Skeletonwitch is an American
metal
A metal (from Greek μέταλλον ''métallon'', "mine, quarry, metal") is a material that, when freshly prepared, polished, or fractured, shows a lustrous appearance, and conducts electricity and heat relatively well. Metals are typicall ...
band from
Athens, Ohio
Athens is a city and the county seat of Athens County, Ohio. The population was 23,849 at the 2020 census. Located along the Hocking River within Appalachian Ohio about southeast of Columbus, Athens is best known as the home of Ohio Universit ...
, 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 Garnette was fired from the band sometime in late 2014, or early 2015. In early 2018, drummer Dustin Boltjes left the band as well after a 7-year tenure. Jon Rice, formerly of
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 ...
, is currently substituting on drums for live performances.
History
Skeletonwitch was formed in 2003 in Athens, Ohio. Guitarist Hedrick heard the demo tracks from Nate Garnette's former band, Serkesoron, while they were both college students at
Ohio University
Ohio University is a Public university, public research university in Athens, Ohio. The first university chartered by an Act of Congress and the first to be chartered in Ohio, the university was chartered in 1787 by the Congress of the Confeder ...
and decided to form a band. Skeletonwitch released their first album, ''At One with the Shadows'', on August 11, 2004 with Shredded Records. After forming the band, they sought a vocalist, whom they ultimately found in Nate's older brother, Chance Garnette. These three have been the only constant members, having gone through three drummers:
Tony Laureano
Tony Laureano (born January 25, 1973) is a heavy metal drummer originally from Puerto Rico. He has played for a number of metal bands (either as a full band member or a session drummer) including Dimmu Borgir, Nile, Angelcorpse, Malevolent Crea ...
, Derrick "Mullet Chad" Nau replacing Jimi Shestina, then Eric Harris with Evan Linger on bass guitar.
After being signed to Prosthetic, Skeletonwitch released ''
Beyond the Permafrost
''Beyond the Permafrost'' is the second full length album by American metal band Skeletonwitch. The album blends thrash metal and influence from the NWOBHM movement with death/black metal vocals. The song "Soul Thrashing Black Sorcery" was featur ...
'' on October 2, 2007. In 2008, Skeletonwitch was featured as one of four opening acts for
Danzig's Blackest of the Black tour.
On October 13, 2009, Skeletonwitch released their third studio album, ''
Breathing the Fire
''Breathing the Fire'' is the third studio album by American extreme metal band Skeletonwitch. It was released on October 13, 2009. The first album to feature bassist Evan Linger.
Track listing
Personnel
;Skeletonwitch
* Chance Garnette - vocal ...
'', which debuted at No. 151 on the
''Billboard'' 200 charts. Skeletonwitch's song "Soul Thrashing Black Sorcery" was featured on the soundtrack of the video game ''
Brütal Legend
''Brütal Legend'' is an action-adventure video game with real-time strategy game elements created by Double Fine and published by Electronic Arts for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. The game was released during October 2009 in North America, E ...
''. The song "Crushed Beyond Dust" became featured on the
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 ...
network on February 28, 2010. Skeletonwitch was featured on all of the dates of
Ozzfest 2010
Over the years, a variety of bands have made up the yearly lineups of Ozzfest, a yearly heavy metal music festival that usually tours the United States in summer.
Ozzfest 1996 Line-up
;Main stage
* Ozzy Osbourne
* Slayer
* Danzig
* Biohazard
* ...
.
Skeletonwitch was featured on an
Adult Swim
Adult Swim (AS; stylized as dult swim
Dult is a village in Batala in Gurdaspur district of Punjab State, India. It is located from sub district headquarter, from district headquarter and from Sri Hargobindpur. The village is administrated by Sarpanch an elected representati ...
and often abbreviated as s is an American adult-oriented night-time cable television Television channel, channel that shares channel space with the basic cable network Cartoon Network and is programme ...
video for their song "Bringers of Death" in 2010. "Bringers of Death" also appears on the Adult Swim heavy metal compilation titled ''Metal Swim''.
In March 2011, Skeletonwitch parted ways with drummer Derrick "Mullet Chad" Nau and temporarily replaced him with
Tony Laureano
Tony Laureano (born January 25, 1973) is a heavy metal drummer originally from Puerto Rico. He has played for a number of metal bands (either as a full band member or a session drummer) including Dimmu Borgir, Nile, Angelcorpse, Malevolent Crea ...
.
Skeletonwitch's fourth studio album, ''
Forever Abomination
''Forever Abomination'' is the fourth studio album by American extreme metal band Skeletonwitch. It is also the first album to feature drummer Dustin Boltjes. The album was released on October 7, 2011.
Reception
Track listing
Release dates
...
'', was released on October 7, 2011. It is the first album to feature Dustin Boltjes on drums, replacing Derrick Nau.
Skeletonwitch was banned from playing the House of Blues in Orlando after they were deemed "unfit to be associated with
Disney
The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...
." The band released its fifth studio album ''
Serpents Unleashed
'' Serpents Unleashed ''is the fifth studio album by American extreme metal band Skeletonwitch. The album was released on October 29, 2013. This album was the last album released with original vocalist Chance Garnette, before he was fired from th ...
'' in October 2013.
Vocalist Chance Garnette withdrew from live appearances partway through a tour in October 2014. Garnette's last show with Skeletonwitch was October 15, 2014, at the Webster Theater in Hartford, CT. Days later he appeared in Worcester District Court in
Worcester, Massachusetts
Worcester ( , ) is a city and county seat of Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Named after Worcester, England, the city's population was 206,518 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the second-List of cities i ...
