New York City Trio VANDALIZER signs with Metal Assault Records
Metal Assault Records is pleased to announce another new addition to its label roster. Please join us in welcoming New York City rock 'n roll / heavy metal trio VANDALIZER to the MAR family.
The band has this to say about signing with MAR: "Vandalizer is excited to join the Metal Assault family! We will be bringing a hard-hitting three-song EP that mixes 1980’s, NWOBHM with the sounds of '70s Punk and Rock N’ Roll. The EP will be out at the end of 2021, followed by a full length in early 2022. Look for a video and single out very soon on Metal Assault Records."
Vandalizer released their debut EP New Curse in 2015, followed by the Desensitize EP in 2017, giving listeners concise doses of exactly what they describe themselves as - a thoroughly enjoyable hybrid of old-school punk, rock 'n roll and heavy metal. The band will release their long-awaited third EP, Ride, on October 29 2021 via Metal Assault Records, on cassette tape and digital platforms. The EP's lead single "Time Can't Count" will be premiered in the form of a music video on September 3, along with the pre-order launch of the EP.
We are hereby delighted to reveal the cover art or the upcoming EP:
More About Vandalizer:
“Some people are kinda confused,” says Vandalizer mainspring Mike McWilliams. “‘Is it metal?’ It’s too punk to be metal, and it’s too metal to be punk. It’s kinda in the middle.”
The only reason anyone would be scratching their head is if they know McWilliams’ past thumping bass guitar in old school punk bands ranging from Houston’s Teen Cool and Pure Rubbish to a stint in the U.S. Bombs in the ‘00s. But Vandalizer’s New Wave Of British Heavy Metal throwback sound has now become his main focus, after five years as his side-project, allowing his singing and guitar work to shine.
“I’ve never really done that before on any other albums,” he explains. “I’ve always been a songwriter and singer in pretty much every other band I’ve been in. But I’ve never been the frontman nor the guitar player. This is my first stab at songwriting/playing guitar/singing in a band.”
Ride amply displays’ McWilliams’ well-honed chops on every instrument save for drums, handled on the EP by Sacha Michaels. It also displays his facility in the studio - the production is lush, definitely more radio-friendly than the KBD punk records he’s previously made. Tracks like “Dream Hunter” and “Time Can’t Count” are full-on riff assaults of the sort Judas Priest specialized in once they’d heard punk bands like The Damned, filled with black-and-white Flying V pentatonic leads Michael Schenker would kill for. The title track, meanwhile, is an atmospheric, keyboard-drenched power ballad that mostly seethes, before reaching an explosive chorus.
Following a four-song cassette and a 7-inch, a previous three-piece Vandalizer lineup was due to hit the studio just prior to the COVID-19 lockdown. Ride essentially became what McWilliams did over the pandemic. Due out on cassette this fall on Metal Assault Records, Ride is perfect soundtrack music for blasting in your ‘81 Camaro as you and your buddies pass execute smokin’ burnouts and pass around the hash pipe. McWilliams is in the process of forming a new lineup for live work, with a full length debut album and full-scale touring planned for next year.
- Tim Stegall, Alternative Press magazine, Austin, TX, August 2021
Vandalizer is:
Mike McWilliams: Vocals/Guitar
Stosh McMichael: Drums/Backup Vocals
Sam Harris: Bass/Backup Vocals