Anaal Nathrakh

Taking their name from a spell cast by Merlin in the 1981 movie Excalibur (the spell allowed Uther Pendragon to take the shape of an ally in order to bed the man's wife; the child of the union becomes King Arthur), Anaal Nathrakh are a blackened death metal grindcore band capable of tossing elements of power metal into their topped-out concoction of brutal music. Formed in Birmingham, England, in 1998, the band was initially intended as a studio project but eventually began playing live shows, although rarely. Between the release of their debut in 2001 and 2011, the band put out eight records, with that debut, The Codex Necro, topping critics' polls and making several "best of the decade" lists. With frequent references to literature, poetry and philosophy in their lyrics and song titles, Anaal Nathrakh may be the most well-read metal band of all time.