Gates Of Hell Records is proud to announce the signing of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, blackened thrash metal outfit WILD BEYOND.
The band’s self-titled debut will be released on April 14 and will feature cover art from the acclaimed Adam Burke (ANGEL WITCH, ETERNAL CHAMPION, TEMPLE OF VOID). WILD BEYOND features guitarist/vocalist Edward Gonet (DAEVA, ex-INFERNAL STRONGHOLD), drummer Evan Madden (ex-WOE and WOODS OF YPRES) and bassist/keyboardist/guitarist Jimmy Viola.
The idea for WILD BEYOND was born in the middle of the Covid lockdown of 2020, when Gonet impulse-purchased a Randy Rhodes Flying V guitar and started composing after five years of not playing. A year later, with songs and riffs under his belt, Gonet was introduced to Viola and Madden through SONJA drummer Grzesiek Czapla. The trio set forth to compose a full-length album pulsing with destructive cosmic majesty and street metal overtones.
“Back in the day, I used to hang flyers around the city to find musicians to play with, and you never knew who would show up at your house,” says Gonet. “There are fucking mutants all over Philadelphia. I didn’t have to do that this time. The band came together rather effortlessly.”
It wasn’t long, either, that the band fell onto the radar of Gates Of Hell Records.
WILD BEYOND’s sound is influenced by the second wave of Norwegian black metal (DARKTHRONE, IMMORTAL) and early thrash (SLAYER, SODOM), with VADER and BATHORY thrown in for good measure.
“Black metal’s mysteriousness and the allure of darkness and evil made it an easy choice to pair with our love of thrash,” the band says. “We wanted to create a classic black metal record, but we also tend to play like speed demons.”
WILD BEYOND’s full length embodies the hyperactive imaginations, anxieties and aggressions of its personnel. This debut will inspire the metal legions to bang their heads, light ceremonial candles in seance, and summon malevolent forces from BEYOND.
“WILD BEYOND speaks to our classic inspirations, but I hope this record sounds like ‘us’ above all,” says Viola. “Eddie’s vocal venom and lyrics are one of a kind. Evan blasts like a battering ram, yet his drum parts are meticulously crafted. And the bass punches through like a frost-covered fist.”