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Extortionist is an American
deathcore
Deathcore is an extreme metal subgenre that combines death metal with metalcore. The genre consists of death metal guitar riffs, blast beats, and metalcore Breakdown (music)#Heavy metal and punk rock, breakdowns. While there are some precursors ...
/
metalcore
Metalcore is a broadly defined fusion genre combining elements of extreme metal and hardcore punk, originating in the 1990s United States and becoming popular in the 2000s. Metalcore typically has aggressive verses and melodic choruses, combined ...
band formed in
Idaho
Idaho ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest and Mountain states, Mountain West subregions of the Western United States. It borders Montana and Wyoming to the east, Nevada and Utah to the south, and Washington (state), ...
in 2013. The band consists of vocalist Ben Hoagland, guitarist Juan Hernandez III, bassist Kip Treeman, guitarist Jared Suku, and drummer Dominic Guggino.
In 2014, the band signed to We Are Triumphant and released their debut EP, ''The Black Sheep'', the same year. In 2017, they released their debut full-length studio album, ''The Decline''. In 2019, their sophomore album, ''Sever the Cord'', was released through Stay Sick Records. The same year, the band released their self-titled second EP, ''Extortionist''.
The band split after their final show on October 5, 2019. They reunited in 2020, and immediately began writing new music, releasing the single "Once More in Torment" on October 5, 2021, exactly two years after their initial split. They currently operate in
Salt Lake City
Salt Lake City, often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC, is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. It is the county seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in the state. The city is the core of the Salt Lake Ci ...
.
History
''The Decline'' (2017–2019)
On February 17, 2017, the band released their debut album, ''The Decline''. The album was received well.
It was recorded, mixed, and mastered by Calvin Russell of DJSM Studios.
On March 2, 2018, they released the standalone single "Absent Ones". On August 30, 2018, drummer Nick Mayhew and guitarist Mac Rockwell left the band while on tour with
The Last Ten Seconds of Life
The Last Ten Seconds of Life is an American deathcore band from Mansfield, Pennsylvania, formed in 2010.
History
The original lineup featured Storm Strope on vocals, Wyatt McLaughlin and Casey Quick on guitars, Thomas Giamanco on bass, and Ch ...
and So This Is Suffering. Due to them being short two members, they were unable to complete the tour.
''Sever the Cord'' and self-titled album (2019–2023)
In early 2019, the band announced their sophomore album ''Sever the Cord'', which was released through Stay Sick Records on March 22 of that year. The album was received well, with Connor Welsh of ''New Transcendence'' giving it a 9 out of 10,
[019
Nineteen or 19 may refer to:
* 19 (number)
* One of the years 19 BC, AD 19, 1919, 2019
Films
* ''19'' (film), a 2001 Japanese film
* ''Nineteen'' (1987 film), a 1987 science fiction film
* '' 19-Nineteen'', a 2009 South Korean film
* '' Dici ...]
> and ''Metal Noise'' giving it a 7 out of 10.
It was mixed and mastered by Mike Sahm of Dream Awake Studios.
Two months later, they released their self-titled EP, ''Extortionist'', on May 24, 2019. The EP was written in 2018 by Hoagland and Rockwell, but was released later after Rockwell left. They agreed that the EP should be released, and the funds from the release went towards suicide prevention.
On July 22, 2019, the band released a statement on their social media that they would be breaking up. They played their final tour on October 5, 2019, with
Distinguisher, Dead Crown, and Straight to our Enemies in
Spokane, Washington
Spokane ( ) is the most populous city in eastern Washington and the county seat of Spokane County, Washington, United States. It lies along the Spokane River, adjacent to the Selkirk Mountains, and west of the Rocky Mountain foothills, south o ...
.
On July 8, 2020, the band quietly got back together and began teasing new material and asking fans what music they should make. On October 5, 2021, they released their new single "Once More in Torment", exactly two years after they initially split. Since 2022, they have been working on new music.
On May 19, 2023, they released remixed and remastered edition of their debut EP ''The Black Sheep'' for its 10-year anniversary. The edition features their former guitarist Joel Omans on the track "Rejection", and also features a bonus track called "Double Jump".
