Gallhammer
Encyclopedia
Gallhammer is a Japanese extreme metal
group that draws on black metal
, doom metal
, and crust punk
. They formed in Tokyo
in 2003. All of the members are female, which is rare in their genre.
, was released in November 2004 through Hello From The Gutter Records.
In January 2006, Gallhammer was signed to Peaceville Records
, on the recommendation of Darkthrone
. A CD/DVD pack, entitled The Dawn of...
, was released, containing a CD, demo and rehearsal footage, and a DVD recording of Gallhammer performing in Okayama and five concerts in Tokyo
.
Gallhammer released their second full-length album, Ill Innocence
, through Peaceville Records
in September 2007, followed by a European tour. In March 2008, they did a second European tour. They also played at the Inferno Metal Festival
in June.
, Celtic Frost
, Amebix
and Burzum
as Gallhammer's main musical influences. Slaughter is also a passionate fan of Judas Priest
, and appreciates Corrupted
. While the group borrows from crust and anarcho-punk
, they do not identify with a particular political outlook. She says she was first inspired to play music after seeing Napalm Death
and Painkiller
in concert. Other influences include Joy Division
, Antisect
, Carcass
, Cathedral
, Morbid Angel
, and Scorn
. Risa Reaper is a fan of old school techno
, Kraftwerk
, Krautrock
, and Laibach
. The group is also inspired by Japanoise
and have collaborated with Incapacitants
.
Extreme metal
Extreme metal is a loosely defined umbrella term for a number of related heavy metal music subgenres that have developed since the early 1980s. The term usually refers to a more abrasive, harsher, underground, non-commercialized style or sound nearly always associated with genres like black metal,...
group that draws on black metal
Black metal
Black metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. Common traits include fast tempos, shrieked vocals, highly distorted guitars played with tremolo picking, blast beat drumming, raw recording, and unconventional song structure....
, doom metal
Doom metal
Doom metal is an extreme form of heavy metal music that typically uses slower tempos, low-tuned guitars and a much "thicker" or "heavier" sound than other metal genres...
, and crust punk
Crust punk
Crust punk is a form of music influenced by anarcho-punk, hardcore punk and extreme metal. The style, which evolved in the mid-1980s in England, often has songs with dark and pessimistic lyrics that linger on political and social ills...
. They formed in Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
in 2003. All of the members are female, which is rare in their genre.
Biography
Their first recording, a free demo tape limited to 30 copies, was distributed at their first gig at Koiwa Death Fest Vol.2, around March 2003, in Japan. In July of the same year, the self-titled demo album was released. By April of the following year, they had released another demo album, Endless Nauseous Days, and were working towards their debut full-length CD. The 8-track album, entitled Gloomy LightsGloomy Lights
-Track listing:#"Endless Nauseous Days" – 5:48#"Crucifixion" – 4:30#"Tomurai: May Our Father Die" – 4:34#"Beyond the Hate Red" – 2:51#"Lost My Self" – 3:17#"State of Gloom" – 3:57#"Aloof and Proud Silence" – 5:18#"Color of Coma" – 10:07-Credits:...
, was released in November 2004 through Hello From The Gutter Records.
In January 2006, Gallhammer was signed to Peaceville Records
Peaceville Records
Peaceville Records is a British independent metal-oriented record label. The label was founded by Paul "Hammy" Halmshaw in 1987, in Dewsbury, England...
, on the recommendation of Darkthrone
Darkthrone
Darkthrone is a Norwegian black metal band. They formed in 1987 as a death metal band, but after embracing the black metal style in 1991, they became a driving force in the Norwegian black metal scene. For most of this period Darkthrone has consisted of just two musicians, Nocturno Culto and...
. A CD/DVD pack, entitled The Dawn of...
The Dawn of...
The Dawn of... is a compilation released in 2007 by Japanese band Gallhammer. This compilation contains a CD comes with a DVD featuring 6 gigs from the last two years.-CD:#"Speed of Blood" – 3:05#"Crucifixion" – 3:35#"May Our Father Die" – 4:08...
, was released, containing a CD, demo and rehearsal footage, and a DVD recording of Gallhammer performing in Okayama and five concerts in Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
.
Gallhammer released their second full-length album, Ill Innocence
Ill Innocence
Ill Innocence is the second full album of the Japanese band Gallhammer. It was released in 2007, and helped secure the band's recognition within the extreme metal subculture.-Track listing:#"At the Onset of the Age of Despair" – 7:50...
, through Peaceville Records
Peaceville Records
Peaceville Records is a British independent metal-oriented record label. The label was founded by Paul "Hammy" Halmshaw in 1987, in Dewsbury, England...
in September 2007, followed by a European tour. In March 2008, they did a second European tour. They also played at the Inferno Metal Festival
Inferno Metal Festival
Inferno Metal Festival is an annual extreme metal festival in Oslo, Norway. The festival was founded by Borknagar guitarist Jens F. Ryland in cooperation with Radar Booking in 2001 and take place at Rockefeller Music Hall.-2011:...
in June.
Influences
In an interview with Contraband Candy, Vivian Slaughter cited HellhammerHellhammer
Hellhammer was an influential extreme metal band from Switzerland, active during 1982–1984. They are regarded as being one of the first extreme metal bands and are a key influence on later black metal and death metal bands.-Biography:...
