Evile are an English
thrash metal
Thrash metal (or simply thrash) is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music characterized by its overall aggression and often fast tempo.Kahn-Harris, Keith, ''Extreme Metal: Music and Culture on the Edge'', pp. 2–3, 9. Oxford: Berg, 2007, . ...
band from
Huddersfield
Huddersfield is a market town in the Kirklees district in West Yorkshire, England. It is the administrative centre and largest settlement in the Kirklees district. The town is in the foothills of the Pennines. The River Holme's confluence into ...
, formed in 2004. They have experienced numerous line-up changes over the years, with drummer Ben Carter being the only member of the original line-up to have stayed consistently. The current line-up consists of Carter, lead guitarist and vocalist
Ol Drake, bassist
Joel Graham
Joel Graham is the bassist of English thrash metal band Evile and former bassist of metal band Rise to Addiction.
Biography
Graham was born on 10 February 1977 in Dewsbury, England. He was strongly influenced and supported by his parents from ...
, and rhythm guitarist Adam Smith, who replaced Drake's older brother Matt in 2020.
Evile are notable for being part of the thrash metal resurgence movement of the mid-to-late 2000s, and they were highly praised by ''
Kerrang!
''Kerrang!'' is a British weekly magazine devoted to rock, punk and heavy metal music, currently published by Wasted Talent (the same company that owns electronic music publication ''Mixmag''). It was first published on 6 June 1981 as a one- ...
'' for "Carrying the genre's whole 'revival' on their shoulders."
To date, the band has released five studio albums: ''
Enter the Grave
''Enter the Grave'' is the debut album by the English thrash metal band Evile. Released on 27 August 2007 in Europe and on 25 September in North America and Japan, the album received generally favorable reviews and entered the UK Rock Chart at n ...
'' (2007), ''
Infected Nations
''Infected Nations'' is the second album by English thrash metal band Evile. It was released on 21 September 2009 in Europe and 22 September in the United States.
The album was produced by Russ Russell ( Napalm Death, Dimmu Borgir) at Parlour ...
'' (2009), ''
Five Serpent's Teeth
''Five Serpent's Teeth'' is the third album by the English thrash metal band Evile. It was released on 26 September 2011 in Europe and on 18 October 2011 in North America. The album was produced by Russ Russell ( Napalm Death, Dimmu Borgir) at ...
'' (2011), ''
Skull
The skull is a bone protective cavity for the brain. The skull is composed of four types of bone i.e., cranial bones, facial bones, ear ossicles and hyoid bone. However two parts are more prominent: the cranium and the mandible. In humans, the ...
'' (2013) and ''
Hell Unleashed
''Hell Unleashed'' is the fifth studio album by British thrash metal band Evile, released on 30 April 2021 by Napalm Records. It is the band's first studio album since ''Skull'' (2013), making it their longest gap between studio albums to date. ...
'' (2021); a sixth studio album is in the works, as of June 2021.
History
Pre-Evile (1999–2004)
In 1999, former school friends Matt Drake and Ben Carter came together over a mutual love for
thrash metal
Thrash metal (or simply thrash) is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music characterized by its overall aggression and often fast tempo.Kahn-Harris, Keith, ''Extreme Metal: Music and Culture on the Edge'', pp. 2–3, 9. Oxford: Berg, 2007, . ...
and
heavy metal and formed a cover band named Metal Militia (primarily playing
Metallica
Metallica is an American heavy metal band. The band was formed in 1981 in Los Angeles by vocalist/guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, and has been based in San Francisco for most of its career. The band's fast tempos, instrume ...
classics)
Matt's brother,
Ol Drake, joined as the lead guitarist, and after London-born bassist Mike Alexander responded to the band's advert in a local guitar store looking for a bassist influenced by bands such as
Metallica
Metallica is an American heavy metal band. The band was formed in 1981 in Los Angeles by vocalist/guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, and has been based in San Francisco for most of its career. The band's fast tempos, instrume ...
,
Sepultura and
Testament, the lineup was complete.
At the band's first live show, at the Ukrainian Club in
Halifax, an audience member had a brick thrown at their face by area locals.
Birth of Evile (2004–2006)
In 2004, the band ceased playing covers and dedicated their time to writing original material. Soon after, they independently recorded and released two EPs in limited quantities (250–500 units): ''All Hallows Eve EP'' (2004) and ''Hell Demo'' (2006). Evile toured extensively throughout the UK (2004–2006) and Netherlands (2006), played as the support act for
Exodus
Exodus or the Exodus may refer to:
Religion
* Book of Exodus, second book of the Hebrew Torah and the Christian Bible
* The Exodus, the biblical story of the migration of the ancient Israelites from Egypt into Canaan
Historical events
* Ex ...
and eventually signed to
Earache Records
Earache Records is a British independent record label, music publisher and management company founded by Digby Pearson in 1985, based in Nottingham, England, with offices in London and New York. The label helped to pioneer extreme metal by rel ...
. Though Earache had received the band's ''Hell Demo'', it was after label head
Digby Pearson witnessed Evile's set at
Bloodstock Open Air in 2006 that he contacted the band and signed them to the label. In an interview Matt Drake said that the band was originally supposed to be called "Exile", but there were "a million other bands that called themself that" so the "X" in the band's name was changed to a "V," and the band became known as Evile.
''Enter the Grave'' (2007–2009)
Prior to the album's recording, Matt Drake contacted producer
Flemming Rasmussen (
Metallica
Metallica is an American heavy metal band. The band was formed in 1981 in Los Angeles by vocalist/guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, and has been based in San Francisco for most of its career. The band's fast tempos, instrume ...
