Abriel
Encyclopedia
Abriel is an American deathcore
band based out of San Francisco, California
that was formed in 2008. Best known for their female vocals, mixing deathcore with pop
, and their "DIY" approach to the industry funding their own tours, album releases, and marketing.
, As I Lay Dying
, Winds Of Plague
, VersaEmerge
, All Shall Perish
, Suicide Silence
, A Day To Remember
, and many others.
. The show brought the band back and got them attention from record labels like Century Media Records
and Victory Records
. The band was then asked to work with Zac Diebels (Deftones
, Third Eye Blind
, Death Cab For Cutie
) on their debut album, but instead chose up and coming metal producer Max Karon. The album, "This Will Swallow You Whole," was released on August 19, 2010 with a huge CD release party at the DNA Lounge in San Francisco which brought in a packed crowd. The band then lost another drummer and bassist, and then chose to go on hiatus, even though they had just released their debut CD and had just started to break into the industry. During that time, Wrobel started a career with Droid
as a blogger and assisting with Droid troubleshooting and Hartman continued in music assisting writing and producing for pop artists.
band Arsonists Get All The Girls
. On February 7, 2011, Abriel's debut album was re-released through Island Def Jam Music Group. The album features the hit songs that got them where they are now. The band once again got asked to play main stage at California Metalfest in Anaheim on March 19, 2011 with As I Lay Dying
and their biggest influence and one of their favorite bands, Winds Of Plague
. Abriel played in front of a sold out crowd at The Grove. The band is now playing a few California dates then writing for their sophomore album.
Former Members
Deathcore
Deathcore is an extreme metal music genre that combines elements of death metal with elements of metalcore or hardcore punk, or both. It is defined by an "excessive" use of death metal riffs, blast beats and use of hardcore punk breakdowns...
band based out of San Francisco, California
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
that was formed in 2008. Best known for their female vocals, mixing deathcore with pop
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
, and their "DIY" approach to the industry funding their own tours, album releases, and marketing.
Overview
Originally called From Emperor To Citizen, Abriel was formed at the end of 2008 in San Francisco, California. The band has headlined a self-funded regional tour as well as played with bands like The Devil Wears PradaThe Devil Wears Prada (band)
The Devil Wears Prada is an American metalcore band from Dayton, Ohio. Formed in 2005, they are currently signed to Warner Music Group...
, As I Lay Dying
As I Lay Dying (band)
As I Lay Dying is an American metalcore band from San Diego, California. Founded in 2000 by Tim Lambesis and having completed their first Line-up in 2001, the band consists of vocalist Tim Lambesis, drummer Jordan Mancino, lead guitarist Nick Hipa, rhythm guitarist Phil Sgrosso, and bassist Josh...
, Winds Of Plague
Winds of Plague
Winds of Plague is an American deathcore band from Upland, California, formed in 2002. They are best known as one of the only deathcore bands to incorporate symphonic elements into their music....
, VersaEmerge
VersaEmerge
VersaEmerge is an American rock band consisting of Sierra Kusterbeck and Blake Harnage, originating from Port St. Lucie, Florida, USA, currently signed to the label Fueled by Ramen. They have three EPs - Cities Built on Sand, Perceptions, and the self-titled release. Their debut album, Fixed at...
, All Shall Perish
All Shall Perish
All Shall Perish is an American deathcore band from Oakland, California, formed in 2002. Currently, the band is signed to Nuclear Blast and have released four full-length albums through the label. Their latest record, This Is Where It Ends was released on July 26, 2011...
, Suicide Silence
Suicide Silence
Suicide Silence is an American extreme metal band from Riverside, California. The group consists of vocalist Mitch Lucker, guitarists Chris Garza and Mark Heylmun, drummer Alex Lopez and bassist Dan Kenny. Formed in 2002, the band has released three full-length studio albums, one EP and seven music...
, A Day To Remember
A Day to Remember
A Day to Remember is an American rock band from Ocala, Florida. Founded in 2003 by guitarist Tom Denny and drummer Bobby Scruggs, the band has released four studio albums, nine singles and eight music videos...
, and many others.
Beginning-2009
In August 2007, gutarists Sean Hartman and Tim Wrobel from Fortuna, California, a small town in Northern California decided to move down to San Francisco with an arsenal of songs ready to start a band. After a year of going through many drummer and vocalist auditions, near the end of 2008 they found Boston, Massachusetts native Alexa Rae to hold down on vocals with amazing screams and the ability to switch to clean vocals immediately. This is when the band decided to go with the name Abriel. Without wasting any time, the band recorded a two song demo and released the first single, "Show Em' Your Hips," that December, getting the band immediate attention from many fans for the synth-sounding hooks and catchy vocal melodies backed by headbanging riffs and a gut wrenching breakdown. At this time, the band did not have a drummer so Hartman switched to drums for the first two shows and the recordings. The band's first show with a full line-up with Alex Greenling on drums and Paul Littler on bass was a San Francisco battle of the bands in January 2009, which they won. The band then decided to self fund and headline a summer tour across the West Coast, which caught the attention of many and earned them a spot on the 2009 Vans Warped Tour.2010-Hiatus
After 2009 Warped Tour the band went underground after losing their drummer and bassist, then came back in May 2010 after being asked to play main stage at California Metalfest in Pomona with Bleeding ThroughBleeding Through
Bleeding Through is an American metalcore band from Orange County, California. Formed in 1999, the band blends influences stemming from modern hardcore punk, symphonic black metal, and melodic death metal...