''Devoid'' EP and ''Devoid of Love & Light'' (2023–present)
On October 5, 2023, the band officially moved to Salt Lake City, Utah, after adding the owner of Bamboo Audio, Clayton Blue to their lineup in September of the previous year.
Nine days later, on October 24, 2023, the band announced they had signed with Unique Leader Records and would be releasing a new EP, ''Devoid'', on December 1.
On February 21, 2024, the band announced plans on their social media to release their third album ''Devoid of Love & Light'' via Unique Leader Records on May 17, 2024.
Musical style and influences
''Metal Noise'' stated that Extortionist "
its
ITS, its or it's may refer to:
Language
* It's, an English contraction of ''it is'' or ''it has''
* Its (pronoun), the possessive form of the pronoun it
* Itsekiri language (ISO 639 language code its), a language found in Nigeria and the Niger De ...
in the centre of a Bermuda triangle between
Nu-Metal
Nu metal (sometimes stylized as nü-metal, with a metal umlaut) is a subgenre of that combines elements of heavy metal music with elements of other music genres such as hip hop, funk, industrial, and grunge. Nu metal rarely features guita ...
,
Beatdown Hardcore
Beatdown hardcore (also known as heavy hardcore, brutal hardcore, moshcore, or simply beatdown) is a subgenre of hardcore punk which incorporates elements of thrash metal and hip hop music, hip hop. The genre features aggressive vocals, heavy, ...
and
Deathcore
Deathcore is an extreme metal subgenre that combines death metal with metalcore. The genre consists of death metal guitar riffs, blast beats, and metalcore Breakdown (music)#Heavy metal and punk rock, breakdowns. While there are some precursors ...
".
The band is known for their signature "pangy" open snare and "dodgeball sound", which is made by slamming a metal beer keg with a baseball bat.
Along with this, they incorporate heavy, downtuned guitars and aggressive
growls with some occasional
grunge
Grunge (sometimes referred to as the Seattle sound) is an alternative rock Music genre, genre and subculture that emerged during the in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington, particularly in Seattle and Music of Olympia, Washington, O ...
-style bridges and choruses. Commenting on the album ''The Decline'' (2017), ''Ghost Cult Magazine'' stated that the band saw "their breed of brutalizing deathcore hybridized with riff-heavy
metalcore
Metalcore is a broadly defined fusion genre combining elements of extreme metal and hardcore punk, originating in the 1990s United States and becoming popular in the 2000s. Metalcore typically has aggressive verses and melodic choruses, combined ...
and more introspective lyrics that tackled suicidal ideation and substance abuse."
Band members
Current members
* Ben Hoagland – lead vocals
(2013–2019, 2020–present), guitar
(2013)
* Clayton Blue – guitar
(2022–present)
* Vince Alvarez – drums
(2024–present)
Former members
* Kip Treeman – guitar
(2014–2018), bass
(2018–2019, 2020–2024)
* Juan Hernandez III – guitar
(2016–2019, 2020–2024)
* Carl Schulz – guitar
(2019)
* Mac Rockwell – guitar / vocals
(2017–2018)
* Nick Mayhew – drums
(2017–2018)
* Rob Gibbs – drums
(2015–2018)
*
Joel Omans – guitar
(2013–2014, 2017)
* Riker Morrow – bass
(2013–2018)
* AJ Nussbaum – bass
(2013)
* Jonathan Chase – bass
(2013)
* Sky Collins – guitar
(2013–2014)
* Dylan Chandler – drums
(2013, 2013–2015), bass
(2013)
* Adam Prince – lead vocals
(2013)
* Dominic Guggino – drums
(2018–2019, 2020–2024)
* Jared (Crimewave) Suku – guitar
(2014–2017, 2020–2024)
Timeline
Discography
Studio albums
* ''The Decline'' (2017)
* ''Sever the Cord'' (2019)
* ''Devoid of Love & Light'' (2024)
EPs
* ''The Black Sheep'' (2014)
* ''Extortionist'' (2019)
* ''Devoid'' (2023)
References
External links
BandcampDreamwake Audio
*{{discogs artist
American deathcore musical groups
American nu metal musical groups
Metalcore musical groups from Idaho
Musical groups established in 2013
Musical groups from Idaho
Beatdown hardcore musical groups