The Black Dahlia Murder
is an American melodic death metal/metalcore [1] band from Waterford, Michigan, formed in 2000. Their band name is derived from the unsolved murder of Elizabeth Short, often referred to as Black Dahlia.
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THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER TICKETS
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Biography
The Black Dahlia Murder formed in January 2001 and released a six-track demo,
What a Horrible Night to Have a Curse
, and a four-track EP,
A Cold-Blooded Epitaph
, the latter of which the group released on its own Lovelost Records. After appearing in concerts such as the Milwaukee Metal Fest, The Black Dahlia Murder signed to
Metal Blade Records in 2003.
[2]
The band played in
Ozzfest 2005 and also participated in the
Sounds of the Underground tour in 2006, which encompasses both the
United States and
Canada. They also played at
Wacken Open Air in 2007.
Current bassist Bart Williams left his former band, Detroit's Today I Wait, to tour with the Black Dahlia Murder. After touring with the band on their co-headlining gig with
Throwdown and their European dates with Liar, he joined the group full-time, replacing former bassist David Lock. Frontman Trevor Strnad said that Lock was fired for incompetency.
[3] Williams was one of two engineers (the other being
Walls of Jericho's Mike Hasty) on the band's first full-length
album,
Unhallowed
.
The band's second album
Miasma
peaked at #118 on the
Billboard 200.
[4] After touring for the Miasma record drummer Zach Gibson left the band leading to Pierre Langlois joining. Zach Gibson went on to join
Abigail Williams. Recently, Pierre Langlois left the band for a more secure lifestyle, and the band has finished their search for a replacement drummer and found former
All That Remains drummer,
Shannon Lucas.
Their third album, entitled
Nocturnal
, was released on
September 18,
2007. The album debuted at #72 on the Billboard 200.
[5]
The Black Dahlia Murder announced on their
MySpace that they were going on a U.S. tour with
Cannibal Corpse to promote their new album
Nocturnal
and celebrate the 25 years that Metal Blade Records has been in business. They were joined by label-mates
The Red Chord,
Aeon,
The Absence, and
Goatwhore.
In January/February 2008, the band embarked on a U.S. headlining tour with
3 Inches of Blood,
Hate Eternal, and Decrepit Birth, followed by another alongside
Brain Drill and
Animosity. They were on Hot Topic's "Summer Slaughter Tour"
[6] with
Kataklysm,
Cryptopsy,
Vader,
Whitechapel, and
Despised Icon.
Recently the band has announced that long time lead guitarist John K has left the band and has been replaced by Ryan Knight.
In May 2009, The Black Dahlia Murder released their first DVD, "Majesty". The DVD contains a documentary and live footage from the Summer Slaughter tour and their tour supporting Children of Bodom in late 2008. The DVD also contains all of their music videos and behind the scenes footage.
[7]
The Black Dahlia Murder has set
Deflorate
as the title of its new album, due on September 15 via Metal Blade Records. On July 7 The Black Dahlia Murder gave a exclusive sneak peek of Deflorate with the song “A Selection Unnatural” to
Revolver magazine
On July 7, 2009, their single "What A Horrible Night To Have A Curse" was made available as a downloadable track for
Rock Band.
Tours
The Black Dahlia Murder headlined the 2008
Summer Slaughter Tour with
Kataklysm,
Vader,
Cryptopsy,
The Faceless,
Despised Icon,
Aborted,
Born of Osiris,
Psycroptic, and
Whitechapel.
[8]
In late 2008, they joined a US tour with Finland's
Children of Bodom and Raleigh, NC's
Between the Buried and Me. They were initially announced as "...with special guests" at the start of the tour, though it has since been confirmed by
Revolver Magazine that they are on tour. They are scheduled to appear on the Hot Topic Stage in the 2009 Rockstar Energy
Mayhem Festival. In late 2009, they will rejoin a US tour with Finland's
Children of Bodom and Athens, OH's
Skeletonwitch.
