Powermad is an American

thrash Thrash may refer to: *Thrashing (computer science), where increasing resources are used to do a decreasing amount of work * Thrash (surname) * Thrash, mascot of the Atlanta Thrashers *'' Thrash Rally'', a top-down perspective rally racing video ga ...

speed metal Speed metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music that originated in the late 1970s from new wave of British heavy metal (NWOBHM) roots.K. Kahn-Harris, ''Extreme Metal: Music and Culture on the Edge'' (Berg Publishers, 2007), , p. 31. It ...

band formed in Minneapolis in 1984. The group has been called an "innovative and often forgotten speed metal band...who infused progressive metal styles and European styles into abstract American speed metal." The band's intricate

riff A riff is a repeated chord progression or refrain in music (also known as an ostinato figure in classical music); it is a pattern, or melody, often played by the rhythm section instruments or solo instrument, that forms the basis or accompanim ...

formulations were heavily influenced by thrash metal acts like

Metallica Metallica is an American heavy metal band. The band was formed in 1981 in Los Angeles by vocalist/guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, and has been based in San Francisco for most of its career. The band's fast tempos, instru ...

and

Testament A testament is a document that the author has sworn to be true. In law it usually means last will and testament. Testament or The Testament can also refer to: Books * ''Testament'' (comic book), a 2005 comic book * ''Testament'', a thriller nov ...

. Vocalist Joel DuBay's singing is easily recognizable with his mixture of singing and high screams.

History

Powermad formed in 1984 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and released an EP with demos on

Combat Records Combat Records was an American independent record label founded in 1983 and based in New York City. The label specifically was for heavy metal and punk rock acts, Notable artist include: Megadeth, Circle Jerks, Nuclear Assault, OZ, Death ...

in 1986. They subsequently signed to

Reprise Records Reprise Records is an American record label founded in 1960 by Frank Sinatra. It is owned by Warner Music Group, and operates through Warner Records, one of its flagship labels. Artists currently signed to Reprise Records include Enya, Michael ...

and released ''The Madness Begins...'' in 1988. The release was mainly distributed via a promotional ad featured in some of the most popular metal magazines of the era. Readers were able to clip this ad and mail it in to Reprise for a free cassette copy of ''The Madness Begins...''. A video for the song "Terminator" was aired on MTV at this time. Their first and only full-length album until 2015, ''Absolute Power'', was released in 1989. Other than a US tour opening for Overkill, a video featured on MTV of their single "Nice Dreams" and a cameo appearance in the

David Lynch David Keith Lynch (born January 20, 1946) is an American filmmaker, visual artist and actor. A recipient of an Academy Honorary Award in 2019, Lynch has received three Academy Award nominations for Best Director, and the César Award for Be ...

film '' Wild at Heart'' (where they go from playing their own music to

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...

's with

Nicolas Cage Nicolas Kim Coppola (born January 7, 1964), known professionally as Nicolas Cage, is an American actor and film producer. Born into the Coppola family, he is the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Nicolas Cage, various ac ...

singing), Powermad never achieved notable commercial success. Their releases in the 1980s, however, were critically acclaimed and are considered collectors items today by fans of thrash and speed metal music. In 2007 Powermad resumed touring and started working on a new full-length CD to be released sometime in the future. On February 9, 2008, the band updated their blog on MySpace with a link to download ''The Madness Begins...'' and ''Absolute Power'' as unprotected mp3s – these have since been removed. On June 23, 2011, Powermad updated their official website with a new design, and an announcement. A new song called Souls Descending was released on their website, and it was made available for download (music video, ogg and mp3) and on YouTube. The downloads are not available anymore, but the video is still on their YouTube channel. In the same update back in 2011 Powermad also announced that

Dirk Verbeuren Dirk Verbeuren (born 8 January 1975) is a Belgian musician and the current drummer of American thrash metal band Megadeth, amongst other projects. He previously was a member of the Swedish melodic death metal band Soilwork. Verbeuren recorded f ...

is now the band's drummer. In late June 2015 the band announced their new proper Facebook page, and in October they announced a new website for their new album release. The record ''Infinite,'' was released on October 9, 2015. The tracks were recorded in various studios (666 Studio, Assembly Line Studios and Die Crawling Studio), and all lyrics are written by Joel DuBay. On the official ''Infinite''-website media (CD, vinyl and digital downloads), merchandise and bundles are made available for people in the US. People outside the US can order physical editions from Electric Fetus. In addition to ''Infinite'' on Electric Fetus, digital versions of ''The Madness Begins...'' and ''Absolute Power'' are also made available there. As of February 2020, Powermad has been working on new material for their third album.

Band members

Current

* Joel DuBay – vocals, guitar (1984–present) * Todd Haug – guitar (1984–present) * Jeff Litke – bass (1984–present) *

– drums (2011–present)

Former

* Bill Hill – guitar (1984) * Adrian Liberty – drums (1984–90) *

John Macaluso John Macaluso (born January 21, 1968) is an American drummer who has played for bands such as Ark, TNT, and Yngwie Malmsteen. Born in Commack, New York, Macaluso started playing drums at age 11. He has recorded over 200 records and played mu ...

– drums (1989) * Dodd Lowder – drums (2007–2011)

Discography

References

External links

Official website
* {{Authority control Heavy metal musical groups from Minnesota Musical groups established in 1984 Musical groups disestablished in 1990 Musical groups reestablished in 2007 American speed metal musical groups Musical quartets Century Media Records artists Combat Records artists Reprise Records artists