Alchemist was an Australian
progressive metal
Progressive metal (sometimes shortened to prog metal) is a broad fusion music genre melding heavy metal and progressive rock, combining the loud "aggression" and amplified guitar-driven sound of the former with the more experimental, cerebral ...
band from
Canberra whose style combined
death metal,
progressive rock
Progressive rock (shortened as prog rock or simply prog; sometimes conflated with art rock) is a broad genre of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom and United States through the mid- to late 1960s, peaking in the early 1970s. In ...
,
psychedelic,
Eastern
Eastern may refer to:
Transportation
*China Eastern Airlines, a current Chinese airline based in Shanghai
*Eastern Air, former name of Zambia Skyways
*Eastern Air Lines, a defunct American airline that operated from 1926 to 1991
*Eastern Air Li ...
,
Aboriginal and
electronic
Electronic may refer to:
*Electronics, the science of how to control electric energy in semiconductor
* ''Electronics'' (magazine), a defunct American trade journal
*Electronic storage, the storage of data using an electronic device
*Electronic co ...
influences. The band formed in 1987 and released six studio albums, an EP and a compilation album. Work began on a new EP in 2010 but the band went on an indefinite hiatus and then split up. They are the only group to appear at every
Metal for the Brain
Metal for the Brain was Australia's largest heavy metal music festival. The event was held in Canberra annually, usually towards the end of the year, and featured Australian bands almost exclusively. The festival was established in November 19 ...
festival, an event they ran and organised from 1996. Alchemist also played at the
Big Day Out
The Big Day Out (BDO) was an annual music festival that was held in five Australian cities: Sydney, Melbourne, Gold Coast, Adelaide, and Perth, as well as Auckland, New Zealand. The festival was held during summer, typically in January of eac ...
and toured Europe several times.
History
1987−1992
Alchemist was formed in 1987 by
Adam Agius
Adam Agius (born 21 September 1971) is the vocalist, guitarist, keyboardist and a founding member of the progressive metal band Alchemist. He formed Alchemist in 1987 while still in high school and is the group's only remaining original member. H ...
(
lead vocals/
guitar
The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected strin ...
) as a death metal act. The band released a demo the same year entitled "Eternal Wedlock". The band's style was raw and undeveloped, and began to evolve with the addition of new drummer Rodney Holder in 1989. The following year, the line-up of Agius, Holder, Andrew Meredith (guitar) and James Preece (
bass) recorded a second demo. The demo showed the beginning of the band's experimentation with
avant-garde
The avant-garde (; In 'advance guard' or ' vanguard', literally 'fore-guard') is a person or work that is experimental, radical, or unorthodox with respect to art, culture, or society.John Picchione, The New Avant-garde in Italy: Theoretical ...
arrangements and psychedelic influences inspired by the likes of
Pink Floyd and
Frank Zappa. Another demo was produced in 1991, with Preece replaced by John (The Seal) Bray from another local band called Exceed. Alchemist also performed at the first
Metal for the Brain
Metal for the Brain was Australia's largest heavy metal music festival. The event was held in Canberra annually, usually towards the end of the year, and featured Australian bands almost exclusively. The festival was established in November 19 ...
festival in Canberra, eventually becoming the only group to feature at every occasion. The track "Escapism" from the demo recording was featured the following year on the
Roadrunner (Australia) compilation album ''Redrum'', which included other rising metal acts of the time such as
Sadistik Exekution, Allegiance, and
Shihad
Shihad are a rock band formed in Wellington, New Zealand in 1988. The band consists of founders Tom Larkin (drums, backing vocals, samplers), Phil Knight (lead guitar, synthesiser, backing vocals) and Jon Toogood (lead vocals, rhythm guitar ...
.
1992−1996
In 1992, Roy Torkington joined Alchemist in place of Meredith. By this time the demos had created enough interest for them to be approached by Austrian label Lethal, who released their first
album
An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records co ...
, ''
Jar of Kingdom'', the next year.
[ Biography )))">allmusic ((( Alchemist > Biography )))/ref> The album was recorded in Sydney and featured an eclectic mixture of death metal, grindcore and psychedelia. Two songs featured vocals from Michelle Klemke, a friend of Agius' mother. According to the notes accompanying the 2005 compilation album '' Embryonics'', Agius lost his voice during the recording. Dissatisfied with the sound of the album, the band re-mastered and re-released it in 1999. Alchemist was also dissatisfied with Lethal's handling of ''Jar of Kingdom'' and soon parted ways with them. After releasing ''Jar of Kingdom'', the band went on their first tour.]
