Ruthless

The 1980's was an extremely busy and fertile time for heavy metal, as quite a few sub-genres first rose to prominence during this time, including thrash metal, hair metal, and power metal. And one of the unsung heroes/trailblazers for the latter style is Ruthless. Hailing from Los Angeles and responsible for two classics of the metal underground (the 1984 EP 'Metal Without Mercy' and 1986's full-length 'Discipline of Steel'), Ruthless is reloaded with a powerful new line-up, and a brand new full-length, 'They Rise,' which will be released on January 30, 2015.
Comprised of members Sammy D (vocals), Kenny McGee (guitars/vocals), Dave Watson (guitars), Marc McGee (bass/vocals), and Jason Van Slyke (drums), Ruthless' reunion was not a pre-planned proposition. After the band was invited to perform at the 2009 Keep It True Festival in Germany and handed in a kick ass performance, more concerts worldwide soon followed - including bills that included such metal legends as Armored Saint, Lizzy Borden, Saxon, Accept, and Paul Di'Anno. According to McGee, "This just kinda happened. Me and Sam were just thinking of doing some recordings...not even thinking Ruthless would ever happen again. But, after our new drummer, Jason, came down, the first practice, we went, 'Wow!!!' We fit together perfectly!"
"I threw out some guitar riffs and Sammy started singing, and we knew we had something. In 8 months we were ready to record. It came together naturally. The great thing about now is the line-up! All 5 of us are good friends and can actually hang out together. In the old line-up, we always had a member or two that was a problem. It is so awesome to be firing on all five cylinders."
And McGee is a firm believer in the new material (which was produced and engineered by Bill "Slayer, W.A.S.P., Armored Saint" Metoyer) - "I think this new album compares to the 'Metal Without Mercy' album. The opening song, 'Defender,' just kicks your ass! Second song, 'Laceration,' is very melodic/slow picking in the intro, and then kicks into a killer double harmony riff. Third song, 'They Rise,' is another favorite - heavy bass riff and guitars. It lifts you up and drops you down. Also, 'Time Waits' is a slower song with very emotional singing - Sammy tears it up on the vocals."
It turns out Watson agrees wholeheartedly with McGee's assessment. "The new songs came together really easily and quickly, the flow was quite natural. Kenny and I really play off of each well as guitar players, filling the gaps and keeping things interesting. Jason was exactly what the band needed to relaunch after a short hiatus and get the record done, with power, creativity and his great knowledge of rhythm."
With European festival appearances lined up for the summer and headline shows being arranged for Southern California (as well as talk of another studio set in the future), Ruthless is set to pick up exactly where they left off, warns McGee. "The one thing fans can expect is a high energy show that will crush some heads!"