Tag: speed metal

Seattle’s SKELATOR To Release ‘Blood Empire’ EP and Reissue ‘King Of Fear’ On Vinyl In September

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Seattle’s SKELATOR will release the new “Blood Empire” EP and reissue their fourth studio album, “King Of Fear” on Sept 23 via Gates Of Hell Records — a double-dose of epic speed metal!

The “Blood Empire” EP was recorded in September and October 2021 at the band’s rehearsal studio and home studios. The album was mixed by guitarist Robbie Houston, with mastering by Collin Jordan of The Boiler Room Mastering. The cover art was created by Max Nazaryan.

Like so many of their contemporaries, SKELATOR’s 2020 plans — including a tour in support of their 2019 “Cyber Metal” album — were thwarted by the pandemic. It prompted the band to hunker down and focus on new material while also dealing with a lineup change.

“We had the framework of a song called ‘Vengeance’ which later became ‘The First Empire’,’ says guitarist Rob Steinway. “This song was our catalyst for the rest of the songs that appear on the EP. During the first bit of 2020, we parted ways with our bassist and had our friend Leona [Hayward] join. Most of 2020 and 2021 were spent working on songs remotely, exchanging files, and recording demos until restrictions in our area were eased and we were able to rehearse in person again and actually record. After completing the music for ‘The First Empire’, we began working on ‘Good Day To Die’ as our second song, which went through several revisions as well but was also the first songs that had completely written music and lyrics before we even played through the entire thing in person as a group. ‘Deeds Of Honor’ and ‘Bloodwine’ were written and finished at the same time.”

Steinway describes “Blood Empire” as “less futuristic” sounding than “Cyber Metal”; drawing influence from the epic heavy metal and thrash influenced sounds of SKELATOR’s early releases and also notes the production is less pristine. Vocalist Jason Conde-Houston notes that “Cyber Metal” was inspired by German power metal bands GAMMA RAY, GRAVE DIGGER and PRIMAL FEAR with sci-fi and ’80s movies, whereas “Blood Empire” tackles new lyrical themes.

“The EP is straight-up inspired by Klingon lore from the entire ‘Star Trek’ franchise,” he says. “It’s a bit more primitive in nature, but still with some very technical skills involved. I’d say that the two epic journeys will impress more than we have in the past.”

“King Of Fear” will be brought to life on vinyl — a long overdue happening considering the number of requests SKELATOR fielded from fans to have the album on this format. The album has also been purposely re-mastered for vinyl and will feature expanded cover art.

“‘King of Fear’ had only been released on CD and digital download — we desperately wanted to release it on vinyl, but we struggled to find anyone that was wanting to work with us on that,” says Steinway. “At the time of its original release, we weren’t officially on any label, just collaborating with Swords & Chains Records to get the CD distributed. Every show we played, people always ask if we had ‘King Of Fear’ on vinyl yet, along with requests from people to our social media pages. I think we all have personally said, ‘Sometime soon; we really want to release it on vinyl’ hundreds of times. We approached Gates Of Hell with the idea and they were receptive and helped us bring it to life. The art we had is great on CD, don’t get me wrong, but having a larger version will really be a treat and the detail will stick out a lot more.”

 

Outside of the release of “Blood Empire” and reissue of “King Of Fear”, SKELATOR is also planning on making a return to the live stage.

“It’s been two years and I think our fans deserve to hear some Heavy Metal Madness once again,” says Conde-Houston. “We already have song ideas for the next release so there is no stopping this train. We will continue to deliver new material to the masses as long as there is oxygen in our lungs.”

“Empire Of Blood” track listing:

 

  1. Deeds Of Honor
  2. Good Day To Die
  3. The First Empire
  4. Bloodwine

 

“King Of Fear” track listing:

 

  1. King Of Fear
  2. Stronger Than Steel
  3. Temple Of The Witch
  4. Sword Of The Dawn
  5. Raging Demon
  6. Curse Of The Black Hand
  7. Test The Metal
  8. Honor Is Life
  9. Necromancer
  10. Master of the Universe (BONUS TRACK)

SÖLICITÖR – All Debts on Death: New 7” Available!