During 1994, Alchemist recorded a promotional tape to shop to record companies and a version of the Venom
Venom or zootoxin is a type of toxin produced by an animal that is actively delivered through a wound by means of a bite, sting, or similar action. The toxin is delivered through a specially evolved ''venom apparatus'', such as fangs or a st ...
song "Black Metal" for a Swedish tribute album
An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records c ...
called ''The Promoters of the Third World War: A Tribute to Venom'', now a collector's item. The band also began work on its next album, titled '' Lunasphere'', which was released in 1995 by Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
label Shock Records through its subsidiary Thrust.[ ''Lunasphere'' showed a further development of Alchemist's unusual style, adding Eastern motifs and keyboards] to its already diverse style. The track "Garden of Eroticism" was added to the Triple J
Triple J (stylised in all lowercase) is a government-funded, national Australian radio station intended to appeal to listeners of alternative music, which began broadcasting in January 1975. The station also places a greater emphasis on broad ...
compilation album ''This Is Twelve'' (ABC
ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet.
ABC or abc may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting
* American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster
** Disney–ABC Television ...
/EMI
EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British Transnational corporation, transnational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in March 1 ...
) in 1996 and both this song and "Yoni Kunda" became live staples. The group supported the release of ''Lunasphere'' with a heavy touring schedule that included several shows with joint UK/Australian ambient act Deathless, a slot on the Sydney leg of the 1996 Big Day Out
The Big Day Out (BDO) was an annual music festival that was held in five Australian cities: Sydney, Melbourne, Gold Coast, Adelaide, and Perth, as well as Auckland, New Zealand. The festival was held during summer, typically in January of eac ...
, supporting Cathedral
A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominatio ...
and Paradise Lost on their dual headlining tour, and also opening for Fear Factory a second time. They performed live-to-air on the Triple J metal program ''Three Hours of Power''. Two songs from this session would later be included on the '' Embryonics'' compilation album in 2005. During the same year, pioneering Canberra death metal band Armoured Angel disbanded. The band's drummer Joel Green handed over the running of the festival to Holder, who with the rest of Alchemist was responsible for the event for the next decade.
1996−2000
Alchemist began recording '' Spiritech'' in late 1996. After enduring a problematic recording process, the band handed production over to D.W. Norton, the guitarist with Melbourne band Superheist
Superheist is an Australian metal band, which formed in 1993. They have released two EPs, thirteen singles, one compilation/live album and four studio albums, two of which, 2001's '' The Prize Recruit'' and 2002's ''Identical Remote Controlled ...
and the part-owner of Back Beach Studios in Rye, Victoria
Rye is a seaside town on the Mornington Peninsula in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, approximately south-west of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the Shire of Mornington Peninsula local government area. Rye recorded a p ...
. ''Spiritech'' introduced more electronic elements as well as tribal rhythms
Polyrhythm is the simultaneous use of two or more rhythms that are not readily perceived as deriving from one another, or as simple manifestations of the same meter. The rhythmic layers may be the basis of an entire piece of music (cross-rhyth ...
and heavy sampling into the band's ''oeuvre'' and opened with the sprawling nine-minute "Chinese Whispers", which remains a particular favourite for group and fans alike.
In 1999, the band's next project was an EP that featured as its title track a version of " Eve of the War", the opening piece from the 1978 production, ''Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of the Worlds
''Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of the Worlds'' is a studio double album by American-born British musician, composer, and record producer Jeff Wayne, released on 9 June 1978 by CBS Records. It is an album musical adapted from the sci ...
''. Josh Nixon from Canberra doom metal band, Pod People featured as a guest guitarist. The EP also included live versions of "Yoni Kunda" and "Chinese Whispers", an electronica remix of "Yoni Kunda" retitled as "Koni Yunda" and two ''Jar of Kingdom'' tracks, "Brumal: A View from Pluto" and "Worlds within Worlds." These last two were a precursor to the band's re-release of '' Jar of Kingdom'' the following year. This re-release included some new overdubs as the album's original master tapes were damaged, and included the 1991 demo in its entirety. This release completed their contractual obligation to Shock Records and Alchemist began to shop for a new local deal as well as international distribution. The group's albums had attained a heavy cult following in parts of Europe, particularly in the Netherlands, but they had not had European representation since their failed association with Lethal. In the meantime, Alchemist toured with Entombed and Pitchshifter
Pitchshifter are an English industrial rock band from Nottingham, formed in 1989. The band was started by lead guitarist and programmer Johnny A. Carter, and bassist and vocalist Mark Clayden. The band’s early material was characterized for ...
.