,
Morbid Angel
Morbid Angel is an American death metal
Death metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. It typically employs heavily distorted and low-tuned guitars, played with techniques such as palm muting and tremolo picking; deep growling ...
,
Blind Guardian,
Artillery
Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during siege ...
) by doing a search for his name on
Google
Google LLC () is an American multinational technology company focusing on search engine technology, online advertising, cloud computing, computer software, quantum computing, e-commerce, artificial intelligence, and consumer electronics. ...
and enquired as to whether or not he would like to hear Evile's material. Flemming responded positively, prompting Matt to send him some Evile
mp3s via e-mail. Supposedly, Flemming never commented on the mp3s, causing Matt to presume that he "hated them",
but when
Earache Records
Earache Records is a British independent record label, music publisher and management company founded by Digby Pearson in 1985, based in Nottingham, England, with offices in London and New York. The label helped to pioneer extreme metal by rel ...
contacted Flemming to request his skills as producer for Evile's debut, he swiftly accepted the offer.
In 2007, Evile recorded their debut album, ''
Enter the Grave
''Enter the Grave'' is the debut album by the English thrash metal band Evile. Released on 27 August 2007 in Europe and on 25 September in North America and Japan, the album received generally favorable reviews and entered the UK Rock Chart at n ...
,'' at Sweet Silence Studios in
Copenhagen
Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...
with producer
Flemming Rasmussen and assistant engineer Anders H Mortensen. The album reached No. 33 on the UK rock album charts, and ''
Kerrang!
''Kerrang!'' is a British weekly magazine devoted to rock, punk and heavy metal music, currently published by Wasted Talent (the same company that owns electronic music publication ''Mixmag''). It was first published on 6 June 1981 as a one- ...
'' magazine awarded the album 4 out of 5 stars while dubbing Evile as "Carrying the genre's whole 'revival' on their shoulders".
Generally, the album was received positively and received highly rated reviews, including those from
''Terrorizer'' Magazine (9/10),
''Metal Revolution'' (100/100)
and
Classic Rock
Classic rock is a US radio format which developed from the album-oriented rock (AOR) format in the early 1980s. In the United States, the classic rock format comprises rock music ranging generally from the mid-1960s through the mid 1990s, primar ...
(the 38th best album of 2007).
The band played many shows with class-acts such as
Machine Head
A machine head (also referred to as a tuning machine, tuner, or gear head) is a geared apparatus for tuning stringed musical instruments by adjusting string tension. Machine heads are used on mandolins, guitars, double basses and others, and ar ...
, and other bands such as
Sabbat,
Sanctity
Sacred describes something that is dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a deity; is considered worthy of spiritual respect or devotion; or inspires awe or reverence among believers. The property is often ascribed to objects (a ...
,
Gama Bomb
Gama Bomb are a thrash metal band based in Northern Ireland. The band's 2009 album ''Tales from the Grave in Space'' was one of the first albums released as a free download by a band signed to a record label.
History
Beginnings (2002–200 ...
,
Severe Torture
Severe Torture is a Dutch death metal band, formed in 1997 by drummer Seth van de Loo and bassist Patrick Boleij.
History
The band was formed in 1997 by Thijs van Laarhoven on guitar, Seth van de Loo on drums, Erik de Windt on vocals, Jelle Sc ...
and
Desecration. On 11 December 2007, Evile participated in and won
Metal Hammer
''Metal Hammer'' is a heavy metal music magazine and website founded in 1983, published in the United Kingdom by Future, with other language editions available in numerous other countries. ''Metal Hammer'' features news, reviews and long-form ...
's Get in the Ring 2, at the
Kentish Town Forum,
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
. Four bands (Evile,
Engel, Viking Skull and Goat the Head) performed thirty-minute sets inside a boxing ring and the public selected their favorite via
SMS texts. The show was compered by
Oderus Urungus
David Murray Brockie (August 30, 1963 – March 23, 2014) was a Canadian-American musician, who was the lead vocalist of the heavy metal band Gwar, in which he performed as Oderus Urungus. He performed as a bassist and lead singer in the b ...
of
Gwar
Gwar, often stylized as GWAR, is an American heavy metal band formed in Richmond, Virginia in 1984, composed of and operated by a frequently rotating line-up of musicians, artists and filmmakers collectively known as Slave Pit Inc. After th ...
and the judges included
Ville Valo of
HIM. Valo commented that Evile were "really tight and rhythmic"
but they were not his "cup of tea." The competition was rebroadcast on
Rockworld TV on
SKY
The sky is an unobstructed view upward from the surface of the Earth. It includes the atmosphere and outer space. It may also be considered a place between the ground and outer space, thus distinct from outer space.
In the field of astronomy, ...
Channel 368 throughout January and February 2008 and included an hour-long supplement dedicated to Evile's GITR2 set.
In February and March 2008, Evile supported thrash metal band
Megadeth
Megadeth is an American thrash metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1983 by vocalist/guitarist Dave Mustaine. Known for their technically complex guitar work and musicianship, Megadeth is one of the "big four" of American thrash metal along wit ...
on the European leg of their Tour of Duty and the UK leg of their
Gigantour
Gigantour was a sporadically organised traveling heavy metal music festival organized by Dave Mustaine of Megadeth. The tour was founded in 2005 with dates across North America (see also Gigantour 2005), and the 2006 and 2007 line-ups also trav ...
, opening for American
deathcore band
Job for a Cowboy
Job for a Cowboy is an American death metal band from Glendale, Arizona. Formed in 2003, the band's debut album ''Genesis'' was released in 2007, peaking at No. 54 on the US ''Billboard'' 200 and selling 13,000 copies in its first we ...
