Conrad “Cronos” Lant, the frontman whose vocals and bass helped make Venom one of the most influential bands in extreme metal, has died at 63.
Venom announced Lant’s death October 1. The band did not disclose a cause of death.
Lant was at the center of Venom’s most consequential period, when the Newcastle trio transformed the rough-edged energy of punk and early heavy metal into something faster, harsher and deliberately more menacing. Their first two albums, Welcome to Hell and Black Metal, would become foundational records for generations of extreme-metal musicians — with the latter providing the name for a genre that would emerge years later.
The band formed in the late 1970s, when Lant joined guitarist Jeffrey “Mantas” Dunn and drummer Tony “Abaddon” Bray. They came out of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal, but their music was considerably more abrasive than much of the scene surrounding them.
Venom’s 1981 debut, Welcome to Hell, announced their intentions with a primitive, aggressive sound that reflected Lant’s admiration for Mötorhead, Black Sabbath and punk. He also embraced the theatrical side of Alice Cooper, combining those influences with imagery and subject matter that made Venom especially provocative at the time.
“I wanted us to be evil,” Lant said.
Black Metal, released the following year, took that approach further. Although the album’s music was not representative of the black-metal sound that developed in Scandinavia and elsewhere later in the decade, its title became the shorthand for an entire musical movement. Venom’s influence extended far beyond their record sales, particularly among musicians pursuing the increasingly extreme forms of metal that followed.
Lant left the band in 1987 and recorded several albums as Cronos before returning to Venom in the mid-1990s. The original lineup reunited for Cast in Stone in 1997, marking its first album together in 12 years.
He remained Venom’s central figure through subsequent lineup changes and continued recording with the band for decades. His final Venom album, Into Oblivion, was released this year, bringing his recorded output with the group to 12 albums.
In a 2019 interview, Lant remained adamant that Venom had never been duplicated.
“To this day, there’s never been another Venom,” he said. “No one has come close to what we did.”
Venom described Lant as the driving force behind the band’s sound and identity in its announcement of his death.
“It is with profound sadness and broken hearts that we share the news that Conrad ‘Cronos’ Lant has passed away,” the band said. “For more than four decades, Conrad’s voice, bass and vision were at the heart of Venom.”
The statement added that Lant was “uncompromising, fearless and unmistakable.”
His son Nathan also addressed Venom’s fans, thanking the group’s longtime supporters for their devotion to his father.
“I want to thank all of the Legions for all of the support you have given my dad over the years,” he wrote. “I know he really appreciated you all. He has laid down his soul, and his music will live on. The legend of Cronos will never die.”
Tributes have also come from musicians whose own work was shaped by Venom. Slayer and Exodus guitarist Gary Holt recalled touring with the band during Exodus’ Bonded-era years.
“I’m devastated by this news,” Holt wrote on Instagram. “One of my all time hero’s is no longer with us.”
Holt described the two tours Exodus played with Venom as “the greatest tours we’ve ever done,” adding that Lant “helped shape Exodus into what we became.”
“I owe him a debt that cannot be repaid,” Holt wrote. “Thank you brother.”
Venom has not indicated whether it intends to continue without Lant.
