Mike Heller | |
---|---|
Background information | |
Born | [1] Brooklyn, New York, U.S. | January 17, 1982
Genres | |
Occupation | Drummer |
Years active | 2002–present [2] |
Member of | |
Formerly of |
Mike Heller (born January 17, 1982) is an American drummer known as a former member of the industrial metal band Fear Factory, member of the technical death metal band Malignancy, [3] the British heavy metal band Raven, and rock band The Lucid alongside bassist David Ellefson (ex Megadeth), guitarist Drew Fortier, and vocalist Vinnie Dombroski (Sponge). [4] Heller also formed the band System Divide [5] and is a session drummer with credits in many genres. [2]
Heller traces his musical and drumming influences across many genres, including gospel, Latin jazz and funk. [2] He has been known to incorporate these styles into his death metal compositions, [6] although they can be difficult to recognize when played at death metal tempos. Heller teaches current and aspiring extreme metal drummers [7] [8] and writes columns for Sick Drummer magazine. [9] He is known as a talented linear player, [5] a style which involves the use of two or more limbs, with no two limbs playing the same thing at the same time. [9] Heller plays session drums [10] and has collaborated with artists in disparate styles. [8] He joined the Yonkers, New York-based technical death metal band Malignancy in 2003, replacing Roger J. Beaujard. In 2008, he started the band System Divide with the Aborted vocalist Sven de Caluwé and the ex-Distorted vocalist Miri Milman. Heller joined Fear Factory in 2012 after the departure of Gene Hoglan. [5] [11] Heller performed on the 2020 debut album by Amahiru, a musical project led by Frédéric Leclercq and Saki. [12]
Heller has also recorded with bands and artists including Edei, Ryann, 208 Talks of Angels, Measure, Razorcult, Chikatillo, Pseudo Supremacy, Hollow, Death Dealer and Cryosaur.
David Warren Ellefson is an American musician, best known for his long tenure as the bassist and backing vocalist for thrash metal band Megadeth across two stints.
Fear Factory is an American industrial metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1989. Throughout the band's career, they have released ten full-length albums and have evolved through a succession of sounds, all in their main style of industrial metal. Over the years, Fear Factory has seen frequent changes in its lineup, with lead vocalist Burton C. Bell being the only consistent member for 31 years until his departure in 2020. Guitarist Dino Cazares is the only original member still in the band. The band went on hiatus in March 2002 following some internal disputes, but resumed activity a year later without founding member Cazares. Previous bassist Christian Olde Wolbers replaced him on guitar, while Byron Stroud handled bass duties. After a second hiatus in 2006, Fear Factory reunited in April 2009 with a new lineup that featured a returning Cazares, Gene Hoglan as the replacement of original drummer Raymond Herrera, and Bell and Stroud reprising their respective roles; this lineup recorded the band's seventh studio album titled Mechanize (2010). Wolbers and Herrera — together comprising 50% of the band's legal ownership — disputed the legitimacy of the reunited band, and a legal battle from both parties had begun. Despite this, Fear Factory has since released three more albums: The Industrialist (2012), Genexus (2015) and Aggression Continuum (2021).
Soulfly is an American heavy metal band formed in Phoenix, Arizona in 1997. Soulfly is led by former Sepultura frontman Max Cavalera, who formed the band after he left the Brazilian group in 1996. To date the band has released twelve studio albums, one tour EP, twenty-three singles, one video album, and twelve music videos. Their debut album, Soulfly, was released on April 21, 1998, while their most recent album, Totem, was released on August 5, 2022.
Timothy S. "Ripper" Owens is an American heavy metal singer who currently performs with KK's Priest, Spirits of Fire, the Three Tremors and A New Revenge. He first gained attention as the lead singer of Judas Priest and then Iced Earth. He took the nickname "Ripper" from the Judas Priest song "The Ripper" during his time in the tribute band British Steel.
Sean Landon Reinert was an American musician. He was the drummer for the rock band Æon Spoke and the drummer and cofounder of the progressive metal band Cynic along with Paul Masvidal until leaving the band in September 2015.