. The band was received warmly throughout the respective tours,
and on the final date, they briefly joined Megadeth on stage at the Hugennottenhalle in
Frankfurt
Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...
to sing the heavy metal anthem "
Peace Sells
"Peace Sells" is a song by American thrash metal band Megadeth from their 1986 album '' Peace Sells... but Who's Buying?'', written by Dave Mustaine. The song was released as the band's second ever single in November 1986. "Peace Sells" was the ...
". In March 2008, Evile's track "Thrasher" was featured on the
Wii
The Wii ( ) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Nintendo. It was released on November 19, 2006, in North America and in December 2006 for most other Regional lockout, regions of the world. It is Nintendo's fifth major ho ...
,
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is a home video game console developed by Microsoft. As the successor to the original Xbox, it is the second console in the Xbox series. It competed with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation ...
, and
PlayStation 3
The PlayStation 3 (PS3) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment, Sony Computer Entertainment. The successor to the PlayStation 2, it is part of the PlayStation brand of consoles. It was first released on Novemb ...
video game ''
Rock Band
A rock band or pop band is a small musical ensemble that performs rock music, pop music, or a related genre. A four-piece band is the most common configuration in rock and pop music. In the early years, the configuration was typically two guita ...
'' as downloadable content (part of the "Earache Thrash Pack"). In April 2008, the band embarked on a European tour alongside thrash veterans
Exodus
Exodus or the Exodus may refer to:
Religion
* Book of Exodus, second book of the Hebrew Torah and the Christian Bible
* The Exodus, the biblical story of the migration of the ancient Israelites from Egypt into Canaan
Historical events
* Ex ...
. During the tour, they allowed a 14-year-old fan to join them on stage to perform "Enter the Grave",
and on a few occasions they joined Exodus in backing vocals on "
The Toxic Waltz," which was followed by the members of Exodus handing their instruments over to Evile to close the set.
On 8 October the release of Evile's first official Music Video. The video was "Thrasher", a song from their debut album, and was directed by Dan Fernbach (who directed bands such as
Bullet for My Valentine).
Also on 8 October the re-release of Evile's ''
Enter the Grave
''Enter the Grave'' is the debut album by the English thrash metal band Evile. Released on 27 August 2007 in Europe and on 25 September in North America and Japan, the album received generally favorable reviews and entered the UK Rock Chart at n ...
'' via
Earache Records
Earache Records is a British independent record label, music publisher and management company founded by Digby Pearson in 1985, based in Nottingham, England, with offices in London and New York. The label helped to pioneer extreme metal by rel ...
. Included in the package was a lengthy DVD, Evile guitar pick (with three alternate designs), A woven patch and three bonus tracks.
The band later announced they would provide support to
Satyricon on their European "Tour of Nero" in November/December 2008.
Unfortunately, On 19 November 2008, while on the tour, lead guitarist
Ol Drake reportedly collapsed due to health issues. His jaw was fractured and the under-side of his chin was cut open. Evile were forced to cancel their appearances on the remainder of the tour.
He then had to have his jaw wired shut for two weeks for healing.
Beginning in April 2009, Evile began the UK/Ireland "We Who Are About to Tour" tour along with UK death metal act
Trigger the Bloodshed
Trigger the Bloodshed are a British death metal band from Bath, England, formed in 2006. The band comprises guitarist Rob Purnell, vocalist Jonny Burgan, bassist Dave Purnell and drummer Dan Wilding. Trigger the Bloodshed has released three st ...
, and London Thrash band Mutant. Warpath, who were originally scheduled for the tour, pulled out two days prior to the start of the tour (though the unfortunate injury occurred a week before the tour
) leaving Evile two days to find a replacement band.
Evile played two brand new songs which would be featured on their second album; one entitled "Demolition" and one without a title, which on a nightly basis was open to being named by the audience.
''Infected Nations'' and the death of Mike Alexander (2009–2010)
In February 2009 Evile began the pre-production process for their second album with
Russ Russell
Russ Russell is a British record producer, sound engineer, mixer, mastering engineer, musician and writer. He has worked all over the world and now is mostly based at Parlour Studios in the UK. He was also the guitarist in the psychedelic band ...
(who has worked with bands such as
Napalm Death
Napalm Death are an English grindcore band formed in 1981 in Meriden, West Midlands. None of the band's original members has been in the group since 1986. But since ''Utopia Banished'' (1992), the lineup of bassist Shane Embury, guitarist Mitch ...
,
The Exploited and
Dimmu Borgir
Dimmu Borgir () is a Norwegian symphonic black metal band from Jessheim, formed in 1993. The name is derived from Dimmuborgir, a volcanic formation in Iceland, the name of which means "dark cities" or "dark castles/fortresses" in Icelandic, ...
).
May and June saw Evile enter Parlour Studios in
Kettering
Kettering is a market and industrial town in North Northamptonshire, England. It is located north of London and north-east of Northampton, west of the River Ise, a tributary of the River Nene. The name means "the place (or territory) of Ket ...
with Russell to record the album. The band would post three video updates whilst in the studio,
and give fans a chance to "Ask Evile" questions via their Myspace blog.
On an Evile studio tour hosted by Ben the working titles of songs to be on the album could be seen written on a whiteboard.
On 22 June, Evile revealed that the title of the second album would be ''
Infected Nations
''Infected Nations'' is the second album by English thrash metal band Evile. It was released on 21 September 2009 in Europe and 22 September in the United States.
The album was produced by Russ Russell ( Napalm Death, Dimmu Borgir) at Parlour ...
'', with artwork created by
Michael Whelan
Michael Whelan (born 29 June 1950) is an Americans, American artist of imaginative Realism (arts), realism. For more than 30 years, he worked as an illustrator, specializing in science fiction and fantasy cover art. Since the mid-1990s, he has ...
