A star-studded celebration of Venom‘s legacy lit up Uppsala, Sweden this week, as two of the band’s founding members reunited on stage with a who’s-who of extreme metal to mark 45 years of one of the genre’s most important albums.
The event took place on Tuesday, June 23 at Parksnäckan in Uppsala, honoring the 45th anniversary of Venom‘s landmark 1981 debut, Welcome To Hell. At its heart was a rare live reunion of Venom co-founders Jeff “Mantas” Dunn and Anthony “Abaddon” Bray, who were backed by a rotating cast of guest musicians paying homage to a record widely credited with laying the foundations for black metal and a host of other extreme metal subgenres.
The guest list was stacked with scene heavyweights. Joining Mantas and Abaddon were Nergal of Behemoth, David Vincent (Morbid Angel, Terrorizer, I Am Morbid), Erik Danielsson of Watain, Lord Ahriman of Dark Funeral, Sakis Tolis of Rotting Christ, Diva Satanica (Bloodhunter, ex-Nervosa) and Blake Arendell, among others. Fan-filmed footage of the performance has since surfaced online.
The one founding figure noticeably missing was Venom bassist and vocalist Conrad “Cronos” Lant.
During a previous interview with MetalKaoz, Mantas revealed that an olive branch had been extended to Cronos regarding the upcoming 2026 anniversary shows. The invitation, however, was swiftly rejected.
“I’ll tell you right now that for 2026, the 45th anniversary of Welcome To Hell, Cronos has been invited,” Mantas said at the time. “He was invited by me. He was invited by the lawyers in the [recent] court case. His answer was, ‘It’s not worth my time.’ That was his answer.”
Despite the rejection, Mantas admitted he isn’t exactly heartbroken over the decision, comparing the dynamic of the original lineup to returning to a poisonous personal relationship.
“What I say to people is this. Fair enough, everybody wants to see their favorite members back together. We know that… Think of the most toxic relationship you’ve ever been involved in, how it made you feel. At your age now, invite it back into your life,” he reasoned.
The relationship between the former bandmates remains fractured by legal battles. In 2024, Cronos filed a lawsuit against Abaddon and Plastic Head Music Distribution Ltd, claiming unauthorized use of copyrighted designs and merchandise.
Reflecting on the early days of Venom, Mantas lamented how business eventually eroded the brotherhood of the band.
“We were three young guys in a band, happy to be in a band and jamming. And that was it. And to us, at that particular point, it didn’t matter who wrote the songs or who did the drawings or whatever. It was one for all and all for one.”
He continued, noting that while the imagery was iconic, the legacy ultimately rests on the music itself.
“Now, it doesn’t matter what your logo looks like. It doesn’t matter how good your album cover is… A band isn’t about logos and t-shirts and stuff like that — it’s about music. Why do you wear the t-shirt of a band? Because you like their music. It’s as simple as that.”
Despite the acrimony, Mantas offered praise for Cronos‘s artistic contributions to their catalog.
“Now, I’m not saying that Cronos didn’t write anything. He wrote some phenomenal lyrics, and I’ve said this. The lyrics to ‘Manitou’, I think they are stunning. The lyrics to ‘Nightmare’ — amazing. We came up with some great songs together in the later stages.”
However, regarding the album they are about to celebrate, Mantas was clear about the creative credits: “Welcome To Hell is my first attempt at writing songs. I hadn’t written anything before that — not a thing.”
The Uppsala concert is part of a wider run of 45th-anniversary tribute shows Mantas and Abaddon have staged across 2026, including appearances at Germany’s Keep It True festival and the Netherlands’ Pitfest.
