“Bleed Red” is the debut album by British metal band The Five Hundred.
Produced by Justin Hill (SiKth, Heart Of A Coward, Betraying The Martyrs) “Bleed Red” is due for release on August 17th 2018.
Each song represents a different facet of the psyche, persona, or essence of addiction – from hedonism and oblivion all the way through to seduction, narcissism, psychosis and ultimate self-destruction.
The troubled times that the band went through at the time of writing and recording the album is reflected in the musical qualities of the work, and draws from various sub-genres of metal, appealing to fans of all heavy music. The music is influenced by bands such as Meshuggah, After The Burial & Heart Of A Coward, whilst Woods-Eley’s vocals grieve like a 90s’ era grunge drug addict, strongly influenced by Layne Staley (Alice In Chains) and Chris Cornell (Soundgarden).
Mark Byrne says this about the song:
“The first single, "Smoke & Mirrors", deals with obscuring the realities of an addict’s sense of worthlessness and depression, losing oneself in a “snowstorm” of abuse, with the “hourglass” of his life slowly counting down his days into a self-induced depravity”.
The Five Hundred have just unleashed their video single for “Smoke and Mirrors”, directed by Dark North Media and you can watch it below.
You can pre-order “Bleed Red” bundles, here.
Tracklist:
1. Bleed Red
2. Smoke and Mirrors
3. Buried
4. Oblivion
5. The Noose
6. Reclusive
7. Seduced by Shadows
8. The Narcissist
9. I Am the Undead
10. Circles
Whilst the album concept is not entirely autobiographical, it does have roots in the personal experiences of at least 2 of the band members, who have struggled with their own demons, be they personal or of those close to them. Byrne (guitarist) tells of the “cycle of hedonism, self-loathing and depression” that became the norm during his teens and 20’s. “This album could’ve been written 10 years ago if I wasn’t such a fuck up. I basically lost 10 years of my life to that”.
He is not alone in his personal struggles. Paul Doughty (guitarist), suffers from Tourette’s, and whilst that has undeniably taken its toll on his mental state, he has channelled those frustrations into his music and strived for perfection in his craft.
“From a young age I’ve suffered with Gilles de Tourette’s syndrome; uncontrollable tics which have manifested in different ways over the years from strange eye movements and head turns to tensing leg muscles whilst walking to the point I almost fell over and shoulder movements which has caused significant pain.
Paired with Tourette’s I used to suffer with OCD (they often come together) and not only would I have to repeat or touch things several times, but it also used to make me obsess over playing guitar. When I was younger, I’d often spend many unbroken hours learning and playing the same 30 seconds of a ridiculous John Petrucci lead (The Dance of Eternity, The Glass Prison) over and over or complex rhythmic masterpieces by Meshuggah (Dancers to a Discordant System, Bleed) until I nailed them.
OCD was something I could use as an advantage in playing guitar, but also my Tourette’s tics completely ceased when playing guitar. The OCD made me a better guitarist and playing guitar stopped my Tourette’s tics. The two conditions played a part together in getting me to the level I’m at today, plus the influences of John Petrucci and Meshuggah of course!”...
Andy Crawford (bassist) managed to keep his substance abuse under relative control during the same period, although his struggles in his earlier years came in another form, gambling.
“For years I was a degenerate gambler, and would steal from friends and family to keep throwing all that money away. It was pretty destructive for me personally and for my relationships with those close to me”.
The lyrics were co-written by John (vocalist) and Mark (guitarist), with the music being a collaborative effort of all members, with Andy (bassist) and Paul (guitarist) at the helm of the core songwriting.
“We booked ourselves into the studio a few months in advance, well before a single song, riff or lyric was written. We essentially wanted to put ourselves under pressure to write an entire concept that was coherent and consistent with the personal torment that a few of us were feeling at the time, and the only way to do that was to lock ourselves away from the very things that were haunting us”.
It’s been a long time coming, but the band are now ready to unleash their 10 track opus to the world in the hope they can share their experiences both on and off stage.
Live Dates 2018:
30/6 Valis Ablaze / Unprocessed / The Five Hundred Nottingham, The Maze
4/7 Nexilva / The Dali Thundering Concept / The Five Hundred Derby, The Hairy Dog
5-9/7 UK Tech Fest Newark Showground
1/9 Macmillan Festival Nottingham, Rock City Basement
5-7/10 Eat You Alive Festival Leeds, Santiagos
2/12 Facebarmageddon Reading, Facebar
Line-up:
John Eley - Vocals
Mark Byrne - Guitars
Paul Doughty - Guitars
Andy Crawford - Bass
Kelsey James - Drums
Weblinks:
www.facebook.com/wearethefivehundred
twitter.com/thefivehundred_
Produced by Justin Hill (SiKth, Heart Of A Coward, Betraying The Martyrs) “Bleed Red” is due for release on August 17th 2018.
