The Artist of the week: Beheading the Icon (Chicago, IL)
Beheading the Icon: From MySpace Chaos to Modern Carnage.
I was kinda nostalgic about the scene in Chicago when I used to live there, (yes, I am an LA transplant from Chitown) , it was when a friend passed me on this band. Let´s take you to the Southside, I will never forget winter: cold as hell, loud as crazy, and alive with the pulse of underground shows in dirty venues where the floor stuck to your boots and the music hit like a freight train. That era, the MySpace deathcore generation, was everything. We weren’t just listening — we were surviving. Flipping through profiles, hunting demos, trading burned CDs at shows. It wasn’t polished, it wasn’t perfect, but it was ours. That time shaped me the way I am right now. So when I first heard Beheading the Icon, it wasn’t just about riffs or breakdowns — it felt like coming home.
This band is South Chicago through and through. Raw. Real. Dangerous in the best way. They take that unhinged, DIY deathcore energy we grew up on and mix it with a modern edge that shows they’ve evolved, but never sold out. Every track feels like a flashback — not because they sound retro, but because they remember where this all came from. These dudes don’t mess around. They sound like someone took all the sickest parts of old-school MySpace deathcore, dipped it in some modern melodic death sauce, and then slammed it into your eardrums at 220 BPM. It's brutal, it's tight, and somehow still catchy enough to get stuck in your head while you're elbowing fools in the pit. BTI blends old-school deathcore brutality with modern melodic death metal precision. They wear their influences proudly — The Black Dahlia Murder, As Blood Runs Black, Despised Icon, Suicide Silence — but the result is unmistakably their own. Their music is urgent, unapologetic, and real as hell.
Well. I am not saying that Beheading the Icon — or BTI, if you're in the know — is here trying to reinvent metal. They're here to rebuild it, one blast beat at a time. They weren’t joking around when they told us their motto : Blast Beats and Breakdowns. You go to a BTI show and it's like getting hit by a freight train made of riffs. The stage presence? Absolute chaos (if you know what I mean). And not that fake, choreographed kind. I'm talking sweat, hair, circle pits, maybe even a dude flying off a monitor. Pure mayhem. Pure metal. The themes hit just as hard as the music: addiction, greed, shady preachers, cosmic horror, sea legends, and one seriously twisted tale about a girl turned into a doll. It’s like if Cannibal Corpse had an existential crisis and started writing short horror films.
But seriously, Beheading the Icon isn’t just another local band. They’re the real deal — aggressive, relentless, and just the right amount of unhinged. If you’re into the kind of metal that makes your bones rattle and your brain melt, you owe it to yourself to blast this EP and catch them live. Trust me, you’ll walk out bruised, sweaty, and grinning like a maniac. Think breakdowns that rupture the floor, riffs that slice like scalpels, and drums that sound like they’re being played by a possessed machine.
These guys bring the fire live and on record, with a stacked lineup:
Franco Morales – bass (First Step To Glory)
Osvil Cisneros – drums (First Step To Glory, Thutch)
Jason Cordero – lead guitar (Gutnoose, ex-I Killed Everyone)
Ryan Skelly – rhythm guitar
Matthew Bly – vocals
Brian Duran – lead guitar since 2024 (First Step To Glory)
No rookies here. Just seasoned destroyers coming together to push an intense, no-frills sound that’s both aggressive and surgical.
Their single “Las Moscas” Musically raw and direct, kicks off with a galloping tremolo riff and slams into a breakdown that feels like a sledgehammer. Osvil’s drums crack with urgency, and Matthew’s vocals cut through like jagged shards. Lyrically bleak and visceral, this one feels personal—like a warning shot. As a metal fan, I appreciate how it walks a tightrope between aggression and articulation. It’s not just noise; it’s calculated. While tunes like “BTI Style”, with That distorted intro thrifted from hardcore, but the pre-chorus explodes unexpectedly, thrusting into a melodic but crushing drop. The songwriting here is sharper, it builds tension before letting go. Personally, I think this track showcases genuine growth: more melody, more hooks, while still delivering top-tier heaviness. And let´s not forget “TV Dinner”. A storm of rhythmic shifts, half gallop, half breakdown bait, a crunchy middle-section riff that digs into the head. It’s the kind of track that lives well in the setlist, giving both space and impact. As a fellow appreciator of metal music, I love that it doesn’t rely on one trick; it constantly shifts intensity, keeping the listener on edge.
Their 2020 debut, a self-titled EP “Beheading the Icon”, was a raw and relentless statement: blast beats, death metal tremolo riffs, and hardcore breakdowns all smashed into your face at warp speed. The production was gritty and DIY — but that was part of the charm. It felt like an underground show in someone's basement. Violent. Real.
Fast forward to 2024, and they drop “VITRIOL”, a 20-minute, no-filler EP released on December 26. And it’s clear how far they’ve come. The songwriting is tighter, the transitions sharper, and the energy is just as vicious but with more direction. They still bring the riffs and chaos, but now with thematic weight.
Where the first EP was pure brute force, VITRIOL shows evolution. They kept their brutality but added layers — tempo shifts, emotional punch, even a bit of storytelling. And yet, it all still feels like one sweaty, rage-fueled live set. It’s like watching your favorite local band level up while keeping their fists raised. Is one of those bands that kills it every time on stage.
You know you have valuable friends when they recommend you bands like them. So if you’re like me who is into music that’s fast, filthy, melodic, and destructive — and you like your bands with heart, history, and hellfire — Beheading the Icon is your next obsession. Crank VITRIOL, revisit the 2020 self-titled, and witness the evolution from raw chaos to refined carnage.
If you made it through here, I then encourage you to follow their next moves on : Instagram, Facebook and bandcamp