. The show brought the band back and got them attention from record labels like Century Media Records
Century Media Records
Century Media Records is an Independent record label with offices in the United States, Germany, Australia, France, Italy, Sweden, Finland, and the United Kingdom.- Background :...
and Victory Records
Victory Records
Victory Records is a Chicago-based record label founded by Tony Brummel. It is a privately held corporation. It also operates a music publishing company called "Another Victory, Inc." and is the distributor of several smaller independent record labels....
. The band was then asked to work with Zac Diebels (Deftones
Deftones
Deftones are an American alternative metal band from Sacramento, California, founded in 1988. The band consists of Chino Moreno , Stephen Carpenter , Chi Cheng , Frank Delgado , and Abe Cunningham . Currently Sergio Vega is standing in on bass while Cheng recovers from a car accident...
, Third Eye Blind
Third Eye Blind
Third Eye Blind is an American alternative rock band formed in the early 1990s in San Francisco. The songwriting duo of Kevin Cadogan and Stephan Jenkins signed the band's first major label recording contract with Elektra records in 1996 resulting in two multi platinum albums. The band's lineup...
, Death Cab For Cutie
Death Cab for Cutie
Death Cab for Cutie is an American alternative rock band formed in Bellingham, Washington in 1997. The band consists of Ben Gibbard , Chris Walla , Nick Harmer and Jason McGerr ....
) on their debut album, but instead chose up and coming metal producer Max Karon. The album, "This Will Swallow You Whole," was released on August 19, 2010 with a huge CD release party at the DNA Lounge in San Francisco which brought in a packed crowd. The band then lost another drummer and bassist, and then chose to go on hiatus, even though they had just released their debut CD and had just started to break into the industry. During that time, Wrobel started a career with Droid
Droid
Droids are robotic machines, as found in Star Wars films, books and television series. Mostly created for Star Wars by Special Effects worker John Stears, the term is a clipped form of android. The word "droid" is a registered trademark of Lucasfilm Ltd.Droids , were robots: mechanical beings,...
as a blogger and assisting with Droid troubleshooting and Hartman continued in music assisting writing and producing for pop artists.
2011-New Members-Island Def Jam
Four months after the band's split, Sean, Tim, and Alexa saw that there was still buzz going around about Abriel. The band became popular in Japan, Norway, Mexico, Canada, and all over the US. Since all three original members still had the want to keep Abriel together, they decided to hold auditions for a new bassist and drummer. After many auditions, the band went with bassist Jordan Pendergrass and drummer Rick Holbrook. After 2 years, the band finally has permanent members that are in it for the long haul. The band's first comeback show was headlining in San Francisco on January 31 at Submission with main support from Century Media RecordsCentury Media Records
Century Media Records is an Independent record label with offices in the United States, Germany, Australia, France, Italy, Sweden, Finland, and the United Kingdom.- Background :...
band Arsonists Get All The Girls
Arsonists Get All the Girls
Arsonists Get All the Girls is an American deathcore band from Santa Cruz, California. Founded in 2005, they are currently signed to Century Media Records and have recorded and released four full-length studio albums, Hits from the Bow, The Game of Life, Portals and Motherland.-Biography:Arsonists...
. On February 7, 2011, Abriel's debut album was re-released through Island Def Jam Music Group. The album features the hit songs that got them where they are now. The band once again got asked to play main stage at California Metalfest in Anaheim on March 19, 2011 with As I Lay Dying
As I Lay Dying (band)
As I Lay Dying is an American metalcore band from San Diego, California. Founded in 2000 by Tim Lambesis and having completed their first Line-up in 2001, the band consists of vocalist Tim Lambesis, drummer Jordan Mancino, lead guitarist Nick Hipa, rhythm guitarist Phil Sgrosso, and bassist Josh...
and their biggest influence and one of their favorite bands, Winds Of Plague
Winds of Plague
Winds of Plague is an American deathcore band from Upland, California, formed in 2002. They are best known as one of the only deathcore bands to incorporate symphonic elements into their music....
. Abriel played in front of a sold out crowd at The Grove. The band is now playing a few California dates then writing for their sophomore album.
Members
Current Members- Alexa Rae - Vocals (2008–present)
- Sean "Tater" Hartman - Drums (2008) Guitar, Vocals (2009–present)
- Jordan Pendergrass - Bass, Vocals (2011–present)
- Christian Rey - Guitar, Vocals (2011–present)
Former Members
- Timothy "Plague" Wrobel - Guitar (2008−2011)
- Paul Littler - Bass (2008−2009)
- Alex Greenling - Drums (2009–2010)
- Peter Souza - Bass (2009−2010)
- Chad Evans - Drums (2010)
- Maxwell Karon- Bass (Touring Member)(2010)
- Rick Holbrook - Drums (2011)
Discography
| Album Title | Date of Release | Label |
|---|---|---|
| Show Em' Your Hips | December 4, 2008 | Single Single (music) In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear... |
| This Will Swallow You Whole | August 19, 2010 | Self-Released |
| This Will Swallow You Whole | Re-released on February 7, 2011 | Island Def Jam Music Group/Digital Distribution |