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New 7-inch from one of North America’s most exciting new speed metal bands!

Hot off the heels of 2020’s no-holds-barred Spectral Devastation, Sölicitör returns with the stopgap All Debts on Death 7-inch that charts new territory while still offering first-pumping speed metal anthems!

ORDER HERE!

Shortly after the release of 2020’s Spectral Devastation, the members of Pacific Northwest speed metallers Sölicitör took a long, hard look at the process that went into the album’s creation. The band raced to finish Spectral Devastation with an eye toward their first-ever appearance at the legendary Keep it True festival in Germany and European dates that would follow, shows, that, unfortunately, were canceled due to the global pandemic. In doing so, Sölicitör felt they rushed some of the key elements of the album’s songwriting, even though the reaction to the songs was almost universally positive. Going into 2021, Sölicitör decided to push themselves to write songs that were more aggressive and formidable. Enter the searing two-song All Debts on Death 7-inch.

All Debts on Death was recorded in late February 2021 at Sentinel Studios with producer/engineer Detto, who has recently gained attention for his organic production jobs for death metal bands Cerebral Rot, Mortiferum and Oxygen Destroyer. Detto tracked the band on half-inch tape, then recorded the tape to a digital program where guitars and vocals were laid down, ensuring a full and heavy sound.

As a natural function of their collaboration with Detto, Sölicitör ventured into new territory regarding production values. The two songs are devoid of effects, albeit some minor reverb on the chorus on the vocals, although vocalist Amy Lee Carlson opted to completely forego doubled harmonies. The rhythm section of Damon Cleary-Erickson (bass) and Johan Waymire (drums) is much higher in the mix, further complementing the guitar duo of Matt Vogan and Pat Fry. However, the “less is more” approach for studio production doesn’t hinder the two songs. “Killer for Hire” is a classic Sölicitör speed-burner, complete with a fist-bumping chorus, while “Megalomaniac” ventures into new territory, including riffs that bring to mind legendary Norwegian black metallers Darkthrone, topped off by Carlson’s soaring vocals.

As positive signs gradually start to emerge from the pandemic, Sölicitör is chomping at the bit to return to the live stage. In the meantime, the band is slowly assembling the pieces for their next studio album — due sometime in 2022. Consider All Debts on Death a sign of what’s to come!

All Debts on Death track listing:

  1. Killer for Hire
  2. Megalomanic

Sölicitör lineup:

Amy Lee Carlson -Vocals

Patrick Fry – Guitar

Matt Vogan – Guitar

Damon Cleary-Erickson – Bass

Johann Waymire – Drums

German Speedsters TORPËDO Join GATES OF HELL RECORDS

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Gates Of Hell Records is proud to announce the signing of Nuremberg, Germany speed metallers TORPËDO. The label will re-release the band’s 2019 “Mechanic Tyrants” demo in early 2020 with brand-new cover art.
Originally formed in November 2018 as a side-project with the goal of covering old-school metal songs while peppering in a few of their own compositions, TORPËDO became a serious band once its members realized how strong their chemistry was. The band got to work on the “Mechanic Tyrants” demo — it sold out quickly, prompting TORPËDO to go on a search for a record company.

“We wrote to several labels we thought would fit our band and got to choose between three or four of them,” says bassist Danny Keck. “In the end, we settled for Gates Of Hell for several reasons: the medium they wanted to release the demo (CD and vinyl), they have a good reputation and they signed a lot of bands that we like personally like TRAVELER, VULTURES VENGEANCE and PULVER.”

“Mechanic Tyrants” was recorded in a basement studio of the band’s Nuremberg hometown. (“Everything was improvised down there; there wasn’t even a toilet — we just used the sink,” laughs Keck.) The members of TORPËDO (who are rounded out by vocalist/guitarist Flo Fait, second guitarist Alex Starbreaker and drummer Phil Srešý) took a truly hands-on approach: They mixed and mastered the demo themselves, leading to its raw, but natural feel, one that harnesses the band’s influences of NWOBHM and speed metal.

