Whitechapel, Chelsea Grin, et The Acacia Strain

The band formed in 2006 by Knoxville residents Phil Bozeman on vocals, guitarists Ben Savage, Alex Wade and Ben Savage, bassist Gabe Crisp and drummer Kevin Lane. In 2007 after the release of a self-produced EP the band signed to the UK label Siege of Amida Records and Candlelight Records in the U.S., through which the band released their full-length debut “The Somatic Defilement”.

Before long Savage and Martin were replaced by guitarist Zach Householder and drummer Kevin Lane and signed with label Metal Blade. In 2008 arrived Whitechapel’s sophomore release “This Is Exile” after which they embarked on The Summer Slaughter Tour and their first headlining tour with Impending Doom and A Different Breed of Killer. Whitechapel’s fan base swelled with tour dates alongside popular acts such as Parkway Drive, Unearth and Trivium.

Produced by Jason Suecof, the band released their third album “A New Era of Corruption" in June 2010 debuting at No. 43 on the Billboard 200. The release led to featured spots at the California Metal Fest IV, 2010’s Warped Tour, a second stage show at the UK’s Download Festival and another U.S. headlining tour. Kevin Lane departed the group to return to college and was replaced by former Knights of the Abyss drummer Benjamin Harclerode.

In 2011 Whitechapel release the single “Section 8” ahead of a limited edition EP titled “Recorrupted”. The band embarked on another U.S. headlining tour named “The Recorruptour” before heading back to the studio with producer Mark Lewis to record their self-titled fourth LP. The album got its release in June 2012, debuted at No. 47 on the Billboard 200 and was led by the first single “Hate Creation”.

Whitechape’s fourth full-length album “Our Endless War” proved to be the band’s highest charting album reaching No. 10 on the Billboard 200 and topping the U.S. Hard Rock chart.

Lead vocalist Alex Koehler was formerly in a band called Ahazih, but once the band went through some lineup changes the members of the band started to call themselves Chelsea Grin. The band consists of six members, which allows them to accomplish musically intricate compositions. The band has three guitarists, permitting them to create a heavy rhythmic sound while the lead guitarist plays complicated riffs.

Not long after the band’s formation they released their self-titled EP in 2008, which was released on Statik Factory Records. The band would later sign to Artery Recordings and release their debut album “Desolation of Eden” in 2010. Their debut album was produced by Tim Lambesis from the band As I Lay Dying and did well on the charts reaching the No. 21 spot on the Top Heatseekers chart. The success of their album allowed the band to pursue a full US tour as well as garnered them praise in the “Alternative Press”.

In 2011 the band released their second studio album “My Damnation”, which showed Chelsea Grin stretching their creative abilities. The album focuses on lyrical themes pertaining to the afterlife and musically it featured more intricate guitar riffs and solos. The album also did well on the charts reaching the No. 6 spot on the US Billboard Hard Rock Albums chart.

The band released their third studio album “Ashes to Ashes” in 2014, which contained the singles “Letters”, “Angels Shall Sin, Demons Shall Pray”, and “Playing with Fire”. The album also did well on the charts reaching No. 27 on the US Billboard 200. Although the band mainly records original material, they released a cover of the song “Right Now” by Korn.

Chelsea Grin has taken influence from many bands such as Deftones, Slayer, Atreyu and Megadeth. Their songs cover a variety of metal sounds ranging from doom metal to symphonic metal, but whatever they end up producing is sure to be heavy. The band is constantly touring and have played many sold out concerts while touring with bands such as Emure, Born of Osiris, Parkway Drive, and Every Time I Die. They have also been known to play festivals such as Vans Warped Tour.

The offshoot of punk known as deathcore is perhaps considered the most applicable genre tag when it comes to trying to actually categorize The Acacia Strain, but in truth, their sound is a blend of different styles - death metal and doom metal are both prevalent, as are hardcore, punk and noise rock. Their three-guitar lineup is key to the brutality of their sound, and they’ve also often relied on unsettling sampling to create sonic atmosphere. Bennett is now the only original member left in the band; drummer Kevin Boutot only joined in 2005, with bassist Jack Strong joining him in the rhythm section a year later. Dave Shidaker and Richard Gomez have handled guitar duties since 2013.

Bennett is the key figure in the band, with his aggressive onstage attitude something that’s mirrored by his nihilistic - and often misanthropic - lyricism. There’s no question, either, that Bennett has courted controversy by exploring themes of misogyny, violence and sexual deviancy in The Acacia Strain’s music; for some, though, this darkness is key to their appeal. They’ve increasingly made inroads on the American charts, with 2014‘s ‘Coma Witch’ reaching number thirty-one on the Billboard rundown in their homeland, despite the fact that their music is hardly striking as being especially commercial.