Late in 1999, a new Alchemist track called "Austral Spectrum" appeared on a compilation of Australian metal called ''Under the Southern Cross'' and issued by Sydney label Chatterbox Records (with whom the band had just signed for Australian release). A slightly different version of the song then appeared on the '' Organasm'' album, again recorded with D.W. Norton in Rye and released in early 2000. To promote ''Organasm'', Alchemist undertook a three-month Australian tour during autumn. Billed as "World War Three", the tour also featured Sydney thrash
Thrash may refer to:
*Thrashing (computer science), where increasing resources are used to do a decreasing amount of work
*Thrash (surname)
* Thrash, mascot of the Atlanta Thrashers
*'' Thrash Rally'', a top-down perspective rally racing video gam ...
bands Cryogenic and Psi.Kore, both of whom had also just released CDs. ''Organasm'' featured a warmer sound and a focus on tighter songwriting with tracks embellished even more by duelling slide guitars, keyboards and samples.
2000−2005
Following 2000's Metal for the Brain, Alchemist went off the road for more than a year to work on '' Austral Alien'', which was released by Chatterbox in May 2003. This latest album showed a mellower side of Alchemist, with highly polished production and a heavily electronic sound. Influenced by the rock
Rock most often refers to:
* Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids
* Rock music, a genre of popular music
Rock or Rocks may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
band Midnight Oil, the lyrics of the semi-conceptual album focused on environmental
A biophysical environment is a biotic and abiotic surrounding of an organism or population, and consequently includes the factors that have an influence in their survival, development, and evolution. A biophysical environment can vary in scale f ...
issues affecting their country, specifically the impact of man on the ecology. Alchemist added a fifth member, Nick Wall, to provide samples during live shows.
In late 2004, Alchemist embarked on their first tour outside of Australia. Because of these commitments, Metal for the Brain was held off until February 2005. In the same month Alchemist won their first Australian Heavy Metal Music Awards, with "First Contact" awarded Best Video Clip, and Agius awarded Best Keyboardist.
2005−2010
A compilation album, '' Embryonics'', was released in October 2005. It covered material recorded between 1990 and 1998, including tracks from the first three albums, the 1998 EP release and demo songs. Bonus tracks included two of the songs recorded on the radio in 1996. The band also announced a companion DVD
The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kind ...
release due for 2006, which, however, is yet to be released.
After ten years of successfully organising Metal for the Brain, Alchemist laid the festival to rest, playing the final event on 4 November 2006. Holder, now based in Brisbane
Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...
, moved on to organise the 20-band Abducted Metal Horror Festival held in July 2007. In May of that year Alchemist completed work on their next album '' Tripsis'', which the band declared to be a return to the earlier sound of ''Lunasphere'' and ''Spiritech''. To coincide with the release of ''Tripsis'', Alchemist headlined the European ProgPower event and played selected other dates. In July 2008 the band played at the Graspop Metal Meeting
Graspop Metal Meeting is a Belgian heavy metal festival held in Dessel each year since 1996, excluding 2020 and 2021 due to covid restrictions. Despite the small size of the festival grounds (upholding a perimeter of only ~4 km) the festiva ...
in Belgium as part of their European tour. In October 2008, Alchemist returned to Australia to tour with Meshuggah
Meshuggah () is a Swedish extreme metal band formed in Umeå in 1985. Originally, the band's name was Metallien. The band's current lineup consists of lead vocalist Jens Kidman, guitarists Fredrik Thordendal and Mårten Hagström, drummer To ...
. Afterwards, the band premiered the video for "Tongues and Knives" on 9 December. In January 2010 Alchemist began recording a new EP as a follow-up to ''Tripsis''. In an article in Sydney's ''Drum Media
''The Music'', (formerly known as and now incorporating ''Drum Media)'', is an online Australian music magazine. It previously existed as a street press devoted to long-form music journalism and commentary, music news, and artist interviews. I ...
'' in July, drummer Rodney Holder claimed that Alchemist was currently on "extended hiatus". The band's website reflected this with a splash page
Splash page may refer to:
* Splash page (comics), a comic book page that is mostly or entirely taken up by a single image or panel
* A splash screen on a website or software
See also
* Splash (disambiguation)
* Page (disambiguation)
Page most ...
declaring that "Alchemist are hibernating indefinitely". Holder later helped to organise the first Bastardfest festival which was held on 28 August in Brisbane, 4 September in Melbourne, and 16 October in Perth.
Adam Agius formed the Levitation Hex in 2010 with Mark Palfreyman of Melbourne band Alarum. They released a self-titled album in August 2012, during which time Agius talked about the hard work of being in a band, and Alchemist's eventual demise.
Rodney Holder started his 'Music Business Facts' podcast in 2013. He has also ran a number of high-profile artist webinars and created online music and production courses with artists like Devin Townsend.
Band line-up
Personnel
* Adam Agius
Adam Agius (born 21 September 1971) is the vocalist, guitarist, keyboardist and a founding member of the progressive metal band Alchemist. He formed Alchemist in 1987 while still in high school and is the group's only remaining original member. H ...
