Avenger (band)
| Avenger | |
|---|---|
| General information | |
| origin | Newcastle upon Tyne , England |
| Genre (s) | New Wave of British Heavy Metal , Speed Metal |
| founding | 1982, 2005 |
| resolution | 1986 |
| Website | http://www.myspace.com/avengeruk |
| Current occupation | |
| Gary Young | |
| Dean Thompson | |
Electric guitar |
Liam Thompson |
| Andy Watson | |
| Roddy B | |
| former members | |
Electric bass |
Huw Holding |
Electric bass |
Mick Moore |
Drums |
Darren Kurland |
Electric guitar |
Sean Jefferies |
Electric guitar |
Glenn S. Howes |
Electric guitar |
Les Cheetham |
Electric guitar |
John Brownless |
Electric guitar |
Greg Reiter |
Electric guitar |
Steve Bird |
singing |
Brian Ross |
singing |
Ian Swift |
Avenger is an English New Wave of British Heavy Metal and Speed Metal band from Newcastle upon Tyne that was formed in 1982, disbanded in 1986, reunited in 2005 and became Avenger in 2007 UK calls.
history
The band was founded in 1982 by ex- Blitzkrieg members Mick Moore (electric bass) and Brian Ross (vocals), as well as drummer Gary Young and guitarist Steve Bird. Since Moore and Ross were already in contact with Neat Records through Blitzkrieg , the label Avenger also signed. After developing the first songs, they appeared with the song Hot and Heavy Express on the split release One Take No Dubs by Neat Records. After the single Too Wild to Tame was recorded in 1983 , the band swapped vocalists for Satan's , so Ian Swift was now Avenger and Ross Satan joined. Steve Bird had to leave the band due to hearing problems, which is why he was replaced by John Brownless. The music on this was actually intended for Blitzkrieg and was recorded by the band in late 1981, but never released. Guitarist Lee Cheetham, who was previously a guest musician with Avenger, then joined the band as a permanent member, whereupon guitarist Brownless left the band a short time later. This was followed by appearances in the Benelux countries . After that, the band recorded their debut album, which was released in 1984, and made further appearances in Europe in 1985 . The tour included six performances in three countries. A short time later, Greg Reiter joined the line-up as the new guitarist, who had become aware of the band through an advertisement in Kerrang magazine and replaced Cheetham. In 1985 the second album Killer Elite was released . Then came Darren Kurland as the new drummer, who replaced Young. In the 1980s, the band created music videos for three songs ( Under the Hammer , Run for Your Life and Revenge Attack ) and toured the United States with Liege Lord . At times, the band also added a Roman two after their name in order not to be confused with the band Rage , then still active under the name Avenger. In 1986 the band broke up while touring the United States because singer Swift broke his leg and no help could be found. In addition, there was still no support from Neat Records.
After the breakup, Swift joined Nuclear Power , while Young joined Blitzkrieg. In the 1990s, Moore sued Neat Records for not receiving any support from the label and for having to finance their tours themselves. In addition, the label continued to market the albums after the band broke up without receiving any money for it. The group eventually won the trial. In 1995 there were rumors that the band would reunite. However, it was just a jam session between Moore, Reiter and Joe Hasselvander ( Pentagram , Raven ). In addition, the previously released albums were re-released through Sanctuary Records and Frontline Records towards the end of the 1990s . In 2005 the plans for further appearances began. In June the band played in England, as well as in July in Germany and in October in the Netherlands , the group now consisting of singer Ian Swift, drummer Gary Young, bassist Mick Moore and guitarist Glenn S. Howes (Blitzkrieg / Tygers of Pan Tang / Earthrod / The Reign ) and Liam Thompson. In 2007 the band renamed itself Avenger UK to avoid confusion with bands of the same name. Mick Moore left the band in late 2005. Sean Jeffries joined the band as new guitarist and Moore Huw Holding joined the band for bassist. Guitarist Howes then had to leave the band. After that, the band made appearances in Europe while working on a new album. In July the band took part in the Headbangers Open Air in Elmshorn , which also included bands like Candlemass , Sinner , Malice and Hollow Ground . In September the band performed at the UK's Metieval Festival , which featured groups like Skyclad , Talamaskar , Heathen Foray and Heat Ray . In November the band also performed at the British Hard Rock Hell together with Cradle of Filth , Twisted Sister , UFO , Girlschool and Saxon . In 2006 the album The Slaughter Never Stops should be released, but the quality of the album was not enough for the band that it should never be released. The recordings, which took place together with Demolition Records , were for the band only as test recordings for an album that was to appear in 2007 under the name The Slaughter Continues . The recording was to take place with Fred Pursers (Tygers of Pan Tang) at Trinity Heights Studio . However, this album was not to be released either.
style
The band played classical music from the New Wave of British Heavy Metal, with the quality of the songs on the first album being described as minimal; Killer Elite was an impressive U-turn, but still far from being pioneering or even original.
Discography
- Demo '82 (Demo, 1982, self-published)
- One Take No Dubs (Split with Black Rose , Hellanbach and Alien, 1982, Neat Records )
- Too Wild to Tame (single, 1983, Neat Records)
- Blood Sports (album, 1984, Neat Records)
- Killer Elite (album, 1985, Neat Records)
- Blood Sports / Killer Elite (compilation, 1985, Neat Records)
- Metal City (Split- VHS with Venom , Saracen and Warfare , 1987, Prism)
- Too Wild to Tame - The Anthology (Compilation, 2002, Castle Communications )
- The Slaughter Never Stops (Album, 2014, Rocksector Records )
Web links
Individual evidence
- ^ Matthias Mader, Otger Jeske, Manfred Kerschke: NWoBHM New Wave of British Heavy Metal The glory Days . Iron Pages, Berlin 1995, p. 91 .
- ↑ AVENGER , accessed on February 11, 2013.
- ↑ AVENGER >> AVENGER UK - UK ( Memento from December 14, 2013 in the Internet Archive ), accessed on February 10, 2013.
- ↑ Eduardo Rivadavia: Killer Elite - Avenger , accessed February 11, 2013.