(who also worked with the likes of
Sepultura,
Obituary
An obituary ( obit for short) is an article about a recently deceased person. Newspapers often publish obituaries as news articles. Although obituaries tend to focus on positive aspects of the subject's life, this is not always the case. Ac ...
and
Stephen King
Stephen Edwin King (born September 21, 1947) is an American author of horror, supernatural fiction, suspense, crime, science-fiction, and fantasy novels. Described as the "King of Horror", a play on his surname and a reference to his high s ...
). A video was posted online on the same day of Ol talking fans through the concept of the art, stood in front of a large poster print of the cover.
The album was released on 21 September in Europe and 22 September in USA.
''Infected Nations'' jumped into the UK top 100 chart at number 91 following its first-day sales.
The band released three tracks publicly prior to the album's release. These tracks were "Infected Nation", "Now Demolition" and "Nosophoros". Evile released a music video for the track "Infected Nation" which, like "Thrasher" was directed by Dan Fernbach and Static Films once again.
Also, like "Thrasher", displays the band playing a dynamically aggressive song in a very confined space.
In September 2009,
Schmier of the German thrash metal classics
Destruction
Destruction may refer to:
Concepts
* Destruktion, a term from the philosophy of Martin Heidegger
* Destructive narcissism, a pathological form of narcissism
* Self-destructive behaviour, a widely used phrase that ''conceptualises'' certain kind ...
asked lead guitarist, Ol Drake, to stand in for them on guitar. This was prompted by Destruction's guitarist, Mike Sifringer, breaking his fingers forcing them to find a temporary replacement.
On 5 October 2009, tragedy struck the band as their bass player, Mike Alexander, died whilst being rushed to hospital while the band were on tour in
Luleå
Luleå ( , , locally ; smj, Luleju; fi, Luulaja) is a city on the coast of northern Sweden, and the capital of Norrbotten County, the northernmost county in Sweden. Luleå has 48,728 inhabitants in its urban core (2018) and is the seat of Lu ...
, Sweden. He died from a
pulmonary embolism, a
blood clot
A thrombus (plural thrombi), colloquially called a blood clot, is the final product of the blood coagulation step in hemostasis. There are two components to a thrombus: aggregated platelets and red blood cells that form a plug, and a mesh of c ...
on the
lung
The lungs are the primary organs of the respiratory system in humans and most other animals, including some snails and a small number of fish. In mammals and most other vertebrates, two lungs are located near the backbone on either side of t ...
s. Evile unveiled a tribute site
to their fallen member.
In early December 2009 the remaining members of Evile held two memorial nights for Mike. One was held in Leeds Rios and the other in the Camden Underworld, London. The night consisted of a covers set of some of Mike's favourite songs and bands, with members of the support bands (Gama Bomb
Gama Bomb are a thrash metal band based in Northern Ireland. The band's 2009 album ''Tales from the Grave in Space'' was one of the first albums released as a free download by a band signed to a record label.
History
Beginnings (2002–200 ...
, Mutant and Seregon) on the night stepping in on various instruments. Nick Barker
Nicholas Paul Barker is an Australian singer-songwriter and guitarist who formed a rock, power pop band, Nick Barker & the Reptiles, in March 1988. Their cover version of Cockney Rebel's "Make Me Smile (Come Up and See Me)" reached the top  ...
(Dimmu Borgir
Dimmu Borgir () is a Norwegian symphonic black metal band from Jessheim, formed in 1993. The name is derived from Dimmuborgir, a volcanic formation in Iceland, the name of which means "dark cities" or "dark castles/fortresses" in Icelandic, ...
, Cradle of Filth
Cradle of Filth are an English extreme metal band formed in Suffolk in 1991. The band's musical style evolved originally from black metal to a cleaner and more "produced" amalgam of gothic metal, symphonic metal and other metal genres. Their ly ...
, Testament, Exodus
Exodus or the Exodus may refer to:
Religion
* Book of Exodus, second book of the Hebrew Torah and the Christian Bible
* The Exodus, the biblical story of the migration of the ancient Israelites from Egypt into Canaan
Historical events
* Ex ...
) also took to the stage on both nights to play drums for several tracks. Both shows saw each remaining member of Evile take to the stage to read out messages of thanks from Mike's girlfriend, children and Mother. The Leeds show saw Mike's mother take to the stage and express her thanks to Evile's fans.
Evile were asked, by UK Magazine ''Metal Hammer
''Metal Hammer'' is a heavy metal music magazine and website founded in 1983, published in the United Kingdom by Future, with other language editions available in numerous other countries. ''Metal Hammer'' features news, reviews and long-form ...
'', to cover a Pantera
Pantera () is an American heavy metal music, heavy metal band from Arlington, Texas formed in 1981, and currently comprised of vocalist Phil Anselmo, bassist Rex Brown, and touring musicians Zakk Wylde and Charlie Benante. The group's best-kn ...
track for their Dimebag Darrell tribute Issue. The band chose to cover "Cemetery Gates" with it being their favourite Pantera track. The track would go on to receive positive feedback, be released via iTunes
iTunes () is a software program that acts as a media player, media library, mobile device management utility, and the client app for the iTunes Store. Developed by Apple Inc., it is used to purchase, play, download, and organize digital mul ...
and get substantial airplay in the United States. This would unfortunately be the last track recorded with Mike Alexander. A raffle was also organized prior to the nights to raise funds for Mike's children and family. Evile and Mike's family were overwhelmed to receive support from people/bands such as Ozzy Osbourne
John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne (born 3 December 1948) is an English singer, songwriter, and television personality. He rose to prominence during the 1970s as the lead vocalist of the heavy metal band Black Sabbath, during which period he adop ...
