Holy Grail is an American heavy metal band from Pasadena, California, formed in 2008.

History

Holy Grail was formed in 2008 as Sorcerer by singer James Paul Luna, lead guitarist James J. LaRue and drummer Tyler Meahl, all ex-members of

White Wizzard White Wizzard is an American heavy metal band from Los Angeles, formed in 2007. They have released one EP and four albums: ''Over the Top'' released in 2010, ''Flying Tigers'' released in 2011, '' The Devil's Cut'' released in 2013, and '' Inf ...

. They recruited rhythm guitarist Eli Santana and bassist Eric Harris (formerly of

Skeletonwitch Skeletonwitch is an American metal band from Athens, Ohio, formed in 2003. The band currently consists of lead guitarist Nate Garnette, rhythm guitarist Scott Hedrick, bassist Evan Linger, and vocalist Adam Clemans. Original vocalist Chance Gar ...

) to complete the lineup. Before Holy Grail recorded their first

extended play An extended play record, usually referred to as an EP, is a musical recording that contains more tracks than a single but fewer than an album or LP record.

, bassist Blake Mount replaced Harris. In 2009, the band released their first EP, '' Improper Burial'', on

Prosthetic Records Prosthetic Records is an American record label specializing in heavy metal recordings, founded in Los Angeles, California in 1998 by E.J. Johantgen and Dan Fitzgerald. Prosthetic Records released the first two albums by Lamb of God and Animals ...

. They went on to release their first full-length album, '' Crisis in Utopia'', in 2010, to critical acclaim. The cover art for ''Crisis in Utopia'' was created by Andrei Bouzikov. The band toured heavily from 2009 to 2012 in support of their first album. In November 2009, they supported

3 Inches of Blood 3 Inches of Blood was a Canadian heavy metal band formed in 1999 in Victoria, British Columbia, last consisting of Cam Pipes, Justin Hagberg, Shane Clark, and Ash Pearson, none of whom were original members of the band. Their music was strong ...

and Saviours on a North American tour. In April 2010, they supported Amon Amarth on their North American tour. In June, they performed at the UK's Download Festival. In July 2010, bassist Jessie Sanchez took Blake Mount's place in the band; in October of that year, Mount returned to the band and Sanchez left. In August, the band performed at Germany's

Wacken Open Air Wacken Open Air (, abbreviated as W:O:A) is a rock music festival, held annually since 1990 on the first weekend of August in the village of Wacken in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. Almost all styles and subgenres of hard rock and metal are ...

Festival. They then began their third North American tour, supporting Exodus. In October 2010, the band parted ways with LaRue, replacing him with guitarist Ian Scott for the next few months. Scott's first performance with the band took place at Japan's

Loud Park Festival The was a heavy metal festival held annually at Saitama Super Arena in Saitama City or Makuhari Messe in Chiba City, Japan. It was one of the biggest heavy metal festivals in Japan. The festival has featured both Japanese and international p ...

. In December, the band toured North America for the fourth time, this time supporting

Blind Guardian Blind Guardian is a German power metal band formed in 1984 in Krefeld, West Germany. They are often credited as one of the seminal and most influential bands in the power metal and speed metal subgenres.Eluveitie Eluveitie ( ; )Chrigel Glanzmann: "...According to current research, it is pronounced in Bernese German as, i.e. ''"Elvèyti"''. But I don't know if this is correct. The gods know that.:: Metalist Magazine :: Interviews :: Eluveitie is a Swiss f ...

alongside

. In March, the band embarked on a headlining tour of the UK, supported by Revoker. In April 2011, the band parted ways with Scott, replacing him with guitarist Alex Lee (formerly of

Bonded by Blood ''Bonded by Blood'' is the debut studio album by American thrash metal band Exodus. Although the album was completed in the summer of 1984, it was not released until 1985 due to issues with Exodus and the record label. It is considered one of t ...

