Old-school metal revivalists HOLY GRAIL have just unleashed their second-ever music video, directed by Will Knapp. ‘Ride The Void’ is the title track for their sophomore album, released in January 2013 on Universal Music in Japan, on Nuclear Blast Records in Europe (shop here), and on Prosthetic Records in North America (shop here). ‘Ride The Void’ was received well by music critics as well as the fans, selling approximately 1,400 copies in the U.S. in its first week, landing at number 9 on the Top New Artist Albums chart (Billboard's Top Heatseekers chart for best-selling albums by new artists who have not yet appeared on the top 100 of the Billboard Top 200). ‘Ride The Void’ was produced by Matt Hyde and its art created by world-renowned concept artist Dylan Cole, best known for his Directors Guild of America Award-winning art for the 2009 blockbuster “Avatar” (he has also worked on the “Lord Of The Rings” trilogy, “Daredevil”, “Tron: Legacy”, “Transformers: Dark Of The Moon” etc):
“While everything you’d expect is here - solid songwriting that stays close to the early-'80s school of pre-thrash HM (though they do speed things up a bit on occasion), maximum riffage, anthemic choruses, and plenty of (copious, really) blistering guitar solos - the new thing is a touch of prog rearing its head...and no, this isn’t a bad thing,” [wrote Thom Jurek, AllMusic – read more here]
“[Advised the press release:] HOLY GRAIL could have easily written an album filled with lovable tales of mead-chugging knights-on-horseback, but instead, they pushed themselves further and, in the end, created an unforgettable collection of timeless metal anthems that not only validates the early praise they received, but creates an exciting question: “Where will they go from here?” For now, though, buckle up and enjoy the ride!”
Formed in 2008 in Pasadena, California by rebellious WHITE WIZZARD ex-members singer James Paul Luna, guitarist James J. LaRue, and drummer Tyler Meahl, HOLY GRAIL invited guitarist Eli Santana and bassist Blake Mount to complete the line-up before they recording their first EP, 2009's ‘Improper Burial’:
The band's debut recording was received by raving reviews, and invitations to perform at major events such as Germany's Wacken: Open Air festival and UK's Download Festival soon followed. HOLY GRAIL's debut LP, ‘Crisis In Utopia’, followed on Prosthetic Records in 2010:
“On their full-length debut, they’re proving themselves to be old-school metal warriors, their sound rooted in the early-'80s, pre-thrash. There are guitar solos erupting all over this disc, and song titles like ‘Fight To Kill’, ‘Call Of Valhalla’, ‘Immortal Man’ etc., etc. The songs are about death, terror, and all the classic larger-than-life metal subjects, and some of them - ‘Call Of Valhalla’ in particular - are damn catchy. … overall, this is a very solid full-length debut from a bunch of talented semi-newcomers. The great WHITE WIZZARD schism of 2008 seems to have been a boon for metal in general, as there are now two good bands in the place formerly occupied by only one,” [wrote Phil Freeman, AllMusic – read more here:]
HOLY GRAIL features: James Paul Luna – vocals, Eli Santana – guitar, Alex Lee – guitar, Blake Mount – bass and Tyler Meahl – drums
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