Destruction is a German thrash metal band formed in 1982. They have been credited as one of the "Big Four" of the German thrash metal scene, the others being Kreator, Sodom and Tankard. In addition to helping pioneer black metal, Destruction was part of the second wave of thrash metal in the mid-to-late 1980s, along with American bands Testament, Sacred Reich, Death Angel and Dark Angel. For most of the 1990s, the band was not signed to a record label and self-produced their albums until they signed a contract with Nuclear Blast in the early 2000s.
Hirax is an American thrash metal band from Cypress, California. Starting in 1984 under the leadership of vocalist Katon W. De Pena, the band played in Los Angeles and San Francisco with several of their thrash metal peers such as Metallica, Exodus, and Slayer. The band was an early example of thrash metal, speed metal and crossover thrash, yet inspired by cross-genre influences including blues vocalist Sam Cooke, who De Pena once cited as "the greatest vocalist [De Pena] has ever heard."
Massacre is a Florida death metal band formed in 1984. The band has reunited several times with varying lineups, most recently in late 2016.
Christian Francis Olde Wolbers is a Belgian musician, songwriter and producer. He is the bassist and backing vocalist of the rap metal/nu metal band Powerflo and the bass player of the thrash metal band Vio-lence. He is also a former bassist, guitarist and backing vocalist of the industrial metal band Fear Factory, and the hardcore punk/crossover thrash band Beowülf.
Nicholas Howard Barker is an English extreme metal drummer best known for his work in Cradle of Filth from 1993 to 1999, Dimmu Borgir from 1999 to 2004, Brujeria from 2003 to 2005 and from 2016 to 2022, and Shining from 2022 to 2023. Currently he is the drummer for Borstal, Liquid Graveyard, Twilight of the Gods, and United Forces.
James LoMenzo is an American musician, currently the bassist for thrash metal band Megadeth. LoMenzo was a member of White Lion, performing with them from 1984 to 1991. He was later the bassist for Black Label Society, Slash's Snakepit, David Lee Roth and John Fogerty. LoMenzo was the bassist for Megadeth from 2006 to 2010, and rejoined the band as a touring member in August 2021, before becoming a permanent member again in June 2022. Outside music, he is known for being a contestant on the 21st season of the reality television series The Amazing Race.
Frédéric Alexandre "Fred" Leclercq is a French musician and producer, who is known as the former longtime bassist for British power metal band DragonForce. He is currently the guitarist and main songwriter in the death metal supergroup Sinsaenum, the guitarist and vocalist in Maladaptive, the bassist and a guitarist in Amahiru, and the bassist of German thrash metal group Kreator and French death metal band Loudblast. He is a session musician for various other bands, including George Lynch's Souls of We. He is also a former member of power metal band Heavenly and played several shows with Carnival in Coal and Sabaton.
Malignancy is an American technical death metal band from Yonkers, New York, formed in February 1992.
Mark "Vinnie" Dombroski is an American musician, best known as the lead vocalist and main songwriter for the American rock band Sponge. He also fronted the short-lived supergroup Spys4Darwin, and has been a member of several Detroit-based bands throughout his career.
Andrew Lawrence Fortier is an American musician, guitarist, filmmaker, actor, and author. He is best known for his work with The Lucid; which he cofounded alongside Vinnie Dombroski (Sponge), David Ellefson, and Mike Heller. He was guitarist for the now late Chuck Mosley. He has directed and edited the documentary Attack of Life: The Bang Tango Movie as well as the David Ellefson produced horror film Dwellers which Fortier also wrote and stars in. He is the author of Dark, Depressing, and Hilarious which is an autobiography on his career thus far.
The Lucid is an American hard rock group consisting of guitarist Drew Fortier, drummer Mike Heller, bassist David Ellefson (ex-Megadeth) and vocalist Vinnie Dombroski (Sponge).
The Lucid is the debut studio album by American Hard rock band The Lucid. It was released on 15 October 2021 in the United States by SpoilerHead Records.
"Hair" is a song by the American hard rock band The Lucid. Included on their debut self-titled album The Lucid (2021), it was written by Drew Fortier, Mike Heller, David Ellefson and Vinnie Dombroski.
Saddle Up and Ride is an EP by American alternative rock band The Lucid. The EP comprises five songs, two of them featuring additional vocals by Violent J from Insane Clown Posse. The final track is a re-Imagining of the Faith No More song "Epic" retitled as "Sweet Toof" with new lyrics and melodies written by Vinnie Dombroski and Violent J.