VOIVOD (CAN)

VOIVOD Very few bands survive for four decades. Even fewer are those that continue to reach new creative heights, long after legendary status has been achieved. Voïvod were never like other bands: even as the thrash metal scene exploded in the early ‘80s, the Jonquière, Québec crew stood apart, both as unique visionaries and as proud subverters of the metallic norm. From early progthrash classics like Killing Technology and Dimension Hatrössthrough to the psychedelic explorations of The Outer Limits, Voïvod have been standard bearers for individuality and creative freedom for nearly 40 years.Always defiantly out of step with prevailing trends but widely respected as true mavericks, Voïvod even weathered the untimely death of talismanic guitarist and songwriter Denis ‘Piggy’ D’Amour in 2005. Buoyed by the support of their huge global following, surviving original members Denis “Snake” Bélanger (vocals), Michel “Away” Langevin (drums) and Jean-Yves “Blacky” Thériault embarked on a new and chaenging chapter in the Voïvod story, releasing the much-hailed Target Earth in 2013, with guitarist Daniel “Chewy” Mongrain proving himself to be a smart and dextrous successor to D’Amour.By 2014, bassist Dominic “Rocky” Laroche had replaced Thériault, and a new incarnation of this indestructible band crossed their compositional beams to forge yet more mind-bending, psychedelic post-thrash wizardry. Released in 2018, The Wake was almost universally hailed as the finest Voïvod album since the band’s late ‘80s heyday. One of the band’s most successful albums yet, The Wake scored chart entries in Germany (#26), Switzerland (#51), Belgium (Wallonia) (#94) and the USA (New Artist: #8/Overall: #148): confirmation that the band’s return to peak form had struck a chord with fans old and new. Not surprisingly, Voïvod hit the road to reaffirm their status as one of metal’s most unique and powerful live acts. https://www.voivod.com/