Battlesnake is an Australian metal band from

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

, formed in 2017. The band consists of vocalist and guitarist Sam Frank, guitarists Ben Frank and Daniel Willington, drummer Nick Zammit, bassist Elliott Hitchcock, and keytarist Billy O'key. Their debut EP ''Myths and Legends from Gorbag's Domain'' was released on 14 December 2020. They released their first full-length album, self-titled ''Battlesnake'', in May 2023, followed by ''The Rise and Demise of the Motorsteeple'' in June 2024.

History

2017–2021: Early years

Battlesnake was formed in 2017, inspired by the desire to create a three guitar rock band. The band released their first single, "Nightmare King", on 27 June 2019, followed by "The Atomic Plough" on 12 July 2019 and "Thunder Scud" on 20 March 2020. On 14 December 2020 they released their debut EP ''Myths and Legends from Gorbag's Domain''.

2022–2024: Debut album ''Battlesnake''

In February 2022, Battlesnake worked with Xbox ANZ to promote the launch of Total War: Warhammer III, releasing a cover and music video for the song "Death is Like The Winter Chill". In August 2022 the band supported

KISS A kiss is the touching or pressing of one's lips against another person, animal or object. Cultural connotations of kissing vary widely; depending on the culture and context, a kiss can express sentiments of love, passion, romance, sex ...

at the End of the Road World Tour in

, Australia. Battlesnake released their debut studio album, self-titled ''Battlesnake'', in May 2023. Later that year they joined

The Smashing Pumpkins The Smashing Pumpkins (also simply known as Smashing Pumpkins) are an American alternative rock band formed in Chicago in 1988 by frontman and guitarist Billy Corgan, guitarist James Iha, bassist D'arcy Wretzky and drummer Jimmy Chamberlin. The ...

and

Jane's Addiction Jane's Addiction was an American Rock music, rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1985. The band's best known line-up consisted of lead vocalist Perry Farrell, bassist Eric Avery, drummer Stephen Perkins and guitarist Dave Navarro. Jane's Addicti ...

as a supporting act for the Australian leg of ''The World Is A Vampire'' tour.

2024–present: International tours and ''The Rise and Demise of the Motorsteeple''

Battlesnake went on their first international tour, playing several shows across the UK, Belgium and the Netherlands, in May 2024. In June 2024 the band released their second studio album, ''The Rise and Demise of the Motorsteeple'', which they had recorded over 10 days. They embarked on their second international headline tour across Germany and the UK in September 2024. While on tour as a supporting act with New Zealand band

Shihad Shihad were a Rock music, rock band formed in Wellington, New Zealand, in 1988. The band consisted of founders Tom Larkin (musician), Tom Larkin (drums, backing vocals, samplers), Phil Knight (lead guitar, synthesiser, backing vocals) and Jon To ...

, Battlesnake released the single "The Fathers Of Iron Flesh" on 13 February 2025. On 17 February 2025, Battlesnake announced that their third international tour, ''The Year Of The Snake'', would commence in June 2025 with shows in the UK, Czech Republic, Germany, Denmark, Netherlands, Finland and Switzerland.

Musical style

Battlesnake have a unique

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction that involves supernatural or Magic (supernatural), magical elements, often including Fictional universe, imaginary places and Legendary creature, creatures. The genre's roots lie in oral traditions, ...

and

sci-fi Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...

inspired style, blending aspects of hard and progressive rock and metal. Their music features themes of wizards, dragons, and epic tales, delivered comedically whilst paying homage to classic heavy metal. The band is known for high-energy live performances with extravagant staging and costume design. Influences include bands such as

Queen Queen most commonly refers to: * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a kingdom * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen (band), a British rock band Queen or QUEEN may also refer to: Monarchy * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Q ...

King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard (KGLW) are an Australian rock band formed in 2010 in Melbourne, Victoria. The band's current lineup consists of Stu Mackenzie (vocals, guitar), Ambrose Kenny-Smith (vocals, harmonica, keyboards), Cook Craig ( ...

Judas Priest Judas Priest are an English heavy metal band formed in Birmingham in 1969. They have sold over 50 million albums and are frequently ranked as one of the greatest metal bands of all time. Judas Priest have also been referred to as one of the p ...

and

AC/DC AC/DC are an Australian rock band formed in Sydney in 1973. Their music has been variously described as hard rock, blues rock and Heavy metal music, heavy metal, although the band calls it simply "rock and roll". They are cited as a formativ ...

. The band have also described

The Lord of the Rings ''The Lord of the Rings'' is an Epic (genre), epic high fantasy novel written by English author and scholar J. R. R. Tolkien. Set in Middle-earth, the story began as a sequel to Tolkien's 1937 children's book ''The Hobbit'' but eventually d ...

Mad Max ''Mad Max'' is an Australian media franchise created by George Miller and Byron Kennedy. It centres on a series of post-apocalyptic and dystopian action films. The franchise began in 1979 with '' Mad Max'', and was followed by three sequels: ...

and

Dune A dune is a landform composed of wind- or water-driven sand. It typically takes the form of a mound, ridge, or hill. An area with dunes is called a dune system or a dune complex. A large dune complex is called a dune field, while broad, flat ...

as sources of inspiration.

Discography

Studio Albums * ''Battlesnake'' (2023) * ''The Rise and Demise of the Motorsteeple'' (2024) * ''Dawn of the Exultants and the Hunt for the Shepherd'' (2025) Other Releases * ''Myths and Legends from Gorbag's Domain'' (EP, 2020) * "Death is Like The Winter Chill" (Cover, 2022) Singles * "Nightmare King" (2019) * "The Atomic Plough" (2019) * "Thunder Scud" (2020) * "The Rotten Priest" (2021) * "Motorgut" (2022) * "I Am The Vomit" (2022) * "Demon Farm" (2022) * "BeezleBanquet" (2023) * "Pangea Breaker" (2023) * "Motorsteeple" (2024) * "Alpha & Omega" (2024) * "The Key of Solomon" (2024) * "The Fathers Of Iron Flesh" (2025)

References

{{reflist

External links

Battlesnake
Website
Battlesnake
on YouTube Australian alternative rock groups Musical groups from Sydney