Formed: 1995
From:
Vancouver, BC,
Canada
Last Known Status: Active
Background
With a musical resume that includes well-known names such as Steve Vai, Jason Newsted, James Murphy, Geezer Butler, Stuck Mojo, The Wildhearts, Skinny Puppy, Frontline Assembly, and Paradise Lost, the frenzied work ethic and more furious musical visions of the gifted and prolific Devin Townsend needed an outlet. In 1994, Strapping Young Lad was created to punish the senses of the metal underground and to create their own niche of labyrinthine metal. Their self-produced 1995 debut album, "Heavy As a Really Heavy Thing," was nothing short of premeditated assault and battery. Two years later, with the brotherhood of the band solidified, the scene was devastated with the impressively dark, savage, and self-produced obliteration of City (recorded at Steve Vai’s Mothership Studios with acclaimed Swedish engineer Daniel Bergstrand [Meshuggah, In Flames, Darkane]), which Revolver Magazine likened - in their “69 Greatest Metal Albums Of All Time” list - to “getting hit by Muhammad Ali.” One listen and you’ll see why it is the perfect background music for the Clockwork Orange scene where Malcolm McDowell’s eyes are forced open as he’s subjected to endless scenes of violence. In the spring 1997, SYL embarked on the Full Of Hate European tour which included Entombed, Obituary, and Crowbar, and then returned to North America to tour with Testament. In an effort to capture the unfiltered and uncompromising insanity of their performances, the band recorded two shows in Melbourne, Australia in 1998 resulting in the once again self-produced "No Sleep Till Bedtime," which has become the definitive SYL live document crowned with splashes of humor, which fans at the Dynamo Festival could attest to.
Lending credibility to the statement “Genius knows no rest,” Devin Townsend has also nurtured a flourishing solo career while concurrently honing his talents as a producer. In the midst of seven official solo releases, Devin has cultivated production credits on Zimmers Hole (featuring SYL bandmates Jed Simon and Byron Stroud), Gene Hoglan’s The Almighty Punchdrunk, Just Cause, December’s Lament Configuration, and Natural Born Chaos by Sweden’s Soilwork, named Album of The Year for 2002 by Brave Words & Bloody Knuckles.
With so much hate expended out at the world, it’s a wonder there’s any angst left to guide you on another expansive odyssey across a vast, unexplored landscape of exasperation, but Devin Townsend is someone who abhors mediocrity and incompetence in any form. On this self-titled fourth album, "SYL," every song is an exhalation of life (regardless of its insolence) where you will experience three or four genres of metal in the course of the same album. The Armageddon-bound aggression (spawned from the events that centered around New York City on September 11th, 2001) can clearly be heard in the various tongues it speaks in: through its black and death metal riffs (courtesy of Devin and Jed Simon), in the thrash backbone firmly anchored by ex-Dark Angel/ex-Death/ex-Testament Gene Hoglan’s thunderous drumming, in the industrial-yet-still-human rhythms mimicking the unforgiving throbs of a migraine headache in Byron Stroud’s bass work, and in the rabid energy of the harsh, harmonic, and howled vocals of Devin’s manic verse with lung capacity that Luciano Pavarotti would envy.
Produced by Devin and recorded at the famed Armoury Studios (KISS, Aerosmith, Mötley Crüe) in Vancouver, British Columbia, SYL is bludgeoningly loud, lead-lined, unbridled, vein-rupturing, stroke-inducing, damn-the-consequences instrumentation. This is rage no longer turned masochistically inward but outward. This is an explosion in the face. This, without question, is war music. In the words of Devin Townsend, SYL is "an extreme assault of the most musical nature." In the layman terms of Kerrang! Magazine, the music of chaos believers Strapping Young Lad is "like sticking your head into the jet nozzle of a Stealth bomber."
Chaos is not hell, it is glorious, and it can create living blueprints of a master plan for retribution such as what you're holding in your hands right now. Never expect anything less than extremity from Strapping Young Lad.
