CORROSION OF CONFORMITY have been honored with a gold certification for their 1994 album “Deliverance”
CORROSION OF CONFORMITY‘s album “Deliverance,” which was released 29 years ago and marked Pepper Keenan‘s debut as frontman, has officially received gold certification from the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) for selling over half a million copies.
The RIAA established its gold and platinum awards program in 1958 to acknowledge artists and create a benchmark for measuring the commercial success of sound recordings. The program trademarked the gold record and standardized the practice of awarding artists for music sales achievements. Presently, the RIAA grants a gold honor for 500,000 units sold, a platinum honor for 1 million units sold, and a diamond award for over 10 million units sold.
As for streaming, one permanent digital album or physical album sale counts as 1 unit for certification, while 10 permanent track downloads from the album also count as 1 unit. Additionally, 1,500 on-demand audio and/or video streams from the album equal 1 unit. For songs, 150 on-demand audio and/or video streams count as 1 unit for certification.
“Deliverance,” released in September 1994, became CORROSION OF CONFORMITY‘s best-selling album. It gained momentum thanks to the radio success of tracks like “Clean My Wounds,” which was also featured in the “Tekken: The Motion Picture” soundtrack, and “Albatross.”
In 2019, CORROSION OF CONFORMITY celebrated the 25th anniversary of “Deliverance” with the “Deliverance Revival Tour MMXIX” European tour. The band initially made a mark as an influential hardcore punk/heavy metal crossover act and achieved critical success with a new lineup on their 1991 album “Blind.” This trajectory continued, reaching a wider audience when Keenan took over as the primary vocalist for “Deliverance” and “Wiseblood” (1996). These two albums blended the raw energy of their earlier works with classic rock-inspired songwriting, more spacious production, and improved execution. They further solidified their position in the music scene through relentless touring, sharing stages with acts like METALLICA, CLUTCH, EYEHATEGOD, and others.
After the release of “In The Arms Of God” in 2005, Keenan focused his efforts on the New Orleans supergroup DOWN, until he reunited with CORROSION OF CONFORMITY for their 2018 album “No Cross No Crown.”
In 2014, following almost a decade as a guitarist with DOWN, Pepper reconnected with the core trio of CORROSION OF CONFORMITY—guitarist Woody Weatherman, bassist/vocalist Mike Dean, and drummer Reed Mullin—to embark on an intense touring schedule. The group hit the road hard, and after a year of touring, they began recording. Three months ago, CORROSION OF CONFORMITY announced the return of drummer Stanton Moore for their upcoming LP. The highly anticipated follow-up to “No Cross No Crown,” described as “brutal-sounding,” is tentatively scheduled for release in 2024.
Tragically, in January 2020, drummer Reed Mullin passed away at the age of 53. He co-founded CORROSION OF CONFORMITY in 1982 as a hardcore punk act alongside Weatherman and Dean. Over the preceding four years, Mullin had missed several shows due to various health issues, including an alcohol-related seizure in June 2016.
The recording of “No Cross No Crown” took about forty days spread over the course of a year at a North Carolina studio, with longtime producer John Custer at the helm.
