- Powderburn
Infobox musical artist
Name = Powderburn
Img_capt =
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Background = group_or_band
Origin = Austin, Texas
Genre =
Heavy metal
Years_active = 1998 - present
Label = independent
Associated_acts =
Also Known As =
URL = http://www.powderburn.net
Current_members = Ken Lockman - lead vocals, rhythm guitar
Eric Smith - lead guitar, vocals
Greg Enkler - bass guitar, vocals
Patrick Swift - drums
Past_members = Josh Klayman - lead guitar, vocals
Joel Reyes - drums, vocals
Kerry Jennings - lead vocals
Joseph Smith - bass
Notable_instruments =Powderburn is an
Austin, Texas -based metal band. They formed in 1998 and have released three full length CD’s under independent labels. The group is one of the foremost acts in the metal scene in the city of Austin, having won several honors in the city's annual awards show, and is sponsored by several significant companies.The band was started by Josh Klayman, the previous lead guitarist, and as a result of his departure, there are no founding members of the band currently in the lineup.
tyle
Powderburn's style of music began as a mix of the controversial "nu metal" with 80's style composition under harmonized 3 part vocals. Their first CD, "A New Sin", is a sub par recording characterized by guitar driven aggression and growling vocals. Their second full length CD simply called "Powderburn", made a shift to more complex composition - leaning more towards the "80's style" and moving towards more drum-driven guitar riffs. That album also marked a change in the vocal style, where at various points all 4 members contributed to vocals.
In early 2006, Powderburn released a single entitled "A Bloodstained Memory", which was the first recorded track with new drummer Patrick Swift. This track displays a return to the guitar-driven style that the band started out with. There is also a shift to more commercialized style, with less focus on aggression and more focus on groove and moderate tempo.
In January 2007, Powderburn released their first CD in over three years, entitled "Echoed in Red". This record follows the songwriting trend begun with "A Bloodstained Memory", which indeed is included on the disc. It comes packaged with a DVD that contains three music videos and an interview with all four band members.
In the months of December 2007 into January 2008, Powderburn began writing intensely with new lead guitarist Eric Smith, and there was to be yet another shift in songwriting style, with the range increasing from simple, groove-laden commercial tracks to include a wider range of common metal sub-genres, including thrash and speed, and also ranging farther into softer and more melodic territories.
Discography
Full length CDs
* A New Sin – 2000
* Powderburn – 2003
* Untitled forthcoming release - 2008
EP
* Mouse on a Harley – 1999
* Echoed in Red (EP/DVD)- 2007
ingles
* One by One - 2008
* A Bloodstained Memory - 2007
Newly Released
On
January 7 ,2008 , a single track entitled "One By One" was released from a recording session done with producer Paul Soroski, which was the final one attended by Josh Klayman. It is unclear if any of the other songs recorded in that session will see the light of day.On
January 13 ,2007 , Powderburn released a new EP, titled "Echoed in Red". The CD was released following several promotional appearances during the previous week, including an in-store performance at Encore Records, and a listening party the night before at The Yellow Rose Gentlemen's Club, both in Austin, TX. The EP was released officially at a live show at Antone's, perhaps the most well known live music establishment in the Live Music Capital of the World.Awards
Powderburn has won numerous awards in the Central Texas region:
* 2006-2007
* Austin Music Awards
** Best Metal Band* The Edge Magazine - San Antonio, TX - February 2006 Issue (Best of 2005 Readers Poll)
** Best Austin Metal Band
** Best Bassist (Greg Enkler)* 2004-2005
* Austin Music Awards
* Best Metal Band* The Edge Magazine - San Antonio, TX - February 2005 Issue (Best of 2004 Readers Poll)
** Best Austin Group & Best Austin Metal Band
** Best Male Singer (Ken Lockman)* 2003-2004
* Austin Music Awards
** Best Metal Band* The Edge Magazine - San Antonio, TX - February 2004 Issue (Best of 2003 Readers Poll)
** Best Austin Metal Band
** Best Austin CD Release Party* 2002-2003
* Austin Music Awards
** Best Metal/Industrial Band* 2001-2002
* Austin Music Awards
** Best Metal/Industrial Band
** Best MP3Band member information
The band is currently a quartet, with two guitars, bass and drums comprising the entirety of the music.