Each song represents a different facet of the psyche, persona, or essence of addiction – from hedonism and oblivion all the way through to seduction, narcissism, psychosis and ultimate self-destruction.
The troubled times that the band went through at the time of writing and recording the album is reflected in the musical qualities of the work, and draws from various sub-genres of metal, appealing to fans of all heavy music. The music is influenced by bands such as Meshuggah, After The Burial & Heart Of A Coward, whilst Woods-Eley’s vocals grieve like a 90s’ era grunge drug addict, strongly influenced by Layne Staley (Alice In Chains) and Chris Cornell (Soundgarden).
Mark Byrne says this about the song:
“The first single, "Smoke & Mirrors", deals with obscuring the realities of an addict’s sense of worthlessness and depression, losing oneself in a “snowstorm” of abuse, with the “hourglass” of his life slowly counting down his days into a self-induced depravity”.
The Five Hundred have just unleashed their video single for “Smoke and Mirrors”, directed by Dark North Media and you can watch it below.
You can pre-order “Bleed Red” bundles, here.
Tracklist:
1. Bleed Red
2. Smoke and Mirrors
3. Buried
4. Oblivion
5. The Noose
6. Reclusive
7. Seduced by Shadows
8. The Narcissist
9. I Am the Undead
10. Circles
Whilst the album concept is not entirely autobiographical, it does have roots in the personal experiences of at least 2 of the band members, who have struggled with their own demons, be they personal or of those close to them. Byrne (guitarist) tells of the “cycle of hedonism, self-loathing and depression” that became the norm during his teens and 20’s. “This album could’ve been written 10 years ago if I wasn’t such a fuck up. I basically lost 10 years of my life to that”.
He is not alone in his personal struggles. Paul Doughty (guitarist), suffers from Tourette’s, and whilst that has undeniably taken its toll on his mental state, he has channelled those frustrations into his music and strived for perfection in his craft.
“From a young age I’ve suffered with Gilles de Tourette’s syndrome; uncontrollable tics which have manifested in different ways over the years from strange eye movements and head turns to tensing leg muscles whilst walking to the point I almost fell over and shoulder movements which has caused significant pain.
Paired with Tourette’s I used to suffer with OCD (they often come together) and not only would I have to repeat or touch things several times, but it also used to make me obsess over playing guitar. When I was younger, I’d often spend many unbroken hours learning and playing the same 30 seconds of a ridiculous John Petrucci lead (The Dance of Eternity, The Glass Prison) over and over or complex rhythmic masterpieces by Meshuggah (Dancers to a Discordant System, Bleed) until I nailed them.
OCD was something I could use as an advantage in playing guitar, but also my Tourette’s tics completely ceased when playing guitar. The OCD made me a better guitarist and playing guitar stopped my Tourette’s tics. The two conditions played a part together in getting me to the level I’m at today, plus the influences of John Petrucci and Meshuggah of course!”...
Andy Crawford (bassist) managed to keep his substance abuse under relative control during the same period, although his struggles in his earlier years came in another form, gambling.
“For years I was a degenerate gambler, and would steal from friends and family to keep throwing all that money away. It was pretty destructive for me personally and for my relationships with those close to me”.
The lyrics were co-written by John (vocalist) and Mark (guitarist), with the music being a collaborative effort of all members, with Andy (bassist) and Paul (guitarist) at the helm of the core songwriting.
“We booked ourselves into the studio a few months in advance, well before a single song, riff or lyric was written. We essentially wanted to put ourselves under pressure to write an entire concept that was coherent and consistent with the personal torment that a few of us were feeling at the time, and the only way to do that was to lock ourselves away from the very things that were haunting us”.
It’s been a long time coming, but the band are now ready to unleash their 10 track opus to the world in the hope they can share their experiences both on and off stage.
Live Dates 2018:
30/6 Valis Ablaze / Unprocessed / The Five Hundred Nottingham, The Maze
4/7 Nexilva / The Dali Thundering Concept / The Five Hundred Derby, The Hairy Dog
5-9/7 UK Tech Fest Newark Showground
1/9 Macmillan Festival Nottingham, Rock City Basement
5-7/10 Eat You Alive Festival Leeds, Santiagos
2/12 Facebarmageddon Reading, Facebar
Line-up:
John Eley - Vocals
Mark Byrne - Guitars
Paul Doughty - Guitars
Andy Crawford - Bass
Kelsey James - Drums
Weblinks:
www.facebook.com/wearethefivehundred
twitter.com/thefivehundred_