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Demon Hunter - Biography


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2002-

Biography

Demon Hunter first appeared on This is solid state Vol. 3 with their first song "Through the Black" released in February 2002.

Their first release, entitled simply Demon Hunter, was released in October 2002 on Tooth and Nail Records subsidiary Solid State Records, and featured both Don and Ryan Clark on guitar and bass, Ryan as lead vocalist, and Jesse Sprinkle as drummer; it was produced by Jesse's brother Aaron Sprinkle. Demon Hunter included a re-recorded version of their debut song "Though the Black".

At first the members of the band chose to hide their identities, creating some controversy. However, their names were later revealed when they undertook their first tour, which featured Norwegian Christian metal heavyweights Extol and death influenced metalcore youngbloods The Agony Scene, and saw the permanent adding of Jesse Sprinkle on drums, Jon Dunn on bass, and Kris McCaddon, formerly of Embodyment, on lead guitar.

After two years that saw Don's wife giving birth to a daughter and Ryan getting married, Demon Hunter returned to the studio to record their second full-length release, Summer of Darkness, with McCaddon contributing, and again with Jesse drumming. Summer of Darkness hit stores on May 4, 2004, and was a huge success, propelling Demon Hunter into the secular scene with the addition of the music video "Not Ready to Die" on MTV2's Headbanger's Ball and Fuse TV, along with single "My Heartstrings Come Undone" being placed on the Resident Evil: Apocalypse movie soundtrack. The album featured four guest vocalists, including Mike Williams of The Agony Scene on "Beheaded", Brock Lindow of 36 Crazyfists on "Beauty Through The Eyes Of A Predator", Howard Jones from Killswitch Engage on "Our Faces Fall Apart" and Trevor McNevan of Thousand Foot Krutch on "Coffin Builder".

Demon Hunter hit the road that summer, with McCaddon on lead and Dunn on bass, and with new touring drummer Tim "Yogi" Watts, as Jesse Sprinkle could not make the tour. This time Demon Hunter took with them rock/post-hardcore rookies Dead Poetic, along with metalcore headbangers Haste the Day. Post-hardcore band Staple (band) replaced Haste the Day towards the end of the tour.

In 2005, Demon Hunter went back to The Compound in Seattle, Washington to record their third album, entitled The Triptych. The word "triptych" centers around the concept of three, as it was the band's third album. The CD gave another bow to great bands of the past, such as Living Sacrifice, Sepultura, and Pantera. Included on the album is a cover of Prong's song "Snap Your Fingers, Snap Your Neck". This album debuted Watts as Jesse's permanent replacement on drums -- Jesse having joined Dead Poetic -- as well as the addition of Ethan Luck (The O.C. Supertones (Guitar), The Dingees (Drums) as lead guitarist, replacing Kris McCaddon. The Triptych was even bigger than Summer of Darkness, selling more than twice as many records on its first week of release than Summer of Darkness had. "Undying" was the band's first single from this album, and was also made into a video, which was directed by Chris Sims (As I Lay Dying, Lamb of God, Zao). Demon Hunter decided to recognize many of their fans in the military and created a song for them called the Soldiers Song. Demon Hunter stated on their promotional web site for the Triptych, www.thethirdwar.com, that the song was written for the soldier's courage and strength in such difficult times and circumstances.

Demon Hunter's only 2006 tour took place over the summer with Zao, Becoming the Archetype, August Burns Red, and Spoken. The band shot a video for "One Thousand Apologies" after the tour was over with acclaimed director Darren Doane at the helm. The Triptych was re-released on October 31, 2006 with a DVD accompanying the album and four extra songs added to the original album.

The hard rock and heavy metal based magazine, Revolver, published a cover story on Christian metal in December, 2006, featuring what the magazine called "The Holy Alliance": Spencer Chamberlain from Underoath, Ryan Clark from Demon Hunter, Tim Lambesis from As I Lay Dying, and Cory Brandan Putman from Norma Jean.

Demon Hunter entered the studio in June 2007 to record their fourth full-length album, Storm the Gates of Hell which was released on November 6, 2007. The music video for the first single from the album, "Fading Away" can be viewed here. Their fourth record, Storm The Gates Of Hell, has three versions of the album. The standard edition includes the album and a standard booklet, while the Special Edition includes two b-sides, and a DVD on the making of the album. The Deluxe Edition includes the two bonus tracks found on the Special Edition, as well as a DVD with extended interviews. The Deluxe Edition also comes in an exclusive package, which includes a large format booklet with exclusive studio photos, lyrics, and linear notes, as well as an exclusive postcard set, a demon horn necklace, and sticker.

Recently, the band shot the video for "Carry Me Down" with director Zach Merck at Whidbey Island, Washington. The video is currently in post-production.

According to MTV News and the band's official websites, the band will be Headlining the "Stronger Than Hell" tour in Starting in May, 2008. The tour will feature the recently reunited christian metal forefathers Living Sacrifice.

(Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demon_hunter )