Anvil of Doom
Encyclopedia
Anvil of Doom is a death metal
band from Andalusia
, Spain
, active since 1999.
Died Before Dawn led them to sign a deal with Spanish Metal label Xtreem Music. Throughout 2003, they worked on new material for their first album
while improving their live presence, playing through all Andalusia with local bands, even sharing the stage with Spanish legends Barón Rojo
, Soziedad Alkoholika
, and Avulsed. They also took part in the Xtreem Music Festival in Madrid
, with bands like Exodus
, Nuclear Assault
and Grave
.
In January 2004, the band began studio sessions for their first album. Deathillusion was to include three re-recordings from the demo, as well as six new songs which reflected a clear evolution to a more technical kind of death metal, without losing the band’s distinctive melodic touch. The album was released in October and received very good reviews in specialized media around the world. After that, they keep keep on the road, playing with some of the biggest bands in the genre in summer fests like The Metalway Festival, and headlining underground festivals in their own country.
During 2007 the band focused on composing and rehearsing new songs for their second album, marking a clear distance from the Melodic label.
By early 2008, vocalist and guitarist left the band, breaking the creative process leading to AOD's second album. They were replaced through that year by guitarist Ángel L. Berlanga and Andhord's vocalist Kvoraph, though by February 2009 the band decided to do without Ángel, because he didn't actually fit the band's needs. He was replaced by John M. Peterson, the man behind the band Perseidan, while MG, from Sevillian Death Metal act Neter, was recruited on the vocal role to replace Kvoraph after his decision to quit the band in September 2009.
In summer 2009, Anvil of Doom resumed touring, taking part in several festivals around Andalusia included in the so called Re(TOUR)synthesis. The band is also preparing a new demo leading to a their second album.
. On early stages, the band was more focused on melodic death metal
, hardly influenced by Swedish
bands like Arch Enemy, Darkane
, In Flames
or Soilwork
. After recording Died Before Dawn, the new compositions for Deathillusion pointed to a more technical approach on the steps of North American acts like Death
, and more presence of classical thrash metal
riffs, without losing the band's distinctive melodic reference. This tendency is more patent on recent songs, composed for their future second album.
Death metal
Death metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal. It typically employs heavily distorted guitars, tremolo picking, deep growling vocals, blast beat drumming, minor keys or atonality, and complex song structures with multiple tempo changes....
band from Andalusia
Andalusia
Andalusia is the most populous and the second largest in area of the autonomous communities of Spain. The Andalusian autonomous community is officially recognised as a nationality of Spain. The territory is divided into eight provinces: Huelva, Seville, Cádiz, Córdoba, Málaga, Jaén, Granada and...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, active since 1999.
Biography
After three years of line-up changes, Anvil of Doom really started their serious career in 2002. Their demoDemo (music)
A demo version or demo of a song is one recorded for reference rather than for release. A demo is a way for a musician to approximate their ideas on tape or disc, and provide an example of those ideas to record labels, producers or other artists...
Died Before Dawn led them to sign a deal with Spanish Metal label Xtreem Music. Throughout 2003, they worked on new material for their first album
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
while improving their live presence, playing through all Andalusia with local bands, even sharing the stage with Spanish legends Barón Rojo
Barón Rojo
Barón Rojo are a Spanish heavy metal band who reached international success in the 1980s. The band is led by siblings Carlos and Armando de Castro, previously from the band Coz, and it is considered one of the most important representatives of Spanish hard rock bands, along with Obús...
, Soziedad Alkoholika
Soziedad Alkoholika
Commonly abbreviated to SA is a crossover thrash band from the Basque Country in Spain. They were founded in Vitoria-Gasteiz in 1988. They usually talk against militarism, fascism, racism, sexism, rage, decadence, monarchy and others themes like these in their lyrics.Over these years S.A...
, and Avulsed. They also took part in the Xtreem Music Festival in Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
, with bands like Exodus
Exodus (band)
Exodus is an American thrash metal band formed in 1980 in Richmond, California. Spanning a career of over 30 years, Exodus has gone through numerous lineup changes, two extended hiatuses, and the deaths of two former band members. Guitarist Gary Holt remains the only constant member of the band,...
