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Black Dethe was an American proto-death metal band. Formed in 1985, there's no good reason why anyone should have heard of these guys - they have no 'members of' bigger bands, and they released just three demos (one in 1985, two in 1988) before falling into oblivion. Perhaps it was just the quality of these demos which saved them from fading from memory. The first of the three, Evil Prayer from 1985, is perhaps the most death metal-oriented of them. Naturally, given the year of release, it's not pure death metal, building on a firm basis of thrash, but it's certainly reminiscent of a slightly more primitive version of Seven Churches. After a two-year hiatus, the band was reformed, apparently having listened to some thrash in the interim. The single-track on Iron Cross brings to mind The Ultra-Violence written by Schuldiner when he was still 'Evil Chuck', and the entire Mary's Blood demo is pretty much a slightly deathened version of Reign in Blood. In truth, there isn't a whole load of diversity across these demos, and I wouldn't slap you for saying that Evil Prayer sounded like Slayer (especially given the pleasing rhyme), but the three are definitely worth a listen for those who like their thrash a little rougher around the edges.