Latest Strapping Young Lad News
Below is our complete Strapping Young Lad news coverage, including columns and articles pertaining to the band. Some articles listed may be indirectly related, such as side projects of the band members, etc.
Note: We began associating news directly with bands in late 2003. Therefore, earlier band news may not be listed on this page.
Displaying records 141 - 145 of 145 1 2 ... 6 7 8 Last
Behemoth Complete Work On Demigod
Polish black metal outfit Behemoth have completed work on their new album, "Demigod", for a fall release. The group's frontman Nergal has just finished mixing the album at Dug-Out studios in Uppsala, Sweden with Daniel Bergstrand (Meshuggah, In Flames). Mastering duties were handled at the Cutting Room studios in Stockholm.
Commented Nergal: "Working with Daniel was awesome. Things went pretty smooth and we completed all the mixes within two weeks. It seems like this move was essential for us... The sound has never been so intense and fresh. Bergstrand brought a lot of new ideas into our music and I'm more than sure that 'Demigod' gained a new dimension. It was so much vital and necessary to have someone else involved in the production process than ourselves. It's great to work with somebody who has great experience and knows how to deal with the band like ours. I mean...this guy has worked with [some] of the biggest extreme metal bands around like Meshuggah, Strapping Young Lad or In Flames. I think it speaks for itself... "
He added: "It's the new beginning for us. 'Demigod', with all its might and splendor, rises above anything we've done before...Don't get me wrong. I love our previous works, but with this record, it feels like we've been locked in a dark room all this time, and now we came out and saw the light...I believe we achieved the best song writing and best production we could. Having such a great and supporting labels behind our back let us release new creativity and make something we haven't done before. In my opinion 'Demigod' is a way more extreme record than 'Zos Kia Cultus' but on the other hand it contains more classic influences...more eerie harmonies and catchiness. It's still difficult for me to get a right distance to this album as I've been working on it for last few months with no break and no rest. It still surprises me where all this enthusiasm comes from after all the energy I spent on this record ha ha..."
"Demigod" track listing:
01. Sculpting The Throne Ov Seth
02. Demigod
03. Conquer All (mp3 clip)
04. The Nephilim Rising
05. Towards Babylon
06. Before Aeons Came
07. Mysterium Coniunctionis (Hermanubis)
08. XUL
09. Slaves Shall Serve (mp3 clip)
10. The Reign Ov Shemsu-Hor
"Demigod" is tentatively scheduled for release this fall on Regain Records in Europe, Mystic Records in Poland, Raven Music in Israel and Irond in Russia. A U.S. release is planned for early 2005.
Watch The Get Thrashed Documentary Trailer Online
The trailer for the forthcoming Get Thrashed documentary has been put online here. The documentary will include interviews by the following artists:
METALLICA, SLAYER, ANTHRAX, EXODUS, GODSMACK, DISTURBED, SEVENDUST, TESTAMENT, OVERKILL, DEATH ANGEL, SHADOWS FALL, MESHUGGAH, IN FLAMES, STRAPPING YOUNG LAD, STONE SOUR, SUPERJOINT RITUAL, LAMB OF GOD, VIO-LENCE, KREATOR, NUCLEAR ASSAULT, VOIVOD, CHIMAIRA, BIOHAZARD, FOZZY/WWE Superstar Chris Jericho, SEPULTURA, KITTIE, THE HAUNTED, D.R.I., SOILWORK, KILLSWITCH ENGAGE, HEATHEN, Brian Slagel, Jon & Marsha Zazula, authors Ian Christe (Sound of the Beast) and Steven Blush (American Hardcore), NY metal radio DJ Eddie Trunk, Rampage Radio's Ron Quintana and featuring the music of unsigned bands: EXIT TO ETERNITY, OSMIUM, CONCRETE COFFIN, VISCID, NOCTURNAL FEAR, KAOS, RESPONSE NEGATIVE, ULYSSES SIREN
Strapping Young Lad Name New DVD
Vancouver's very own Strapping Young Lad have completed their new live DVD, entitled "For Those Aboot To Rock," and is expected to be released in late September through Century Media.
