Local metal men embark on a European tour this weekend

Apr 29 2010 by Chris Clements, Hamilton Advertiser

HAMILTON’S very own metal heroes Bleed From Within will release their second album on Tuesday – after a hugely successful launch night last weekend.

The five-piece will also play the first gig of their first-ever European tour tonight (Thursday) in Sittard, Holland.

The Lanarkshire lads have two more gigs this weekend in Holland before they move on to play in Bochum, Germany.

Other countries to be visited in the month-long tour include Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Austria, Slovenia, Italy, Spain, Portugal and Andorra.

Bleed From Within will then return to tour the UK, supporting Rising Records label-mates Trigger The Bloodshed.

They will then embark on a tour of Mexico in September.

Last Saturday, the launch of the group’s second album, Empire, was not a timid affair, as the group performed a blistering set – combining old and new material – in front of hundreds of fans at the Classic Grand in Glasgow.

They were ably supported by fellow metal acts The Casino Brawl, Paridian, She Sleeps Forever and Scordatura.

Yet despite the ever-increasing fanbase and plans for an Australian tour, Bleed From Within had humble beginnings, forming in 2005 when five like-minded teenagers started a band at Hamilton’s Universal Connections.

The band are David Lennon (21) on guitar, David Provan (22) on bass and drummer Ali Richardson (20), all from Hamilton. Alongside them are 21-year-old singer Scott Kennedy, of Larkhall, and Craig Gowans (21), from Stonehouse, on guitar.

Bleed From Within entered the studio for the first time in November 2005 to record the self-released five track EP 'In The Eyes of the Forgotten' which was then followed by 2007's 'Welcome to the Plague Year', released through Bath-based independent record label Four Aces.

They gained recognition outside their local scene with the release of their second EP leading to self-financed tours of the UK, Holland and Belgium.

The band signed a deal with Rising Records in the UK and Europe in early 2008, which saw them in the studio by the end of the year to record their first full-length album, Humanity – released in August last year.

Triumphant sets at last year’s Hammerfest and Download Festival to packed-out crowds have proven the band are more than capable of performing on the big stage.

With a growing fan base worldwide, they hope to conquer Europe’s metal scene with the aim to take their impressive live show further afield and play shows everywhere and anywhere they can.

Guitarist Craig Gowans told the Advertiser: “It’s quite mental. I was never expecting it to go this well. But you have to take your chances when you get them.

“We have definitely matured as a band and the music reflects that. The first album was Bleed From Within finding their feet. The second album is us finding our sound.

“There is a massive underground metal scene in Britain.

“It’s definitely growing, but we’re getting attention from lots of different countries.

“The metal fanbase is even bigger in places like Germany and other parts of mainland Europe, and we’re getting fans from there.”