& Sharon Osbourne
Sharon Rachel Osbourne (née Levy, later Arden; born 9 October 1952) is a British-American television personality, music manager and author. She is married to heavy metal singer-songwriter Ozzy Osbourne and came to prominence while appearing ...
, Iron Maiden
Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. While fluid in the early years of the band, the lineup for most of the band's history has consisted of Harri ...
, Metallica
Metallica is an American heavy metal band. The band was formed in 1981 in Los Angeles by vocalist/guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, and has been based in San Francisco for most of its career. The band's fast tempos, instrume ...
, Megadeth
Megadeth is an American thrash metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1983 by vocalist/guitarist Dave Mustaine. Known for their technically complex guitar work and musicianship, Megadeth is one of the "big four" of American thrash metal along wit ...
, Slayer
Slayer was an American thrash metal band from Huntington Park, California. The band was formed in 1981 by guitarists Kerry King and Jeff Hanneman, drummer Dave Lombardo and bassist/vocalist Tom Araya. Slayer's fast and aggressive musical style ...
, Machine Head
A machine head (also referred to as a tuning machine, tuner, or gear head) is a geared apparatus for tuning stringed musical instruments by adjusting string tension. Machine heads are used on mandolins, guitars, double basses and others, and ar ...
, Exodus
Exodus or the Exodus may refer to:
Religion
* Book of Exodus, second book of the Hebrew Torah and the Christian Bible
* The Exodus, the biblical story of the migration of the ancient Israelites from Egypt into Canaan
Historical events
* Ex ...
, Overkill
Overkill may refer to:
* Overkill (term), the use of excessive force or action to achieve a goal
* Surplus killing, when a predator kills more prey than it can eat
* Overexploitation, depletion of a natural resource through overharvesting
** Ove ...
, Trivium
The trivium is the lower division of the seven liberal arts and comprises grammar, logic, and rhetoric.
The trivium is implicit in ''De nuptiis Philologiae et Mercurii'' ("On the Marriage of Philology and Mercury") by Martianus Capella, but the ...
, Andy Sneap, Annihilator, Benediction, Hirax
The Hydrogen Intensity and Real-time Analysis eXperiment (HIRAX) is an interferometric array of 1024 6-meter (20 ft) diameter radio telescopes, operating at 400-800MHz, that will be deployed at the Square Kilometer Array site in the Karoo regi ...
and more. The winners of the Raffle Prizes were announced via YouTube
YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...
by Matt and Ol.
Evile started auditions for a new bass player in late November/December 2009. They then announced dates for a 2010 UK/Europe tour. On 16 December it was reported that Joel Graham (formerly of Rise to Addiction) is the band's new bass player. In December Evile announced their first shows in USA
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...
/North America
North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...
. One tour supporting Kreator alongside Voivod, Kataklysm
Kataklysm is a Canadian death metal band. They have released fourteen studio albums, one EP and two DVDs as of 2020. Kataklysm won their first Juno Award (Canadian equivalent of the Grammy) for best album of the year in the "heavy metal" categ ...
and more. The other tour being in support to Overkill
Overkill may refer to:
* Overkill (term), the use of excessive force or action to achieve a goal
* Surplus killing, when a predator kills more prey than it can eat
* Overexploitation, depletion of a natural resource through overharvesting
** Ove ...
alongside Vader, God Dethroned
God Dethroned is a Dutch extreme metal band from Beilen, originally formed in 1990.
Biography
God Dethroned was formed in 1990 by singer and guitar player Henri Sattler, with Hans Leegstra (guitar) and Ard de Weerd. Sattler and Leegstra had pre ...
and Warbringer.
In April 2010 Evile would pay tribute to their late bassist, Pantera and Dimebag Darrell by performing their cover of "Cemetery Gates" in the latter's birthplace of Dallas
Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...
, Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
while on tour with Overkill
Overkill may refer to:
* Overkill (term), the use of excessive force or action to achieve a goal
* Surplus killing, when a predator kills more prey than it can eat
* Overexploitation, depletion of a natural resource through overharvesting
** Ove ...
in North America. Also in April 2010, it was announced that Evile would be returning to Bloodstock Open Air, playing main stage on Saturday 14 August. Evile will also be playing Hellfest
Hellfest (), also called Hellfest Summer Open Air, is a rock festival focusing on heavy metal music, held annually in June in Clisson, France. Its high attendance makes it the French music festival with the largest turnover. It is also one of ...
, Wacken Open Air
Wacken Open Air (, abbreviated as W:O:A) is a rock music, rock music festival, held annually since 1990 on the first weekend of August in the village of Wacken, Schleswig-Holstein, Wacken in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. Almost all styles and su ...
, Sonisphere
The Sonisphere Festival was a touring rock music festival which took place across Europe between the months of June and August. The festival was owned by John Jackson and Kilimanjaro Live. It was jointly promoted by K2 and Kilimanjaro Live. It ...
and many more European Festivals.
Evile's track "Bathe in Blood" was used in the film '' Ondine'' by Neil Jordan
Neil Patrick Jordan (born 25 February 1950) is an Irish film director, screenwriter, novelist and short-story writer. His first book, '' Night in Tunisia'', won a Somerset Maugham Award and the Guardian Fiction Prize in 1979. He won an Academy ...
and starring Colin Farrell.