). The band then began its first headlining tour of North America, with support from

Cauldron A cauldron (or caldron) is a large pot ( kettle) for cooking or boiling over an open fire, with a lid and frequently with an arc-shaped hanger and/or integral handles or feet. There is a rich history of cauldron lore in religion, mythology, and ...

in the US (Holy Grail supported Cauldron on Canadian dates). In September, they toured North American again, this time supporting

Toxic Holocaust Toxic Holocaust is an American thrash metal band from Portland, Oregon. History Joel Grind founded Toxic Holocaust in 1999. He originally wrote and recorded all of the band's music himself, and after a couple of demo releases (''Radiation Sick ...

. They released their second EP, ''Season's Bleedings'', in December 2011. In February 2012, the band performed at Australia's Soundwave festival. In March, they supported Saviours on another North American tour, including a performance at Austin's South by Southwest festival. In May, they supported

DragonForce DragonForce are a British power metal band from London, England. The band was formed in 1999 by guitarists Herman Li and Sam Totman, and are known for their long and fast guitar solos, fantasy-themed lyrics and retro video game-influenced ...

on their North American tour, alongside Huntress. In June, they supported

Valient Thorr Valient Thorr is an American southern rock/ heavy metal band from Greenville, North Carolina. The name of the band is based on the urban legend of Valiant Thor, an Alien which came from Venus to Earth, Valiant Thor. Valient explained, "That'll b ...

on their North American tour, alongside Royal Thunder. In October 2012, they supported Hellyeah on their North American tour. The band's second full-length album, '' Ride the Void'', was released on January 22, 2013. It was released in North America by

and in Europe by

Nuclear Blast Nuclear Blast is a record label and mail order record distributor with subsidiaries in Germany, the United States and Brazil. The label was founded in 1987 by Markus Staiger in Germany. Originally releasing hardcore punk records, the label mov ...

. Shortly after the release of '' Ride the Void'', the band embarked on the Metal Alliance Tour, with Anthrax headlining, along with Exodus,

Municipal Waste Municipal solid waste (MSW), commonly known as trash or garbage in the United States and rubbish in Britain, is a waste type consisting of everyday items that are discarded by the public. "Garbage" can also refer specifically to food waste, a ...

High on Fire High on Fire is an American heavy metal band from Oakland, California, that was formed in 1999. Matt Pike, the band's frontman and founder, also plays guitar for doom metal band Sleep. High on Fire won the 2019 Grammy Award for Best Metal Perfo ...

, and

Shadows Fall Shadows Fall is an American metalcore band from Boston, Massachusetts, formed in 1996. Although Shadows Fall has experienced several line-up changes, for most of its recording career, Shadows Fall has been composed of Jon Donais (lead guitar, ...

Musical style

Luna has described Holy Grail as "a modern band with a new twist of old-school metal with death metal

riff A riff is a repeated chord progression or refrain in music (also known as an ostinato figure in classical music); it is a pattern, or melody, often played by the rhythm section instruments or solo instrument, that forms the basis or acc ...

s, modern breakdowns, and power-metal singing". Critics have described the band as playing traditional or retro heavy metal with

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 ...

influences.

Discography

Studio albums

* '' Crisis in Utopia'' (2010) * '' Ride the Void'' (2013) * ''Times of Pride and Peril'' (2016)

Extended plays

* '' Improper Burial'' (2009) * '' Seasons Bleedings'' (2011)

Compilation albums

* ''Label Showcase – Prosthetic Records'' (2012)

Singles

* ''My Last Attack'' (2010) * '' Dark Passenger'' (2012)

Members

Current members * James Paul Luna – vocals (2008–present) * Eli Santana – rhythm guitar (2008–present) * Tyler Meahl – drums (2008–present) * Blake Mount – bass (2008–2010, 2010–present) * Donald Penn – lead guitar (2022–present) Former members * James LaRue – lead guitar (2008–2010) * Eric Harris – bass (2008) * Alex Lee – lead guitar (2011–2022) Touring members * Ian Scott – lead guitar (2010–2011) * Jessie Sanchez – bass (2010)

References

External links

* * {{Authority control 2008 establishments in California Culture of Pasadena, California Heavy metal musical groups from California Musical groups established in 2008 Musical quintets Organizations based in Pasadena, California