After pulling the plug on dead-end project Zodiac Ciphers, Skulldrain was formed in December 2014 in Gefle, Sweden. Some of the previous members were asked to join guitarist Sami M?ki (ex-Undivine, ex-Altered Aeon) to his musical concept. He had the band name and some songs ready to go. First to join the ranks was Emil Berglin (FK?, Sorcery, Sordid flesh) on drums and Eki Kumpulainen (Demonical, ex-Undivine) on guitar. Then Kristofer Elemyr (Ereb Altor, ex-Undivine, ex-Sectu) joined for vocal and bass duties. Fast and hard, guitar oriented thrash metal was the vision from the start, and it is what Skulldrain has become to represent. With influences like Slayer, Lamb of God, Testament, Destruction, Death, Vader and The Haunted for example, expect to meet with a massive tsunami of high gain guitars! The lyrics focus a lot on social injustices and inequalities. In 2015 songs were composed and arranged, lyrics were written, pre-production demos were recorded and things started to move along smoothly. Some club gigs and festival shows were done through the year. At Getaway Rock Festival, Skulldrain was discovered by Thomas H?rnkvist of ViciSolum Productions and he snatched Skulldrain for the debut album. In October the drums were recorded at Bilda Studio S?derhamn. The album Hatred Rising was mixed by Jonas Lindstr?m at Studio Apocalypse and mastered by Sverker Widgren at Wing Studios. It is a full range thrash attack, hard and fast, yet dynamic and with gripping melodies and harmonies. The vocals are harsh, somewhat guttural, yet the lyrics are clearly pronounced and audible. Cover and layout by Costin Chioreanu. Released through ViciSolum Productions, 2017.
