Friday November 21, 2008
Biography
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In the beginning ...
MELIAH RAGE’s original lineup featured Nichols and Koury sharing guitar duties, Mike Munro on vocals, Jesse Johnson on bass, and Dowie on the drums. Nichols also served as the primary songwriter. Their powerful shows garnered a local following and helped put the Boston metal scene on the map.
Although determined in his mission of metal, Nichols spent a brief tour with the seminal Boston hardcore band, Gang Green. The association with the band would eventually pay off however, as it led to MELIAH RAGE’s official launch. "The manager for Gang Green took us in, Nichols recalls, and had two major labels look at us within a month. Epic signed us right away.
Epic Records signed MELIAH RAGE in 1988, and the group recorded their first album, entitled Kill to Survive. The debut melded the bands various influences, and was quite different from anything released at the time. Rather than relying on 2-dimensional, lightning riffing, the band used a more melodic, mid-tempo rhythm, injecting haunting lyrical material that revolved around the frailties of humanity hypocrisy, corruption, abuse.
MELIAH RAGE toured the US in 1989 with Metal Church, and a video for "Beginning of the End" aired on MTV worldwide. The tour of the United States included stops in over 50 cities, as well as over 40 venues overseas. The live EP Live Kill was recorded during this time in Detroit. In 1990, MELIAH RAGE recorded their second studio record for Epic, called Solitary Solitude, replete with a music video for "The Witching". After only a few years, the band had already played with metal heavyweights like Slayer, Megadeth, Testament, Manowar, Morbid Angel, and Nuclear Assault.
Unfortunately, the musical tide was changing. Grunge replaced metal as the dominant form of rock, and in 1992 MELIAH RAGE was dropped from Epic. The band rearranged their rhythm section, hiring Keith Vogele on bass and future Godsmack frontman/vocalist Sully Erna for the drums. The new lineup recorded demos and searched for a record deal, but the musical climate was unkind to the metal scene. Meanwhile, Nichols also worked on a side project, titled Cactus Land, with Koury and vocalist Paul Souza. Despite not landing a contract, Nichols collaboration with Souza would prove to be beneficial for the future.
In 1995, MELIAH RAGE reunited with Nichols, Koury, and Munro, while drummer Dave Barcos and former Wargasm bassist Bob Mayo were recruited to record Death Valley Dream. Released on indie Backstreet Records, the album was well received, and laid the groundwork for a full re-emergence for MELIAH RAGE.
