Martin Walkyier

Martin Walkyier (born 20 September 1967) is an English singer known for his involvement in the heavy metal bands Sabbat and Skyclad.Detlef Dengler: ''Martin Walkyier''. In: ''Metal Hammer'', February 2009, p. 129.

Biography

Walkyier was born on 20 September 1967 as the only child of Roy and Eve Walkyier. At the age of eight, he developed an interest in acting and poetry and began to play guitar. Inspired by bands like Witchfynde, he formed Hydra and later Sabbat with Fraser Craske.

Walkyier quit his job as a truck driver to dedicate more time to his music, despite the lack of a secure income. He left Sabbat in 1990 and returned to the music scene with Skyclad, a band that blended heavy metal with folk music and helped pioneer folk metal.

After the release of ten albums, Walkyier found himself financially strained. He later remarked, "The insight that you can't live on dreaming came too late. Unfair contracts, incompetent advisers, poor decisions, and my naivety nearly broke me. I felt like I was in a marriage, not divorced because of the children."

Following his departure from Skyclad, Walkyier took a job as a nightwatchman for a furniture store. He performed occasional concerts under the name Return to the Sabbat and started a company called Prick Tees, which designed and produced T-shirts.

Walkyier assisted bassist Iscariah when he relocated to England with his family. He arranged an apartment for Iscariah and secured a job for his wife. It took two years to organise everything before they could focus on Walkyier's new band: The Clan Destined.

During this time, Walkyier had to care for his frail mother and ill father while The Clan Destined faded into the background. According to Walkyier, Iscariah left without explaining his reasons and abandoned him. Nevertheless, he completed ''In the Big Ending'' but was disillusioned and announced it would be his last musical project. However, he promised his father on his deathbed that he would continue. (Roy Walkyier died in early 2007).

Martin Walkyier structured and arranged the music previously composed by Iscariah. The resulting album featured a DVD with a video for the song "A Beautiful Start to the End of the World," inspired by the novel ''Aimée und Jaguar''. According to ''Metal Hammer'' journalist Detlef Dengler, the video "is professional and looks very expensive"; however, Walkyier noted that "it cost almost nothing." He continued, "The Clan Destined consists of Pagans with a common life philosophy as artists, designers, and filmmakers."

Sabbat reformed in 2006 to play a series of well-received shows.

In late 2008, Walkyier completed the recordings for The Clan Destined's debut album and recorded vocals for Hell's debut album. "Hell and especially their singer Dave Halliday were my idols in the early 1980s. My friends all listened to Metallica, but I was drawn to bands with image and true personality. The theatrics of bands like Hell influenced me tremendously."

With Walkyier's friend Andy Sneap, also "a fanatic Hell supporter," they approached the remaining three members after Halliday's suicide and offered to help them as singer and guitarist, modernising the old songs.

Walkyier also provided guest vocals for Cradle of Filth and Forgodsake.

In 2008 and 2009, Walkyier announced he was working on a rock opera. The story, entitled ''Plugging Hellfire'', was published in ''Devolution'' magazine and illustrated by Neil Sims, with a biography contributed by Paul Stenning.

In October 2009, Walkyier announced that he was writing and recording new material for The Clan Destined.

Reception

The late ''Metal Hammer'' journalist Detlef Dengler described Walkyier as a "great lyricist" noted for his extensive vocabulary and "brilliant puns". Author Paul Stenning has referred to Walkyier as a "lyrical genius".Thrash Metal: A Seemingly Endless Time, Sabbat & Skyclad Chapters, Pg. 154 by Paul Stenning

Discography

With Sabbat

*''Blood for the Blood God'' EP, 1987
*''Stranger Than Fiction'' Demo, 1987
*''A Cautionary Tale/And the Brave Man Fails'' Split, 1988
*'' History of a Time to Come'' Full-length, 1988
*'' Dreamweaver'' Full-length, 1989
*''Wildfire/The Best of Enemies'' Single, 1989

With Skyclad

* '' The Wayward Sons of Mother Earth'' Full-Length 1991
* '' A Burnt Offering for the Bone Idol'' Full-Length 1992
* '' Tracks from the Wilderness'' EP 1992
* '' Jonah's Ark'' Full-Length 1993
* '' Thinking Allowed?'' Single 1993
* '' Prince of the Poverty Line'' Full-Length 1994
* '' The Silent Whales of Lunar Sea'' Full-Length 1995
* '' Irrational Anthems'' Full-Length 1996
* '' Oui Avant-Garde á Chance'' Full-Length 1996
* '' The Answer Machine?'' Full-Length 1997
* '' Outrageous Fourtunes'' Limited Edition EP 1998
* '' Vintage Whine'' Full-Length 1999
* '' Classix Shape'' Limited Edition EP 1999
* '' Folkémon'' Full-Length 2000
* ''Another Fine Mess'' Live Album 2001

With The Clan Destined

* ''In the Big Ending'' Demo 2006

Guest appearances

During Walkyier's career, he has made several guest vocal appearances such as:

* A verse in the Forgodsake song "Skyhigh" from the ''Blasthead'' album (1994)
* Guest vocals on Cradle of Filth's cover of the Sabbat track "For Those Who Died" on ''Midian'' (2000) and on the song "The Snake-Eyed and the Venomous" from the deluxe edition of ''Thornography'' (2006)
* Guest Vocals on Torsohorse song "Face To Face" from 2006 album ''No Going Back''
* Guest vocals on Skiltron's cover of the Running Wild track "Ballad of William Kidd" from the ''ReUnation – A Tribute to Running Wild'' album (2009)
* Verse on "Female Drugthing" on Pyogenesis' ''Love Nation Sugarhead EP'', Nuclear Blast 1997
* Guest vocals on Nepal's song "Besando la Tierra (segunda versión)" from 1997 album "Manifiesto"
* Guest vocals on Tuatha de Danann's "Rhymes Against Humanity" from their 2015 album ''Dawn of a New Sun'' and on the song "Your Wall Shall Fall" from their 2019 EP "The Tribes of Witching Souls".

References

External links

The Clan Destined homepage

{{DEFAULTSORT:Walkyier, Martin
English heavy metal singers
English male singers
Living people
1967 births