ENGLISH DOGS * THE CASUALTIES * TOXIC HOLOCAUST * HAVOK

English Dogs are a British crossover punk rock/heavy metal band that began life in the early eighties. They formed in October 1981 in Grantham and produced two demos during 1982 entitled 'Show No Mercy' and 'Free To Kill'. The band toured as support to fellow punk band Charged GBH in Germany during early 1983 and followed this with a British tour supporting Discharge. In 1983 they signed to Clay Records and released a 6 track EP titled 'Mad Punx And English Dogs'.

English Dogs' first full length album, 'Invasion of the Porky Men', emerged a year later. Personnel changes ensued after the debut album emerged with vocalist Wakey departing to be replaced by ex-Ultraviolent singer Ade Bailey. At this juncture the band also decided to augment their live and recorded sound by adding ex-Destructors guitarist Graham 'Gizz' Butt who added Metal riffing and guitar leads to the English Dogs songwriting.

This change saw them leave Clay records to sign with Rot Records and release the decidedly metal tinged 'To The Ends Of The Earth' EP in September 1984. The metal leanings increased with Forward into Battle. English Dogs , culminating with the 'Where Legend Began' album through Under One Flag in 1986. The group appeared on the legendary Shades promoted Thrash bill at Camden's Electric Ballroom with Possessed and Voivod later in 1986.

Wakey returned briefly to the reformed band to record 1994's comeback 'Bow To None', with him being replaced by Stuart 'Stu-Pid' Jones for the 1995 single on Wretch Records .

Butt created Wardance with ex-Frantix bassist Andy Frantic and former Boys Dream drummer Matt Keys. Dogs forged an alliance with erstwhile GBH personnel in 1997 to create Sensa Yuma releasing the 'Every Day's Your Last Day' album on Retch Records and 7" EP of the same title on Ruptured Ambitions. Another English Dogs / GBH union resulted in Wakey and Pinch creating The Wernt with GBH members guitarist Jock Blyth and bassist Ross Lomas for a 1997 album 'Wreckin' Temples'. Butt replaced Jim Davies of Pitchshifter as the live guitarist for The Prodigy, which in turn revitalized interest in English Dogs and prompted a re-release of Where Legend Began. Butt also announced the formation of a new act Janus Stark the same year recording with ex-Charlie guitarist Terry Thomas acting as producer. 1999's 'I've Got A Gun' was recorded live in Finland at the last ever English Dogs show. By 2000 Pinch had joined The Damned. Gizz Butt returned in 2004 with The More I See.

In May 2007, English Dogs reformed with the original line-up with the exception of Pinch, though he would have liked to join he had commitments with The Damned. He was replaced by Stuart Meadows, who played for Resistance 77. They mainly play throughout Europe, but they do not play their crossover material. English Dogs released an EP called "Tales of the Asylum" in November 2008. English Dogs had another line-up change in the of Summer 2009 then afterward a hiatus. After months of leaving the band, Wakey Wakefield reformed the band with him being the only original member.

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The Casualties are a punk rock band, formed in New Jersey, United States in 1987. Their first offering was their signature EP "40 0z. Casualty". only the lead singer Jorge remaining from the original lineup. The band's first demo was recorded in 1990. The band began as an effort to bring back the hardcore punk sound and style of many british hardcore punk bands (also known as uk82) such as Blitz, The Partisans, One Way System and The Exploited.they have remained virtually the same and true to their uk82 and oi aesthetic. They maintain a loyal fanbase.

The Casualties's assembly consists of:
Jorge - vocals
Jake - guitar
Rick - bass
Meggers - drums

For more information, visit http://www.thecasualties.net or http://www.myspace.com/thecasualties

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TOXIC HOLOCAUST mutated into existence in 1999 in Portland, OR, when Joel Grind merged his love for classic punk and metal and the flash of L.A. hard rock into his ideal band. Like his influences - Bathory, Venom, Onslaught, English Dogs, Possessed, Broken Bones - TOXIC HOLOCAUST featured blazing riffs, gravel-throated vocals, and a deadly fixation on the evil in man and a post-apocalyptic world. Grind wrapped all of these elements up with a DIY attitude and begin writing and recording material almost instantly.

