Impaled Nazarene

Their fourth album, Latex Cult  (1996) was a far better success but nonetheless missed the chart positions. Jarva would leave almost immediately after its completion with Jani Lehtosaari taking his place soon after. It would be two years later when they returned to follow-up with the release with Rapture (1998), an album also pushing closer to the punkier side of death metal, naming themselves "Nuclear Metal". Nihil (2000), on the other hand, leaned more in a basic heavy metal direction while also featuring the guitar work of Alexi Laiho, who joined part-time after a Russiangig with his band, Children of Bodom. Mikael Arnkil would then replace Lehtosaari on bass.

Also ongoing at this time was the side project Diabolos Rising, soon after renamed Raism, an operation by Mika Luttinen, along with shaven-headed frontman Mika X6X, MW Daoloth (of Necromantia; keyboards) and with Sotiris (of Septic Flesh; guitar). Featuring a mix of death metal riffs with techno beats a general extreme sound was the result. Under this moniker, their releases included the mini-album, The Very Best Of Pain (1996) and the full album, Aesthetic Terrorism (1998).

Impaled Nazarene was not done yet for Absence Of War Does Not Mean Peace emerged in 2001 Teemu Raimoranta replacing Laiho temporarily until the release of All That You Fear (2003) that saw Tuomo Louhio take over the position.

On March 16, 2003, guitarist Teemu Raimoranta, died of injuries sustained when falling from a bridge in Helsinki. He would be replaced by Tuomo "Tuomio" Louhio for Pro Patria Finlandia (2006), Manifest (2007), Road to the Octagon (2010) and Vigorous and Liberating Death (2014); the 2007 release seeing Tomi "UG" Ullgrén replacing Louhio. Goat of Mendes EP (2021) and Morbid Fate EP (2017) would follow.