23-455: The Red Chord is an American extreme metal band from Revere, Massachusetts , formed in 1999. The group comprises vocalist Guy Kozowyk, guitarist/vocalist Mike "Gunface" McKenzie, bassist Greg Weeks and drummer Jon Rice. The band gained a fanbase with its 2002 debut album Fused Together in Revolving Doors . The second album, Clients , was released in 2005 and sold over 50,000 copies in
46-408: A busy band with plans in constant motion, but a little abruptly, I chose to depart from manning the kit for The Red Chord. I have had a great time for the past five years with these guys, and wouldn't exchange it for anything. Touring is tough; everyone who's done it knows that. (...) I want to thank Greg, Guy, and Mike, and wish them the best of luck in the future." A music video for "Demoralizer", that
69-492: A major influence on thrash metal and extreme metal in general. This early work by Venom, in combination with bands like Discharge , the Exploited and Amebix , as well as American hardcore punk, brought integral elements into the budding extreme metal landscape at the time. In 1983, Metallica would release their debut album Kill 'Em All , which fused elements of the new wave of British heavy metal with hardcore punk and
92-506: 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 transgression ". The term usually refers to a more abrasive, harsher, underground , non-commercialized style associated with the speed metal , thrash metal , black metal , death metal , and doom metal genres. Hardcore punk has been considered an integral part of
115-488: Is also considered one of the first wave black metal albums that helped shape the genre. Their second album, The Laws of Scourge , was one of the first technical death metal records to be released. Genres influenced by extreme metal but usually not considered extreme themselves: Job for a Cowboy Too Many Requests If you report this error to the Wikimedia System Administrators, please include
138-600: Is characterized by high levels of distortion (also in the vocals – growling, gargling or screaming), less focus on guitar solos and melody, emphasis on technical control, and fast tempos (at times, more than 200 beats per minute ). Its thematic transgression can be found in more overt and/or serious references to Satanism and the darker aspects of human existence that are considered out of bounds or distasteful, such as death, suicide and war. "Visual transgression [can include] ... medieval weaponry [and] bloody/horrific artwork." According to ethnographer Keith Kahn-Harris ,
161-440: Is considered experimental . The Red Chord typically uses frequent tempo changes, technically proficient instrumental approach and emphasizes the element of groove in their music. Because the band has combined several different elements of heavy music into their style, they have been considered among the very first deathcore bands due to their hybridization of death metal with metalcore/hardcore influences; however this statement
184-461: Is debatable because The Red Chord have always featured more eccentric influences in their music than just simply metalcore and death metal. Kozowyk uses metalcore-esque growls and screams with occasional spoken word and is rather decipherable. Kozowyk points out Frank Mullen from Suffocation as a vocal influence, Black Sabbath as a musical influence, and Faith No More as a lyrical inspiration. Timeline Extreme metal Extreme metal
207-627: Is that red cord across your neck?" The debut album Fused Together in Revolving Doors was recorded with producer Andrew Schneider in December 2001 and released by the Robotic Empire record label. With the debut album, The Red Chord gained a substantial fanbase. In early 2004, Wentworth and Justian announced their departure from The Red Chord and the band found replacements in bassist Gregory Weeks and drummer Jon Dow. In April that year, The Red Chord toured with Six Feet Under and others. The debut album
230-520: The Swedish black metal band Marduk has commonly referenced the Nazi Panzer tanks, which can be seen in works such as Panzer Division Marduk (1999). The British band Venom are one of the first bands to venture into extreme metal territory, due to their ideological shift into themes of evil , the devil and hell . Their first two albums, Welcome to Hell (1981) and Black Metal (1982), were
253-615: The U.S. They released their third album, Prey for Eyes in 2007, which sold between 4,000 and 5,000 copies and debuted at No. 198 on the Billboard 200 chart. Their latest album, 2009's Fed Through the Teeth Machine , debuted at No. 180 on the Billboard 200 chart. The Red Chord has released four studio albums, having toured in North America, Europe, and Japan. The Red Chord
SECTION 10
#1732859475323276-533: The US. 2005 started with American tours and resumed on European tours in December. The band filmed a promotional video for the track "Antman" with director Dave Brodsky. The tour continued in North America through February 2006 until Ozzfest in June. In February 2007, guitarist Jonny Fay decided to quit the band and was replaced by Mike Keller. In May 2007, the band went on another tour to Europe. The third album, Prey for Eyes ,