As the band’s driving force, Grind wrote and recorded all of the material. After several well-received demos, Grind was ready to take the band to the next level and, in 2003, began recording what would become TOXIC HOLOCAUST’s debut full-length Evil Never Dies.

Evil Never Dies was released in the fall of ’03 and was followed up with a number of TOXIC HOLOCAUST tours. A string of vinyl-only EP’s and split releases followed. Upon returning home, Grind quickly began writing the follow-up to Evil Never Dies, using a much more primitive approach emphasizing his punk rock roots.

This second full-length, Hell on Earth, was self-recorded once again – this time to an 8-track reel to reel - in Grind’s spare bedroom in early 2005. Hell On Earth was released in fall 2005, almost two years to the day Evil Never Dies was released, and was adorned by original artwork from classic metal artist, Ed Repka.

TOXIC HOLOCAUST toured through the end of 2005 and for much of 2006. Grind’s determination and never-say-die attitude lead to tours of the US, Japan, Australia, Europe, Canada, and even Brazil. These self-booked and self-financed tours proved that Grind’s independent spirit raged just as hard his music.

TOXIC HOLOCAUST continued touring in support of Hell on Earth well into 2007 with the likes of MUNICIPAL WASTE, 3 INCHES OF BLOOD, SKELETONWITCH and many more. Any off-time was used to write new material. A number of new songs were demoed and began circulating, prompting several labels to get in touch with the band. This new demo made its way around the Relapse offices, where the band chose to call home in early ’08.

TOXIC HOLOCAUST continued writing songs for the band’s third full-length, and Relapse debut, An Overdose Of Death… and after a US tour with HATE ETERNAL and SOILENT GREEN, TOXIC HOLOCAUST was ready to record. Grind teamed up with legendary producer Jack Endino (HIGH ON FIRE, DWARVES, ZEKE) in May of 2008 at Soundhouse Recording studios in Seattle, WA, making An Overdose Of Death…the first TOXIC HOLOCAUST album to be recorded in a proper studio.

An Overdose Of Death…is an unstoppable juggernaut of infectious riffs, punk attitude and unforgettable anthems that could be the soundtrack to civil unrest in a post-apocalyptic world gone mad. “Gravelord”, “Wild Dogs”, “Future Shock”, “War Game”, “Nuke the Cross”, “War is Hell”, and the list of incredible songs goes on. An Overdose Of Death…will see its international release this September.

In anticipation of the new release, TOXIC HOLOCAUST has already begun touring in support of An Overdose Of Death….The band is currently out on the North American AT THE GATES reunion tour along with DARKEST HOUR and MUNICIPAL WASTE. TOXIC HOLOCAUST will then follow-up the AT THE GATES tour with an appearance at the Hole In The Sky Festival in Norway and a Fall tour with OVERKILL.

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There are at least four artists called Havok: (1) an American thrash metal band ; (2) a German death metal band; (3) a Swedish extreme metal band; and (4) an underground rapper.

1) Havok Formed in February of 2004: HAVOK is the thrash metal powerhouse reigning from Colorado that continues to win over thousands of fans from various parts of the world. Incorporating blisteringly fast guitar riffs, machine-like drumming, groovy bass lines, searing leads, and hard-hitting vocals, HAVOK is able to maintain that *punch-you-in-the-throat* style of music. Although there are many other thrash bands out there, there is one thing that sets HAVOK apart from the others. This band puts their own stamp on the genre by employing a more technical side of music, while maintaining the feel. HAVOK's live show is where the band really catches peoples' attention, with their non-stop energy level and their ability to get the audience involved. They are a must-see for any fan of live music! This Denver outfit has had their name compared to the likes of Metallica, Megadeth, Slayer, Anthrax, Pantera, Testament, Overkill, Exodus, Suicidal Tendencies, Motorhead, etc… And for good reason! They possess a distinct approach to thrash: one that emulates the abrasive styles of classic 80s thrash metal, but with a much-needed fresh edge. HAVOK has received tons of positive feedback for their efforts to make thrash a mainstay in modern music: and they will continue to spread the intensity until they decide the job is done! Given their talent, determination, and constantly growing fan base, HAVOK is destined to become a mainstay in this scene!

