In a time when musical talent is put aside in favor of fashion and rock star poses, heavy metal awaits a return to the glory days of technical proficiency and pure aggression that will knock it on its collective ass. Toronto based MASTERY are preparing to revive the glory days with the release of Lethal Legacy, an album that pays tribute to the scene’s metallic roots while forging a new path to lead the scene kicking and screaming into the future, all without uttering a single word. Literally.
MASTERY's instrumental only vision led to the creation of Lethal Legacy, a balls out assault that re-lives the majesty of old school thrash but with a sense of originality that will undoubtedly see them become innovators for the future.
The brainchild of guitarist Markus Armellini, MASTERY was created with a desire to develop a band that fused the blazing aggression of hardcore thrash with the technical prowess of progressive metal. Searching for other musicians that shared this vision, Armellini found Vancouver's Jeff Dormer, a shredder that came to Ontario with similar aspirations. With musical influences and interests akin to Markus, Jeff's incredible playing ability was the perfect compliment to the style which characterizes MASTERY's song writing.
The next piece to fit in this complex puzzle was a backbeat capable of driving this new project to full capacity. Having cut his teeth in Toronto metal band CandleOpera, drummer Kevan Roy was hungry for the next challenge...and he had found it in MASTERY. Drawing inspiration in genres ranging from Jazz to Progressive Metal, and boasting one of the most extreme drum setups in the scene, Kevan brought a raw, yet fresh approach to Metal drumming, further defining the MASTERY style.
Another talented musician searching for a new and inspiring challenge, Anthony Ristovski was introduced to Kevan at the music store where they both were teaching. Drawing from his wide musical tastes and influences, Anthony was instantly gripped by the sheer intensity and originality of the MASTERY concept and was excited to become part of the team, with the promise of being able to explore his performance skills their full capacity on bass guitar.
The search for a vocalist that could compliment the intensity and aggression of the music proved to be a challenge...but not one that could hold the band back from taking their music to the stage.
“We tried out a number of different singers, but just couldn’t find the right fit. So we found ourselves in a situation where we could either sit in the studio waiting for the right person to show up, or we could get out there and do it anyway! We didn’t know what to expect heading out as an instrumental metal band, but all the feedback we’ve gotten at our shows have indicated that we made a good choice,” says Kevan.
A brutal exercise in thrash guitars, machine gun drumming and face ripping solos, Lethal Legacy breathes an intensity and aggression that’s refreshing to modern day metal. Exploiting their technical expertise as musicians without the use of vocals, MASTERY continues to blaze a trail for their instruMETAL journey.
