Acrassicauda

Acrassicauda, an Iraqi thrash metal band, formed in Baghdad in 2000 and now operates out of Brooklyn, New York. They are widely recognized as the first heavy metal band to come out of Iraq. The group first gained notice outside the local metal scene through a Vice magazine profile, and later received broader attention from the documentary *Heavy Metal in Baghdad*, which followed their difficulties in Iraq.

The original lineup included lead vocalist Waleed Moudhafar, guitarist Tony Aziz Yaqoo (known professionally as Tony Aziz), bassist Firas Al-Lateef, drummer Marwan Hussein Riyadh (also Marwan Hussein), and vocalist-guitarist Faisal Talal Mustafa (also Faisal Talal or Faisal Mustafa). Moudhafar left in 2003, and Talal took over as lead vocalist. The band came together in 2000 when Riyadh and Talal met Aziz at a Baghdad fine arts school. Before the American invasion, all four members worked as journalists and translators. The name Acrassicauda comes from the Latin name for a black scorpion common in Iraq. Under Saddam Hussein, the band drew inspiration from bootleg tapes spanning heavy metal’s 30-year history.

During Saddam’s rule, the band performed with Moudhafar but faced censorship. In 2004, Vice magazine profiled the band, calling them the only heavy metal band in Baghdad. After Saddam’s overthrow, Acrassicauda staged a concert at the Al-Fanar Hotel in summer 2005, though power cuts interrupted the show. They practiced in a store complex basement until 2006, when the building, basement, and all their equipment were destroyed by a bomb. Facing death threats from Islamic militants and rising violence in Baghdad, the members fled individually to Syria.

In Syria, the band held a concert in a Damascus hotel basement. Syrian authorities forbade them from calling it a heavy metal show, so they advertised it as rock music. Because the Syrian audience was unfamiliar with their sound, they mostly played covers. The band lived in a small, windowless room in an apartment basement.