Sylosis is a British
heavy metal band from
Reading
Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch.
For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...
,
Berkshire
Berkshire ( ; in the 17th century sometimes spelt phonetically as Barkeshire; abbreviated Berks.) is a historic county in South East England. One of the home counties, Berkshire was recognised by Queen Elizabeth II as the Royal County of Berk ...
, England. Signed to
Nuclear Blast Records
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 ...
, the band has released five studio albums, a live album, two EPs and twelve music videos. Their fifth album ''
Cycle of Suffering
''Cycle of Suffering'' is the fifth studio album by British heavy metal band Sylosis, released on 7 February 2020 through Nuclear Blast. It is the band's first studio album since their hiatus in 2016, as well as their first to feature bassist ...
'' was released on 7 February 2020.
History
Formation and ''Conclusion of an Age'' (2000–2009)
Sylosis was formed in 2000 by guitarist Josh Middleton and bassist Carl Parnell who began playing
extreme metal
Extreme metal is a loosely defined umbrella term for a number of related heavy metal music subgenres that have developed since the early 1980s. It has been defined as a "cluster of metal subgenres characterized by sonic, verbal, and visual tran ...
with other friends from school.
Sylosis released a couple of EPs; 2006's ''Casting Shadows'' and 2007's ''The Supreme Oppressor'' in the UK on a small indie label,
In at the Deep End Records
In at the Deep End Records (IATDE), founded 2000, is an independent record label based on the outskirts of Nottingham, England. The label specialises in hardcore punk and heavy metal music genres.
History
The label was founded in 2000 by peo ...
. In December 2007 Sylosis signed with
Nuclear Blast Records
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 ...
, and they released their debut album ''Conclusion of an Age'' in October 2008.
On the style of their debut album, ''
Conclusion of an Age
''Conclusion of an Age'' is the debut album from Sylosis, a British metal
A metal (from Greek μέταλλον ''métallon'', "mine, quarry, metal") is a material that, when freshly prepared, polished, or fractured, shows a lustrous ap ...
'', Middleton remarked, "The foundation of our sound is old school
Bay Area thrash. We don't downtune and we don't play
breakdowns. We do like to incorporate lots of different metal styles and textures into our music. We like make all of our songs really epic. We like progressive stuff, brutal stuff and melodic stuff." After recording their debut studio album, guitarist Gurneet Ahluwalia was replaced by ex-Viatrophy guitarist Alex Bailey, ready for the early 2009 European tour with
The Black Dahlia Murder,
Cephalic Carnage
Cephalic Carnage is an American death metal band formed in Denver, Colorado in 1992. The band comprises vocalist Lenzig Leal, guitarists Steve Goldberg and Brian Hopp, drummer John Merryman and bassist Nick Schendzielos. Cephalic Carnage has rel ...
and
Psycroptic
Psycroptic are an Australian technical death metal band formed in Hobart, Australia in 1999. Mainstay members are Dave Haley on drums and his brother Joe Haley on guitar. Their lead vocalist, Jason Peppiatt, joined in 2004. In 2008 they signe ...
.
Sylosis were one of the opening acts on the Tuborg (third) stage at
Download Festival
Download Festival is a British-created rock festival created by Terrance Gough, held annually at the Donington Park motorsport circuit in Leicestershire, England (since 2003); in Paris, France (since 2016); at Parramatta Park, Sydney (since 201 ...
held at Castle Donington, along with appearances at the
New England Metal and Hardcore Festival
The New England Metal and Hardcore Festival was an annual festival held in Worcester, Massachusetts, United States. It was a weekend-long concert of heavy metal and hardcore punk bands along with a merchandising and promotional area for record l ...
, and an opening slot on the Bohemia stage at
Sonisphere Festival
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 ...
. A UK headline tour was announced for October/November 2009, but was cancelled as the band were offered an opening slot on the
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 ...
UK tour in November/December 2009.
''Edge of the Earth'', ''Monolith'', and RV Accident (2010–2013)
![Sylosis_Sonisphere_2010](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/23/Sylosis_Sonisphere_2010.png)
Sylosis replaced
Rise to Remain
Rise to Remain was an English, London-based heavy metal band formed in 2006 and disbanded in 2015. The band made appearances at Download Festival, Sonisphere Festival and extensively toured the UK and Europe. The band released three EPs, the ...
during the UK leg of
As I Lay Dying
''As I Lay Dying'' is a 1930 Southern Gothic novel by American author William Faulkner. Faulkner's fifth novel, it is consistently ranked among the best novels of 20th-century literature.The New Lifetime Reading Plan: The Classical Guide to Wor ...
's European tour in 2010.
Sylosis entered the studio in 2010 to record their second full-length studio album, entitled ''
Edge of the Earth''; it was released in March 2011.
