Battleroar

Let us give credit where credit is due. If there is one band who worked as a primal catalyst for the Greek Epic Heavy Metal movement of our current millennium, then it must be BATTLEROAR. But what makes this Athenian act – allegedly named after a line in the classic HEAVY LOAD’s song “Singing Swords” – such a special treat? If we allow ourself to make generalizations, it basically boils down to three synergistic factors: 1. A unique sound that has also developed over time, 2. Versatile and sometimes out-of-the-box compositions and, last but not least, 3. A burning and sincere passion for their genre of choice. These are three common denominators that has been present throughout BATTLEROAR’s discography; from their self-titled 2001 promo CDr and seminal album debut and up until the monumental works of latter years, such as 2014’s “Blood of Legends” LP.

The official saga of BATTLEROAR begun in Athens around September 2000, with an original lineup consisting of core trio Kostas Tzortzis (guitars – ARPYIAN HORDE), Manolis Karazeris (guitars – DEXTER WARD, FINGER OF SCORN, HEATHENS FROM THE NORTH) and Nick Papadopoulos (drummers – FINGER OF SCORN, FUROR, WRATHBLADE, etc.) along with bassist Christos Remoundos (VALOR) and vocalist Vaggelis Krouskas (VALOR). The latter two would leave before the completion of the debut full-length, but remained long enough to contribute on BATTLEROAR’s two earliest works: the previously mentioned “Battleroar” (2001) promo-CDr and 2002’s “Dragonship” seven-inch single.

Despite being a modest promotional item, supposedly recorded live at Studio Versus (Athens) – the same facilities used for the subsequent recordings of the “Dragonship” 7” and the self-titled debut album – “Battleroar” (2001) gives a good glimpse into the formation of BATTLEROAR’s early material. Here we can observe how the combined compositional approaches of guitarist duo Kostas Tzortzis and Manolis Karazeris, in liaison with the additional input of the rest of the band, converge to form BATTLEROAR’s core sound and style: Manolis offering more straightforward, fist-pumping, and spirit-rousing anthems such as “Almuric”, while Kostas Tzortzis delivers obscure and epic compositions like “Morituri Te Salutant”, “Dragonship”, which tend to defy conventional Heavy Metal song-structuring. Although most of us consider the soon-to-be frontman Marco Concoreggi as “the voice of BATTLEROAR”, it’s still a pleasure listening to these classic BATTLEROAR tracks sung by the band’s original vocalist Vaggelis Krouskas, who also delivered lyrical ideas to some of the tracks included. And let’s not forget to mention the imaginative percussive contributions of long-time drummer, Nick Papadopoulos, who allegedly had started playing drums by the time of the band’s formation!

Parallel to the creation of the aforementioned promo (2001) and the “Dragonship” 7” (2002) – the latter featuring re-recorded versions of the promo-tracks “Dragonship” and “Swordbrothers” – another pivotal episode in the BATTLEROAR history occurred. After several fortuitous chance meetings at various classic Heavy Metal festivals between the BATTLEROAR crew and the previously mentioned Italian-born musician and Epic Metal fan Marco Concoreggi, the band finally managed to secure a new singer after the leaving of Vaggelis Krouskas. This event would prove decisive for the band, as Marco not only brought his vocal talents, but a wellspring of fresh ideas to the song-writing process. Previous to joining the band, Marco had some home recorded tracks for a project named HYRKANIAN BLADES – many of which would eventually transform into classic BATTLEROAR songs, while others ended up in Marco’s current band DEXTER WARD. Songwriting-wise, Marco’s style could be described as a combination of Manos’ and Kostas’ and worked as a excellent balancing factor. In addition to a new singer, BATTLEROAR also recruited the talented bassist Kostas Macricostas, whose bass-lines brought a totally new dimension to the song material.

Thus, by the time the band entered Versus Studio for the third time for the recording of the self-titled debut album, the stars had aligned properly for the creation of a masterpiece of Greek Epic Metal. Recorded over the course of about three weeks, “Battleroar” (2003) did indeed live up to the expectations the band had garnered through hard work and plenty of live gigs, both in Greece and abroad. In addition to the inclusion of superior re-recorded versions of each of the previously released promo/single tracks, we are also treated with a parade of future Epic Metal classics, ranging from the utter catchiness of “Victorious Path”, to the US Metal-sounding “Megaloman” and finally the supremely atmospheric “Egyptian Doom” – composed by Manolis, Marco and Kostas, respectively.

To be continued…

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