Ken Lockman, from southern New Jersey, is the lead vocalist and handles rhythm guitar duties. He is the driving force behind the band, and brings a charismatic approach to the live show. He is also the main lyricist, and along with Greg Enkler has over the course of Powderburn's career been one of the main songwriters.
Eric Smith, from Houston, Texas, is the newest addition to the lineup. He is noted for his virtuoso lead guitar style, influenced equally by 80's classic metal bands and newer guitar heroes like Dimebag Darrell. He is also noted for his clownish behavior on and offstage and is possibly the most fan-accessible member of the band.
Greg Enkler, from upstate New York, is the bassist and second-longest tenured member of Powderburn. He is one of the main songwriters and contributes to virtually every aspect of the band on and offstage.
Patrick Swift, from New York City, is the drummer and secondary lyricist. Swift and Enkler have played in bands since the early 1990s, and as a result are a notably efficent and complementary rhythm section. Swift is also the self-styled intellectual of the band.
Recent Departures and Additions
Founding member and guitarist Josh Klayman left the band in the winter of 2007, with his farewell show being a December 5th performance at the Red Eyed Fly. His departure was due to his desire to puruse a career in sound engineering. The band had just finished recording four new songs when Klayman left, and since then one has been released as an internet-only download, and the band is unclear as to what will happen to the other tracks.
He has since been replaced by Eric Smith, a native of Houston and a former member of Texas-based bands Swinging Teresa, Pinhed, and Epic. His departure show was notable for a performance of an acoustic song that Josh performed with both himself and former drummer Joel Reyes on guitar duty and a friend named Gabe who performed vocals. Josh was quoted as saying that "this is what you can expect from me in '08", but it is unclear whether this will formalize into an acoustic group or not.
Joel Reyes left the band in September 2004 for personal reasons. He was listed in a news report of his departure as the band’s “original drummer”. However, descriptions on the band’s website of the members who recorded on their CDs paint a different picture. Guitarist Josh Klayman is said to be the only original member left from a demo CD made in 1999. This description of the "demo cd" was up when Reyes was still in the band, so that would mean Reyes was not the original drummer.
Reyes was replaced by current drummer Patrick Swift, formerly of the NY based band Frail. The two shared a “handing over of the torch” style show for Reyes’ final performance in Austin, TX at the Backroom. Reyes and Swift played "Release the Men" and "Now You Know" together during the set. Though there are no direct reports, it’s believed that Reyes still maintains a working relationship with the band as well as a personal one.
Joel Reyes is the brother-in-law of Aben Eubanks. (Guitarist for Matt Nathanson, Graham Colton Band and Kelly Clarkson).
Other departures
Vocalist Kerry Jennings left the band in March 2002. He was never formally replaced as the band went from having a single lead singer to the remaining band members sharing vocal duties. Kerry left the band during the production of an album called Staple. This put a halt to the release of the album so that all vocals could be re-recorded and the album renamed to the self-titled Powderburn release in 2003. Jennings went on to form a band called Furthest From the Star with other Austin musicians, but that project never materialized into anything productive.
Judging by album descriptions, there have been at least two other departures from the band. One resulting in Joel Reyes becoming their drummer and another resulting in Greg Enkler becoming their bassist. Prior to Greg Enkler, the bassist was Joseph Smith of Austin, TX who was asked to leave the band due to poor playing ability as well as personal differences with the band members. No other info is given on former members.
Current members
* Ken Lockman: lead vocals, guitars
* Eric Smith: lead guitar
* Greg Enkler: bass, vocals
* Patrick Swift: drums
Former members
* Josh Klayman: guitar, vocals
* Joel Reyes: drums
* Kerry Jennings: lead vocals
* Joseph Smith: bassist
(info on other members not listed)
Sponsorships
Powderburn is currently sponsored by
Jagermeister , Budweiser,Coffin Case , andSkull Strings .External links
* [http://www.powderburn.net Powderburn Official Site]
* [http://www.myspace.com/powderburn Powderburn Myspace Site]
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