They recorded a third studio album titled ''
Monolith
A monolith is a geological feature consisting of a single massive rock (geology), stone or rock, such as some mountains. For instance, Savandurga, Savandurga mountain is a monolith mountain in India. Erosion usually exposes the geological for ...
'' with Romesh Dodangoda in Wales at Monnow Valley Studio. ''Monolith'' was released on 5 October 2012 in Germany, 8 October 2012 in UK & Europe, 9 October 2012 in USA, and 10 October 2012 in Japan via Nuclear Blast Records. Since January 2013 the band have headlined a UK tour as well featuring on the Soundwave Festival in Australia. They also carried out a tour with the bands
Hellyeah
Hellyeah, stylized as HELLYEAH, was an American heavy metal supergroup formed in Dallas, Texas, in 2006. The band's last lineup consisted of lead vocalist Chad Gray, guitarists Christian Brady and Tom Maxwell, bassist Kyle Sanders, and drumme ...
,
In Flames
In Flames is a Swedish heavy metal band, formed by guitarist Jesper Strömblad in Gothenburg in 1990. Alongside At the Gates and Dark Tranquillity, In Flames pioneered the genres known as Swedish death metal and melodic death metal.
During t ...
and, headliner
Lamb of God
Lamb of God ( el, Ἀμνὸς τοῦ Θεοῦ, Amnòs toû Theoû; la, Agnus Dei, ) is a title for Jesus that appears in the Gospel of John. It appears at John 1:29, where John the Baptist sees Jesus and exclaims, "Behold the Lamb of God wh ...
in late 2012. The band had a main supporting role on a tour with
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 Europe during April and May 2013. Sylosis was announced as the opening band for the
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 ...
and
DevilDriver
DevilDriver is an American heavy metal band from Santa Barbara, California, formed in 2002, consisting of vocalist Dez Fafara, lead guitarist Mike Spreitzer, drummer Davier Pérez, bassist Jon Miller and rhythm guitarist Alex Lee. The band was ...
North American co-headline tour with
After the Burial
After the Burial is an American progressive metal band from Minneapolis, Minnesota. They are currently signed to Sumerian Records and have released five of their six full-length albums through the label. Since their inception in 2004, the band h ...
as another supporting band. The tour was scheduled for October and November.
On 25 September, the members of Sylosis were involved in an RV accident, the injuries from which resulted in the withdrawal of their shows supporting
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 ...
and
DevilDriver
DevilDriver is an American heavy metal band from Santa Barbara, California, formed in 2002, consisting of vocalist Dez Fafara, lead guitarist Mike Spreitzer, drummer Davier Pérez, bassist Jon Miller and rhythm guitarist Alex Lee. The band was ...
.
''Dormant Heart'', departure of Rob Callard, and hiatus (2014–2016)
After the members of Sylosis had recovered from their respective injuries, they embarked on a tour of the UK and Europe as main support to
DevilDriver
DevilDriver is an American heavy metal band from Santa Barbara, California, formed in 2002, consisting of vocalist Dez Fafara, lead guitarist Mike Spreitzer, drummer Davier Pérez, bassist Jon Miller and rhythm guitarist Alex Lee. The band was ...
with
Bleed from Within. On this tour Sylosis drummer Rob Callard was unable to play on the tour due to other commitments. Ali Richardson, drummer of Bleed From Within, filled in for the remainder of the tour.
In late September 2014 it was announced that Rob Callard was stepping down as drummer of Sylosis after nine years of playing in the band. His replacement was announced at the same time, in the form of Ali Richardson. Richardson's relationship with Sylosis was started on the DevilDriver tour earlier in the year.
At the start of October 2014, Sylosis announced details of their fourth album ''Dormant Heart'', which was released on 12 January 2015 through Nuclear Blast Records.
During the second half of May 2015, Sylosis started a European tour with the band
Wovenwar
Wovenwar is an American metal band from Southern California, formed in 2013. They released their self-titled debut album in 2014. The band's musical style on the album has been described as hard rock, alternative metal, melodic metalcore and ...
. They also played at several festivals over the summer, such as Graspop Metal Meeting and Hellfest among others.
In October 2016, Sylosis announced that they would be going on hiatus as frontman Josh Middleton would be filling in for the British metalcore band
Architects
An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...
on guitar due to the passing of their guitarist Tom Searle, who was also a close friend of Middleton's. After 11 months of touring with Architects, it was announced that Middleton would be joining Architects as an official member, stating he would still remain in Sylosis.
Return and ''Cycle of Suffering'' (2019–present)
In a March 2019 interview, Middleton confirmed that the band remains a going concern and that he intends to release a new Sylosis album in 2019. On 5 December 2019 Nuclear Blast revealed the pre-order for an apparent new record titled ''
Cycle of Suffering
''Cycle of Suffering'' is the fifth studio album by British heavy metal band Sylosis, released on 7 February 2020 through Nuclear Blast. It is the band's first studio album since their hiatus in 2016, as well as their first to feature bassist ...