, Nuclear Assault
Nuclear Assault
Nuclear Assault is an American thrash metal/crossover thrash band formed in 1984.-History:After the release of Anthrax's debut album Fistful of Metal, bass player Danny Lilker, a founding member of the group, was fired by the band...
and Grave
Grave (band)
Grave is a Swedish death metal band that formed in 1986 by vocalist and guitarist Ola Lindgren, who is their only constant member. The band had particular success in the early 1990s, and their first four albums, Into the Grave, You'll Never See..., Soulless and Hating Life, cemented their...
.
In January 2004, the band began studio sessions for their first album. Deathillusion was to include three re-recordings from the demo, as well as six new songs which reflected a clear evolution to a more technical kind of death metal, without losing the band’s distinctive melodic touch. The album was released in October and received very good reviews in specialized media around the world. After that, they keep keep on the road, playing with some of the biggest bands in the genre in summer fests like The Metalway Festival, and headlining underground festivals in their own country.
During 2007 the band focused on composing and rehearsing new songs for their second album, marking a clear distance from the Melodic label.
By early 2008, vocalist and guitarist left the band, breaking the creative process leading to AOD's second album. They were replaced through that year by guitarist Ángel L. Berlanga and Andhord's vocalist Kvoraph, though by February 2009 the band decided to do without Ángel, because he didn't actually fit the band's needs. He was replaced by John M. Peterson, the man behind the band Perseidan, while MG, from Sevillian Death Metal act Neter, was recruited on the vocal role to replace Kvoraph after his decision to quit the band in September 2009.
In summer 2009, Anvil of Doom resumed touring, taking part in several festivals around Andalusia included in the so called Re(TOUR)synthesis. The band is also preparing a new demo leading to a their second album.
Style and influences
The band's style is mostly concerned with death metalDeath metal
Death metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal. It typically employs heavily distorted guitars, tremolo picking, deep growling vocals, blast beat drumming, minor keys or atonality, and complex song structures with multiple tempo changes....
. On early stages, the band was more focused on melodic death metal
Melodic death metal
Melodic death metal is a heavy metal music style that combines elements from the New Wave of British Heavy Metal with elements of death metal. The style was developed during the early and mid-1990s, primarily in England and Scandinavia...
, hardly influenced by Swedish
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
bands like Arch Enemy, Darkane
Darkane
Darkane is a melodic death / progressive thrash metal band that originated in Helsingborg, Sweden in 1998. Their music contains ample thrash elements interspersed with acoustic interludes and symphonic features, such as the in studio use of synthesizers and occasionally full orchestras and choir...
, In Flames
In Flames
In Flames is a Swedish heavy metal band from Gothenburg, formed in 1990. Since the band's inception in 1993, they have released ten studio albums and one live DVD...
or Soilwork
Soilwork
Soilwork is a Swedish melodic death metal band from Helsingborg. They are currently signed to Nuclear Blast. Formed in late 1995 by Björn Strid and Peter Wichers, originally under the name Inferior Breed, the band changed their name in late 1996 to Soilwork .Their sound is a fusion of the classic...
. After recording Died Before Dawn, the new compositions for Deathillusion pointed to a more technical approach on the steps of North American acts like Death
Death
Death is the permanent termination of the biological functions that sustain a living organism. Phenomena which commonly bring about death include old age, predation, malnutrition, disease, and accidents or trauma resulting in terminal injury....
, and more presence of classical thrash metal
Thrash metal
Thrash metal is a subgenre of heavy metal that is characterized usually by its fast tempo and aggression. Songs of the genre typically use fast percussive and low-register guitar riffs, overlaid with shredding-style lead work...
riffs, without losing the band's distinctive melodic reference. This tendency is more patent on recent songs, composed for their future second album.
Current members
- Hugo Donaire - guitarElectric guitarAn electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...
- Matoto - drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
- Al-Iskandar Tzaraath - bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
- MG - vocals
- John M. Peterson - guitar