The one difference between the original release of “Mechanic Tyrants” and the Gates Of Hell Records version is the album cover. The band has decided to update the cover art with a drawing courtesy of Fait. “The original cover is totally ugly which was the reason we used it in the first place,” says Keck. “We thought it was funny. To be honest, we still think it’s funny. Never had we thought that we would receive such good feedback. So, we figured that since this was going to be a re-release, we need to come up with a better cover, especially since it will be released on vinyl.”
Keck says TORPËDO already has five new songs in the can and several more in the works. In the meantime, the young thrashers will be doing what they do best: bringing their brand of metal in front of a live audience.
“I guess people in front of the stage can describe it better than the guys on stage, but I’ll try it anyway: I would say our shows are energetic, with lots of movement and headbanging on stage,” wraps Keck. “And honest. I think we do a very honest live show. We totally believe in what we do up there on stage and stand behind it one-hundred percent.”

TERRIFIANT Signs With GATES OF HELL RECORDS

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Belgian throwback metal miscreants TERRIFIANT are the latest addition to the Gates Of Hell Records roster. The label will issue the band’s debut full-length in February 2020.

As the story goes, TERRIFIANT was formed when garrulous, rough-housing troublemaker guitarist ZZ Slop met a “mysterious sleazeball” by the name of Lord Terrifiant at a festival parking lot. The two proceeded to hash out their idea for a metal band that would commit itself to the “ways of old and forgotten metal gods of yore.” Enter TERRIFANT.

The band’s lineup was eventually rounded out in 2018 after scouring every back alley, dive bar and street corner in their native Brussels, eventually landing the services of Alcoloic (drums), SlimeValdi (guitars) and Sniffany Baggs (bass). Terrifiant, appropriately enough, found their sound by mixing the rawness of NWOBHM and early U.S. metal, along with strong nods to metal from the Far East. The result is an uncompromising offering to the metal gods backed with a “fist full of rock ‘n’ roll attitude and seriously bad intentions.”

To date, TERRIFIANT has just a self-titled demo released via Messe Noir to their credit, which can be streamed below. A seven-inch version is coming soon.

(PHOTO CREDIT: Sam Barhd)

FINLAND’S CHEVALIER AND LEGIONNAIRE PLAN SPLIT RELEASE

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Representing a new breed in Finnish classic metal, CHEVALIER and LEGIONNAIRE will be teaming up for a split release via Gates Of Hell Records. The split – featuring one song from each band – will be recorded at Black Floyd’s Analog Studio in Hämeenkyrö, Finland. The recording will also mark the first Gates Of Hell release for CHEVALIER.

Comments CHEVALIER guitarist Tommi Puurunen: “We asked LEGIONNAIRE to do a split with us after playing gigs together to show the rest of the world a collaboration of Finnish metal played the way it never really has been played around here. Our side of the split is a fast-paced ripper taking you back a few centuries…”

“We are good friends with CHEVALIER and we are eagerly looking forward to the sessions and the release,” adds LEGIONNAIRE drummer Akseli Häärä. We are quite confident about the split release because we think the combination of LEGIONNAIRE and CHEVALIER is killer! That has already been proven since we’ve shared the stage with them a couple of times. There will be lots of epic guitar action, medieval tunes and speed coming up! Our song is a solid follow-up to the freshly-released full-length.”

Formed in 2016 in Helsinki, CHEVALIER took the underground by storm with its “A Call To Arms” EP. Recorded in the band’s rehearsal room, “A Call To Arms” showcased the banshee screams of vocalist Emma Grönqvist alongside furious IRON MAIDEN gallops and MERCYFUL FATE-like song structures.

LEGIONNAIRE already has one Gates Of Hell release to their credit – this year’s stalwart “Dawn Of Genesis”. Heralded for its relentless dual-guitar action and emotive vocals of Aku Tiensuu, “Dawn Of Genesis” instantly made LEGIONNAIRE a favorite among old-school metal fans. Prior to “Dawn Of Genesis”, the band released two demos before signing with Gates Of Hell.