After more than 19 years, Greek metal legends ROTTING CHRIST are finally coming back to Belgrade and Zagreb! One of the most important and influential bands of the European black metal scene will perform on Saturday, November 21, 2026 at Zappa Barca and the day after at Boogaloo Club in Zagreb.
The band's popularity is best evidenced by the fact that early bird tickets were sold out in less than three hours. The pre-sale price is 3700 dinars and can be purchased via the Hengtime web.
Rotting Christ was founded by the brothers Sakis and Themis Tolis in Athens in 1987, and from their original death/grind roots they soon moved towards a darker sound that would make them one of the pioneers of the Greek black metal scene.
Following 1991's cult EP Passage to Arcturo, 1993's debut album Thy Mighty Contract laid the foundation for a sound that would heavily influence generations of extreme metal bands. A year later, Non Serviam followed, an album whose title became a kind of life and artistic motto of the band.
During the nineties and early 2000s, Rotting Christ did not remain trapped within the confines of black metal, but gradually introduced elements of death, heavy and gothic metal into their sound, while maintaining a recognizable dark atmosphere. With albums like Triarchy of the Lost Lovers, A Dead Poem, Khronos and Sanctus Diavolos, they built their own identity and went from underground heroes to the status of one of the most important Greek metal bands of all time.
Rotting Christ, photo: Zappa Baza promo
A new major phase of their career began with the album Theogonia from 2007, with which they increasingly bring Greek history, mythology and traditional elements into their music. They continued this direction on the releases Aealo, Κατά τον δαίμονα εταβες and Rituals, combining extreme metal with ritual rhythms, choral sections and motifs of various ancient cultures. The Heretics' 2019 album further cemented their status as a band that, even after a decade, refuses to live solely on its own past.
The current studio album "Pro Xristou", released in 2024, is a new chapter in their impressive discography and another combination of monumental riffs, melody, ritual atmosphere and Sakis' distinctive vocals. It was inspired by the last pagan rulers who resisted the spread of Christianity and the disappearance of ancient traditions, and on it the band continues to develop the sound it has been building for more than three and a half decades.
In the almost 40 years of Rotting Christ's existence, they have toured practically the entire world and have long outgrown the genre from which they originated. The heart of the band consists of brothers Sakis Tolis on vocals and guitar and Themis Tolis on drums, while the current line-up is completed by Kostas "Spades" Heliotis and Kostis Foukarakis. Their concerts have gained a reputation as one of the most reliable and intense live bands of the extreme metal scene.
It's a shame to miss this spectacle, secure your tickets in time! A day later, on Sunday, November 22, Hengtime organizes a concert by Rotting Christ in Zagreb's Boogaloo.
