Believer is an American technical thrash metal band from the late 1980s and early 1990s, that plays a hybrid of thrash and progressive metal. The band is known for its innovative use of symphonic elements in thrash metal, featuring some of the earliest examples of symphonic metal. Their lyrics deal with topics of philosophy, theology and social issues.
The two primary members of the band are vocalist/guitarist Kurt Bachman and r Joey Daub on drums, who were joined by several others after their 1989 debut album, Extraction from Mortality. The band was jointly signed to Roadrunner Records, and the Christian label R.E.X. Music. Several mainstream magazines praised the second album Sanity Obscure that was released in 1990. The album became more popular than Believer’s first album, and after the release Believer toured with the English death metal band Bolt Thrower and the Canadian thrash metal band Sacrifice. Joined by bands Cynic and Pestilence on the label’s roster, Roadrunner Records pushed a progressive metal/thrash campaign with the three bands called “The Breed Beyond”.
In 1993, Believer released its most technical, progressive, and ambitious album titled Dimensions. The lyrics on their thid album deal with the philosophical paradoxes and the ponderings of Sigmund Freud, Thomas J. J. Altizer, Ludwig Feuerbach and Jean-Paul Sartre about the existence of God. The symphonic metal suite, ”Trilogy of Knowledge”, divided into three chapters and an intro, is a 20 minute+ epic written around the biblical story of the life of Christ and the knowledge of good and evil. ”Trilogy of Knowledge” once again featured the orchestral compositions of Scott Laird and soprano vocals by Julianne Laird Hoge. During the Dimensions tour, Scott laird played violin and viola. Believer disbanded in 1994; however, in March 2005, Joey Daub announced that he and Bachman reformed the band.