Thrash metallers Onslaught have released a brief statement online about beginning the recording process for a new record. The band has a string of shows in Japan in December and plans to start recording their new album and follow-up to Sounds Of Violence after that tour.
Last month we gave you the opportunity to win a free entry to the show of your choosing on the upcoming Onslaught North American tour. We asked you which song on Power From Hell shares the same name with a well-known sub-genre of metal. The answer was of course "Death metal"!
Here are the winners who have won a spot on the guestlist for the show they selected:
British thrash veterans Onslaught are about to kick off their first ever North American tour next month in March.
We are giving away one free entry for each date on this tour. So for your chance to win free entry to the show closest you, head over to the contest page here.
Next March and April, Onslaught will embark on their first ever North American tour.
Nige Rockett comments:
"Good Morning America. Here we are at very long last! Onslaught are super-fucking stoked to announce our debut tour of the mighty USofA and Canada. It's been one hell of a long time coming, but we are now finally bringing the Scream For Violence tour to North America for 20 shows in March and April 2012. Just as we did in Europe, the UK and South America, we'll be thrashing it up with a brutal 90 minute set featuring tracks off all five Onslaught studio albums. We can't fucking wait guys. This is the Sound of Violence!"
Coming along on tour is the new black/thrash metal outfit M-Pire Of Evil an all ex-Venom supergroup featuring Demolition man, Antton Lant and Venom's founding member Jeff "Mantas" Dunn. Mpire will be presenting their own material as well as performing classic Venom songs. Bay area thrashers Evil Dead will joining this unholy package for some devastating dates on the US West Coast.
Onslaught have announced Mic Hourihan as their new drummer. He will replace Steve Grice. The band announced it on their Facebook page: "British thrashers Onslaught have announced that drummer Michael "Mic" Hourihan (Desecration, Extreme Noise Terror) has officially joined the band on a full time basis. Mic has been touring with Onslaught since March 2011, and has already done over 50 shows with the band including South American, UK and European tours."
Thank you all for your entries to the Onslaught competition. The correct answer to the question was of course the Damnation Festival. Here are the lucky winners:
Paul Bourke (PAUL BOURKE) - Guest list + CD pack
Michael Smyth (mick-metal) - Guest list + CD pack
Krissie Williams (Lemonfresh) - Guest list + CD pack
Sam Marshall (Hopscotch) - Guest list
Ambrish Saxena (Cynic Metalhead) - Guest list
The winners now need to get in touch with their prefered date of the tour, as soon as possible.
Original Onslaught drummer Steve Grice is leaving the band.
Grice released the following statement to Blabbermouth: "With great reluctance and sadness, I must announce that I am no longer prepared to fulfill the role of drummer for Onslaught, the band that I helped found in 1983, and which I brought back together in 2005. This has been a very difficult and painful decision to make, and follows a series of events that, in my opinion, have seen the recurrence of old patterns of behavior that fuelled the band's original demise in 1991.
This culmination of occurrences came to a head when I learned through a third party that the band had booked a series of shows without my knowledge, and with the intention of using another drummer, during a period of time reserved for family commitments. Be very clear — the temporary use of another drummer does not present me with a problem. My issue is with the fact that at no point did anyone from the band let me know that these decisions had been made.
UK thrashers Onslaught will embark on the Scream For Violence Tour, taking place in March and April. The band will be touring through Europe in support of the new album, Sounds Of Violence, which will be released later this month. Support on the trek will come from Suidakra and Debauchery.
Scream Of Violence Tour Dates:
Mar. 31 - Hamburg, Germany - Markthalle
Apr. 01 - Arhus, Denmark - Voxhall
Apr. 02 - Göteborg, Sweden - Parken
Apr. 03 - Stockholm, Sweden - Huset
Apr. 06 - Turku, Finland - Klubi
Apr. 07 - Helsinki, Finland - DOM
Apr. 08 - Tampere, Finland - tba
Apr. 09 - Tallin, Estonia - Tapper
Apr. 10 - Riga, Latvia - Melna Piektdiena
Apr. 11 - Vilnius, Lithuania - Club New York
Apr. 16 - München, Germany - Backstage
Onslaught is streaming a 1:30min sample from the upcoming new single Bomber at their brand new MySpace profile. The single will include guest appearances of Motörhead and Sodom members, Phil Campbell (guitars) and Tom Angelripper (vocals) respectively.
