, a Gibson SG.[citation needed] The products of his riffing, songwriting and philosophical viewpoints have proved themselves very influential within the extreme music scene.[citation needed]

- He started playing guitar at the age of 16, when he got his first guitar, being a Gibson SG. He quickly had a tremolo installed and got some FX pedals, including a Morley Power Wah Wah, and aggressively moved to make what he thought would be the most complete band in any extreme metal genre. For a while he was known for saying things like that he wanted to crush all others' music and be the most extreme, over-the-top band. It often seemed that he must have grown up in a life filled with rejection and estrangement, feeling he didn’t really fit in anywhere, always admitting he was a freak. For him, life was like being an actor who wasn't given any screenplay, an actor who either didn't know his lines or didn't accept them. He stated in the earlier years that he never really connected with any group or scene so he was going to create his own scene and it would make the other ones pale in comparison. This was the motivation that set him on his path in music as well as philosophy. + Trey started Morbid Angel in 1984. Demos and experimentation led up to the first official record, 'Altars of Madness', which was released by Earache Records in 1989. This record had a strong impact in the death metal scene.[citation needed] They then changed the formula and released something quite different with 'Blessed are the Sick' in 1991. - - Trey started Morbid Angel in 1984 and has worked with different musicians ever since. - Making demos and experimenting up to the first official record, 'Altars of Madness', which was released by Earache Records in 1989. This record proved to be both inspiring and influential, having a strong impact in the death metal scene. Trey and the band proved themselves to be so brave as to move away from the path that would lead to an easy second successful CD, by immediately changing the formula and releasing something quite different with 'Blessed are the Sick' in 1991. This move started the trend that the band continues to this very day, of choosing to invest in innovation and uncertainty, and overtaking the easy path of flowing with the current climate in the music scene like one can constantly see so many other bands do. As opposed to playing it safe, Trey apparently seems to be more the type of artist who finds most value in the works that break clear from the box and push against accepted paradigms and standards, clearing a wider path to innovation and freedom in the arts. - - He is also obsessed with Sailor Moon and Deepak Chopra. - - “Corrected for the purpose of accuracy by Trey Azagthoth 10-19-2006”