Style and Influences
The band's music makes use of the
death metal sound, containing elements such as
blast beats and fast death metal style. According to their MySpace page, their sound is influenced by
Carcass,
At the Gates,
Darkane,
Dissection,
Darkthrone,
Morbid Angel,
The Haunted,
In Flames,
Dimension Zero,
Iron Maiden,
Metallica, and
Megadeth. Vocalist Trevor Strnad alternates between deep, throaty "
death metal growls," and high pitched shrieking, When asked to describe what kind of music the band plays, vocalist Trevor Strnad commented: "I've always said that we're melodic death metal. We are mostly influenced by Swedish bands and Carcass. The heavy end of our sound is the American style creeping in, with some Floridian influences like
Morbid Angel,
Malevolent Creation and that kind of stuff. We've been labeled more often because of our look than our sound, which is dumb, and speaks volumes about what kind of geniuses are out there!"
[9]
However, in an interview with
Uranium Magazine
, Strnad also stated, "Some bands that get labeled as
metalcore are actually good, like
Between the Buried and Me or
The Red Chord...
metal is what I grew up with, and then I learned about
punk and
hardcore. But a lot of our ethics, the way we carry ourselves, is more punk...I like that hardcore has a sense of community without the competition you see in metal."
[10]
Discography
Studio albums
| Year
| Title
| Peak chart positions
|
| U.S. [11] [12]
|
| 200
| Hard Rock
| Ind
| Heat
|
| 2003
| Unhallowed
- Released: June 17, 2003
- Label: Metal Blade
- Format: CD, digital download
| —
| —
| —
| —
|
| 2005
| Miasma
- Released: July 12, 2005
- Label: Metal Blade
- Format: CD, digital download, vinyl
| 118
| —
| 5
| 1
|
| 2007
| Nocturnal
- Released: September 18, 2007
- Label: Metal Blade
- Format: CD, digital download
| 72
| 7
| 5
| —
|
| 2009
| Deflorate
- Released: September 15, 2009
- Label: Metal Blade
- Format: CD, digital download, vinyl
| To be released
|
Demos and EPs
- What a Horrible Night to Have a Curse
(Demo, 2001)
- A Cold-Blooded Epitaph
(EP, 2002)
- Demo 2002
(Demo, 2002)
Singles
- "Contagion"
- "Funeral Thirst"
- "A Vulgar Picture"
- "Miasma"
- "Statutory Ape"
- "What a Horrible Night to Have a Curse"
- "Everything Went Black"
- "A Selection Unnatural"
DVDs
- Majesty
(2009)
- Going Places (Packaged with Deflorate)
(2009)
Members
Current members
- Trevor Strnad - vocals (2001-present)
- Brian Eschbach - guitar, vocals (2001-present)
- Ryan Knight - guitar (Arsis) (2008-present)
- Ryan "Bart" Williams- bass (Today I Wait) (2005-present)
- Shannon Lucas - drums (All That Remains) (2007-present))
Former members
- David Lock - bass guitar (A Cold Blooded Epitaph
through Miasma
)
- Zach Gibson (ex-Abigail Williams) - drums (Miasma
and live shows)
- Tony Laureano - drums (Stand-In for Japanese shows)
- John Deering - guitar (Demo, A Cold Blooded Epitaph
)
- Sean Gauvreau - bass guitar (demo)
- Egemen Ozen - Drums (Member 2005)
- Mike Schepman - bass guitar (Stand-In for first show)
- Cory Grady - drums (demo- ''Unhallowed, current drummer for )
- Kyle Klyne (A Cold Blooded Epitaph
through Unhallowed
)
- Pierre Langlois - drums (Member 2006)
- Kevin Talley - drums (multiple live shows as a fill in, current drummer of DÅÅTH)
- John Kempainen - guitar ("Unhallowed", "Miasma", "Nocturnal")
- Joe Buccuto - bass guitar (2003 tour, moonlighting from Philadelphia band "Set Ablaze")
- Anthony Ezzi - vocals (2003 tour, moonlighting from New Jersey band "Arson")
References
- http://www.musicmight.com/artist/united+states/michigan/detroit/the+black+dahlia+murder
- The Black Dahlia Murder > Biography
- Metal File: Overcast, Black Dahlia Murder, Nevermore, D.R.I. & More News That Rules
- billboard.com. Billboard 200.
- billboard.com. Billboard 200.
- [1].Metal
- metalblade.com. Metal Blade Records.
- Summer Slaughter Tour
- http://www.pyromusic.net/index.php?p=interviews_interview&id=32
- http://www.uraniummusic.com/ilyapics/interviews/BDM.htm
- The Black Dahlia Murder > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums
- Nocturnal