From September 2010 to the end of December the band toured extensively throughout North America. The band had several headline dates as well as tours with veterans such as Overkill
Overkill may refer to:
* Overkill (term), the use of excessive force or action to achieve a goal
* Surplus killing, when a predator kills more prey than it can eat
* Overexploitation, depletion of a natural resource through overharvesting
** Ove ...
, D.R.I. and fellow thrash-band Gama Bomb
Gama Bomb are a thrash metal band based in Northern Ireland. The band's 2009 album ''Tales from the Grave in Space'' was one of the first albums released as a free download by a band signed to a record label.
History
Beginnings (2002–200 ...
. Also in February, Ol Drake took part in a "Game with Fame" session via Xbox Live
The Xbox network, formerly and still sometimes branded as Xbox Live, is an Internet, online multiplayer video game, multiplayer gaming and digital media delivery service created and operated by Microsoft. It was first made available to the Xbox ...
, inviting gamers to play the videogame '' Rockband 3'' with him. The event was advertised on the Xbox Live Dashboard and took place for 3 hours (5pm-8pm EST). Around this time the entire ''Infected Nations'' album became available via the Rock Band Network
The ''Rock Band'' Network (abbreviated RBN) was a downloadable content service designed by Harmonix with the help of Microsoft to allow musical artists and record labels to make their music available as playable tracks for the ''Rock Band'' seri ...
, as well as the band achieving "Artist of the Month".
''Five Serpent's Teeth'' (2010–2012)
On 31 May, Evile revealed that they'd begun working on their third studio album. Ol Drake confirmed this via TwitLonger on 9 November and told that "Album 3 is well on the way and will be out on Earache Records in mid 2011". In February 2011 Evile embarked on a short UK tour to say goodbye to their "Infected Nations" album, while also showcasing a brand new track with the working title "Bitch". Matt also announced the third album will have the initials "FST". In March 2011 it was announced that Evile had entered Parlour Studios to begin recording their 3rd album with producer Russ Russell
Russ Russell is a British record producer, sound engineer, mixer, mastering engineer, musician and writer. He has worked all over the world and now is mostly based at Parlour Studios in the UK. He was also the guitarist in the psychedelic band ...
. Periodically, the band have been posting excerpts of the album's recording process on their official YouTube
YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...
page. On 25 April, the band announced that their 3rd album was fully mixed and awaiting mastering.
In May 2011 Evile announced that they would pay tribute to their fallen bandmate, Mike Alexander, on the latest album. The track was entitled "In Memoriam". Ol Drake commented:
It goes without saying that there would be some element of the new album which was for Mike alone. We had a few ideas floating around which were out of the ordinary for Evile, and when Mike passed away those ideas just started to make more and more sense. "In Memoriam"'s initial intention was for Mike and Mike alone. All of us in the band have different views and thoughts on what the song means and who it is for, but it was born out of a want to include something special for Mike, his family and ourselves. As the song grew it started to take on a life of its own, so to speak. It is for anyone who's lost anyone close to them. There is a lot of meaning behind this song, and I expect a few people will question Evile doing such a song, but if the sentiment isn't understood, I couldn't care less. As our producer, Russ Russell said: "It's a brilliant song for a brilliant guy."
It has been revealed through hard rock/heavy metal magazine ''Metal Hammer
''Metal Hammer'' is a heavy metal music magazine and website founded in 1983, published in the United Kingdom by Future, with other language editions available in numerous other countries. ''Metal Hammer'' features news, reviews and long-form ...
'' that the title for their third album would be ''Five Serpent's Teeth
''Five Serpent's Teeth'' is the third album by the English thrash metal band Evile. It was released on 26 September 2011 in Europe and on 18 October 2011 in North America. The album was produced by Russ Russell ( Napalm Death, Dimmu Borgir) at ...
'' to be released 26 September 2011 in Europe and 18 October 2011 in North America through Earache Records. On 6 June, the band posted a new song, titled "Eternal Empire", on their YouTube channel. On 12 September 2011 the album's first single/music video, "Cult", was released. The video saw a different, more modern approach. In September/October 2011 the band set out on a 15-date headline tour of the UK with label-mates Savage Messiah as support. The band were then asked by ''Kerrang!
''Kerrang!'' is a British weekly magazine devoted to rock, punk and heavy metal music, currently published by Wasted Talent (the same company that owns electronic music publication ''Mixmag''). It was first published on 6 June 1981 as a one- ...
'' Magazine to cover a Nirvana
( , , ; sa, निर्वाण} ''nirvāṇa'' ; Pali: ''nibbāna''; Prakrit: ''ṇivvāṇa''; literally, "blown out", as in an oil lampRichard Gombrich, ''Theravada Buddhism: A Social History from Ancient Benāres to Modern Colombo.' ...
song for ''Nevermind
''Nevermind'' is the second studio album by the American rock band Nirvana, released on September 24, 1991, by DGC Records. It was Nirvana's first release on a major label and the first to feature drummer Dave Grohl. Produced by Butch Vig, ''Neve ...
''s 20th Anniversary Tribute Issue. Evile covered the track "Lounge Act". Ol Drake commented:
When we got the offer, all I could see was fun to be had, and what an honor it was to be included. I was a big fan of Nirvana when I was a young teen, so it's an extra honor in that way for me. I wondered what we could do to the track to make it our own, so we approached it like we would one of our own songs. That bass riff is brilliant and I wanted to make it more a core element of the track guitar-wise and just metal it up in general. I wanted to respect the approach of the song but also alter Kurt's obainchord approach to a style more suited to EVILE, and that's a chug-athon!
In October Evile celebrated the release of ''Five Serpent's Teeth'' by taking part in in-store signing sessions in select Blue Banana stores as well as a short tour of Release Shows in the UK; London, Birmingham and Holmfirth. On 17 October The band were featured in a Live Session on BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including electronica, dance, ...
