Hailing from the steel town of Cleveland, Ohio, DESTRUCTOR began their saga in 1984. Their debut album, 1985's Maximum Destruction, would soon become an underground classic, spreading their signature power-thrash overseas with a license to a then-young Roadrunner Records, and even garner the interest of Island Records back home. But tragedy would strike on New Year's Day 1988, when bassist Dave Holocaust was murdered by a complete stranger in the early morning hours; thereafter, the major label would pass on the record deal, and DESTRUCTOR struggled to stay the course for the next few years, eventually calling it quits in 1992.
Still, interest in the band continued to grow after their dissolution, and DESTRUCTOR would reunite in 1999. After new member Jamie Boulder, AKA Athenar of Midnight, joined in 2002, the band would record the album Sonic Bullet. Blasting their way into the future with the following releases Forever in Leather, EP Storm of Steel, Back in Bondage, and Decibel Casualties, DESTRUCTOR would find new life breathed into the band's fanbase worldwide. They'd eventually sign a new record deal in 2022 with longtime fans SHADOW KINGDOM, resulting in the release of high-point Blood, Bone, and Fire the next year.
Impossibly, DESTRUCTOR are set to eclipse that feat with their forthcoming sixth full-length, Tales of Glory. Whereas its not-inconsiderable predecessor aesthetically slotted next to their classic debut album, Tales of Glory displays DESTRUCTOR at their most epic: widescreen, HUGE, and just as powerful as ever. That the 10-song / 39-minute record seems more expansive than its compact runtime suggests is a testament to the band firing on all songwriting cylinders here.
"When we started writing for this next record, we worked as a team to write the best songs we could," reveals founding vocalist Dave Overkill. "This process included past members Nick Annihilator and Jamie Boulder / Athenar. Jamie approached me and asked if we could write some music together for old times' sake. [Guitarist] Mark Hellhound contributed two killer songs and co-wrote a third song with Jamie and me. [Bassist] Tim Hammer, who debuted a song on Blood, Bone, and Fire, contributed two songs for Tales of Glory, as well. And Matt Flammable came up with some of the best drum parts of his career."
It's not without good reason that Tales of Glory is titled as such: these songs take DESTRUCTOR's power-thrash closer to more traditional heavy metal as a whole, even dipping into anthemic speed metal, with a view toward making the experience as heroic and HEAVY as possible. With Dave Overkill giving perhaps the performance of his life, DESTRUCTOR succeed in keeping their signature sound whilst expanding its horizons - ones with all guns blazing and swords raised aloft!
"As I started writing lyrics for the album," Overkill continues, "I realized there was something cohesive about the flow. I wouldn't say Tales of Glory is a concept record, but my vision of it being a book of old telling some stories was the best way to present this new album." Thus, Tales of Glory is 100% DESTRUCTOR, and 100% mandatory for all true Metallers!