'', to be released on 14 February 2020. A day later, the band announced they had returned from their hiatus and confirmed that the new album would be released on 7 February 2020. This was followed by the first single release and music video from the album, titled "I Sever".
In promotion of the album, the band supported
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 ...
on their "A Light or a Distant Mirror" live concert. This particular concert was held at
Full Sail University
Full Sail University is a Private university, private For-profit higher education in the United States, for-profit university in Winter Park, Florida. It was formerly a recording studio in Ohio named Full Sail Productions and Full Sail Center ...
and streamed online. The concert did not have a live audience due to the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
.
On 11 December 2020, Sylosis released a new single, titled "Worship Decay".
On 8 March 2021, Sylosis announced a vinyl release of ''
Conclusion of an Age
''Conclusion of an Age'' is the debut album from Sylosis, a British metal
A metal (from Greek μέταλλον ''métallon'', "mine, quarry, metal") is a material that, when freshly prepared, polished, or fractured, shows a lustrous ap ...
'' and released "Plight of the Soul", a previously unreleased
B-side track from the album.
On 3 December 2021, Sylosis released a new single titled "Immovable Stone" to which Josh Middleton stated a new album will be released early 2022. On 9 August 2022, Sylosis released a new single "Heavy is the Crown", the first of the trilogy of singles to be released in 2022.
Band-members
Current members
* Josh Middleton – guitars
(2000–present), vocals
(2010–present)
* Alex Bailey – guitars
(2008–present)
* Ali Richardson – drums
(2014–present)
* Conor Marshall – bass
(2019–present)
Former members
* Glen Chamberlain – vocals
(2000–2003)
* Jay Colios-Terry – drums
(2000–2005)
* Ben Hollyer – vocals
(2003–2007)
* Gurneet Ahluwalia – guitars
(2000–2007)
* Chris Steele – drums
(2006–2007)
* Richard Zananiri – guitars
(2005–2008)
* Jamie Graham – vocals
(2007–2010)
* Rob Callard – drums
(2005–2006, 2007–2014)
* Carl Parnell – bass
(2000–2019)
Touring members
* Gurneet Ahluwalia – guitars
(2012)
* Brandon Ellis – guitars
(2011)
Timeline
Discography
Studio albums
* ''
Conclusion of an Age
''Conclusion of an Age'' is the debut album from Sylosis, a British metal
A metal (from Greek μέταλλον ''métallon'', "mine, quarry, metal") is a material that, when freshly prepared, polished, or fractured, shows a lustrous ap ...
'' (Nuclear Blast, 2008)
* ''
Edge of the Earth'' (Nuclear Blast, 2011)
* ''
Monolith
A monolith is a geological feature consisting of a single massive rock (geology), stone or rock, such as some mountains. For instance, Savandurga, Savandurga mountain is a monolith mountain in India. Erosion usually exposes the geological for ...
'' (Nuclear Blast, 2012)
* ''
Dormant Heart'' (Nuclear Blast, 2015)
* ''
Cycle of Suffering
''Cycle of Suffering'' is the fifth studio album by British heavy metal band Sylosis, released on 7 February 2020 through Nuclear Blast. It is the band's first studio album since their hiatus in 2016, as well as their first to feature bassist ...
'' (Nuclear Blast, 2020)
EPs
* ''
Casting Shadows'' (In at the Deep End, 2006)
* ''
The Supreme Oppressor'' (In at the Deep End, 2007)
Live-albums
* ''
Sylosis Live at High Voltage'' (2011)
* ''Sylosis Live At: Lite Up Studios'' (2020)
Singles
*''Slings and Arrows'' (2012)
*''Mercy'' (2014)
*''Different Masks on the Same Face'' (2016)
*''I Sever'' (2019)
*''Calcified'' (2020)
*''Worship Decay'' (2020)
*''Immovable Stone'' (2021)
*''Heavy Is The Crown'' (2022)
Music-videos
*''Teras'' (2008)
*''After Lifeless Years'' (2009)
*''Empyreal'' (2011)
*''A Serpent's Tongue'' (2011)
*''Fear the World'' (2012)
*''Mercy'' (2014)
*''Leech'' (2015)
*''Servitude'' (2015)
*''I Sever'' (2019)
*''Calcified'' (2020)
*''Cycle of Suffering'' (2020)
*''Worship Decay'' (2020)
*''Immovable Stone'' (2021)
References
External links
*
*
{{Authority control
English heavy metal musical groups
Musical groups established in 2000
Musical groups from Reading, Berkshire
Musical quartets
Nuclear Blast artists
2000 establishments in England