's ''Rock Show'' with Daniel P. Carter
Daniel Philip Carter (born 16 November 1972) is a British musician and radio DJ. He is the former singer and guitarist for hardcore punk band Hexes, the former bassist for A, the former lead guitarist for alternative rock band Bloodhound Gang ...
. The set was recorded at Maida Vale Studios, London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
. In November Evile announced a 24-date Headlining tour of Europe with Portrait and Dr. Living Dead as supports.
On 11 February 2012 Evile took part in, and headlined, HMV Group
Sunrise Records and Entertainment, trading as HMV (for His Master's Voice), is a British music and entertainment retailer, currently operating exclusively in the United Kingdom.
The first HMV-branded store was opened by the Gramophone Company ...
's "Next Big Thing" at the HMV Ritz in Manchester
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...
, UK along with Cerebral Bore
Cerebral Bore was a Scottish brutal death metal band from Glasgow, formed in 2006.
The band comprises guitarist Paul McGuire, drummer Allan "McDibet" MacDonald and bassist Federico Benini. Cerebral Bore released a debut album, '' Maniacal Mis ...
and Savage Messiah. After the death of Woods of Ypres
Woods of Ypres was a Canadian doom metal band from Windsor, Ontario. The band was founded in 2002, initially consisting of three members: David Gold, Aaron Palmer and Brian McManus. Their lineup frequently changed afterward, with over 20 members ...
mastermind David Gold, the band decided to make the first live debut of "In Memoriam" a dedication to him. "In Memoriam" was initially written as a tribute to their fallen bandmate, Mike Alexander. In March 2012, Evile's lead guitarist Ol Drake was nominated for the "Dimebag Darrell Shredder" Award as part of Metal Hammer Golden Gods Awards
The following is a list of the ''Metal Hammer'' Golden Gods Awards winners.
Introduction
The awards were conceived by Chris Ingham, John O'Sullivan & Dave Bianchi, and first held at the Kentish Town Forum in London 2003. The show was owned by Fut ...
. Also up for the award were Devin Townsend, Dino Cazares
Dino Cazares (born in 1966) is an American musician, known for being the guitarist and one of the co-founders of industrial metal band Fear Factory. He is also the co-founder of the metal bands Divine Heresy, Asesino, and Brujeria. Cazares popu ...
(of Fear Factory
Fear Factory is an American heavy 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. ...
, Russ Parrish
Russell John Parrish (born November 24, 1970), better known as Satchel, is an American musician. He is the lead guitarist for the comedic glam metal band Steel Panther.
Early life
Russell John Parrish was born in Redwood City, California ...
), Satchel (of Steel Panther
Steel Panther is an American comedic glam metal band from Los Angeles, California. They are known for their profane and humorous lyrics as well as their exaggerated onstage pastiche of the stereotypical glam metal lifestyle.
History
Metal Sh ...
) and Adam Dutkiewicz
Adam Jonathan Dutkiewicz (born April 4, 1977) is an American musician, recording engineer, songwriter, and music producer, best known as the lead guitarist and backup vocalist from Massachusetts metalcore bands Killswitch Engage, Aftershock, and ...
(of Killswitch Engage
Killswitch Engage is an American metalcore band from Westfield, Massachusetts, formed in 1999 after the disbanding of Overcast (band), Overcast and Aftershock. Killswitch Engage's current lineup consists of vocalist Jesse Leach, guitarists Joe ...
). In April 2012 Evile announced they would start filming a music video for the track "In Memoriam". Ol Drake commented:
The initial idea was to release the "Cult" video, as we did, then immediately get onto recording the video for "In Memoriam"; this was easier said than done. It's been well documented why the song exists. When it came to getting the "right"/"appropriate" treatment for the video, it was a lengthy process. The song is so close to all of us that we wanted to make sure the video complemented the song and its subject matter, and that all four of us were happy with how the song will be portrayed visually. If we'd have settled on the first idea after "Cult", we wouldn't have been happy, so amidst touring and gigging, we've been working hard on getting this 100% before we move on to the next video. The song is basically about loss, which we can all relate to, so we wanted to express that in the video, while staying respectful to why the song exists. We can't wait to get this filmed and out there for all to enjoy!
''Skull'' and the departure of Ol Drake (2013–2015)
On 31 January 2013, Ol Drake announced via his Tumblr that Evile were to begin recording their fourth album the following weekend. He also confirmed that the band would again utilise producer Russ Russell. On 25 March, Ben Carter and Earache Records released the album name, cover and release date of their fourth album, entitled ''Skull
The skull is a bone protective cavity for the brain. The skull is composed of four types of bone i.e., cranial bones, facial bones, ear ossicles and hyoid bone. However two parts are more prominent: the cranium and the mandible. In humans, the ...
''. Guitarist Ol Drake announced his departure from Evile in August 2013. In August 2014, Evile announced that Piers Donno-Fuller (formerly of Fallen Fate) would be joining them as lead guitarist, and that they "have something in the pipeline for March".
Switching members, ''Hell Unleashed'' and next album (2016–present)
As early as March 2016, Evile began working on their fifth studio album. On 19 March 2018, Evile announced the departure of Piers due to personal commitments. On 24 April of the same year, the band announced Ol Drake had rejoined the band. On 12 August 2020, Evile announced that Matt Drake had quit the band "a while ago", leaving drummer Ben Carter as their only permanent member. On rhythm guitar, Drake was replaced by Adam Smith of RipTide, while his brother Ol took over on guitar and vocals. In the following month, Evile were signed to Napalm Records
Napalm Records is an Austrian independent record label focused on heavy metal and hard rock. Originally, Napalm focused on black metal bands, such as Abigor and Summoning, and folk metal bands, such as Falkenbach and Vintersorg. The label later ...
and began recording their new album with Chris Clancy for a 2021 release. Then On 3 February 2021, Evile announced that their fifth studio album, ''Hell Unleashed
''Hell Unleashed'' is the fifth studio album by British thrash metal band Evile, released on 30 April 2021 by Napalm Records. It is the band's first studio album since ''Skull'' (2013), making it their longest gap between studio albums to date. ...
