Killswitch Engage is an American metalcore band from Westfield, Massachusetts, formed in 1999 after the disbanding of Overcast and Aftershock. Killswitch Engage's current lineup consists of vocalist Jesse Leach, guitarists Joel Stroetzel and Adam Dutkiewicz, bassist Mike D'Antonio, and drummer Justin Foley. The band has released eight studio albums and three live performance albums. Their eighth studio album, Atonement, was released on August 16, 2019.
Alive or Just Breathing is the second studio album by American metalcore band Killswitch Engage. It was released on May 21, 2002, through Roadrunner Records. Alive or Just Breathing was Killswitch Engage's first album on Roadrunner and was recorded from October 2001 to February 2002. Produced by drummer and guitarist Adam Dutkiewicz, this was the band's first album on a major label, which prompted them to write and record the album to the best of their abilities. Alive or Just Breathing has been viewed as a landmark album in the metalcore genre and was well praised upon its release by fans and critics. The lyrics, which were all written by vocalist Jesse Leach, were intended to bring a positive message through the music.
Zao is an American metalcore band founded in Parkersburg, West Virginia, and later relocated to Greensburg, Pennsylvania. Founded in March 1993, Zao has hosted several musicians and endured numerous roster changes to the point where no original members remain. Former drummer Jesse Smith, vocalist Dan Weyandt, and guitarists Scott Mellinger and Russ Cogdell are seen by some fans as the "core" of Zao, with the current line up being the longest running in the band's history.
Melodic death metal is a subgenre of death metal that employs highly melodic guitar riffs, often borrowing from traditional heavy metal. The genre features the heaviness of death metal but with highly melodic or harmonized guitar riffs and solos, and often features high-pitched shrieked vocals alongside the low-pitched growls commonly featured in traditional death metal. Pioneered by the English heavy metal band Carcass with their 1993 album Heartwork, melodic death metal developed further in Sweden in the mid-1990s. The Swedish death metal scene did much to popularise the style, soon centering in the "Gothenburg metal" scene. At the Gates' Slaughter of the Soul, Dark Tranquillity's The Gallery, and In Flames' The Jester Race, all released in the mid-1990s, were highly influential albums in melodic death metal, with At the Gates and In Flames being the two most common influences on North American 2000s heavy metal bands. Many American heavy metal bands emulated At the Gates' sound, resulting in the usage of the phrase "At the Gates worship".
Adam Jonathan Dutkiewicz is an American musician and record producer, best known as the lead guitarist of the metalcore bands Killswitch Engage, Aftershock and Times of Grace, as well as the guitarist and co-lead vocalist for the melodic death metal supergroup Serpentine Dominion.
Killswitch Engage is the debut studio album by American metalcore band Killswitch Engage, released July 4, 2000 through Ferret Music. The album is the only release ever by Killswitch Engage to be released through Ferret, the band would later be signed to Roadrunner Records, where their follow-up LP, Alive or Just Breathing was released. The band's debut is considered to be one of the first ever successful albums in the metalcore genre, garnering a re-release five years after its original pressing. No songs in the album were released as singles.
Liberate Te Ex Inferis is the fourth studio album by American metalcore band Zao. It is considered by many to be their most experimental and darkest album. It was released on Solid State/Tooth & Nail. With the album came the addition of bassist Rob Horner. Liberate is the first Zao album to feature Scott Mellinger, who replaced Brett Detar after his decision to pursue The Juliana Theory full-time.
Where Blood and Fire Bring Rest is the third studio album by American metalcore band Zao on Solid State/Tooth & Nail. It was the first album to feature vocalist Dan Weyandt after the departure of Shawn Jonas along with new bassists/guitarists, Russ Cogdell and Brett Detar. The album contains a sample from the film The Shining at the end of "Lies of Serpents, A River of Tears", as well as a sample from the horror film The Prophecy during the intro to "Ravage Ritual". It is often considered among the greatest metalcore albums ever made.
Self-Titled is the fifth studio album by American metalcore band Zao, released on February 21, 2001, by Solid State/Tooth & Nail/EMI. This album saw the departure of guitarist Russ Cogdell. The entire album was written in the recording studio by Scott and Jesse. Dan would be sent the tracks to write lyrics and then recorded them. The band famously broke up on stage touring this album.
Legendary is the first compilation album by American metalcore band Zao. It was released on December 17, 2003, on Solid State/Tooth & Nail/EMI. It is the eighth album by the group. The last three songs are previously unreleased studio demos with Corey Darst on vocals. "The Icarus Complex" appeared on This is Solid State Vol.3.
The Fear Is What Keeps Us Here is the eighth studio album by American metalcore band Zao. It was released on June 13, 2006 on Ferret Records in the US and on June 12, 2006 in Europe. The album showcases the addition of drummer Jeff Gretz and bassist Martin Lunn. In interviews Gretz jokingly claimed it would be titled "The George Lucas Neckfat".
Twelve Tribes was an American metalcore band, from Dayton, Ohio, United States. Originally established in 1997, the group were signed to the independent record label Ferret Music. They were influenced by a cross cultural array of music such as punk rock, hip hop, classic rock, drum & bass, metal and hardcore.
Melodic metalcore is a fusion genre, incorporating elements of melodic death metal and metalcore; it has a heavy emphasis on melodic instrumentation, distorted guitar tones, palm muting, double bass drumming, blast beats, metalcore-stylized breakdowns, and vocals that range from aggressive screaming and death growls to clean singing. The genre has seen commercial success for employing a more accessible sound at times compared to other forms of extreme music. Many notable melodic metalcore bands have been influenced by At the Gates and In Flames.
Awake? is the ninth studio album by American metalcore band Zao. It was released on May 5, 2009, on Ferret Records. It contains nine new tracks and a re-recording of the track "Romance of the Southern Spirit", which originally appeared on the Japanese version of The Funeral of God. Only 8,000 physical copies of the album were made. Each copy is numbered and has six interchangeable covers. The album sold approximately 2,000 copies in its first week. The single "Entropica" debuted in April 2009 prior to the album's release.
Daniel Weyandt is the vocalist of the American metalcore band, Zao. He was also the bassist for Seasons in the Field and current bassist for Lonely//Ghost//Parade. Weyandt is also a tattoo artist and owns a shop in his hometown, Greensburg, Pennsylvania.
Xenophobe is the fifth EP by American metalcore band Zao. It is the first release since the band's five-year unofficial hiatus. It is the first EP to feature Scott Mellinger, Martin Lunn and Jeff Gretz.
Jesse Smith is an American musician, best known for his work as the original drummer of metalcore band Zao. After leaving Zao, he has had multiple other bands/projects, including Gods, My Own Halo, Jesse Smith & the Holy Ghost, and Serpent Servant Slave.
The Well-Intentioned Virus is the tenth studio album by American metalcore band Zao, released on December 9, 2016. The album features the first studio performance of Russ Cogdell for the first time since 2004's The Funeral of God. The album was released digitally, as well as on CD, vinyl and cassette. On December 1, 2016, the band streamed the whole album.
Pyrrhic Victory is the sixth EP by American metalcore band Zao, released on November 3, 2017. It is the third release by the band on their own Observed/Observer Recordings label since their reactivation in 2015 after several years of hiatus. The songs were recorded during the same sessions that resulted in 2015's Xenophobe and 2016's The Well-Intentioned Virus. The EP in its entirety was streamed on the Metal Injection website on October 31, 2017.
The Crimson Corridor is the eleventh studio album by American metalcore band Zao. The album was released on April 9, 2021, through Observed/Observer Recordings, the band's own record label.
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