− vocals, guitar, keyboards (1987−2010)
* John Bray − bass guitar, keyboards (1991−2010)
* Rodney Holder − drums (1988−2010)
* Roy Torkington − guitar (1992−2010)
Former members
* Andrew Hall − drums (1987−88)
* Andrew Meredith − guitar (1990−92)
* James Preece − bass guitar (1989−91)
* Scott Chivers − bass guitar (1987−89)
* Murray Neill − vocals (1987−88)
* Nick Paddon-Row − drums (1987)
* Nick Wall − live samples (2003−2008)
Timeline
ImageSize =width:800 height:auto barincrement:20
PlotArea =left:100 bottom:80 top:5 right:10
Alignbars =justify
DateFormat =mm/dd/yyyy
Period =from:01/01/1987 till:07/06/2010
ScaleMajor = increment:2 start:1987
ScaleMinor = increment:1 start:1987
TimeAxis =orientation:horizontal format:yyyy
Legend =orientation:vertical position:bottom columns:4
Colors=
id:vocals value:red legend:Vocals
id:guitar value:green legend:Guitar
id:keys value:purple legend:Keyboards
id:bass value:blue legend:Bass
id:drums value:orange legend:Drums
id:samples value:lavender legend:Samples
id:studio value:black legend:Studio_album
id:other value:gray(0.5) legend:Other_release
id:bars value:gray(0.95)
LineData=
layer:back
color:studio
at:10/01/1993
at:05/01/1995
at:06/30/1997
at:03/06/2000
at:05/12/2003
at:09/03/2007
color:other
at:06/01/1987
at:05/01/1990
at:09/01/1991
at:01/01/1994
at:11/01/1998
at:01/01/1999
BackgroundColors= bars:bars
BarData=
bar:Murray text:"Murray Neill"
bar:Adam text:"Adam Agius"
bar:Andrew text:"Andrew Meredith"
bar:Roy text:"Roy Torkington"
bar:Scott text:"Scott Chivers"
bar:James text:"James Preece"
bar:John text:"John Bray"
bar:Nick2 text:"Nick Paddon-Row"
bar:Andrew2 text:"Andrew Hall"
bar:Rodney text:"Rodney Holder"
bar:Nick text:"Nick Wall"
PlotData =
width:11 textcolor:black align:left anchor:from shift:(10,-4)
bar:Murray from:01/01/1987 till:01/01/1988 color:vocals
bar:Adam from:01/01/1987 till:01/01/1988 color:guitar
bar:Adam from:01/01/1988 till:end color:vocals
bar:Adam from:01/01/1988 till:04/01/1994 color:guitar width:3
bar:Adam from:04/01/1994 till:end color:guitar width:7
bar:Adam from:04/01/1994 till:end color:keys width:3
bar:Andrew from:01/01/1990 till:01/01/1992 color:guitar
bar:Roy from:01/01/1992 till:end color:guitar
bar:Scott from:01/01/1987 till:01/01/1989 color:bass
bar:James from:01/01/1989 till:05/01/1991 color:bass
bar:John from:05/01/1991 till:end color:bass
bar:John from:05/01/1991 till:end color:keys width:3
bar:Nick from:05/01/2003 till:10/01/2008 color:samples
bar:Nick2 from:01/01/1987 till:06/01/1987 color:drums
bar:Andrew2 from:06/01/1987 till:01/01/1988 color:drums
bar:Rodney from:01/01/1988 till:end color:drums
Discography
Albums
* '' Jar of Kingdom'' (1993)
* '' Lunasphere'' (1995)
* '' Spiritech'' (1997)
* '' Organasm'' (2000)
* '' Austral Alien'' (2003)
* '' Tripsis'' (2007)
Demos and EPs
* "Eternal Wedlock" (1987)
* "Demo '90" (1990)
* "Demo '91" (1991)
* "Promo 94" (1994)
* " Eve of the War" (1998)
* "Promo 99" (1999)
Compilations
* '' Promoters of the Third World War - A Tribute to Venom'' (1997)
* '' Jar of Kingdom Re-Release 99'' (1999)
* '' Embryonics'' (2005)
See also
* Australian heavy metal
Australian heavy metal music has its roots in both the Australian hard rock and pub rock tradition of the 1970s and the American and British heavy metal scenes. Since the mid-1980s, Australian heavy metal has been particularly influenced by for ...
External links
Alchemist official Site
Alchemist
at MySpace
Interview at Saviours of Rock
The Levitation Hex myspace
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Alchemist
Australian Capital Territory musical groups
Musical groups established in 1987
Australian progressive metal musical groups
MNRK Music Group artists
Relapse Records artists
Australian heavy metal musical groups
Australian death metal musical groups
Musical quartets
1987 establishments in Australia