'', would be released on 30 April, and the video for the album's lead single, which is the title track, directed by James Mansell, was released on the same day. The song "Gore" includes a guest backing-vocal appearance from actor/comedian Brian Posehn
Brian Edmund Posehn (; born July 6, 1966) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, voice actor, musician, and writer. After numerous appearances as a television guest star, Posehn acquired his first major recurring role in HBO's ''Mr. Show with ...
. The song, and music video directed by James Mansell, was released on 18 March. Evile will promote ''Hell Unleashed'' with a UK tour in February 2022, supported by Divine Chaos and Tortured Demon.
In response to why the album had taken eight years to materialise, frontman Ol Drake commented:
they hadn't really done any new music, and when I rejoined in 2018, I just hit the ground running and started new material and the whole complication with my brother leaving and everything made it last even longer. It should have been out a year and a half ago really but sh*t happens.
''Hell Unleashed'' is also the first Evile studio album to include a cover by another band. Ol Drake commented on including Mortician's "Zombie Apocalypse":
The main reason we did it, is because of how fun that riff is. I have loved it most of my metal life. I always play it when we are sound checking or I pick up the guitar and that riff is always in my vocabulary and it was literally just an excuse for us to play it. It is just so fun and I can't wait to do it live.
In a June 2021 interview with ''Metal Hammer
''Metal Hammer'' is a heavy metal music magazine and website founded in 1983, published in the United Kingdom by Future, with other language editions available in numerous other countries. ''Metal Hammer'' features news, reviews and long-form ...
'', Ol Drake revealed the band had planned to work on their sixth studio album. He said, with a chuckle, "I started writing the next album before 'Hell Unleashed''was even finished. New material will probably start in late 2021." Three months later, he confirmed in a "small announcement" on Facebook that Evile have not only officially begun writing their sixth studio album, but stated that it will not take another eight years for it to be released.
Musical style and influences
Evile's sound is primarily influenced by classic thrash metal
Thrash metal (or simply thrash) is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music characterized by its overall aggression and often fast tempo.Kahn-Harris, Keith, ''Extreme Metal: Music and Culture on the Edge'', pp. 2–3, 9. Oxford: Berg, 2007, . ...
, citing bands such as Overkill
Overkill may refer to:
* Overkill (term), the use of excessive force or action to achieve a goal
* Surplus killing, when a predator kills more prey than it can eat
* Overexploitation, depletion of a natural resource through overharvesting
** Ove ...
, Metallica
Metallica is an American heavy metal band. The band was formed in 1981 in Los Angeles by vocalist/guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, and has been based in San Francisco for most of its career. The band's fast tempos, instrume ...
, Megadeth
Megadeth is an American thrash metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1983 by vocalist/guitarist Dave Mustaine. Known for their technically complex guitar work and musicianship, Megadeth is one of the "big four" of American thrash metal along wit ...
, Slayer
Slayer was an American thrash metal band from Huntington Park, California. The band was formed in 1981 by guitarists Kerry King and Jeff Hanneman, drummer Dave Lombardo and bassist/vocalist Tom Araya. Slayer's fast and aggressive musical style ...
, Exodus
Exodus or the Exodus may refer to:
Religion
* Book of Exodus, second book of the Hebrew Torah and the Christian Bible
* The Exodus, the biblical story of the migration of the ancient Israelites from Egypt into Canaan
Historical events
* Ex ...
, Testament, Annihilator, Nevermore, Pantera
Pantera () is an American heavy metal music, heavy metal band from Arlington, Texas formed in 1981, and currently comprised of vocalist Phil Anselmo, bassist Rex Brown, and touring musicians Zakk Wylde and Charlie Benante. The group's best-kn ...
and Sepultura, though they are also influenced by death metal
Death metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. It typically employs heavily distorted and low-tuned guitars, played with techniques such as palm muting and tremolo picking; deep growling vocals; aggressive, powerful drumming, feat ...
bands like Obituary
An obituary ( obit for short) is an article about a recently deceased person. Newspapers often publish obituaries as news articles. Although obituaries tend to focus on positive aspects of the subject's life, this is not always the case. Ac ...
.
Band members
;Current members
* Ol Drake – lead and rhythm guitar, backing vocals (2004–2013, 2018–present), lead vocals (2020–present)
* Ben Carter – drums (2004–present)
* Joel Graham
Joel Graham is the bassist of English thrash metal band Evile and former bassist of metal band Rise to Addiction.
Biography
Graham was born on 10 February 1977 in Dewsbury, England. He was strongly influenced and supported by his parents from ...
– bass, backing vocals (2009–present)
* Adam Smith – lead and rhythm guitar, backing vocals (2020–present)
;Former members
* Matt Drake – lead vocals, rhythm guitar (2004–2020; one show in 2021)
* Piers Donno-Fuller – lead guitar, backing vocals (2014–2018)
* Mike Alexander – bass, backing vocals (2004–2009; died 2009)
Timeline
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Discography
Albums
Demo albums
Singles
Music videos
References
External links
Earache Records
Official message board
YouTube channel
*
{{Authority control
British heavy metal musical groups
Earache Records artists
English heavy metal musical groups
English thrash metal musical groups
Musical groups established in 2004
Musical quartets
Musicians from Huddersfield