OVERVIEW

SERPENT RIDER – “The Ichor Of Chimaera”

Label: No Remorse Records

Release date: 28.03.2025

Formats: CD / LP

Distribution: High Roller (Germany), SoundWorks/Season of Mist (France), Sound Pollution (Sweden), Plastic Head (UK and rest of Europe)

Formed originally in 2015 as Skyway Corsair, SERPENT RIDER changed to the name they’re currently known as in 2017 in Los Angeles, California, with the new name coming from a line from Manilla Road’s “The Ram.” After two years, the band’s first demo, “Pour Forth Surquidous”, came out and drew international acclaim, setting the stage for a record deal with No Remorse Records and a split 12” with Canadian heavy metal magicians Ezra Brooks (featuring S. Vincent from the mighty Smoulder) in 2021.
After the recording of 2021’s “Visions of Esoteric Splendor” split, the band needed to change lineups once again to accommodate a move to Seattle from Los Angeles and quickly put together a new group of local wizards to get back to the work of delivering mystical heavy metal. With that new lineup the band cemented their status as a new regional force in the Pacific Northwest with a series of shows in 2023 leading up to a festival appearance at Legions of Metal in Chicago supporting Metal Church in 2023. The next year toured with Colony Drop and the mighty Anvil (Canada) and recorded their debut studio album, “The Ichor of Chimaera”, a dense and arcane exploration of heavy metal might coming out on No Remorse Records on March 28th of 2025.
“The Ichor of Chimaera” is a seamless blend of the myriad influences that make SERPENT RIDER’s music stand out from the crowded modern metal scene: not only the obvious Manilla Road, Warlord, Black Sabbath, Candlemass, and the like that so many other bands draw from but also featuring heavy influence from the Greek black metal scene (particularly Varathron, Agatus, and Rotting Christ) and 1970s rock a la Wishbone Ash and Scorpions, tied together via focused writing across the band’s ten years of operation to form a cohesive whole.
Brandon Corsair: “After ten years of playing in SERPENT RIDER’s music it’s a pleasure to finally deliver a debut album that I feel like is a good balance of everything I love so much about heavy metal alongside some of my best friends. This is easily some of the finest material I’ve ever written, some of the tightest musicianship I’ve ever been lucky enough to have alongside my songs, and all on my favorite label in heavy metal: truly this is the year of SERPENT RIDER!”

TRACK LIST

1. Steel Is The Answer

2. Radiant

3. The Ichor Of Chimaera

4. Matri Deorum

5. The Hero’s Spirit

6. Tyrant’s March

7. In Spring
(playing time: 36:10 min.)

LINE-UP

R. Villar – Vocals

Brandon Corsair – Rhythm Guitar, Backing Vocals

Paul Gelbach – Lead Guitar

Brian Verderber – Bass

Drake Graves – Drums

CREDITS

Intro narration by Nick Varsamis. All solos by Paul Gelbach except for the outro solo on “Steel is the Answer”, which was played by Brandon Corsair.  Drums recorded by rich3. Vocals recorded at MagicMix Studio. Guitars and bass recorded and engineered by SERPENT RIDER and reamped by Andrew Lee. Produced & mixed by Andrew Lee. Mastered by Arthur Rizk. Cover artwork, inner artwork, and logo by Karmazid. Layout by Obscure Visions.

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