, Celtic Frost
Celtic Frost
Celtic Frost was a metal band from Zürich, Switzerland. They are known for their heavy influence on the extreme metal genres. The group was first active from 1984 to 1993, and re-formed in 2001. Following Tom Gabriel Fischer's departure in 2008, Celtic Frost decided to break up again...
, Amebix
Amebix
Amebix are an English crust punk/heavy metal band. Formed as "The Band with No Name," Amebix's original run was from 1978 to 1987, during which time they released three EPs and two full-length LPs...
and Burzum
Burzum
Burzum is a musical project by Varg Vikernes . It began during 1991 in Bergen, Norway and quickly became prominent within the early Norwegian black metal scene...
as Gallhammer's main musical influences. Slaughter is also a passionate fan of Judas Priest
Judas Priest
Judas Priest are an English heavy metal band from Birmingham, England, formed in 1969. The current line-up consists of lead vocalist Rob Halford, guitarists Glenn Tipton and Richie Faulkner, bassist Ian Hill, and drummer Scott Travis. The band has gone through several drummers over the years,...
, and appreciates Corrupted
Corrupted (band)
Corrupted are a Japanese doom/sludge metal band. They are known for their antipathy towards mainstream acceptance, even in their subgenre, which naturally tends towards obscurity. This is reflected not only in their dark and oppressive musical style but their reclusive nature, avoiding interviews...
. While the group borrows from crust and anarcho-punk
Anarcho-punk
Anarcho-punk is punk rock that promotes anarchism. The term anarcho-punk is sometimes applied exclusively to bands that were part of the original anarcho-punk movement in the United Kingdom in the late 1970s and early 1980s...
, they do not identify with a particular political outlook. She says she was first inspired to play music after seeing Napalm Death
Napalm Death
Napalm Death are a death metal band formed in Birmingham, England in 1981. While none of its original members remain in the group, the lineup of vocalist Mark "Barney" Greenway, bassist Shane Embury, guitarist Mitch Harris and drummer Danny Herrera has remained consistent for most of the band's ...
and Painkiller
Painkiller (band)
Painkiller is a band originally formed in 1991. Their style can be described as a mix of avant-garde jazz and grindcore; later albums also incorporated elements of ambient and dub....
in concert. Other influences include Joy Division
Joy Division
Joy Division were an English rock band formed in 1976 in Salford, Greater Manchester. Originally named Warsaw, the band primarily consisted of Ian Curtis , Bernard Sumner , Peter Hook and Stephen Morris .Joy Division rapidly evolved from their initial punk rock influences...
, Antisect
Antisect
Antisect are an English anarcho-punk band, formed in 1982 in Daventry, Northamptonshire, UK. Their debut album, In Darkness There is No Choice, was released in 1983...
, Carcass
Carcass (band)
Carcass are an extreme metal band from England, who formed in 1985 and disbanded in 1995. A reunion was enacted in 2008 without one of its original members, drummer Ken Owen, due to health reasons....
, Cathedral
Cathedral (band)
Cathedral are a doom metal band from Coventry, England. The group forged a link between early doom metal and a 1990s extreme metal aesthetic, making doom slower and heavier. Their debut album, Forest of Equilibrium, is considered a classic of the genre. They later on changed their doom style,...
, Morbid Angel
Morbid Angel
Morbid Angel is an American death metal band based in Tampa, Florida. UK music magazine Terrorizer ranked one Morbid Angel album in its “Top 40 greatest death metal albums”, with their 1989 debut Altars of Madness appearing at number 1...
, and Scorn
Scorn (band)
Scorn was an English electronic music project. The group was formed in the early 1990s as a side project of former Napalm Death members Mick Harris and Nic Bullen...
. Risa Reaper is a fan of old school techno
Techno
Techno is a form of electronic dance music that emerged in Detroit, Michigan in the United States during the mid to late 1980s. The first recorded use of the word techno, in reference to a genre of music, was in 1988...
, Kraftwerk
Kraftwerk
Kraftwerk is an influential electronic music band from Düsseldorf, Germany. The group was formed by Ralf Hütter and Florian Schneider in 1970, and was fronted by them until Schneider's departure in 2008...
, Krautrock
Krautrock
Krautrock is a generic name for the experimental music scenes that appeared in Germany in the late 1960s and gained popularity throughout the 1970s, especially in Britain. The term is a result of the English-speaking world's reception of the music at the time and not a reference to any one...
, and Laibach
Laibach (band)
Laibach is a Slovenian avant-garde music group associated with industrial, martial, and neo-classical musical styles. Laibach formed June 1, 1980 in Trbovlje, Slovenia . Laibach represents the music wing of the Neue Slowenische Kunst art collective, of which it was a founding member in 1984...
. The group is also inspired by Japanoise
Japanoise
is a portmanteau of the words "Japanese" and "noise": a term applied to the diverse, prolific, and influential noise music scene of Japan. Primarily popular and active in the 1980s and 1990s but still alive today, the Japanoise scene is defined by a remarkable sense of musical freedom...
and have collaborated with Incapacitants
Incapacitants
are a Japanese noise music group formed in 1981. It consists of Toshiji Mikawa and Fumio Kosakai, whose stated aim is to produce "pure" noise, uninfluenced by musical ideas or even human intention, using primarily feedback, vocals, and various electronics...
.
Band members
- Vivian Slaughter - vocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
, bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick.... - Risa Reaper - drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
, vocals
Live and other albums
- Untitled (demo) (2003)
- Gallhammer (demo) (2003)
- Endless Nauseous Days (demo) (2004)