, and was "charged with assault and battery on a family/household member", and the case was continued to December 10, 2014. Garnette was released on $500 bail. He was replaced on a European tour the following March by former
Cannabis Corpse
Cannabis Corpse is a cannabis-themed death metal band. Cannabis Corpse formed in Richmond, Virginia in 2006 under the Forcefield label. Since then, Cannabis Corpse has released six LP record, LPs and two Extended play, EPs. The band features mem ...
vocalist Andy Horn, and it was later confirmed that Garnette stated that he had been fired from the band due to alcohol abuse, for which he sought treatment. His permanent replacement was confirmed in February 2016 as Adam Clemans, frontman of blackened
sludge metal
Sludge metal (also known as sludge or sludge doom) is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music that originated through combining elements of doom metal and hardcore punk. It is typically harsh and abrasive, often featuring shouted vocals, heavi ...
band Wolvhammer and former vocalist of
Veil of Maya
Veil of Maya is an American metalcore band, formed in Chicago, Illinois, by members Marc Okubo and Sam Applebaum in 2004. They are currently signed to Sumerian Records and have released six studio albums. Their first four albums are considered ...
.
On April 26, 2018, the band announced ''Devouring Radiant Light'' as the title of their new album being released on July 20, 2018.
Band members
Skeletonwitch Rock unter den Eichen 2018 05.jpg, Lead guitarist Nate Garnette
Skeletonwitch Rock unter den Eichen 2018 06.jpg, Rhythm guitarist Scott Hedrick
Skeletonwitch Rock unter den Eichen 2018 23.jpg, Bassist Evan Linger
Skeletonwitch Rock unter den Eichen 2018 18.jpg, Singer Adam Clemans
Current members
*Nate "N8 Feet Under" Garnette – lead guitar
(2003–present)
*Scott "Scunty D." Hedrick – rhythm guitar
(2003–present)
*Evan "Loosh" Linger – bass
(2008–present)
*Adam Clemans – vocals
(2016–present)
Current live musicians
*James Stewart – drums
(2018–present)
*Toby Swope – drums
(2019–present)
Former members
*Chance Garnette – vocals
(2003–2015)
*Derrick Nau – drums
(2003–2011)
*Jimi Shestina – bass
(2003–2005)
*Eric Harris – bass
(2005–2008)
*Dustin Boltjes – drums
(2011–2018)
Former live musicians
*
Tony Laureano
Tony Laureano (born January 25, 1973) is a heavy metal drummer originally from Puerto Rico. He has played for a number of metal bands (either as a full band member or a session drummer) including Dimmu Borgir, Nile, Angelcorpse, Malevolent Crea ...
– drums
(2011)
*Andy Horn – vocals
(2015)
*Jon "The Charn" Rice – drums
(2018)
Timeline
Discography
Studio albums
* ''At One with the Shadows'' (2004)
* ''
Beyond the Permafrost
''Beyond the Permafrost'' is the second full length album by American metal band Skeletonwitch. The album blends thrash metal and influence from the NWOBHM movement with death/black metal vocals. The song "Soul Thrashing Black Sorcery" was featur ...
'' (2007)
* ''
Breathing the Fire
''Breathing the Fire'' is the third studio album by American extreme metal band Skeletonwitch. It was released on October 13, 2009. The first album to feature bassist Evan Linger.
Track listing
Personnel
;Skeletonwitch
* Chance Garnette - vocal ...
'' (2009)
* ''
Forever Abomination
''Forever Abomination'' is the fourth studio album by American extreme metal band Skeletonwitch. It is also the first album to feature drummer Dustin Boltjes. The album was released on October 7, 2011.
Reception
Track listing
Release dates
...
'' (2011)
* ''
Serpents Unleashed
'' Serpents Unleashed ''is the fifth studio album by American extreme metal band Skeletonwitch. The album was released on October 29, 2013. This album was the last album released with original vocalist Chance Garnette, before he was fired from th ...
'' (2013)
* ''
Devouring Radiant Light
''Devouring Radiant Light'' is the sixth studio album by American extreme metal band Skeletonwitch. It was released in July 2018 by Prosthetic Records.
Track listing
Personnel
;Skeletonwitch
*Nate Garnette – lead guitar, backing vocals
*Scot ...
'' (2018)
EPs
* ''
Worship the Witch
''Worship The Witch'' is the first EP released by American melodeath/thrash band Skeletonwitch.
Track listing
Personnel
*Chance Garnette – vocals
*Nate Garnette – guitars
*Scott Hedrick – guitars
*Eric Harris – bass
*Derrick Nau – ...
'' (2006)
* ''Onward to Battle/The Infernal Resurrection'' (2011)
[
* ''The Apothic Gloom'' (2016)
Demos
* ''Demo'' (2005)
Live albums
* ''Live at the Union Friday the 13th'' (2004)
Other appearances
*'']Metal Swim
''Metal Swim'' is a heavy metal compilation album released by Adult Swim. The album was released as a free download otheir website It consisted of rare and unreleased material from various metal bands.
Track listing
# Death Angel – "Truce" ( ...
'' - Adult Swim
Adult Swim (AS; stylized as dult swim
Dult is a village in Batala in Gurdaspur district of Punjab State, India. It is located from sub district headquarter, from district headquarter and from Sri Hargobindpur. The village is administrated by Sarpanch an elected representati ...
and often abbreviated as s is an American adult-oriented night-time cable television Television channel, channel that shares channel space with the basic cable network Cartoon Network and is programme ...
compilation album (2010)
References
External links
*
{{Authority control
Heavy metal musical groups from Ohio
American thrash metal musical groups
American melodic death metal musical groups
Musical groups established in 2003
Musical groups from Athens, Ohio