Russian Roulette

SEEKING

Vocalist - Bass, Vocalist, Vocalist - Baritone, Vocalist - Tenor, Vocalist - Soprano, Vocalist - Alto.

ABOUT

Walk into a music store today and have a look around. Lady Gaga and Eminem posters surround the walls while overcaffienated and underdeveloped kids line up in an orderly fashion to inquire about the latest Billy Talent album.

Now picture that same shop 20 years ago: long hair, biker jackets and tattoos on the bodies of real music lovers pushing and shoving their way to the store owner who holds in his hands the last available cassette of Pantera’s Cowboys From Hell while sipping on a bottle of Jack Daniels.

Those were the days when metal ruled and if you weren’t ready to clash and bash with the biggest dudes banging their heads in front of the stage, you didn’t deserve to be at the show. Such scenes are hard to find today, unless you’re rocking away at a Russian Roulette show somewhere in the Greater Toronto Area up in Southern Canada. If you miss the hard-hitting, angry, technical sound of real American heavy metal, you may just find what you’re looking for in this band.

The band exploded onto the Toronto underground scene some time in 2007 by playing as many shows as possible, no matter what time, date or venue. The strategy seemed to pay off as each show saw an increasing attendance of people wanting nothing more than to bang their heads and slam their bodies.

Russian Roulette’s takeover of the Southern Ontario’s underground music scene was inevitable, as the band demonstrated improved musicianship and stage presence with each show. Given the frequency of their performances, the enhanced quality of their performance was hard to ignore.

The band’s dedication paid off in a big way in 2009 with an opening slot for Threat Signal; another Canadian band hailing from the underground scene of Southern Ontario. Russian Roulette put on an energetic performance that was well-received despite the fact that the majority of attendees were seeing the band for the first time.

A second opportunity to showcase their skills came later that year as British reggae-metal sensation Skindred landed in Toronto for a much-anticipated show with Canadian rockers Mudmen. Despite lacking a debut album to pitch to show promoters, Russian Roulette was selected to kick off the night. Once again, they did not disappoint.

The band’s biggest show to date occurred in the summer of 2010 when they were invited to play a show at Dundas Square in the heart of Downtown Toronto. With attendance numbers in the thousands, Russian Roulette did not succumb to pressure as they pulled off yet another lively performance, leaving the stage accompanied by deafening screams from the crowd.

The secret recipe to Russian Roulette’s success could potentially be a deadly cocktail of American groove metal with two shots of hardcore punk shaken with a splash of alternative rock. Throw in an occasional cover of Drowning Pool’s Bodies and a metal bastardization of Cory Hart’s Sunglasses at Night, and it’s not hard to understand why the underground scene has been craving more of the band since their inception.

Their combinational of traditional metal anthems with melodic hooks and catchy choruses offer record labels a band with potential for mainstream radio while still catering to the anti-commercialistic views of old-school metalheads.