Havok's current lineup includes: David Sanchez(guitars/vocal), Jessie De Los Santos (bass), Reece Scruggs(Lead Guitars), and Pete Webber (Drums), go to www.myspace.com/havok and read the blog.

To date havok has released the demo Thrash Can, the demo Murder By Metal, and the ep Pwn 'Em All. Their first full length album 'Burn' was released in 2009 and their sophomore effort, Time is Up, was released in February of 2011.
Please visit http://www.myspace.com/havok for more details.
Also visit their ReverbNation site at http://www.reverbnation.com/havok and the Candlelight website at candlelightrecordsusa.com
Or watch live videos at http://youtube.com/user/havokcoloradothrash

2) Havok is a German death metal band from Blaubeuren (20km west of Ulm).
They released one EP called "Havok" and also have a demo called "Unleashed Demo". They were influenced by bands like Six Feet Under, Fleshcrawl, In Flames, Slayer and As I Lay Dying and already supported bands like Final Breath or Disbelief. You can listen to samples at either their homepage or their Myspace site.
Starting March 2010, Amazon.de will offer their 11-track album Rebuilding Sodom as mp3-download, naming the band as "Havok (GER)" to avoid confusion.

http://www.havok-music.de
http://www.myspace.com/havokmusic

3) HAVOK is a Swedish extreme metal act from Lund signed to ViciSolum Productions. They released their first demo "Realms of Reverie" in 2006, the single "World Shroud" in 2007 and "Apathy Esplanade" in 2008. ("World Shroud" was among other things featured as "best demo release in Scandinavia 2007" by Close-Up Magazine.) In the beginning of 2009 they released their debut album "Being And Nothingness". Havok began in the year of 2003, when guitarists Mahan Ahmadi and Miguel Cabrera founded the technical thrash/death metal outfit Ecliptica, in the southern swedish city of Lund. With a loosely knit formation, they recorded a couple of songs. During the winter of 2004, they were on the hunt for a new drummer, and conveniently found Johan Cronqvist, who had recently immigrated from the town of Halmstad. With him came the change of band name, turning the music towards a more brutal, chaotic death metal sound, yet still with remnants from the thrash days. Trying out various musicians to fill the void behind microphone and bass, the summer of 2005 brought the vocalist Johan Bergström. Some months later, as winter approached, Andreas Johansson joined the band, filling the last gap in the line-up with his bass.

As time progressed, the songwriting continued to evolve, leaving older songs behind, sharpening their composing skills, and a few live performances in Lund took place. In July 2006, this constellation entered a studio for the first time (Flatpig, in Malmö), recording their four tracked debut demo, ”Realms of Reverie”. Despite a generally positive respone to the demo, Havok were not overly satisfied with how the sound turned out, moving on composing the follow-up single, entitled ”World Shroud”. It was recorded at the end of 2006 at the Blacklodge Studio in Örkelljunga, and was released in early February 2007. The new recording received great acclaim, among others the title "Best of Sweden" in Close-Up Magazine in April -07, sending us to perform at the Peace&Love Festival in Borlänge (the fastest growing music festival in Sweden). Several other shows where played in Lund and Malmö throughout the year.

In August, Miguel Cabrera announced he was about to leave the band, for personal reasons, and in mid-September he did. Havok went on without him to record the EP "Apathy Esplanade" in the autumn and was released in early February 2008. Simon Dahlberg joined up as a new second guitarist. A year later, they released their debut album "Being And Nothingness".

The Swedish Havok's is also the one to release nearly all of their recorded material to the public on Last.fm.

http://www.havok.se
http://www.myspace.com/sophisticatedkillingmachine

4) Havok is an underground rapper, and member of BdG.



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