Hatebreed, Terror, Incantation, Gates to Hell, et Creeping Death

Hatebreed started out by producing a three-song demo and selling it to local people in Bridgeport and New Haven, Connecticut, U.S., and was eventually released in 1995 on a split seven inch with fellow band New York’s Neglect. Consisting of Jamey Jasta on vocals, Lou Richards on guitar, Chris Beattie on bass, Sean Martin on guitar and Rigg Ross on drums, the band self-released the critically acclaimed EP “Under the Knife” in 1996 which has been re-released by all of Hatebreed’s subsequent labels.

The band’s aim was to identify what was important about hardcore music; the thrashing guitars, the screamed vocals, the huge, heavy drums and make that the soul of their sound. The band’s 1997 release “Satisfaction is the Death of Desire” did exactly that, released on then the most reliable hardcore label Victory Records, the album was the highest selling album the label had ever witnessed.

The influence of touring with mainstream metal bands Deftones, Entombed and Slayer was evident on Hatebreed’s following two albums “Perseverance” released in 2002 and 2003’s “The Rise of Brutality”. 2004 saw the band join Slayer, Slipknot and Mastodon on the Unholy Alliance tour of Europe and introduced the band to a wider audience. In 2004 the Hatebreed was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance, ultimately losing out to Motörhead.

Prior to the band’s 2006 full-length album “Supremacy” released on Roadrunner Records, Hatebreed performed at Download Festival in Donnington, UK, and Ozzfest with the likes of Disturbed and Avenged Sevenfold.

Guitarist Frank Novinec was added to the line-up in 2006 as well as Wayne Lozinak in 2008 and both played on the covers album “For the Lions” which dropped in May 2009 as well as the band’s self-titled album in September 2009. “The Divinity of Purpose” Hatebreed’s sixth studio album was released on January 25, 2013 and was another in long line of successes for the band, who have sold over 1.1 million records worldwide.

Scott Vogel is a punk rock singer who made his name on the New York hardcore scene fronting bands like Buried Alive and Sludgefest. Early 2002 saw him relocate from the east coast to the Los Angeles, California on the west coast, with the intention of fronting a hardcore band with a difference. He wanted to sing in a band that could bring back the fun and purity that he valued in the hardcore scene which he felt was sorely lacking in most major scenes. By April 2002 he had found that band, named them Terror, and issued their first demo tape. The tape was rapturously received and got them a record deal with Takeover Records, with whom they released a number of 7” singles during what little downtime they had from touring.

The name the band had made for themselves got them a record deal with Bridge 9 and soon afterwards, the band recorded their first E.P “Lowest Of The Low”. It was released in January 2003 and was an instant critical smash, leading to a European tour with the legendary Biohazard for their troubles. Ever since then, they’ve become one of the most beloved hardcore bands around, with a live show that’s equal parts fearsome and life affirming. They’ve even managed to turn their status as cult heroes into some commercial success, with their second album, 2006’s “Always The Hard Way”, selling 40’000 copies in total. They’re a band to believe in, without being all that serious to begin with. For that, they come highly recommended.