The DVD reportedly features a full set from the band's sold-out hometown show at The Commodore Ballroom in Vancouver recorded earlier this year, plus some "hilarious" backstage antics and video clips.
In addition, Strapping Young Lad are scheduled to enter Armoury studios in Vancouver, B.C. on August 19 to begin recording their new album, tentatively scheduled to be released in early 2005. Devin Townsend will produce the effort, and the band are promising "a full heavy metal shitstorm." Some song titles scheduled to be on the CD include "Love," "Imperial," "Jux," "Black Infinite" and "Zen Of Metal."
Strapping Young Lad Re-Sign To Century Media
Canadian quintet STRAPPING YOUNG LAD have officially re-signed with Century Media Records worldwide and are already hard at work on the follow-up to their critically acclaimed "SYL" album. The group also just completed their first DVD, which is set for a late summer release. The DVD features a full set from the band’s sold-out hometown show at The Commodore Ballroom in Vancouver recorded earlier this year, plus some hilarious backstage antics and video clips. Expect a new STRAPPING YOUNG LAD studio album to surface early next year. Songtitles set to appear on the CD include "Love", "Imperial", "Jux", "Black Infinite" and "Zen Of Metal".
Commented SYL mastermind Devin Townsend (vocals, guitars): The SYL DVD is really quite INSANE looking. Marcus Rogers, who shot the 'Relentless' video, put together the entire thing. It features interviews, a really sick show, crushing audio and cool graphics. This will hopefully be the product that shows more people how fucking bad-ass we actually are as a live force. I wanted to call it 'for those aboot to rock'...but was promptly outvoted.
"Byron Stroud (bass) is rocking the globe with FEAR FACTORY right now, this is killer for many reasons. He gets to keep doing what he loves with good friends behind a smokin' new record, while affording Sir Gene Hoglan and myself the opportunity to fuck each other up with new SYL material as we prepare the new record.
"You heard it right folks, the mighty SYL have re-signed a deal with longtime partners in crime Century Media Records to make not only the DVD, but also two more full-length discs!!! FUCK YEAH! METAL!!! I personally have had some mighty brainstorms on the STRAPPING creative front... Black Infinity, Space Metal, Zen, Physics, Spirit, Death, Void, Birth, you name it. The last record, 'SYL', as cool as it was, can be expanded on now in so many ways. The commitment is there, and where SYL was to be the bludgeoning, classic heavy metal live anthem record, the new material is just FUCKED. More chaos, more loops, more echos, more chaos more chaos more chaos, and it is BEAUTIFUL this time around as well.
"I've been talking to my old buddy Daniel Bergstrand, who was responsible for the sonics on 'City', and there’s a real good possibility that we will come together for the new material."
Killerich To Be Dimmu Borgir Session Drummer?
Reno Killerich (PANZERCHRIST, VILE, HUMAN ERUPT) is strongly rumored to have landed the session-drummer gig in DIMMU BORGIR for the group's upcoming live appearances. The Danish skinsman, who rehearsed with DIMMU on Friday (March 26), is expected to join the band during Ozzfest 2004 as well as for the preceding European and South American dates, according to informed sources. In addition, it has been revealed that legendary drummer Gene Hoglan (STRAPPING YOUNG LAD, DARK ANGEL) has offered his services to the group in the event that DIMMU BORGIR don't find a suitable replacement for Nick Barker, who was unceremoniously "removed" from the band's lineup in January.
Killerich, widely considered to be one of the most skilled speed/grind drummers around, won the title "fastest feet in the world" with more than 800 hits on the pedals in one minute at the NAMM music convention in the U.S., according to published reports.