Bay Area heavy metal trio Hands Of Goro arises with their explosive eponymous debut LP, confirming the album for release March 1, and offering the lead single “Archduke Of Fear” alongside preorders and more.
Hands Of Goro formed in November 2016 with the shared desire to strike fear of the infamous half-man/half-dragon into the heart of humanity. Hailing from opposite sides of the pond, founding guitarist Tom Draper (Spirit Adrift, ex-Carcass and Angel Witch-live) and bassist Adrian Maestas (Slough Feg) conspired to form a band that would spearhead a sound known as the Third Wave Of British Heavy Metal (TWOBHM). In 2020, the two recruited drummer Avinash Mittur (Nite, Wretched Stench), completing the current lineup.
As society slowly re-emerged from pandemic life, Hands Of Goro set about simply recording two songs in the summer of 2021. Between unearthing old numbers and writing new ones though, the planned humble seven-inch grew into a menacing full-length, which now arrives as the band’s eponymous debut album. The eight songs on Hands Of Goro thunder with elements of anthemic, epic, traditional heavy metal with torrents of harmonized savagery and brief ventures into the likes of punk, classic rock, and more.
With evident intrinsic influence from their metal-fertile home region flowing through its veins, the beast writhes with a slightly whimsical originality that will attract a wide range of diehards from the more traditional realms of the heavy metal spectrum.
The shadow of the four-armed beast is cast. Goro will dominate over Earthrealm.
Hands Of Goro was recorded and produced by the band, captured at The Boatyard and Francisco Studios. The drums and guitars recorded in two secret rooms located on a dilapidated former naval base, and the vocals, bass and synthesizers tracked in an underground space right off the dirty streets of San Francisco’s Tenderloin district. Mixing and engineering was handled by the band’s Avinash Mittur, the tracks were mastered by Justin Weis at Trakworx Studio, and the album was completed with artwork by Christie Crapeticio and photography by Jehn Mickalacki and Raymond Ahner.
With the LP’s lead single, its closing track “Archduke Of Fear,” Draper reveals, “Musically this song is a tour of everything I love about classic heavy metal guitar playing, with pretty blatant nods to Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Megadeth, and Black Sabbath to name a few. When we play it live, the guitar solo and breakdown section is left deliberately loose and unplanned and can go on for quite a while… but I’m very happy with the version that ended up on the album.”
Mittur states, “After jamming on some older songs with Tom and Adrian, ‘Archduke Of Fear’ was the first new tune that we completed together as the present lineup of Hands Of Goro. I spent much of the pandemic learning how to play drums in a more classic heavy metal style, and ‘Archduke’ turned out to be the perfect proving ground for that.”
Maestas adds, “Goro strikes fear into the masses he oversees as part of his duty to Shang Tsung. His presence in their community is a constant reminder that they are powerless against the chaos and turmoil of Outworld. There is no hope, only Goro.”
Hands Of Goro will see release March 1 on the band’s own BSP Records digitally and on vinyl. Preorder on Bandcamp.
Tracklisting:
“Prince Of Shokan”
“Demonizer”
“Uncanny”
“21st Century Plague”
“You Have No Face”
“Waste Of Blood”
“End To End”
“Archduke Of Fear”
“Archduke Of Fear”:
Having demonstrated their craft live supporting the likes of Slough Feg, Raven, Charger, and others over the past year or so, Hands Of Goro is plotting new live excursions in support of the album including a hometown record release show and more.
Hands Of Goro:
Tom Draper – Guitars, Backing Vocals, Synths
Avinash Mittur – Drums, Backing Vocals
Adrian Maestas – Bass, Lead Vocals, Synths
(Photo – Jehn Mickalacki)
