Rising out of the shadows, the first-ever CD release of DEMENTIA "Cursed from the First" has arrived after 34 years of being shelved. Audio directly from the original DAT tape master has been remastered for improved quality and is ready to be heard in its full glory after over 34 years. Originally released in a very small limited run of cassettes, "CURSED" was sometimes thought of as a demo, although it boasted robust studio recording and 13 songs to make a full-length epic debut. The strength of "CURSED" helped land a recording contract with Tombstone Records which would release the band's better-known "Recuperate from Reality" in 1991. It's been said that a group must pay dues on its way down the road to success. For DEMENTIA, fate dealt out everything from exploding bus engines to blown out P.A., and at the worst possible times. Regardless of what stood in the way, the goal had been reached; "Cursed from the FirstT" DEMENTIA's debut release. The road had been long with the core of the band, Kurt Krause on bass, Brian Ericson on guitar, and Skylar Kennedy on drums. Starting as ONSLAUGHT in 1985, the name was changed to SYEYS in 1986, with Mike Walz on vocals and guitar joining in 1987 to complete the final lineup. The band toured Northern Wisconsin in 1988 in order to raise funds for recording a full-length album. New Year's Eve 1989 marked the birth of DEMENTIA as a truly original metal band bent on expressing its own ideas. All roadwork was set aside during the winter of 88-89 for intense pre-product rehearsals and finally studio sessions from February to April 1989 at Chicago's Midi Productions. "Cursed from the First" was released June 17th, 1989 and sold 120 copies in the first 3 days of release. Within a month a second run of 300 tapes was underway since the first run was nearly sold out. DEMENTIA endeavoured to bring the album to the attention of record companies, distributors, promoters, agents, managers, and anyone who would help promote the album on a national or international basis. The first overseas airplay was on ALPA in Lemans, France, who also requested an interview on tape. CFLX in Quebec provided more international airplay, and Chicago's top metal station WVVX also played from the album. Other stations included WRIU in Rhode Island. WORT and WUEC in Wisconsin, and KSMR in Minnesota. Fan mail came from New York, Texas, California and Italy, among other places, due to a favorable review in Wild Rags international metalzine. Wild Rags and Mosh Pit distributed the album through mail order, while record outlets in Minneapolis, Madison, LaCrosse, Eau Claire, Steven's Point, and Winona also carried the album. Helping to promote DEMENTIA was Eternal Productions and Promotions who arranged engagements in St. Paul, both opening and full-night shows. Flash forward to 2017 Heaven and Hell Records negotiated with the band to re-release "Recuperate". The idea was put forward to also include "Cursed" in a box set format, but plans to release to vinyl forestalled the process until just recently when "Recuperate" had sold out and the timing seemed right to go forward with a CD release of "Cursed". Deep diving into the promotional archives to unearth photos and other promotional material, everything seemed to come together at the beginning of 2023. The story of a midwestern metal band struggling against the odds at the close of the 80s can now be told, along with an intense soundtrack that takes you back to those days of Dementia in the night, rising out of the shadows of the past.