299-575: The band announced they would be performing at the Decibel Metal & Beer Fest in June, marking the end of a hiatus the band had since 2015 from performing. They performed their 2005 album Clients in its entirety. The majority of The Red Chord's music is composed by McKenzie and to a lesser degree by Weeks and other band members. The lyrics are written by Kozowyk. The band's grindcore based sound also incorporates elements of death metal , metalcore , hardcore punk , and progressive death metal , and
322-761: The defining characteristics of extreme metal can all be regarded as clearly transgressive : the "extreme" traits noted above are all intended to violate or transgress given cultural, artistic, social or aesthetic boundaries. Kahn-Harris states that extreme metal can be "close to being ... formless noise", at least to the uninitiated listener. He states that with extreme metal lyrics, they often "offer no possibility of hope or redemption" and lyrics often reference apocalyptic themes. Extreme metal lyrics often describe Christianity as weak or submissive, and many songs express misanthropic views such as "kill every thing". A small number of extreme metal bands and song lyrics take radical (left or right) political stances; for example,
345-499: The development of extreme metal in song structure and speed, apart from the case of doom metal. Extreme metal acts set themselves apart from traditional heavy metal acts, such as Iron Maiden , Judas Priest and Motörhead , by incorporating more abrasive musical characteristics such as higher tempos, increased aggression and a harsher extremity. In the majority of the world, extreme metal does not receive much radio-play or achieve high chart positions. Extreme metal's sonic excess
368-527: The members forming Celtic Frost in its place, which proved very influential on the progression of the genre. During this period, the line between extreme metal genres were blurred, as thrash metal bands such as Slayer, Sepultura , Sodom , Destruction and Kreator were integral to the first wave black metal scene. The front cover of the Sarcófago 's 1987 debut album, I.N.R.I. , was a major influence on black metal's corpse paint style make-up. That record
391-474: The previous album. "It's faster and heavier, but it's definitely groove-oriented and melodic where it needs to be," he commented. Fed Through the Teeth Machine sold around 2,700 copies in the United States in its first week of release and debuted at No. 180 on the Billboard 200 chart. In 2010, the release was followed by a headlining tour in the U.S. Due to a volcano eruption on Iceland , The Red Chord
414-408: The style of Motörhead , becoming the first thrash metal album, and would eventually be certified triple platinum. A few months later, Slayer would release their own thrash metal album Show No Mercy , influenced by the sounds of Venom, Judas Priest , Iron Maiden , and Mercyful Fate . When extreme metal band Hellhammer first began making music, it was generally panned by critics, leading to
437-513: Was filmed in late 2009, was released in mid-February. Justian departed from The Red Chord in March 2011 and the band hired Jon "The Charn" Rice of Job for a Cowboy for the forthcoming tour. On April 15, 2013, Guy Kozowyk became a sworn officer of the Manchester, New Hampshire Police Department. He was sworn in with six other new officers during a ceremony at police headquarters. On February 2, 2022,
460-572: Was forced to miss a co-headlining European "Machines Of Grind" tour with Aborted and Rotten Sound , who subsequently embarked on a "DIY Fuck The Volcano" tour without The Red Chord. The band later performed in Japan with Between the Buried and Me . Drummer Michael Justian rejoined the band in February 2010, shortly after Fickeisen departed. Fickeisen commented his departure: "There is no easy way to go about leaving
483-510: Was formed in Revere, Massachusetts in 1999 by vocalist Guy Kozowyk and guitarist Kevin Rampelberg. One year later, the band was joined by second guitarist Mike "Gunface" McKenzie, bassist Adam Wentworth and drummer Mike Justian. The band's name is derived from Alban Berg 's opera Wozzeck , in which a schizophrenic man slits his lover's throat, then reverts to his normal self and asks, "My love, what
SECTION 20
#1732859475323506-569: Was re-released with demo tracks, a full concert performance and the video clip for "Dreaming In Dog Years". In March, the band signed to Metal Blade . John Longstreth replaced Dow in May but exited in September. The Red Chord entered Planet Z Studios in Hadley, Massachusetts on November 1, with Brad Fickeisen as a new drummer, and recorded their second album Clients , which subsequently sold over 50,000 copies in
529-476: Was released on July 24. The group parted ways with Keller in early September and decided not to replace him. The band's fourth album, Fed Through the Teeth Machine , was recorded in early to mid-2009 in Milford, New Hampshire , at Backyard Studios, which is owned by the band's former guitarist Jonny Fay. The album was released on October 27, 2009. Kozowyk said that the new songs are more intense and mature than those
#322677