The new digital single will be available worldwide on December 17th including the songs "Bomber" (indeed a Motörhead cover) as well as "The Sound Of Violence", the title track from the upcoming album Sounds of Violence due to be released in early 2011.
Onslaught are extremely proud to announce the signing of a new publishing contract with Enorm Music the publishing arm of ICS/WACKEN...
Onslaught guitarist/songwriter Nige Rockett comments: "This is a huge day for the future of Onslaught and we're so stoked to have landed a publishing deal with such a prestigious and important company in the world of metal music.. These guys have a knowledge and vision that is second to none,to be part of the ICS/WACKEN family is a massive boost for the band on the verge of releasing our new album Sounds Of Violence."
Onslaught have set Sounds Of Violence as the title of their fifth album, due for worldwide release later this year via Germany's AFM Records.
Commented Onslaught guitarist Nige Rockett: "Sounds of Violence is a very fitting title for the new recording. Musically and lyrically, this is definitely the most brutal and intense Onslaught album to date. It's full of machine-gun riffs, ferocious drum patterns and some pretty fucked up lyrical content.
This album was never meant to be pretty. It's not a concept album by any measure but there's a definite theme to the whole package, right through from the sleeve design to the music and onto the words;, it's violence all the way. There's a lot of hate in Sounds of Violence and a whole lot of reality in there, too, much of it straight from the heart."
UK Thrashers Onslaught have announced that Danish producer Jacob Hansen will be handling the production and mixing duties on the upcoming studio album due for release later this year. The album will be recorded and mixed at Hansen Studio in Ribe, Denmark starting on August 16th.
Guitarist Nige Rockett comments: "We're so stoked to be working with Jacob Hansen on the new album, Jacob has done some stunning work in the past, his production skills are really gonna suit the style of the new album, his mixes are so heavy and lively which is exactly what we are looking for. It'll be real cool to capture the live energy of the band in these recordings.
Drummer Steve Grice and vocalist Sy Keeler are leaving for the studio immediately after our appearance at Bloodstock Festival, where we should be, if all goes to plan, debuting a track entitled "Born For War" taken from the new album. It's a violent beast, very fast and heavy with lots of twists and turns."
The new live album by UK thrash band Onslaught entitled "Live Damnation" will be released worldwide through Candlelight Records on Monday 20 July.
The album was recorded at last years "Damnation Festival" in Leeds, England by Ed Shackleton for Noise Recordings and mixed by Andy Sneap at Backstage Studios in Derbyshire, England and contains 8 blistering tracks of 666% pure thrash metal. The sleeve artwork was designed and undertaken by the bands very own Jeff Williams.
Tracklisting as follows:
01. Killing Peace
02. Let There Be Death
03. Destroyer Of Worlds
04. Metal Forces
05. Planting Seeds Of Hate
06. Demoniac
07. Burn
08. Power From Hell
There is a live version of "Metal Forces" taken from the album, currently streaming on the Onslaught MySpace page.
Onslaught guitarist Nige Rockett has posted the following update on the band's MySpace:
"Onslaught are coming back to Ireland. We will be visiting all our friends in the North and the South on the weekend of August 28th/29th. Firstly we play Belfast for the first time in 18 years at The Spring & Airbrake on Friday 28th August. Then on Saturday 29th August we head South to play at the Low End Festival in Waterford.
Fuck! It's gonna be a banging weekend, as always when we hit Ireland. It really doesn't seem like 18 years since we last played Belfast, we're really looking forward to getting back there once more, we have so many awesome memories of our previous visits, all of which were totally insane from start to finish. This will be our first time in Waterford - Southern Ireland, which is gonna be real cool and i'm sure we'll be meeting up with lots of our drinking partners down there too haha. Again so many fantastic & crazy memories from our many visits to Dublin, Cork and Sligo. It's always such a great pleasure to play for you Guys / Girls from North & South, long may you invite us back."
Onslaught will record their performance at this years Damnation Festival on Sat 22nd Nov, (Leeds, UK) for a future live album release through Candlelight Records in early 2009. (Onslaught will be appearing on the main stage - Showtime tbc)
Guitarist Nige Rockett commented: "We're really looking forward to playing at this years Damnation Festival, its gonna be a real crazy day, what a way to wind up our European promotion for the "Killing Peace" release and now we've got the added bonus of recording what will be our first official live album. This will keep things ticking over nicely while we complete the writing of the new opus... and don't forget to make some fucking noise for the boys!"
